A Getaway to Ellicottville

Last week Thursday my husband and I went on an overnight getaway to Ellicottville to celebrate our anniversary. Our first stop was the Nannen Arboretum, a very picturesque spot. Then lunch at the Ellicottville Brewing Company, followed by wine tasting at the Ellicottville Winery, which has very good wines. Later that evening we had dinner at the Silver Fox, which had some great specials on the menu. After dinner we strolled down to a small park with a gazebo, which features live music on Thursdays during the summer. We stayed overnight at the Wingate hotel.

The next day we enjoyed shopping at the many stores in town. On our way back home we traveled through Colden, stopping at the Colden Country Store, and then we made a stop in East Aurora to shop at Vidler's. We had gift certificates to the Dog Bar in West Falls, so we had dinner there. Both the food and atmosphere are good here.

A Visit to Niagara Falls

Last Friday we spent the day at Niagara Falls, NY being tourists in our own backyard. Our first adventure was to go on the Cave of the Winds, something none of us has done before. This is the perfect thing to do on a warm day, as you get soaking wet! It was amazing to see the force and power of the water going over the falls...and we got souvenir sandals to keep.

After lunch at the snack bar adjacent to the Cave of the Winds, we walked around a bit and then headed over to the Maid of the Mist. My husband and I had been on it years ago, but our two youngest children had never been on it. Again, another perfect thing to do on a warm summer day, as you do get wet, despite the raincoats they provide. It is an awesome view of the falls, but I find it scary!

We walked around some more on Goat Island, and went to the Three Sisters Islands. Afterwards, we had dinner at the Top of the Falls restaurant, where the view is good and the food is tasty and reasonably priced.

Last week my daughter and I went on a one night "girls getaway" to the Traditions at the Glen in Binghamton. We decided to do this since my husband and youngest son were going to summer camp.

Our trip down was very interesting. We were driving through Elmira about the time the tornado hit last Thursday. It was raining so hard it was "like driving through a waterfall" as my daughter said. She was actually driving (she has her permit) and said she should automatically get her license after driving through that!

I had read about the Spa at Traditions and specifically the Salt Sanctuary, a man-made salt cave within the spa. Sitting in the cave for treatment is supposde to be relaxing, as well as beneficialy to your skin and breathing. It was a unique relaxing experience. We also had manicures and pedicures the next morning. www.traditionsresort.com

We also checked out some of the carousels that Binghamton is famous for, as well as did some shopiing at Oakdale Mall.