The Old Mohawk, Columbus Ohio

Around the bar on a Saturday afternoon, at The Old Mohawk in German Village. Hubby and I had attended the annual Haus and Garten tour in German Village. Hot and dusty and naturally thirsty we stopped in at an old favorite location. When we were younger we visited The Old Mohawk often for Beer and Burgers. Was always a fun location, small and a bit of a dive...but a good dive.

The Bar's been in operation since 1933, so it's quite historic. It's located at 819 Mohawk Street on the corner of Mohawk and Kossuth in the heart of German Village. Myles Elk opened the tavern in 1933 after the 18th amendment, Prohibition was abolished. Rumor have it, they were famous for the turtle soup, which was always made fresh. The turtles were raised in the basement. Now, I believe this was more then a rumor. My Mother actually visited upstairs in her youth. Her family knew the owner. She informed me years ago they had turtles in the basement. If Mom said it, I take it as fact, not rumor.
You can get a feel for the place with brick walls, the tin ceiling and the old original artifacts on the walls. Myles operated The Mohawk until his death in 1947. It was then managed by some of his family until 1975 when sadly it was sold to 2 brothers who cleaned it up and tried to make it hip. It was called Tiffany's then. We went once and twice and felt like they ruined it. We liked the Old Mohawk and it's being bit of a dive. Luckily that period of time in it's history was a short 2 years, when the current owner purchased it and once again made it The Old Mohawk.
You can see a time line of it's history on their menu. The menu...well typical bar food.

Sorry this photo is a bit dark, as I was looking towards the windows.

It's a comfortable, come as you are place with a reasonable variety of food selections, beer selections, wines and mixed drinks. Prices are good, service was a bit slow the day we were there. However, to be fair...I think they'd been beyond busy because of the tour. So, I don't hold that against them, and do plan to return. We had a snack....a HUGH order of nacho grande for $9.59 between the 2 of us and didn't eat it all. Excellent appetizer to share. I had a reasonably good margarita while hubby had a beer. We left refreshed and full.

Appropriate for couples, and small groups. It's not particularly family oriented which is fine to my way of thinking. It's small and not really room for kids to move about. Casual dress.

Recommend you give it a try. In case you're curious....there is no turtle soup on the menu, nor turtles in the basement.

Check back for when, where and how to travel any day of the week. And remember Monday is Menu Monday. Ahead for change, so posting this a day early

Car Travel and Summer Family Vacations

Pack the car and grab the kids and take your family vacation. Yes pack the car, not board the plane. Cars travel is much more suited to a family vacation then plane travel. Something families should consider before they book those expensive plane tickets and spend money that makes the vacation more expensive then it needs to be.

Why car travel over plane travel?

1. It's far more cost effective
2. You can do it on your time table (like traveling around kids nap times)
3. You can stop when you need to for bathroom breaks (not wait til the light goes on that it's ok, while your child moans that he or she has to go, not wait til it's smooth in the air, not wait til 300 ish other passengers make their way to the itty bitty bathroom)
4. You can see interesting things along the way
5. You can play family games and carry on conversations (often not possible on the plane because it's too loud with the motor noise and that off the other 300 ish passengers)
6. You can eat when you need to, not work around flight delays.
7. The kids can move a little, lay down and nap if need be.

Why do so many families opt for plane travel vs car travel?

1. They perceive it's easier and faster.
2. Depending on where you're going it might or might not be faster.
3. Based on what I've seen in my travels....there is NOTHING about it that's easier.

• Kids crying because they don't under security
• Kids crying because they don't understand not being able to eat or go potty when they want
• Kids crying because they don't understand delays
• Kids crying because they don't want to stay buckled
• Kids crying and wining because they don't understand or like that they have to turn off the movies, their games, or their music
• Kids crying because they're just plain worn out from getting up too early, running through the airport, not being able to carry or pull their luggage
• Parents irritable because they kids are wearing them out, and they are stressed
• parents irritable because they can't get all 4 seats together (or even 3, cause they didn't bother to check in ahead of time
• Kids general unhappy because they can't sit that long, and not self entertain

When you travel by car, you can the actual trip, not just the destination part of the vacation.

If you feel you must travel with the young kids by plane............next post. Making plane travel non stressful takes LOTS of work, and preplanning. Do stop back in.

The Rain in Spain

The Rain in Spain stays mainly on the plains....can't you hear Eliza singing that in My Fair Lady!

Packing for the weather can be difficult, particularly if you're travel to a new and unknown area. What's it like? Do I need flip flops for the beach, boots to stay warm, or an umbrella to ward off rain? The weather in Spain is even more confusing. Why? There's a large diversity in the weather due to inland conditions, beach front, as well as mountainous terrain. Making your first necessary stop, The Spanish Weather website.

The website is easy to navigate and provide a great deal of information. Weather temperatures are listed both in Fahrenheit and Celsius to aid travelers from all over the globe. If you're heading to Spain to golf, or do other outdoor activities you really need to plan ahead and pack accordingly.

You can perform searches for a specific city to help you plan, as well as obtain a 3, 5, 7, 10 or even 14 days weather forcast. But, there's more. There's beautiful pictures posted with each city's weather; as well as a wonderful overview of the history in the area. Additionally, information regarding the numerous city festivals so very popular throughout the country.

So while Eliza might be struggling to sing, The Rain in Spain stays Mainly on the Plain.....pay no attention or leave your trip to chance. Visit the website, Spanish Weather today.

Have fun in your travels.

Gifts that Travel

FREE
Did you notice that? Free is always such a fabulous word, made up of just 4 letters, 2 consonants and 1 vowel that repeats itself. You might think you don't need business cards, maybe you're not even in business; but everyone needs them. Say you're traveling, on vacation and meet someone you wish to exchange information with..........you need a business card. 250 FREE cards...what an offer, don't pass it up.

But Vistaprint has far more to offer then business cards. You can costume order hats, t-shirts, tote bags, magnets, and calendars and more. Vistaprint offers items to aid anyone in their business, as well as items needed in day to day personal lives. Are the kids on a sports team? Are you involved in an organization through your church or school? Design brochures, gift certificates, notecards, signs and banners.

Think of special Christmas gifts you can design, make them personal. How bout a special calendar for the members in your family from pictures of special moments together? Planning a wedding, a family or class reunion....Vistaprint is a must stop for you with a huge variety of offerings. Purchasing is easy and convenient. You can use a variety of charge cards, as well as pay with paypal.

You'll notice the banner in my side bar, click on the picture above or in my sidebar to make your purchase today.

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