I recently got to go on my own little "Midweek Escape". We went to San Diego, in search of relaxation and craft beer (hey, we're beer geeks!). See, in my non-writing life, I have a big local Art Show that I've been putting together and I really needed a breather before crunch time. This escape was just that...I napped every day, and we took it easy. In between naps, we went to local breweries and even a distillery.
The first day we were there, we toured the USS Midway, which was much bigger than I expected, and very fascinating. On the flight deck above, there were audio files of personal accounts from each previous pilot of the planes. I got to sit in the cockpit of one of them. My favorite part of the USS Midway tour was the kitchens though. I've seen cruise ship kitchens, and these kitchens were extremely small comparatively. It's amazing to think they were able to feed so many men every day.
On our second day, we took the ferry to Coronado Island and went to Coronado Brewing Company. I highly recommend them. The food and atmosphere were amazing. Also, I could smell the barley when we walked in, which smells like baking bread. It's a working brewery. That night, we had dinner at The Westside Tap House, and a nightcap at the Stone Tasting Room in the Gaslamp District.
On our third day we drove to Stone Brewery in Escondido. I've been to Stone a few times, but he had never been and is quite a fan of their product. We got to take the tour (which only cost $3), and have 5 generous samples of their product. Afterwards, we had a great dinner in their garden area. Stone Brewery should be on any foodie's list when traveling near Escondido.
The next day, we toured a local distillery, and got a HUGE surprise. As we were the only two on the tour at the time, the owner told us he was going to take us to a special tasting area. Well... I probably shouldn't give it away, but suffice it to say that not all the walls in the room were real walls! We were pretty impressed, not only by the tricky architecture, but also by the liquors we tasted and the science that goes into distilling. After that, we had to drive home back to Vegas.
Funny enough, most people come to Vegas for an escape, but we had to leave it to escape.
See you on the road!
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Title: Steele and Stone
Series and Book #: The Daring Hearts series, Book 1
Author/pen name: Kay Phoenix
Genre: Contemporary Romance
Publisher: The Wild Rose Press
Date of Publication: November 2, 2016
ASIN: B01LYUQ75N
Number of pages: 133
Word Count: 42,000
Blurb:
Elle Thompson was raised in Denver. She paints. She hikes. She knows how to avoid cougar attacks.
The only cougars Michael Williams usually worries about are the ones that wear leopard print leggings on 5th Avenue.
But, when his acquisition firm sets its sights on Elle's family business, his tidy life goes awry. As things unravel, so do all his preconceived notions of love and what makes a perfect partner.
The only cougars Michael Williams usually worries about are the ones that wear leopard print leggings on 5th Avenue.
But, when his acquisition firm sets its sights on Elle's family business, his tidy life goes awry. As things unravel, so do all his preconceived notions of love and what makes a perfect partner.
Buy link:
Excerpt:
“So, how are you feeling today?” a familiar voice asked behind him. He didn’t have to turn to know who it was, but he turned anyway, temporarily forgetting about his sunburn until he saw the shocked expression on her face.
“Whoa! No sunblock either? I had some, you could have asked,” she giggled. “That’ll peel for sure.”
Blue! Brilliant, shimmering blue eyes. He hadn’t seen her eyes during their hike, as they’d been hidden behind sunglasses the whole time, and he’d always been a sucker for blue eyes. Her blonde hair hung long, loose and wavy as she leaned casually against the doorframe.
“I see you’ve already made yourself quite at home,” she said. “Randall told me he let you use the conference room.”
“What are you doing here?” he asked in a tone that sounded a bit too firm.
“Oh, no ‘How are you?’ or ‘Nice to see you?’” She tilted her head to the side, causing a loose curl to graze her breast.
He turned back to the coffee. “I didn’t mean to sound rude. You just surprised me.”
Author bio:
Ms. Phoenix is a rare bird herself...a lifelong resident of Las Vegas, Nevada. She belongs to Las Vegas Romance Writers and has served on the board for several years. She is also a member of Romance Writers of America with PAN status.
Prior to writing, Kay was a Graphic Artist for fifteen years in the casino industry and holds degrees in both Graphic Arts and Psychology. In her spare time she enjoys hiking, traveling and photography. She is also involved in several Las Vegas non-profits, and is the current Chairman of a popular, long-running, local art show.
Kay has been blessed to be able to travel many places, which inspired her to host a weekly author spotlight called “Midweek Escapes” on her blog. It features guest author’s favorite vacation destinations, their travel tips, and, of course, information about their book releases and occasional giveaways.
Author website and social media links:
I love Escondido. My 97 year old Grandma lives in Fallbrook, about 30 minutes away, so we get to many places like Escondido, Oceanside and San Diego when we visit her. She's pretty spry for almost a century and comes along :)
ReplyDeleteIt's so nice there. And, the weather was perfect a few weeks ago (probably always is!).
ReplyDelete