beyond cinderella

After Bill and I attended 10:30 a.m. Mass this morning in Bandon, we went to try a fish & chip place our supervisor, Ranger, Patrick, told us about in Bandon, called the Bandon Fish Market.

This is a tiny little place with only about five tables inside and some benches on the outdoor patio. There is a constant line of people, that wraps around the building, waiting to get in to order their baskets of fish etc. When we saw all the people Bill and I were hoping this was going to be as good as Patrick told us it was, and it was!

Bill and I love fish and chips, and we both agreed that this was some of the best we’ve ever had. YUMMERS! They give you huge portions, six pieces of fish, and a seemingly bottomless box of fries, as well as coleslaw or garlic toast on the side. It was delicious, and we will definitely go back for more sometime.

After lunch, we walked around Old Town Bandon. What an adorable little place it is. We visited this little shop that is attached to Tony’s Crab Shack.  We asked the man behind the counter to tell us about the crabbing pots (big wire basket looking things stacked in the front of the store), they have for rent outside the shop, and about the crabbing season. He explained that in the summer, usually towards the middle or end of summer, is when the larger male crabs come in towards the pier, and are more readily available for catching in the pots. He said there is a size limit and you have to release anything that isn’t the right size… He said you can purchase a crabbing license, rent a pot(s) and go crabbing right off the pier behind the store. And when you catch your crabs, Tony’s Crab Shack will even cook them up for you if you don’t want to take them home and cook them yourself.. How cool is that?

This little shop also sells every kind of colorful whirly things you can imagine.

All up and down the pier you can find all sorts of interesting boat dock related things to explore.

And, they have all sorts of wood carved figurines placed all around the pier as well.

In the middle of the pier, they have an enclosed area with all kinds of unique wood carved furniture.

This weekend the pier was also showcasing a local grade school’s art work project.

There were sea gulls flying overhead, and I was hopping one would drop a feather or two, because I’m trying to find some feathers from different kinds of birds for my frister who needs them for some of her special art projects. So far no luck…but I keep looking…

The streets of Old Town Bandon are lined with one of a kind little shops, and all the stores seem to be adorned with the most beautiful flowers.

If the men folk get tired of shopping with the ladies… they even have special waiting areas outside the shops just for them…

It was a really fun day exploring the Old Town Bandon area. Before we left, I did purchase a colorful three tiered whirly wheel to decorate our little campsite yard. Now, if I had about six more colorful whirly things to place around our campsite, we might look like we fit in with all the other camp hosts that come here every summer.. Ha! I did find a really cool, colorful windsock that said “Happy Hour” on it, but I wasn’t about to pay $24.00 for a windsock. Nope, I’m just as happy with my colorful little whirly wheel.

Just before we were ready to leave Bandon, I stopped in the restroom, and captured this note someone wrote on the inside of the restroom door.. While I don’t think it’s at all nice to write on anyone’s property, since it was already there, I thought it was a nice thought, and so I will leave you with it too..

Stay Tuned!

Today, Bill and I just decided to take a drive through Cottonwood, and Clarkdale, and just stop and explore anything that caught our eye. No agenda, no time schedule, just Bill and I being absolutely foot loose and fancy free.

The first thing of interest that caught our attention was this place, called, Simply Amazing Plaza. The lime green and yellow horse-drawn buggy sitting out front got my attention right from the get-go.

There were life-size metal horses, out in front of the building, with metal cowboys riding them, and shooting their guns in every direction.

Lots of painted metal flowers, cactus, and pots, to decorate your yard, if you have a yard to decorate. But still, they were all very pretty, and if I had a yard to decorate I would have it full of pretty stuff like this.

Even a full size carved Indian sits on the front porch, with his big purple, green, and yellow, metal bird, to welcome you as you enter the building. And for a special price of $200.00, you can take him home.

Moving on, we ventured into the historic downtown area of Clarkdale. What a cozy little hometown feel this little town has, with flowers hanging in pots outside the store fronts, and several little outdoor cafe type places to eat. The Paradise Point Cafe offers Homemade Deserts, Organic Coffees & Teas, and Therapeutic Massage.  Now doesn’t that sound interesting…?

Bill and I had a good time laughing, and debating, over this sign at the end of the street that reads “Surely Not everybody Was Kung Fu Fighting! We don’t really know, what do you think?

Moving on down the road, we came upon Larry’s Antiques Shop. The thing that caught our eye here was this rusty old car with a skeleton behind the steering wheel. A fun place to visit, but my all time favorite so far, is still Sweet Peas Antiques that just happens to be a couple of miles from our RV Park.

Well, by now we were getting hungry, so we decided to try the Town Tavern & Grill.

When we were seated at our table, the waiter brought us thin bread sticks and a little bit of herb butter to snack on while we waited for our lunch.

Bill ordered the Prim Rib Dip, with fries, and a side of horseradish.

I had the southwestern hamburger on sourdough, with jack cheese, green chilies, and sweet potato fries. Very good, but I could only eat half, because the portions are way BIG.

On our way home we stopped at Wal-Mart, and purchased a Hamilton Beach Countertop Oven. We have a Microwave/Convection Oven in our RV, and I love it for microwaving, but not for baking. I really missed having an oven that actually browns food that you want browned. This little jewel can be used as a bake oven, convection oven, rotisserie oven with rotisserie tools included, and it also broils, and is a toaster oven. What more can anyone ask out of one little over. I have it all set up outside on a table, and will bake a meatloaf in it for our dinner tonight.

Bill and I are getting this relax and play time down REAL good… We are having so much fun just pilfering our day’s away together, doing lots of nothing, but turning nothing into having so much fun.

Stay Tuned!