2025 Frame Family Fourth of July

After playing golf at Ancil Hoffman, we headed to Sharon's brother Tim's house for a Frame Family 4th of July. The group totaled twenty-one, including: Sharon and I, Tom, Eric, Kevin, Leah, Lydia and Amelia, Tim and Kathy, Will and Eileen, Erin, Cormac and Mave, Cromac's mother and her husband, Brun, Kim and Velta and Jim.

Tim barbecued burgers and hot dogs for dinner. We brought devil eggs.

We finished the night with a selection of fireworks in Kathy and Tim's cul-de-sac.

When we got home, we saw the last part of the second night of the Rancho Cordova fireworks display.

At Ancil Hoffman

Friday morning, Sharon and I played nine holes at Ancil Hoffman with Jim and Debbie. Teeing off at 10:44 am, we walked the course.

After feeling good on the driving range on Thursday afternoon, I was very uneven on the range before the round. I had a rough first hole, but settled down. I feel like I am striking the ball more consistently. Although I was chippintg better after my lesson on Wednesday, I really struggled with my putting. Between the trees and the sand trap, I made a mess of the sixth hole. I ended up using one mulligan off the tee and no gallery losses. I played the whole round with one ball!

I enjoyed the round. I didn't get frustrated. I shot a liberally scored 58. Sharon said that she shot a 54.

2024 Viking Homelands - Day #12 - Alborg, Denmark

Ålborg Walking Tour

Utzon Center, Old Town and Ålborghus Castle

Enjoy a taste of beautiful Ålborg, strolling its old town, savoring local delicacies and seeing Ålborghus Castle.

Leaving your ship’s berth in the city center, walk along the renovated waterfront district, home to the Utzon Center. Pass through Utzon Park and visit Vor Frue Kirke (Church of Our Lady), which to this day still houses one of the original church bells dating back to the 12th century. Visit the charming old town, see the Gothic 14th-century Budolfi Church and the lovely baroque-style City Hall. Take a stroll by one of Ålborg’s real treasures, Jens Bang’s stone house. Bang was famously snubbed by the town’s government, and his statuesque renaissance home was never approved by the local gentry. The highlight of the tour is the chance to experience our very own Viking market, where you can sample some of the local delicacies while exploring the grounds of Ålborghus Castle.

Danish Beer & Walking Tour

Go Off the Beaten Path to Sample Denmark's Finest Brews

Sample some of the best-loved Danish beers on this walking tour of the Jomfru Ane Gade district.

Explore the backdrop of Denmark’s brewing heritage and immerse yourself in its beer culture as your guide accompanies you to our carefully selected watering holes. With your very own “Ålborg Tasting Glass,” you will enjoy six different brews and visit three of Ålborg’s inviting traditional pubs. With more than 5,000 years of brewing history, Denmark regularly enters the Top 10 list of European brewing nations. This tour is perfect to sample a selection of Denmark’s finest and discover your favorite Danish brew while learning more about the history of this picturesque town along the way. At the end of the tour, you can return to the ship with your guide or further explore the area independently.

We were up and moving about 6 am. Sharon did a Yoga class at 7:00 am, while I did a twenty minute arms and shoulders Peloton Strength workout and then ran thirty plus minutes on the treadmill. I have worked out more so far on the trip than I thought that I would.

We had a late breakfast in the World Cafe. When the trip is over, I am going to write a longer post about the boat. I want to compare this Viking Ocean Cruise with our Seabourn Greece and Turkey cruise. The one negative thing about this trip is that the World Cafe has been overrun with people on the last couple of mornings; it was a zoo.

The boat docked in Aalborg at 10:00 am.

We did an 11:00 am walking tour of the old city. I enjoyed the tour, but it was Sharon's least favorite excursion and guide of the trip so far. Interestingly, Aalborg claims to host the largest 4th of July Celebration outside of the United States.

Back at the boat, we had a quick bite to eat at the Pool Grill. We split a burger.

After lunch, we did a Danish Beer walking tour. I really enjoyed the pub crawl. They served us a herring sandwich at the second stop. Along with the beer, they served us several shots of schnaps.

It rained on off and on during the two excursions. The rain was hard a couple of times, but stopped fairly quickly.

The ship departed at 6:00 pm. We went to the Explorers' Lounge to watch it sail away from the dock and down the sound. Afterwards, we went to a presentation on Viking Expedition Cruises in the Torshavn Bar.

Originally, Sharon had moved some reservations around with the thought that we would have the 4th of July food in the World Cafe. As we were getting ready for dinner, she changed her mind. We went to The Restaurant and sat by yourselves. I had the DESTINATION MENU that included: Honsekodssuppe (danish chicken soup with flour dumplings, meatballs & vegetables); Cod & Seafood Pie (cod, creamy shrimp & mussel sauce; mashed potatoes), and; Little Baked Alaska (ice cream, honey meringue, cookie base).

Back in the room, we watched the port talk for Copenhagen. We crashed early.

2023 Frame Family Fourth of July

Sharon's brother Tom hosted a Frame Family 4th of July. The group totaled fifteen, including: Tom, Eric and Ashley, Kevin, Leah, Lydia and Amelia, Erin and Cormac, Will and Eileen, Mary, Jim, Sharon and I. Teri and Steve are in Italy. Kevin, Leah, Lydia and Amelia are leaving Friday to join them on for three weeks in Sicily.

I was surprised how much time everyone spent in the pool. All of the kids spent a long time in the pool shooting baskets and throwing water balloons. Sharon joined them.

Sharon and I brought hamburgers and buns for dinner. Tom barbecued.

We finished the night with a selection of fireworks on Tom's driveway. I would rate the fireworks as slightly better than previous years.

When we got home, we saw the last part of the second night of the Rancho Cordova fireworks display. It included a drone display in the middle of the fireworks.

2022 Frame Family Fourth of July

Sharon's brother Tom hosted a Frame Family 4th of July. The group totaled nineteen, including: Sharon and I, Tom, Eric and Ashley, Kevin, Leah, Lydia and Amelia, Terry and Steve, Tim and Kathy, Erin and Cormac, Will and Eileen, Mary and Jim.

Tom barbecued chicken sausage and barts for dinner. We brought potato salad.

We finished the night with a selection of fireworks on Tom's driveway. The fireworks were generally disappointing.

When we got home, we saw the last part of the second night of the Rancho Cordova fireworks display. Sharon talked about hosting Fourth of July at our house next year and enjoying this show, rather than shooting off fireworks in the driveway...

2021 Frame Family 4th of July

With life hopefully returning somewhat to normal, Sharon's brother Tom hosted a Frame Family 4th of July. The group included Sharon and I, Morgan, Lee and Daniel, Tom, Eric and Ashley, Tim and Kathy, Erin and Cormac, Will and Eileen and Jim. Mary stopped by after dinner.

We spent the late afternoon visiting, playing bocce ball and swimming in the pool. Lee enjoyed the pool. He was particulary interested in climbing into the pool on the steps.

For dinner, I barbecued some corn for Sharon's shrimp butter. Eric barbecued polish dogs.

Sharon had bought some sparklers to set off before Lee went home. We finished the night with a selection of fireworks on Tom's driveway.

When we got home, we saw the last part of the second night of the Rancho Cordova fireworks display. I had frankly forgotten how close these fireworks were to our house!

2020 Fourth of July

It is an odd time. We probably would have spent the day at Tom's house. Sharon has an extended family in Sacramento; it feels like we haven't seen any of them in a long time.

After grocery shopping, cleaning the house and lounging in the pool, Sharon and I finished the day watching Hamilton.  My notes on Hamilton are here.

2019 East Coast Trip - Day 6

Moving slowly, we eventually wound our way to Old Ebbitt Grill for brunch. We had dinner there when we were in Washington DC in 2011.

Sharon had been talking for weeks about seeing the 4th of July parade. After brunch, we found a shady spot near the corner of Constitution and 15th and waited for the parade to start. We were on a slight rise away from the street and actually had a nice view. We watched for over an hour and then started to work our way up the parade route towards 9th street. We actually ended up seeing the whole parade; the parade ended just as we reached 9th. I was frankly underwhelmed by the parade.

From there, we walked to the National Portrait Gallery. Sharon had seen the Obama portrait when she was in DC last summer, but I hadn't. We walked through the presidential gallery and then hunted down the Michele Obama portrait. Given my journey to real biographies of all of the presidents, I really enjoy walking through the presidential gallery.

Looking for a rooftop bar to get a cold drink, we ended up at the Crimson View. We each had a reuben hotdog. Sharon said that it was the best hotdog that she ever had!?!

From there, we grabbed an Uber back to the hotel for a nap. Just as we got to the street, it started to pour. It rained off and on for the next couple of hours.

I suggested that we head to the Georgetown waterfront for dinner and to watch the fireworks. After a number of subpar meals, we had a very nice meal at Fiola Mare. We ate there when we were in DC for the college tours in 2015. We split HALF DOZEN ASSORTED OYSTERS [West & East Coast Oysters, Adriatic Escabeche, Beet & Oregano Mignonette], a stone fruit and pancetta appetizer, WILTED SPINACH [Garlic, Meyer Lemonade] and PIMENT D'ESPELETTE SCENTED STROZZAPRETTI [Alaskan King Crab, Saffron, Corn Leeks].

We finished dinner just as the fireworks were starting. We had a nice view of the fireworks over the Kennedy Center for the first twenty minutes. During the second twenty minutes, the smoke from the fireworks started to hide some of the display. Additionally, the fireworks were working their aways towards the Jefferson Memorial and away from where we were.

After the fireworks were over, we walked back to the hotel.

2018 Fourth of July

After spending the night at the Sawyer Hotel, Sharon and I eventually went out for a walk/run through Old Sacramento and along the Sacramento River to Discovery Park. We covered 4.2 miles in 1:08:02.

Looking for somewhere to have breakfast, we checked out the menu at Echo & Rig in the hotel. After getting cleaned up, we wandered back to the restaurant, but they had stopped serving breakfast at 9:30 am!

Eventually, we found our way to Sacramento Cafe & Brew. Sharon had a CHORIZO OMELETTE [Beans with chorizo, sour cream & avocado slices], while I had a MOTHER LODE OMELETTE [Stuffed with bacon, mushrooms, tomato and shredded cheese]. Sharon raved about her omelette.

We packed up the room and checked out of the hotel about 11 am. I can't say enough about the positive impact of the arena on the downtown. We will definitely stay at the Sawyer again in the future.

In the late afternoon, we headed to Sharon's brother Tom's house to celebrate the Fourth of July. It was a big group, including: Kevin, Leah, Lydia and Amelia; Eric and Ashley; Erin and Cormac; Timmy and Kathy; Teri and Steve; Tom; Jim; Mary; Janie and her niece Stacey; and Sharon and I. Tom barbecued a tri-tip and a lamb roast for dinner.

Once it got dark, we set off fireworks in the driveway. Sharon and I got home in time to watch most of the Rancho Cordova fireworks from the upper balcony.

2017 Fourth of July

Over the last fifteen years, we have rarely ever been home at Fourth of July.

• 2016 - Hohenschwangau, Germany
• 2015 - Tim's, Foy's and Jack to Airport
• 2014 - San Francisco, hiked Angel Island, Italian Dinner
• 2013 - Tom's
• 2012 - Manarola, Italy
• 2011 - Washington, DC
• 2010 - Marina Point!
• 2009 - Cunninghams
• 2008 - Tom's
• 2007 - Tom's
• 2006 - Cunninghams
• 2005 - Cunninghams
• 2004 - Lake Jenkinson, Marina Point!
• 2003 - Sharon Parent's house

This year, with Sharon packing to take off on the cruise with Janie, we decided to stay close to home. Sharon and Marlene went to Mama Boot Camp in the morning, while I did a long run around the park. We stopped at Tom's house in the afternoon.

After a dinner of ribs, salad and corn, we finished the night watching fireworks off the master bedroom balcony. Jack and a number of friends, including Jason, Gabe, Emma, Charlotte and Kara joined us.

2016 Europe - Day 11 - To Hohenschwangau

This was the longest driving day of the trip. We set an early alarm and had breakfast in the hotel. By 9:15 am, we were packed, checked out and on the road.

We drove southeast across Southern Germany. The trip took us through a bunch of small towns along the top of Lake Constance. Jack had wanted to have lunch in Litchensutein so he could add another country, but that would have added an hour and a half to two hours to the day. With one stop, we made the drive about 4 1/2 hours.

After two one night stops, we will be spending two nights at Villa Ludwig Suite Hotel in Hohenschwangau. We checked in and dumped our stuff in the room. When we checked in, we arranged with the hotel staff to make reservations for the castle tours.

We wandered up into the tourist area below the castles for lunch. Sharon's brother Tom suggested this stop; he and his family had stopped here. It is a major tourist attraction. There were people everywhere. Apparently, a lot of people come on day trip tours from Munich. After getting a bit to eat, we wandered back to the room.

We then headed to Tegelburg Cable Car. There is a luge at the base of the cable car. All three of us took multiple runs down the luge. Afterwards, Sharon and Jack took the cable car to the top of the mountain, while I had a cold drink... There were a lot of parasails jumping off the top of the cable car and floating down into the valley.

Back at the hotel, the three of us spent some time in the spa. The hotel had a great spa with a hot tub, steam room and sauna. We then spent some time on the hotel patio with a cold drink. The hotel has a fantastic view of the Neuschwanstein Castle from the patio and the hot tub!

After getting cleaned up, we wandered back up into the tourist area for dinner about 8:15 pm. It was empty... Jack and I had Bauernschmaus, while Sharon had pork and spaetzle,

Just before we crashed for the night, we got some upsetting news.

2015 Fourth of July

After visiting with Becky, Sharon and I headed to her brother Tim's house. The group included Tim, Kathy, Eileen, a friend of Eileens, Erin, Dylan, Eric, Jim Dunn and the Felettos. We had dinner there before heading to Foy's house. Jack had spent the day wakeboarding on the Sacramento River with the Foys. We hung out with the Foys and two other couples. One of the other husbands was a would-be author who had written a historical fiction novel set in the 14th century called Venetta. He recommended a novel called A Distant Mirror: The Calamitous 14th Century.

We left there after 9 pm to take Jack to the airport; more on that tomorrow morning. I was amazed at the number of fireworks displays that were going off around Sacramento as we drove from Elk Grove to the Sacramento Airport.

I finished the night taking Tiber for a late walk in the neighborhood. It sounded like a war zone with all of the explosions and sirens.

2014 San Francisco Day 2

The plan for the day was to hike Angel Island. Jack and I walked to get bagels and coffee for breakfast. While Jack spent the morning watching the France versus Germany World Cup game, Sharon and I walked through the Ferry Building and then all the way to Pier 41. We picked up Blue & Gold Ferry tickets for the trip to Angel Island, checked out the Ferry schedule and brought some sandwiches for lunch.

The three of us caught the 11:20 am ferry from the Ferry Building to Angel Island. Grabbing some maps, we decided to hike to the top of island. We took the North Ridge trail to Mt. Livermore and ate lunch at some picnic tables just below the summit. We hiked back down the Sunset trail. Google Earth views and a topo map of the hike are here. There is a California Historical Marker in the picnic area in the bay. With about 20 minutes to spare, we ended up catching the 3:20 pm ferry back to Pier 41. People were already setting up to watch the fireworks.

We walked a few blocks south along Embarcadero. As the crowds thinned out a little, we were able to catch a taxi back to the hotel.

Getting cleaned up, we took a taxi to the Marina district for dinner. We had a nice Italian dinner at A16. After a pasta course, Sharon had chicken, I had a pork chop and Jack had pizza.

After dinner, we walked down to the Marina Green and watched the Fourth of July fireworks over the San Francisco Bay. With a low cloud layer, it was an interesting effect on the highest fireworks.

We had an adventure getting home. We walked back up to Chesnut. After about 10 or 15 minutes, we were able to catch a cab, but it took almost an hour for the cab to wind its way back to our hotel through the traffic! By the time we got back to the room and down for the night it was after 11:30 pm.

2013 Fourth of July

Sharon, Jack and I spent at the evening celebrating the Fourth of July at Tom's house (Sharon's brother). We swam in the pool, played bocce ball, barbecued hot dogs and finished the night with fireworks.

2012 Italy - Day 13 - To Cinque Terre - Manarola

Another travel day...

We actually slept fairly late and had a light breakfast in the hotel. Packing up the room, we got a taxi to the main train station in Florence. This is one of the two days that we did not pre-purchase train tickets. Originally, I had pushed the idea of stopping in Pisa and checking out the Leaning Tower of Pisa. This deep into the trip my aggressiveness had faded and I punted on the idea. Instead, we got a direct train from Florence to La Spezia. Although it passed through Pisa, it didn't stop.

We got to La Spezia by a little after noon. At this point, we made a small tactical error. Instead of the taking the regional train to Manarola, we hopped in a taxi. The taxi ride was about 20 minutes, but the taxi couldn't enter the town. It had to drop us about 1/2 mile above the town. We had to drag 200 pounds of luggage to the hotel. Luckily, it was all downhill. We finally got to the hotel. We are spending the next two nights at the Hotel Marina Piccola.

After lugging the luggage up three flights of narrow stairs, we had lunch in the hotel's restaurant. The food was very good.

There is a seven mile hiking trail that stretches between the five towns in Cinque Terre. We are staying in the second of the five towns. After a leisure lunch, Sharon and I left the kids crashed in the room and hiked a short distance towards Corniglia and back. Unfortunately, most of the section between Manarola and Corniglia is closed due to landslides. There was a great view of Manarola from the trail!

Heading back to the room, Sharon and I picked up Jack headed the other way on the trail. The section between Manarola and Riomaggiore is known as Via Dell'Amore. After buying two day hiking passes, we hiked to Riomaggiore, explored the town a little bit and then headed back. There was a bar on the trail close to Manarola and we stopped for a couple of cold drinks. The bar was perched on the edge of the narrow trail with a 100 plus foot drop to the water. Have I said recently how much I don't like heights?

We also discovered that the train station is pretty close to the hotel. It would have been much easier to get the luggage to the hotel from the train station, rather than taking a taxi...

After getting cleaned up, we had a great meal at Trattoria dal Billy. The restaurant is perched high on the hill overlooking the town and the small harbor. We had a great seafood appetizer that included six or seven plates of different seafood. I had a seafood pasta and all of us shared a sea bass. The food was very good, probably the best that we have had on the trip so far. The pasta is great and the seafood is extremely fresh.

2011 Washington D.C. Day 4

With Morgan having to work on Tuesday, we got up fairly early and took everyone to breakfast at the Cafe de Parc in the historic Willard Hotel. After breakfast, we walked to the Metro Central and sent Morgan on her way to Union Station to catch a train back to New York. All of us were sad to see her go!

Heading back to the hotel, Sharon took a nap and I ran on the treadmill for an hour and 6 miles.

After getting cleaned up, Sharon, Jack and I walked about six or seven blocks to Trader Joes. The plan for the evening is to host a small get together at the hotel with drinks and hors d'oeuvres and then head over to the National Mall to watch the fireworks. We bought a couple of bags of drinks and food, wandered back out to Pennsylvania Avenue and caught a cab back to the hotel.

Sharon wandered off to do some shopping, while Jack and I relaxed in the room. Just as she was heading back, Jack and I took off to run a couple of errands. This crossing of paths resulted in an interesting comedy of errors.

When Sharon got back to the room, her key would not work. The front desk tried to reprogram the electronic lock, but it was completely dead. At this point, Jack and I showed up and joined Sharon sitting in the hall outside our room. Eventually, maintenance had to virtually break down the door to get into the room!

Once we got back into the room, we scurried around and got everything organized. Rob, Barb and Mary showed up about 5:30 p.m. We visited until about 8:00 p.m. At this point, we took off for the National Mall. The six of us walked to the Lincoln Memorial and found a great spot on the plaza in front of the Lincoln Memorial to watch the fireworks. We are all pleasantly surprised at how easy it was to get there and find a spot.

It was a fantastic fireworks show! Sitting on the Lincoln Memorial and watching fireworks over the Washington Memorial is a great way to celebrate the Fourth of July!

Afterwards, we wandered back to the hotel. Rob and Barb's daughter Maddy and a friend of hers joined us for a dessert of strawberry shortcake.

It was a very successful evening.

2010 Fourth of July

For first time since 2004, we stayed close to home for the Fourth of July.  Sharon, Jack and I set off fireworks in the front of the house.

2009 Fourth of July Party

Sharon, Jack and I spent the afternoon and evening at a 4th of July party at Cunningham's house. The group included the Sanborns. The kids swam in the pool, John barbecued hot dogs, bratwurst and hamburgers and we finished the night with fireworks. Although both Sharon and I were feeling under the weather, we had a very nice time. Jack had a wonderful time playing in the pool and then lighting fireworks.

4th of July

4th of July, originally uploaded by heringermr.

2008 Fourth of July Party

Sharon, Jack and I spent at the afternoon and evening at a 4th of July party at Tom's house (Sharon's brother). We swam in the pool, played bocce, barbecued a giant roast and finished the night with fireworks.