Fredrickburg wedding wknd

I can not believe it is almost December!

I've started writing under the "Budget Living in Dallas" title for the examiner... check it out (and spread the word, I get paid that way!)

We spent our weekend in Fredrickburg, celebrating the wedding of Monica and Chris. What an amazing town and simply stunning wedding. We took the scenic route to avoid ATX traffic and the drive felt every bit 4.5+ hrs. Friday evening we headed to Luckenbach Dance Hall for the reception/dancing and Saturday we visited a few wineries and then had lunch off Main Street at the Fredricksburg Brewery, took a nap at our cute cottage and then off to the del Rio wedding!

Here are a few pic's from our quick trip....






I would love to make another long weekend trip here, it's affordable and has unique shopping, some Texas country bars and nearby wineries.

And a reminder: Hairballs and Hairbands is coming up soon, so buy your tickets for Paws in the City's 80's Christmas party! It was a blast last year and this year we will have Live 80's cover band, free apps from local restaurants, best 80s costume and prizes to win.

Have a lovely week and enjoy a laugh with Harvey (this is apparently huge in the UK-- love it!)

Puerto Rico trip recap

So we traveled to San Juan, Puerto Rico last week and had a delicious time.

Overview:
We arrived late on Friday into the sweltering heat of America's island. I for one, was eager to embrace the heat. One last time to wear last year's sandals! Our stay lasted just 4 nights and comprised mostly of food finds from yelp/chowhound, duty-free booze, beach sun bathing and some gambling.

Hotel:
We stayed at La Concha, a 50's style chic hotel that was mentioned in 2009 in Architectural Digest’s top ten Caribbean resorts. The on site amenities had a fashionista packed lobby bar, overpriced beach-side drinks and La Perla* (restaurant in the famous shell) which was as expected- very good, while $$$.


Food:
Yerba Buena- Food was good, outdoor seating and live jazz music.
La Casita Blanca- very authentic Puerto Rican food and neighborhood. Menu is in Spanish on a chalkboard and your meal comes with free, tasty app's!
Pikayo- Small and expensive plates, very much like any high-end restaurant in a big city. We sampled several apps and enjoyed the chef's creativity.... a highlight in our trip. $$$
Pamela's- Overpriced, but best atmosphere. Tables are literally on the beach.
La Bombera- Old San Juan. Best, authentic mallorcas breakfast. Over a 100 years old and one of the highlights of our trip.
Cafe Bebo- Average food and good prices, good cubano.
Raices- Old San Juan. Very touristy, but amazing monfongo (with skirt steak) and big beers in giant aluminum cups!
*La Perla- Good fish options here as well as Mon/Tues half off wine. In the shell of La Concha and had the most delicate, delicious sea bass with lobster risotto here.

Stuff:
Not a lot to do but relax and enjoy the beach. We did spend a half day walking Old San Juan which was nice to take in the history but a few hours max. Snorkeling for a few hours with Scuba Dogs was the biggest waste of time/money and we wished we would have taken the much talked about rain forest tour.


Tips:
- Ask cab drivers cost ahead of time, no meters equate to always changing rates.
- Book at the end of the rainy season, putting up with a few brief showers was well worth the hotel specials (one night free).
- Ask to be upgraded, we did and scored a suite with a view since it was still available at no extra cost.
- Buy duty-free booze at the airport and save some pennies.
- Bring something nice. SJ reminds me of Miami, people do love to dress up at night.
- Fly direct! One of the reasons we picked SJ was for the AA direct flight and the lack of customs/money exchange.