Wed July 7: Half Moon Bay to Hyde Park Marina

 In which we celebrate Rick - with a Food Coma ...!

We were up by 5:30am today, so that we could get to Hyde Park in time for our special lunch appointment.  It was a lovely early morning, with the sun coming over actual topography.  We can't get over our excitement that it's not flat!

Rick and I find different things to be photogenic...

It's hard to see in this photo, but the fog looks to be pouring over the mountains.

Can you see the people on the bridge - like little ants?!  I hope this is not the Walk Across the Hudson bridge everyone talks about!

We got to Hyde Park 'marina' with plenty of time to spare.  It's a mud pit, but the people were so nice.  We only stopped there because it's a mile away from the Culinary Institute of America, and we have a reservation for Rick's Birthday Lunch at the American Bounty Restaurant.  We hopped in and out of the shower, and then Madchen (the dock hand) gave us a ride.  Which was AWESOME because the sun was like the devil's anvil by 12:30pm.

The CIA was like Fort Knox to get into - you had to be 'on the list' with a reservation, and that got checked at least twice.  It was so fun to look around a bit, and even see the chefs in action.  The CIA was founded in 1946 as a vocational institute for returning veterans of WWII.  Now it's one of the best hospitality and cooking schools in the world.  We were so excited!!

Our lunch was WONDERFUL!  And the waitstaff was meticulously trained and charming.  All the students work their last 6 weeks in the restaurants, 3 weeks front of house and 3 weeks back of house. It was super fun to chat with them and hear their plans - our two main waiters were headed to work in NYC and St. Thomas, respectively.

Incredible smoked salmon with edible pansies!

Since it was Rick's birthday, I kindly split my dessert with him.  Smore meringue with ice cream and banana foam.....

The campus was lovely - we especially loved the food puns.  You know I love a good pun!

We walked the mile back to the 'marina' and immediately fell into a food coma.  We slept from 3-6pm.  Unbelievable.  Even more unbelievable was the fact that we were able to go back to sleep a few hours later!