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JoAnne Gelowitz
JoAnne Gelowitz

JoAnne Gelowitz

traveled in 6 countries Read more🇨🇦Lumsden
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  • JoAnne GelowitzThe Road to OsoyoosTraveler
    The hair wreath
    Lots of flowers still blooming nicely.

    Things around Osoyoos

    October 5, 2024 in Canada ⋅ ☁️ 13 °C

    We did a bit of wandering around Osoyoos. I did a short visit to the museum. They had a lot of interesting artifacts. The most interesting one was a hair wreath. It is actually a wreath made of hair. Hair wreaths were usually made of a person's hair to honour them after they passed.
    We also strolled a park that overlooks swiws Provincial Park. A nice way to end a busy day. Tomorrow we start heading back home.    Read more

  • JoAnne GelowitzThe Road to OsoyoosTraveler

    Nk'mip Cultural Centre

    October 5, 2024 in Canada ⋅ ☁️ 19 °C

    Later in the afternoon we took a drive to Nk'mip Cultural Centre. Nk'mip is the indigenous name for this desert. At the centre we learned about the indigenous people of this area and how they are preserving their culture. I was quite struck by the statues that led to their trails. The animals looked so real and some were hidden. I think I found them all but I can't be sure.
    The cultural center is part of a bigger complex. There is a rather large resort, vineyards, wine cellars, and a restaurant that specializes in highlighting local indigenous food. It is quite the operation.
    We wandered around the area for quite a while. I tried very hard to walk on the trails but turned around because I'm pretty sure I heard rattle snakes. We were there at the warmest part of the day and there were signs out alerting people that were snakes in the area. Yuch, couldn't do it. I'm pretty sure cowboy boots are to keep your ankles from being bit.    Read more

  • JoAnne GelowitzThe Road to OsoyoosTraveler
    View from the peninsula.
    So many orchards.The end of the peninsula.View of the peninsula from a park in Osoyoos.

    swiws Provincial Park

    October 5, 2024 in Canada ⋅ ☁️ 16 °C

    Nope that title is not a typo. That is the word the indigenous people use to describe this area. This provincial park is on the edge of Osoyoos. Swiws means a place where it is shallow or narrow in the middle of the lake. The park is a peninsula that juts out into the Osoyoos Lake. It is quite small and we walked through pretty much the whole thing. Pretty much just campsites, with most beside the lake. Poison ivy is rampant there so we now know what it looks like. We had a nice walk on nice warm afternoon.Read more

  • JoAnne GelowitzThe Road to OsoyoosTraveler

    Spotted Lake

    October 5, 2024 in Canada ⋅ ☁️ 9 °C

    We started the day by taking a drive in the area. Our first stop today was Spotted Lake. This lake is sacred to the Okanagan indigenous people. It is high in minerals. When the water in the lake evaporates it leaves small pools of mineral filled water. The lake is not open to the public but it can be seen from a viewpoint off the highway. Although we are in Canada and in the mountains this area really feels like we are in different country.
    We continued on and did a little one hour loop back to Osoyoos. It was a nice way to start a day of exploring.    Read more

  • JoAnne GelowitzThe Road to OsoyoosTraveler
    This was taken outside but it was pretty much the view from our room in Nelson.
    The park beside our hotel.Brilliance Rest Area pic 1Brilliance Rest Area pic 2Car outside of the Copper EagleOur lunch spotRandom shopSome Greenwood Halloween decorationsFirst view of Osoyoos.The last hairpin turn before Osoyoos. There were quite a few after Greenwood.

    Nelson to Osoyoos

    October 4, 2024 in Canada ⋅ ☀️ 9 °C

    Today we drove from Nelson to Osoyoos. We made two memorable stops.
    The first was a rest stop called Brilliance a half hour out of Nelson. It had a beautiful view of the Kootenay River.
    The second stop was in a small town called Greenwood. A young lady in Kimberly suggested we stop at the Copper Eagle Bakery. It was a good suggestion. Ger had homemade soup for lunch and I bought a loaf of sour dough bread for our breakfasts for the next couple of days. The town, like many towns in BC, had a quirky charm about.
    Got to Osoyoos about mid afternoon. We spent the rest of the afternoon familiarizing ourselves with the area. Everyone we have talked to that lives here seems to be very proud of the warm temperatures here. More about Osoyoos tomorrow.    Read more

  • JoAnne GelowitzThe Road to OsoyoosTraveler

    The Drive Along Kootenay Lake

    October 3, 2024 in Canada ⋅ ☁️ 9 °C

    Today was our leisurely drive along Kootenay Lake. It was much more enjoyable than the last time. However, the drive was reminding both of us of our CAA approved scenic drive along Lake Superior. In both cases the lake and the view are spectacular but can't usually see it because of the trees. But I'm not complaining.
    Our first stop was at Kaskanook Harbour for a little walk around. There was a wooden tipi on the beach. It was very beautiful and of course a nice clear view of the lake. Just past the rest stop there was a tourist attraction called the Glass House. We didn't go in, just took a picture from the outside.
    The next stop was Crawford Bay. We wanted to see the place Dani and Chris went for their their first honeymoon. It's a cute little artisan town that is very close to the Kootenay ferry. Most of the shops were closed with only a handful being opened. The Broom Shop is the one place Dani suggested we go see and it was still open. So we went to see what that was all about. It was full of handmade brooms, many were functional and some were decorative. The brooms are made with grasses imported from Central America. These brooms reminded me of the broom my Vietnamese hairstylist uses to sweep up the hair cuttings. And yes I bought a broom.
    Last stop on this part of our journey is the ferry to take us across Kootenay Lake so we can go to the Ainsworth Hot Springs.    Read more

  • JoAnne GelowitzThe Road to OsoyoosTraveler

    Basasak

    October 2, 2024 in Canada ⋅ ☀️ 14 °C

    We are staying overnight in Creston. Tomorrow we will drive along to Kootenay Lake. We did this drive when the kids were quite young. However, we wanted to catch a ferry and drove quickly along the lake. It looked beautiful but it went by fast. Tomorrow we plan to see it at a more leisurely pace. And that is why we are staying in Creston, so we can get up and take in the beauty of that drive without time constraints.
    Creston feels to me like a working town, not a tourist town. A little bit dingy but still nice because it is surrounded by orchards. We decided to go to a Korean restaurant, Basasaks, for supper. We got there and we were pleasantly surprised with the atmosphere. Very tastefully decorated with jazz music playing.
    Ger wanted to try their Korean fried chicken. I picked bibimbab. Both were delicious and we have enough leftovers for breakfast tomorrow. We hadn't planned on having this nice of meal. I'm glad I took pictures of this one.    Read more

  • JoAnne GelowitzThe Road to OsoyoosTraveler

    Marysville Falls/Kimberly

    October 2, 2024 in Canada ⋅ ☀️ 11 °C

    Ger has been asking since we started the trip if I want to go to Kimberly. We had been there before and really didn't feel like I wanted to. It was a 'been there done that kind' of feeling. The downtown area is German/Austrian themed and is cool but I didn't feel I wanted to see it again.
    As we were driving I looked up things to do around Cranbrook. The top suggestion was Maryville Falls. Sounded nice and worth a look see. As we were getting close to the turn off I realized the falls were off the same highway that goes to Kimberly and it was pretty close to Kimberly. Turns out the falls were on the edge of a town called Marysville, which is considered part of Kimberly. We went to see the falls and then decided to go and see the downtown area which is actually in Blarchmont, another town that is considered Kimberly.

    The falls were beautiful!! And the downtown area is still touristy cute.    Read more

  • JoAnne GelowitzThe Road to OsoyoosTraveler

    Charmed Resorts

    October 2, 2024 in Canada ⋅ ☁️ 5 °C

    While looking around at the shops in Fort MacLeod we had a nice chat with one of the shopkeepers. When we told her where we were going she suggested we should take a drive around Charmed Resorts. That they have fairy tale themed cabins. It was only an hour away and right off the highway. She highly recommended a stay there but it really didn't fit into the timeline since I had already booked places for the next couple of nights.
    However, on our way to Creston we decided to find the place and take a look around. It was right off the highway but the signage was crappy. When we finally found the place it looked like it was being redeveloped. Then we found a lot of tiny homes and a lot of RV camping. We decided that we had about enough and turned around to leave. On our way out we found the fairy tale themed cabins. The place on a whole really didn't look inviting but those cabins did look cool!    Read more

  • JoAnne GelowitzThe Road to OsoyoosTraveler

    Head Smashed In Buffalo Jump

    October 1, 2024 in Canada ⋅ 🌬 20 °C

    Today's sight to see was Head Smashed In Buffalo Jump. We have been in this area a number of times but we've never stopped here. I'm glad we decided to add this stop to our trip. Head Smashed In Buffalo Jump is an UNESCO world heritage site. It's pretty awesome that there is a sight with this designation in western Canada. We went out to see the cliff. It was crazy windy again today. I couldn't stand still enough to take pictures so the outdoor pictures are Get's.
    The exhibition explains the significance of the buffalo to the Blackfoot people. How dependant these people were on the buffalo for food, to make tools and to make clothing and tipis. Every part of the buffalo was used and the people were grateful to the creator for providing them with the buffalo. A video explains how the buffalo herd was forced over a cliff to kill the herd and provide food to the tribe for the winter. It was quite a complicated process and they had a great knowledge of the forces of nature and of the buffalo in order to convince the buffalo to jump over the cliff.
    This process was done over and over again for 6000 years. The buffalo never disappeared. Then the British came...how many times have I said that in my blogs? The British killed the buffalo for sport, for show and to make fur coats. They almost wiped out the species. A few buffalo were taken to Montana and bred. If it wasn't for this act the buffalo would have been extinct. Slowly buffalo are being reintroduced to back to the Canadian wilderness.    Read more

  • JoAnne GelowitzThe Road to OsoyoosTraveler

    Liebenthal

    September 30, 2024 in Canada ⋅ 🌬 14 °C

    As we made our way from the Sand Hills to Medicine Hat we passed through the town of Liebenthal. It's not really a town, more of hamlet. It had a really nicely kept up church. We had to stop to take pictures because there was an interesting looking museum for me and a nicely kept graveyard and chapel for Ger. Sadly, the museum was closed. I really would have liked to go and see it. It had its own unique appeal. Ger is thinking that Liebenthal is German for love valley. Glad we stopped to take pictures.Read more

  • JoAnne GelowitzThe Road to OsoyoosTraveler

    Great Sand Hills Route

    September 30, 2024 in Canada ⋅ 🌬 13 °C

    Today we traveled from Saskatoon to Medicine Hat. Since we were in the area we decided to go see the Great Sand Hills. We've viewed the Sand Hills from Bald Butte in Cypress Hills but have never actually been there. We were on the northern portion where the dunes meet the ranchland. The area we were on was private land owned by the Sand Hills Stockman's Association but it was open to the public. There were some trails, so we went for a little walk onto the dunes. It was so windy. We got a bit sand blasted. I crouched down to take a picture and the wind blew me over. That gave me the opportunity to experience the sand hill up close and personal. As I write this post I am still chewing on sand.

    I have an added bit more to this post. We stopped for our overnight stay in Medicine Hat. Our first stop was supper at Papi's. It was roadhouse type food and was very good. Sorry, I should have taken pictures because the food looked great but I didn't. On the way out I noticed a painting of the wooden arch with the cowboy boots nailed to it. It was the same arch that we saw at the Sand Hills. Turns out that the guy who was the rancher that took care of the area for Sand Hill Stockman's Association was the owner of the restaurant. The arch was erected in his honour.

    Also, there was a wood stove from Scotland in the front entrance to the restaurant. Very cool. Didn't notice it going in. I must have been hungry.

    Also, also, I added a video with our room. It's pretty nice. Especially for the price we paid. I was expecting just a bed and a bathroom.    Read more

  • JoAnne GelowitzDDD The Road TripTraveler

    Our Place in Rapid City

    May 20, 2024 in the United States ⋅ ☁️ 10 °C

    The house we stayed in at Rapid City was the best out of the three. I was so disappointed with the place in Sioux Falls that I didn't even make a post for it.
    However, this was a cute little house with lots of renos, and enough room for us to spread out and relax. And if we weren't relaxed enough we could take a dip on the hot tub. Nice place.
    I took the pictures on the last day and didn't get pictures of the bedrooms.    Read more

  • JoAnne GelowitzDDD The Road TripTraveler
    Oxtail GyozaFurikake SaladBison Broth RamenVeggie Shoyu RamenMushroom RamenSome of the toysThere were statues on pretty much every street corner in downtown Rapid City

    Bokujo

    May 18, 2024 in the United States ⋅ ☀️ 18 °C

    After another day of sight seeing we stopped at our last DDD restaurant. This one is owned by Justin Warner of Food Network fame. He doesn't have his own show but has roles on some of the shows. Most notably he is one of the commentators on Tournament of Champions.
    This is a Ramen restaurant. It is decorated heavily with Japanese toys, these are called gashapons. The food was good. The service was very good. The decor a little weird. It was a good to have some soup for a change.    Read more

  • JoAnne GelowitzDDD The Road TripTraveler
    1/34 scale model
    21/300 scale model

    Crazy Horse

    May 18, 2024 in the United States ⋅ ⛅ 15 °C

    Not too much to say about this place. We saw it about 25 years ago and they are still working on it. The people working on it will not take federal money so it is a slow process. The original artist left detailed instructions for future generations to complete the work. From the viewing station you can see all the equipment and scaffolding being used. For me the hand is new and you can see where they have roughly sketched out the horse.Read more

  • JoAnne GelowitzDDD The Road TripTraveler
    Mammoth tusksGiant Short Snout BearNapoleon - the oldest and most intact mammothMammoth skulls with tusks intact. That's unusual.

    The Mammoth Site, Hot Springs, SD

    May 18, 2024 in the United States ⋅ ☀️ 17 °C

    The Mammoth Site is an archeological site filled with the bones/skeltons of many mammoths. 140,000 years ago it was a sink hole filled with water and surrounded by grass. Mammoth and other animals would go to get a drink of water and then slide into the sink hole, unable to get out. Eventually the hole filled with sediment, covering the hole.
    In 1974 the area was being cleared to start a development. A mammoth tusk was scraped. The developer realized they had found something special and stopped the work. Archeologists eventually realized that area was filled with the remains of of many animals, primarily mammoth.
    The building we toured is built around the dig. We learned a lot about mammoths.    Read more

  • JoAnne GelowitzDDD The Road TripTraveler

    Wall Drug

    May 17, 2024 in the United States ⋅ ☀️ 29 °C

    Wall Drug is a shopping experience like no other. It started as a drug store in 1931 and grew into the emporium it is today. We got there at about 6 in the evening and only had half an hour until things started closing for the evening. It definitely was not enough time to show Brenda, Bryce and Maryann the the uniqueness of this shopping experience.
    Just a final note. We travelled the I-90 from Sioux Falls across most of South Dakota to get there and saw over 100 billboards advertising it.    Read more

  • JoAnne GelowitzDDD The Road TripTraveler

    Dignity of Earth and Sky

    May 17, 2024 in the United States ⋅ ☀️ 30 °C

    So I was standing by my phone and I said South Dakota. A post on Facebook came up with a picture of this statue. I looked up the location and found that it is located at a rest stop on the I-90. Since that is the highway between Sioux Falls it became a must see. We stopped to see the 50 foot statue and it was spectacular.

    Here is some info from the Travel South Dakota website.

    She wears a garment patterned after a traditional two-hide dress of the 1850s. One of the statue’s most striking features is her outstretched star quilt — a symbol of respect, honor and admiration in Native American culture. The quilt’s 128 stainless steel diamonds feature color-changing pieces that glitter in the sun and move with the wind, creating a rippling effect. At night, LED lights cause the diamonds to illuminate the dark sky, casting a peaceful glow that’s easily visible from the interstate.

    She casts a peaceful gaze across the waters of the Missouri River. During the day, the South Dakota wind brushes the diamonds in her star quilt, causing blue shades to twinkle in the sunlight. At night, she stands illuminated and strong. She is Dignity.    Read more

  • JoAnne GelowitzDDD The Road TripTraveler

    Corn Palace, Mitchell

    May 17, 2024 in the United States ⋅ ☀️ 29 °C

    Today was a day of heavy sight seeing, do these posts will be short. The Corn Palace, located in Mitchell, SD, is the auditorium for the city. The outside of the building is covered in murals using different coloured corn cobs. The auditorium has corn cob murals too! They were getting ready for a the high school graduation this weekend. The palace is redecorated every year. Mural designs are created by Dakota Wesleyan University students enrolled in Digital Media and Design courses under the guidance of Associate Professor, Kyle Herges.Read more

  • JoAnne GelowitzDDD The Road TripTraveler
    BLTAMushroom pineapple pizzaChicken ranch sandwichTomato soup

    Look's Marketplace

    May 17, 2024 in the United States ⋅ ☀️ 24 °C

    This is the place that started the planning for this trip. Sometime during the winter I was watching Diners Drive-ins and Dives. They were doing a bit about this place in Sioux Falls South Dakota. That show doesn't usually go to many if any places that are driving distance from us. I saw this place and wanted to go, so a trip was planned and here we are. It's a pretty big place. They smoke their own meat and make a variety of sausages.
    As you go through the doors you walk into a marketplace selling deli meat, fresh fish, some hard to find groceries, some fancy cheeses and a little bit of fresh fruit and veggies. And a bit of merch. You walk through all that to a rather large restaurant. It gave me Fuddrukkers vibes with the way it worked. We got there at lunch time and ordered some food and took in the atmosphere. I forgot to mention they have their own bakery and make sour dough bread and pizza crusts. We got our fill of yummy sandwiches and left to travel on to Rapid City.    Read more

  • JoAnne GelowitzDDD The Road TripTraveler

    Sioux Falls Park

    May 17, 2024 in the United States ⋅ ☀️ 22 °C

    These falls are the namesake for Sioux Falls. It's a beautiful park with very pretty falls. The ruins around the falls are an old flour mill. Walking around the park was a nice way to start our day of sight seeing.Read more

  • JoAnne GelowitzDDD The Road TripTraveler
    The Messy Bowl
    The Chislic Stir FryThe BensonThe Chislic Entree SaladThe Original 1870

    Urban Chislic, Sioux Falls

    May 16, 2024 in the United States ⋅ ⛅ 22 °C

    Today the DDD choice was the Urban Chislic. Chislic is deep fried cubed meat. The origins go back to the 1870's where meat was fried and served with saltine crackers. Ger ordered a dish based on the original.
    The overall group consensus is that this was simply bar food served in a loud sports bar. It was good but nothing really spectacular. It's late and maybe we're are a bit tired. It's been a busy day.    Read more

  • JoAnne GelowitzDDD The Road TripTraveler
    Not really porta potties. Just doors that look that way.Check out all the different flavours of pop!?!So much candy!!!The ceilings had different themesThese are life sizeThe candy band

    Minnesota's Largest Candy Store

    May 16, 2024 in the United States ⋅ ☀️ 20 °C

    For our trip from Minneapolis to Sioux Falls we decided to not take the interstate highway. Shortly out of Minneapolis we saw signs for Minnesota's Largest candy store and decided to stop when we saw it. The place is huge and full of pretty much any kind of candy you can think of, with some salty snacks added in for good measure. Then there is the all the decor. My pictures do not show the size of this place accurately. All I could say as I walked through is "This is place is insane." Here are quotes from everyone else about their thoughts on this insanely big candy store.
    Bryce - Overwhelming and not for the faint of heart. So much to eat, so little time. Took my breath away. A dentist's nightmare.
    Brenda - Sinfully delicious
    Maryanne - Unbelievable
    Gerardo - Esthetically pleasing and diabetically dangerous    Read more

  • JoAnne GelowitzDDD The Road TripTraveler
    The iconic Spoon and Cherry
    Woodrow - made of bronze but looks like woodBlack Vessel for a SaintHare and BellHahn/CockHephaestus - the Greek god of fireHand for Minneapolis -very new. Made of sculpted brick.Without Words

    Minneapolis Sculpture Garden

    May 16, 2024 in the United States ⋅ ☀️ 14 °C

    The Sculpture Garden was our first sight seeing stopof the day. We went there when the kids were small and I loved the place. There were lots of huge sculptures in a nicely manicured park/garden. It's pretty much the same layout. Some of the sculptures have been moved around and some new ones added. There really are no more gardens as they have changed the grounds to native plants. We all enjoyed the stroll through the park and trying to figure out the meaning behind the art. It was a great way to start the day.Read more

  • JoAnne GelowitzDDD The Road TripTraveler
    Smoky and Mommy, Poppin' Pear and a beerKorean Fried Chicken Wings and Feel No PainShrimp and Vegetable Pancake"Hwe Dup Bap" Cured Salmon Rice BowlStone Bowl BibimbapThere's no tipping, instead a surcharge is added to your billThe menu

    Kim's

    May 15, 2024 in the United States ⋅ ☁️ 22 °C

    Today's DDD stop was a Korean restaurant called Kim's. Technically it is not a Diners Drive-ins and Dives place. The owner Ann Kim has a pizza place, Lola's, that we have been to a couples of times. That restaurant serves wood fired pizza that is super yummy. Lola's has been on DDD.
    Jer discovered that she has four restaurants in Minneapolis, one being Kim's, a restaurant that serves food reflecting her Korean heritage.
    Since we are on a DDD tour we didn't get cleaned up before we went because you know it's just a diner. This is definitely not a diner but a trendy restaurant, so we were a little under dressed. It was super busy, which is always a good sign. After a small wait we got a table and proceeded to figure out what all the words on the menu meant.
    Alcoholic drinks at our table were a beer and a green drink named Smoky and Mommy. That drink was a mix of mezcal, melon liquor, grapefruit and lime. And there were two zero proof drinks. I always appreciate a restaurant that serves a good nonalcohol cocktail. For that we had a Poppin' Pear, made with fermented pears, and a Feel No Pain, a very fruity drink served in a very cool pineapple glass.
    Then were the starters, Korean Fried Chicken Wings, which were nice and spicy and very crispy, and a Shrimp and Vegetable Pancake. All were tasty and there were no scraps. Then came the mains, Stone Bowl Bibimbap and Hwe Dup Bap Cured Salmon Rice Bowl. The Bibimbap was delicious. A super hot stone bowl that crisped up the bottom of the rice topped with veggies and beef bulgogi. The Salmon Rice Bowl was like deconstructed sushi. It was very fresh and it too was delicious. There was so much food that we will be having reheated Bibimbap for breakfast.
    An interesting fact is that this restaurant charges a 21% surcharge to your bill. This is to replace a tip. The servers are supposed to be receiving a liveable wage. This surcharge is to pay for their wage. However, the money doesn't go directly to the staff. It just goes towards the operating costs of the business. My question is why don't they just charge 21% more for each item and then tell people not to leave a tip? Something is just not sitting right with me about this. Our server was super awesome so we left a tip anyways.    Read more

  • JoAnne GelowitzDDD The Road TripTraveler

    Shopping Day

    May 15, 2024 in the United States ⋅ ☁️ 21 °C

    Today we went shopping. First stop was the Mall of America. It is thriving. Lots of people shopping but it's not overcrowded. It is still a great place to do some major damage to the bank account.
    Next we moved on to Albertville Premium Outlets. Wow! What a change. I would venture to guess that almost half of the shops are empty. However, there are still good deals to be had. Everyone purchased things they needed and/or wanted. I think Mary Ann won the "who got the best deals award" for the day.
    Just got pictures of the rides at the Mall of America.    Read more

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