Saturday, August 26th was a great day for us! We were meeting up with three friends for the day in Buffalo. Jack and Marty we hadn’t seen since their marriage in Orlando 23 years ago, and Zephyr we hadn’t seen since we set out on our road trip 2 1/2 years ago, shortly before he moved to Buffalo. So this was a day we had been looking forward to for the almost-year since we had planned this portion of our trip.
We started by meeting them for lunch at Duff’s Famous Wings. Jack had highly recommended their food, but to be honest I think Cindy and I were so excited to see them all again that we didn’t really pay much attention to the food. It was just so much fun to sit and talk with them again after so many years.
Then we drove over to an antique emporium and Zephyr did a little shopping, buying a table and chair set that he liked and Marty found a lamp he bought while Cindy and I walked around in awe of what was on display. This was a former large department store like Penny’s or Macy’s, but had been converted into a place full of different wares from different sellers. Furniture mostly but also home decor, books (YES!), DVD’s, CD’s, 33 LP’s, magazines, comic books (YES!), toys and just about anything else you might imagine. I was tempted by quite a few things, but we really don’t have room in Nomad for more things right now so I did not give in to the temptation. Get thee behind me Satan, lol!
After that little bit of retail therapy, we dropped Jack off at his and Marty’s house so he could prepare us all a fabulous dinner while Marty took the rest of us on a tour of Buffalo and the Inner Harbor. Marty, who was a long-time resident, was so damned knowledgeable about the various buildings, neighborhoods and history of the city that Cindy and I were amazed.
Then it was back to the Inner Harbor for a sunset tour cruise. This was a nice boat ride around the harbor and out past the breaker rocks, topped off by Mother Nature providing a gorgeous sunset for us to enjoy from the water. As usual, the only downside was the rudeness of entitled people and their little progeny who have not been taught common courtesy. I was stopped from throwing them overboard by Cindy, but just barely, lol!
We returned to Jack and Marty’s for a fabulous dinner that Jack, who may well be a world-class chef, had created for us. Peposo is a traditional Tuscan beef stew made with garlic, black pepper and a whole bottle of red wine which Jack served with polenta, a dish of boiled corn meal that Zephyr referred to as “Italian grits” while we piled it on our dishes, lol.
What followed was a wonderful two hours of delicious food and delightful conversation, wrapped up by a luscious dessert of lemon sorbet and vanilla ice cream. The time passed much too quickly, but we finally had to say farewell to Jack, Marty and Zephyr. We needed to get back to the campground for poor Bella’s sake. We’re pretty sure this was the longest stretch of time we had ever left her alone, but she was a very good girl.
Sunday we relaxed for the most part. I took Voyager to fill her up with gas, picked up a dozen Tim Horton donuts (LOVE those donuts!) and we got most things packed up for our departure the next day.
This stop has been one of our favorites; from getting to enjoy Niagara Falls for the first time to being able to see three of our friends for the first time in a long time, we truly will remember this part of our journey for a long, long time.
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