African Restaurants

“One cannot think well, love well, sleep well, if one has not dined well.” – Virginia Wolf

It’s the last week of summer, actually it’s not actually officially the end of summer yet, but a lot of people associate the Labor Day weekend with the end of summer vacation time. Nicole and I went to see One Hundred Foot Journey for my birthday so I’ve been thinking about food and interesting dining experiences since then. Nicole also gave me an awesome cook book for my birthday so I’m in a food/cooking mood for sure. I’ve decided to take you to Africa this week in our blog, as a last minute vacation, so we can take a look at some very interesting and unusual restaurants that Africa has to offer. 

Enjoy!

The Rock Restaurant in Zanzibar, Tanzania

This restaurant serves up to 12 tables and is perched on a rising rock right in front of the beach! It can be reached by foot when the tide is low but you’ll have to take a boat when the tide is high. I’ll bet it has an amazing view.

Ali Barbour Cave in Kenya

So cool! This restaurant is located 10 metres below ground level in a naturally sculptured coral cave.

Cargo Hold in South Africa

I would love to dine here. You can eat dinner with the sharks because it was built in a replica ship with a wall sized shark aquarium.

La Tante DC 10 Restaurant in Ghana

 You can dine in an actual airplane that used to make transcontinental flights, how cool is that ?

The Big Baobab in South Africa 

These restaurants keep getting neater and neater. This pub was built in the hollowed out trunk of a tree.

Moonlight Dinner Run in Victoria Falls

You get to enjoy dinner beginning with an old train carriage journey that starts in the late afternoon from Victoria Falls to the Zambezi National Park. When you’re at the park you get to dine under the stars, so romantic and peaceful.

Unique and Weird Houses

“Home is where the heart is.” – Pliny the Elder

In keeping with the travel theme, this week I’ve decided to show you some unique homes that you can visit throughout the U.S. These homes are a little bit weird but they attract lots of people; you can’t help but take a look at them. So pack up the family and some snacks and take a road trip to go and see these unique and fascinating houses that people actually have lived in. 

The Pickle House in Grand Marais, Michigan 

I love pickles but I don’t know about living in a house shaped like a pickle barrel, but cartoonist William Donahey did in 1926. Now it’s a seasonal museum which is open from June to September.

The Beer Can House in Houston, Texas

In 1968 John Milkovisch renovated his house. He decided to decorate the outside of his house with concrete, metal and rock pieces. He eventually made aluminium siding from beer cans and then went on to create beer can sculptures and garlands. After he passed away, the Orange Center for Visionary Art restored it and has opened it for the public to see between Memorial Day and Labor Day.

Giant Shoe House in Hellam, Pennsylvania

 

I like shoes maybe more than I like pickles. I could see myself living in this house just like the little old woman who lived in a shoe. This house was used as a guest house and built by a shoe salesman. It has five levels, three bedrooms, two bathrooms, a kitchen, and a living room! You can go for tours from June to October; I would love to see this house.

Winchester Mystery House in San Jose, California

If you like mysteries and a little bit of spookiness you’ll enjoy touring this house. Sarah Winchester believed that ghostly spirits haunted her so she built a house that she felt would confuse the ghosts. It took 35 years to build and has 160 rooms along with secret passageways and upside down columns. Sounds like something out of a Nancy Drew novel. I’d be down to tour this house.

Mary’s Gone Wild House Glass House in New Brunswick, North Carolina

Mary Paulson, who created this house, was a doll repair lady. As she would repair discarded dolls she would collect things along the way; this house is the result of her collections over the years. 

Gold Pyramid House in Wadsworth, Illinois

This is so cool! This house was built in 1977 and is 6 stories tall and 17,000 square feet and it has a pharaoh standing watch; it also has a moat surrounding it. 

House on the Rock in Spring Green, Wisconsin

This house I’m sure would have an amazing view, after all, it’s perched high up on a rock. Built in 1945 by Alex Jordan, it was used as a luxurious getaway. It has one long thin room that “stretches 218 feet long and 156 feet above the valley floor, with over 3,000 windows for walls, providing amazing panoramic views.” Apparently this house even has the world’s largest carousels in it! Open to the public since 1960, it’s divided into three sections so you can tour a section or the whole house, your choice, but be sure to leave up to three hours avaliable; it has lots to offer. 

One Log House in Gaberville, California

Created by logger Art Schmock, this was built to prove to his relatives in the Midwest and East Coast that giant redwoods do exist. He and his friend built this over eight months out of a real redwood! It has a bedroom, living room, and kitchen and is on wheels so that he could travel and show it off; it’s like a mobile home but made of wood. Now it sits on Highway 101 as a café and you can buy gifts and espresso there.

 

http://www.cnn.com/2014/08/11/travel/weird-houses/index.html?hpt=hp_bn10