Mainely Running
Join me as I train in Maine and race all over the world in pursuit of my goal to run a marathon on all 7 continents

Sunday, December 18, 2011

It's begining to feel a lot like Christmas

Being in California for the last 2 weeks, I was having a hard time getting in the holiday spirit. It just doesn't feel like Christmas to me when I'm standing in front of a palm tree wearing a t-shirt! But after yesterday back at home, I'm totally in the mood.

I woke up to a surprise snow storm. I would have preferred it wasn't during my scheduled 17 miler, but I am anxious for a white Christmas so I didn't mind. With the snow and wind I could barely see during the first half of my run and I was quickly getting soaked through.  But running on the greenbelt I passed other intrepid runners and we exchanged smiles, and then I got out to Bug Light and the snow on the water was so pretty, that it kept my mood up. The second half of the run was harder, I was on a less scenic portion of the trail, I was alone, and I was tired. But, I stuck it out and finished the 17.

After food, a shower, and some stretching, I headed into Portland to meet Breezy at Dobra Tea. It was freezing outside, and I was tired from my run, so it was the perfect afternoon to settle inside and drink some tea. We got one of the tables sunk into the floor and plopped down into the pillow chairs. The tea menu was pretty overwhelming- almost 100 pages! We ended up with a Jasmine green tea and a lychee black tea. And then we waited..... The couple next to us ordered at the same time and had theirs within 20 minutes. So by the time the tea came we had to basically gulp it down. But I definitely want to go back on a day when I have more time- the atmosphere is great and I can see myself lingering all afternoon with a pot of tea.

The reason we had to hurry is that we had tickets to ride one of the Casco Bay Ferry Boats in the Boat Parade. The boat was all decorated.




It was freezing out on the water, reminded me of being in Antarctica. But we stuck it out on the bow for the whole hour. All the boats gathered outside of the harbor and then we came in in a line and made a circle. Then there were amazing fireworks. I love watching the fireworks over the ocean because they reflect off the surface of the water so it's like they are doubled.  It was hard to get pictures of the boats in the dark- they were way prettier than they look in the pictures.








After the parade we needed some food and a place to warm up, so we headed to the Merry Table Creperie because I had a living social deal I wanted to use. It was perfect. It is on a back cobblestone alley in the Old Port, so it feels like Paris. Inside it is small and cozy, with French prints on the wall. We tucked ourselves in a little booth in a back. The service was excellent, and we quickly had our appetizer- sliced baguette with goat cheese and mushrooms. The mushrooms were obviously reconstituted dry mushrooms because the texture was a little off, but the bread and cheese were great. We then shared the
Poulet crepe, which had Grilled Chicken, Oven Roasted Tomato, Caramelized Onion, Tarragon, and Bechamel. The crepe itself was perfect, but the bechamel had a slightly off taste and too much pepper. For dessert we went with the classic banana and nutella crepe. Classic chocolate gooey goodness. All in all, it wasn't the best food I've ever had, but it was good and a great place for a chilly night if you're looking for something a little different.





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