Our Travels

Reporting in

March 25, 2026ssolsen12Leave a comment

It’s official. Since launching OlsensTravels, this is the longest we’ve gone without a post – nine months! (To be fair, we did say in the last post that we were putting our own plans on hold for a bit.)

So, now that you mention it, how’d that go?

MISSION ACCOMPLISHED! That’s how.

Kayla is now a fully licensed advanced esthetician with her own wheels, and Pop & Nana are free to go 🙂 (well, almost… there is still a move back across Florida with which to assist)

Now, for the tricky task of summing up what we’ve been up to while Kayla pursued her classes.

For the first six months, when not providing transportation back and forth to/from school/work, we walked a crazy number of exercise miles in the Florida heat, worked a lot of puzzles, and read a lot of books.

Some days we imagined swimming away

_{Susie at the Imagine Museum in St Petersburg}

Todd decided to give up another “spare part” – appendix this time, and Susie tried to focus on staying upright with PT-based balance training (with almost complete success, but that’s a story we’d like to forget). We also watched in frustration as our Falcons played another terrible season.

In late November of 2025 🙂 , we hit the road!

(Albeit temporarily…)

We were Virginia-bound for an upcoming very important celebration. First up, however, a wide-spread Thanksgiving weekend spent with far apart family. It began in East Palatka, Florida enjoying dinner with the Olsen side of our blended family.

While Tate, Tracee & Kayla pulled things together in the kitchen

On Black Friday, we skipped the sales and instead took our full bellies on the long drive from Florida to Virginia to join the Williams half of our children in Mechanicsville. It was time to deck some halls!

As vagabonds, it’s been several years since we decorated a tree, especially a fragrant fresh-cut fir. That was truly a fun way to get the Christmas spirit ready. More egg nog, please!

Hang on a second. Before Christmas, there was the not-so-small matter of that aforementioned very important celebration. Back in February of 2025, our multi-tasking, planner extraordinaire (not Todd) began planning another Top-Secret mission, booking a location and pulling together a surprise party. Shhh

Susie’s mom looking festive and ready for a church cantata on her birthday

Mom had no lack of plans on her big day. There was bunco with the ladies in the afternoon, a quick change of clothes, dinner out, and the cantata that night. Little did she know, the B-I-G surprise was coming the next afternoon.

This birthday stuff is no bull
I’m ready for some steak

After that monumental celebration, time flew by in a flurry of routine medical appointments, last-minute shopping, wrapping of gifts, and baking.

Oddly, our rental included the Ghost of Christmas Past(?) Cousin Shelley cheered him up with the sparkly cap.

The next step in the plan was to join the Williams family in Mechanicsville for Christmas (Part VI…?) on New Year’s Eve, the last of the Virginia holiday gatherings.

Screech! All hard stop! Enter…C-O-V-I-D. It took Susie down first, a day after we drove out of Chesapeake, and Todd a couple days later.

Aww. I’m sorry you don’t feel good.

Obviously, the remaining gatherings had to be postponed for a later date.

There’s a logistical challenge to not owning a home, just where do you go when you’re sick? We spent the ten days of isolation, very slowly making our way back down the coast a few hours at a time, explaining and apologizing to hosts along the way and doing a lot of cleaning…

We finally made it back to the apartment in Largo, exhausted but safely clear of cooties, and waited another week before driving back across Florida for a delayed Christmas gathering with the Olsens.

OOPS. Hold the phone. Make that the MITCHELLS / Olsens. While we were away, daughter Tracee and her beau Royce gathered their children and quietly tied the knot!

CONGRATULATIONS!!

We wish you a lifetime of love and happiness. Cherish that love, it can conquer anything.

More festivities!

Wedding paper is easy to find, but Christmas gift wrap in mid-January requires creativity

And finally, a Very Merry Christ Happy New Birth Valentine’s Year Day Mas!

Or something like that. Ha!

Having to postpone that anticipated Virginia celebration disappointed Susie, of course, but it also meant another thousand-mile drive back up the coast a month or so later. If you’re keeping track, that makes FOUR THOUSAND miles – FL to VA, VA to FL, FL to VA, and VA to FL. Not to mention the hundreds of miles during each stay. Whew. Time for an oil change.

Todd, Susie, Michael, Caitlin, Jeff, Ella, and Kai happily celebrated… EVERYTHING!

Our next mission

June 25, 2025July 1, 2025ssolsen12Leave a comment

It may not appear so, but we’ve been busy since the May 5 Fun & games post, in which we alluded to the “next Olsen Mission.”

After Fernandina Beach, we secured a rental in Saint Augustine for the month of May, primarily to pull together mission critical details. (More on that below.) It wasn’t all work and no play, though. We made routine use of the neighborhood fitness center (play??) and watched spring bloom – although it already felt more like summer (ain’t gonna lie – is the Florida heat stereotypically true? Ha!).

It must be spring. This proud Muscovy duck paraded 17 ducklings past our patio.
**SEVENTEEN**!
Now that’s a whole lot of missions!

On one pretty spring day, son Tate took us for a boat ride on Lake George. Nothing like getting back out on the water!

Tate easing down the ramp & Todd waiting to secure the boat

Since the boat decided to act up (as boats will do, oi vey!), we enjoyed our picnic lunch and called that part of the day done.

Not to be deterred from enjoying the remainder of the afternoon, we headed to nearby Welaka.

The one thing our Saint Augustine rental lacked was a grill. So, when the time came for a traditional Memorial Day weekend cookout, daughter Tracee and her boyfriend Royce hosted the festivities. Everyone donned patriotic red, white and blue for the family photo op.

Top row: Royce, Noah, Tracee, Kayla, Todd (aka Dad/Pop)
On the floor: Tate, Alan, Alaina, Susie (aka Nana)

Happy Memorial Day!

Travel Challenge conundrum: We pulled a card while in Saint Augustine, but per the instructions cannot share the results.

(Perhaps someone will have figured it out by now.) 🙂

Ahem. Now, how about that mission?

Oh, dear. No. Nothing quite like that.

Or that. Please, no fire stunts.

Okay, that’s more like it.

If you know Kayla, you know we had to throw in a cute kitten.

Spot on!

After much research and many conversations about the possibilities of the future, we reached consensus, put our own plans on hold, and hatched a whole new mission! Time to help young granddaughter Kayla get “launched!” We scrambled into school tours and apartment hunting before Kayla completing driver’s training, getting her license, and turning in her two-weeks’ notice, led to Thursday, May 29, as the day for the big move.

With Nana’s planning and Tate’s help, we bounced smoothly from the furnished rental on the east coast of Florida to a temporary furnished rental over on the west coast of Florida. Given our packed travel rig (Pearl), thankfully Tate had room for Kayla’s things with a little trailer in tow containing the rest of her stuff and some “gifts” from her mom and Uncle Tate.

Big move, and just in the nick of time. Within an hour of arrival, we had appointments for school registration, tuition, and orientation. Whew.

We then ordered new bedding before hitting thrift stores and estate sales to begin furnishing the empty apartment we’d leased for this endeavor. Time to shop til you drop! (Not really, but it felt like it.) Or you’ll not have anything upon which to set something down, or heck, even to sit!

The comfortable 4th floor apartment, where the three of us are now “roomies”

As to the most important part of this new mission, just a few days later, Monday morning, June 2, Kayla began the journey to becoming a clinical esthetician. Double whew!

Olsens’ Travels is on pause for now, but the new mission has only just begun. We’ve got your back, Kayla, and you’ve got this!

Fun & games

May 5, 2025June 24, 2025ssolsen12Leave a comment

It’s been more than three weeks since our last post. Some might wonder what we’ve been up to. Well, as it turns out in this case, fun and games!

After the quick (carousel-less) overnight stay in Meridian, Mississippi, we continued along our return to Virginia for family business.

The next stop?

A terrific visit with friends Louis & Lisa at their lake house in Pell City, Alabama!

_{Welcome dinner at Grill at the Farm in Cropwell}

After dinner, we experienced our first absolute failure at the Travel Challenge. Although one of us was fully confident in Todd’s ability to maintain a straight face while making stuff up, there is no “local zoo” in Pell City. No petting zoo. No animal rescue farm. Zip. Nada. Nothing.

Such an utter failure required implementing a rule in this ruleless game. What to do when the task is impossible? Hmm…? As a team (of two), we decided to “bury” the card in the middle of the box and see where it reappears in the future.

The Travel Game may have been a bust, but that didn’t stop us from playing lots of card games into the wee hours. Next time we need to bring more dollar bills – these people are serious. 😉

Thank you, Louis and Lisa, for the good times, hospitality, dancing, singing, and marinated olives!

Next stop, Flowery Branch, Georgia for a seriously overdue visit to catch up with old friends Matt & Betsy.

After dinner, impromptu bartender Matt showed off his skills

The following day was beautiful. After the cookout, we learned a new game, one of shapes before playing cards and ultimately catching a Braves game on TV.

Thank you, Matt and Betsy. It was great to see you again!

On April 16, we finally made it to Virginia, where our first order of business was to surprise Mom with fresh pork rinds at The Bier Garden in Portsmouth.

Since the aforementioned “family business” was oral surgery, there was no time to waste. After the procedure in the morning, it would be a while before she’d again be able to chew such crispy delights…

Ready for the next Travel Challenge?

Ha! What better place to pull this one than in the area where one of us grew up. It’s expanded and changed a great deal in the 17 years since Susie left, but she can still get around… pretty much…

On Saturday we headed to Mechanicsville for a makeup session of family game time because we’d missed our date in February due to illness.

Ready to throw down on some Apples to Apples
(Jeff, Caitlin, Todd, Michael, Kai, Ella)

We’ll return in December ready for a rematch!

Okay, probably not as winners. The cards, word games, and dice were great, but we’d both forgotten just how difficult it is to play Clue. I mean, seriously, just how are you supposed to figure out not only whodunit but where and with what?? Sheesh. Great job, Caitlin!

Back in Hampton Roads, there was plenty more card shuffling in Chesapeake. Sometimes Mom beat us quite handily. Sometimes not. But always fun, right, Mom?

The family visits were warm and the time precious, but we had to move along to North Carolina for additional medical check-ups on our way to Florida for the next Olsen Mission (more on that in another post).

After the appointments in NC, the next bit of fortuitous timing led us to fun in Fernandina Beach, Florida. Cruising friends Barry and Robin had just recently made the crossing from the Bahamas and kindly offered to anchor for the night and wait for us to join them.

The next day, brother Mike and sister-in-law Jackie arrived for the 60th annual Isle of Eight Flags Shrimp Festival.

Catching up with cruising friends Barry & Robin
(they’re the ones sporting the nice tans… )

While waiting for the Shrimp Festival to get underway, we enjoyed a friendly round of mini golf.

Mike would later proudly score the 1st hole-in-one

What’s more fun than Susie frequently retrieving her ball from the flowerbed and both of us getting whooped at mini golf? A parade!

As seasoned thirty-plus-year veterans of the Shrimp Festival, Mike & Jackie booked a room with a perfect view of the parade from the balcony.

As in any proper parade there were plenty of floats, Shriners, and marching bands, of course, but this parade is focused on… shrimp and pirates!

Eventually, all good things must come to an end, even fun and games, but just how do you know when it’s over? Well, perhaps when this guy shows up.

One Mississippi. Two…

April 11, 2025ssolsen12Leave a comment

New Orleans was great, but those paying attention to our movement (Daddy 😇 ) know that in order to get from the wedding in Alabama to the crawfish boil in Louisiana, we had to drive through Mississippi.

One.

Indeed, we did, taking US-90 along the Gulf shore and entering Mississippi from the east on March 25.

Opting for a stop along the water, we took a chance on the South Beach Hotel in Biloxi. Turned out to be a great stop. Not yet being “the season,” it was not crowded nor too expensive. Score!

Our top-floor suite in the South Beach Hotel

After a couple of days at the beach hi-rise, we continued the drive along the Mississippi coast, where the houses are large and the live oaks massive! The drive was so pretty our distracted navigator – umm, photographer – was enjoying the scenery rather than taking pictures (sigh).

The navigator had done her research, however, and routed our entrance to New Orleans through Mandeville, Louisiana not only so we could take the long bridge across Lake Pontchartrain but also so that we could hit some specific tourist stops.

Turns out these particular “stops” may not be high on the touristy list though, as locals in the park had no idea what we were talking about.

Not to be deterred, we happily continued our search of the lakefront area to locate the first specimen.

Susie visiting the Old Lady of The Lake Oak

A short drive from the Northshore Lakefront, we located the Champion Seven Sisters Oak in a private yard on Fountain Street. It is the largest live oak registered by the Live Oak Society and estimated to be between 500 and 1,000 years old.

In 2016, the girth was nearly 40 ft & the height 57 ft

After the trees, fast-forward a bit past our New Orleans visit (which we covered in the last post), and we are once again Virginia-bound for family business. Well, in order to now get from Louisiana to Virginia, one must drive through – you guessed it – Mississippi!

Two.

On April 3, we re-entered Mississippi from the south.

Our captain – umm, driver – had done his research and suggested an overnight stop in Meridian, MS.

As it often goes on travel days, Susie searched on the fly to come up with a creative dining stop. Enter Weidmann’s, established in 1870.

Legend has it that due to a war-driven shortage of butter in the 1940’s, a patron suggested peanut butter as a replacement. To this day, each table at Weidmann’s is set with a crock of peanut butter and an assortment of crackers.

A local potter in Meridian makes the crocks by hand

Turns out Todd suggested Meridian specifically because it’s home to an historic 1895 two-row Dentzel Carousel. Meridian is so proud to be home to the carousel that there are more than 60 life-size carousel horse sculptures throughout the city!

After driving around “carousel horse-spotting” for a while, we headed to the park to see the real thing. Yeah!

Operating in Highland Park since 1909, on Thursday the carousel was…

With someone somewhat disappointed, we headed for the hotel.

Seems you just can’t escape the carousel horses in Meridian, Mississippi

The next morning, as we continued our journey east, we passed the Simmons-Wright Company that has operated as a general store in Kewanee, Mississippi since 1884.

It’s not as good as a carousel ride, but “Simmons?” That’s a mighty fine name 🙂

And there you have it. One Mississippi. Two Mississippi.

Laissez les bon temps rouler

April 8, 2025April 9, 2025ssolsen12Leave a comment

Okay. Okay. We’ll help: “Let the good times roll!”

It had been thirty-some years since Todd went to the Big Easy, and it was Susie’s first visit. Nevertheless, we entered Louisianna under cloudy skies for reasons beyond the food and music.

Did we go the “Easy” way? Nah.

We meandered on the smallest roads we could find, checking out champion trees along the way, before crossing Lake Pontchartrain on the longest continuous span over water in the world! Saltwater, baby! Who knew??

With time to kill before 4pm check-in, we took our growling tummies to Parkway Bakery & Tavern for a New Orleans tradition, the “Poor Boy.”

Legends abound over the history of the “Poor Boy,” but Parkway Tavern, est. 1911, is one of the originals

Our 1st Crawfish Boil!

Back in late November at a quaint, crowded non-descript eatery in Rome, we were seated by the harried owner next to a smiling couple who’d already ordered. Hmm? Can we speak to them?

Having been in Italy for more than a month at that point, we offered a practiced, “Buongiorno.”

“Buongiorno” was returned, and then the lovely lady leaned in and asked, “Speak inglese?” Hey! We had fooled them! Everyone laughed, the jabbering began, and a friendship was formed.

Hence, the day after our arrival in New Orleans, we headed to Gonzo and Yvonne’s home for the actual purpose of our trip – to meet the family. Boy howdy, what an experience. Wonderful “kids” (15 on up to 20-something, plus a self-proclaimed, “Baby Everett!”) and an authentic Crawfish Boil. “Boil?” No, we ain’t “sabe”. ^{Notice the mix of languages, Ha!}

Fortunately, our host Gonzo was fully sabe and had all the right gear. This was serious man-business, and what fun to learn from the master!

Under Gonzo’s watchful eye, Todd stirred the pot (what’s new 😉 )

While the first ~~victims~~, umm…batch, sat in the cool-down tub, Yvonne and some of the family took little Everett across the yard to see the pool containing the second round of “mud bugs” awaiting their fate.

Natalie, Ella (holding Everett), Yvonne, & Everett’s father Isaac

Okay, okay, it’s a boil, it takes a bit. After the timer went off, it was (finally) time to really get the party started.

After a second round of crawfish boil and Ella’s freshly baked, homemade desserts, it was nap time! Ha! Okay, not really. Well, maybe…

What a great day getting to know everyone!

Soaking in a bit of history

On Saturday, our hosts suggested visiting one of the area’s many plantations. We began the cloudy day at Oak Alley Plantation, a sugar plantation with more than 200 years of history.

Approaching the Oak Alley plantation house from the back

We’d avoided the rain and enjoyed the tour so much that we opted to push our collective luck and drive along the River Road to see the restored Houmas House Estate and Gardens.

Todd & Gonzo on the lawn of the 1880’s Houmas House Estate

The French Quarter

After church Sunday, we shared traditional muffalettas and gumbo, then parked the car and walked to the streetcar station to grab a ride to the French Quarter.

Aboard the St Charles Streetcar, the oldest continuously operating streetcar in the world!

Plenty of people were out enjoying the warm, sunny day.

Blue skies over the St. Louis Cathedral on Jackson Square

To share a taste of the adventure, here’s a brief snippet of the sounds in the French Quarter:

Live music on Frenchmen Street

Thank you, Gonzo & Yvonne, for the warm welcome and for showing us around New Orleans!

Gonzo and Yvonne returned to reality – i.e. work, school, etc. – and we got some rest before celebrating our anniversary (lucky 13) with a fantastic dinner at Gianna Ristorante (yep – “rustic Italian”).

By the end of the week, we found ourselves with too many items remaining on the list of things we wanted to see, making it difficult to choose. We opted for time with the animals.

Located in historic Uptown New Orleans’ Audubon Park, the Audubon Zoo consistently ranks among the Nation’s Best and was just ranked #8 in this year’s annual USA Today 10 Best Reader’s Choice Awards.

Challenge Accepted!

A week in New Orleans meant we pulled Travel Challenge #5, and it was absolutely perfect, given the setting.

We were in just the right city to score an easy A+ on this one!

All good things must come to an end, so after the great visit and many New Orleans experiences we’d had – not to mention the Sazeracs, BBQ shrimp, and pralines – there was only one thing left to do.