Quick List:

• Vabene Caffe
• Buffalo House
  
• Swamp Sisters
  
• Red Star Lounge
• Aces on First
• Enger Tower and Park
• Skyline Drive
• Lake Walk
• XC ski
  

The most popular tourist destination is Canal Park.  This is where the lift bridge, lake walk, park point, and many hotels are located.  Right in the middle of Canal Park is the DeWitt-Seitz building.  Inside is a few places to eat and go shopping.

If you follow the lake walk a few miles you can go to one of the most scenic restaurants in the area, Vabene Caffe.  They recently finished a heated patio with a wonderful view of the lake.  It’s an Italian restaurant with authentic dishes and a cozy fire place.  Sometimes though I just get a glass of wine and the cheese platter appetizer and take in the scenery of the Lake and the board walk.

Just a few minutes walk away from Vabene Caffe is Fitger’s, a renovated historic brewery and shopping center.  I usually like to stroll through and check out all the warm winter clothing.  At night in Fitgers, I like the RedStar lounge for drinks and music.  Another night spot downtown Duluth I enjoy is Aces.  It was recently renovated and has a nice atmosphere for visitors.  Although, they do not have a kitchen so don’t go their hungry.

Just outside of the Duluth area are the restaurants Buffalo House and Swamp Sister.  They are worth going to on your way in or out of the area. Swamp Sister is seasonal so check the website for more information.

Belize was a really great trip for me and my wife. We really loved the adventure, ocean views, and relaxation. In the area we stayed our resort was by far the best. We stayed at Jaguar reef (which is also called Almond Beach) and bought the adventure package.

http://www.jaguarreef.com/en/packages/multi-adventure.html

You really have to make sure you and your soon to be wife are OK with the following things:

1. It is a jungle and third world country outside the resort
2. At dusk the mosquitoes get really bad (we are from MN so it was not that much different for us and we knew to bring bug spray). So be prepared at dinner, you will get few bites and so will the mosquitoes. (sorry bad joke)
3. Some of the roads to the resort are bumpy and only dirt roads. Thus, you have to take a very small airplane for some travel.
4. (good for me bad for wife) – No malls, small amount of shopping at the airport

The good things:

1. It’s very real and not a tourist trap.
2. The daily excursions are really fun but you do share the experience with a group.
3. On one of our day trips we were the only couple and had the whole waterfall swimming experience to our self.
4. The people of Belize live very simple lives but are super friendly
5. The beach, Ocean, and pools are really nice.
6. The rooms are very nice at Jaguarreef.
7. They have wireless Internet but its a little slow.
8. They have DVD players in the room so bring some movies in case it rains.
9. They have sailboats, ask the people at the beach how to use it if you never have tried (really fun)
10. Free bikes but not that safe to peddle around on the busy dirt roads.
11. Free snorkel gear
12. The diving looks amazing but you have to have a license for it.

Highlights so far:

• The plane ride to the resort. It was a single propeller plane that carried only 5 people. The air strip was a single lane.
• Sailing
• Snorkling at the barrior reef
• hiking and swimming in the jungle (video: Teresa swimming to jungle waterfall)
• Visiting Mayan Ruins

Check out the vacation section for more pictures of Belieze - http://rowejason.com/vacation/

Kuma

Storm over NY

Ice cream!

Jamie at Jones beach.

Jamie and Eric bus ride after Jones beach.

Jones Beach