QUAD CITIES, THE FINAL DAY

One great mode of transportation is the Channel Cat Water Taxi. For $6 you can ride the whole day and even bring your bike. I was told that there are some people who will just ride without getting off while reading a book, just to relax and enjoy the river and views. There are five stops along the Mississippi River. Moline Landing - Ben Butterworth Parkway at Celebration Pier, home to the Celebration Belle, a non-gambling excursion boat. The Quarter - East Moline Landing - home of Beacon Harbor and the Visitors Center. Bettendorf Landing - Isle of Capri Casino. John Deere Commons Landing - just a block away from the John Deere Pavilion and iWireless Center. Village of East Davenport Landing - where you can take a Segway tour.



That's just what we did in Davenport. An IA Segway tour goes for about 2 hours along a bike path on the Mississippi Riverfront. We were able to view much including lock and dam #15. Mike Mott pointed out some historic sites at the Arsenal on Rock Island, Illinois, located across the river as well as the town of East Davenport.

Final lunch was at Front Street Brewery in Davenport where I had their signature cheddar cheese soup made with beer. Time to go home!

QUAD CITIES, THE CONCERT

LeClaire Park in Davenport is a great venue for festivals and concerts. September brings their annual Beerfest. I was there the week before to attend a performance by the Quad City Symphony Orchestra's Riverfront Pops with a focus on Broadway hits. Mark Russell Smith is the Music Director and three Broadway stars were on hand to sing. They were: Stephanie Block, who starred in the musical "9 to 5", The Boy From Oz, and Wicked; Lisa Vroman, who starred in Phantom of the Opera, had Broadway roles in Les Miz and continued singing opera; and Hugh Panaro, who is now starring on Broadway in the role of "masked man" in Phantom of the Opera. Coincidentally I had tickets to review Phantom only a few days later and met him backstage.

During these type of events, attendees are encouraged to bring chairs, tables or whatever they wish to enjoy a picnic on the lawn. For those who just wished to view the concert and perhaps buy food from the vendors, row of chairs are laid out in front of the stage.

QUAD CITIES EVEN MORE!

Next day's itinerary began with a visit to the Country Corner Farm Market and Pumpkin Patch in Alpha, Illinois. Aside from their market of fresh corn and pumpkins, they also sell locally made or grown products as well. Take a horse drawn hayrack ride, pick pumpkins and stop at the petting zoo. Alpacas, chickens, pigs, goats, and miniature cattle. Ask owner Bruce Curry about the various types of corn like the kind you eat, ones fed to the animals, one that pops right on the cob and ones just for fall decoration. Country Corner is open from May to October, so I'm happy that I got there in September.



They sell the popping corn as a package in a brown paper bag with instructions for use in you microwave oven. Option is to pick off kernels and pop in a pot.

Exotic Thai was our lunch spot. I ordered an iced Thai coffee not just for the taste but also if the need to cool my mouth came into play. With too many starters to choose from I opted for the Siam Sampler: Marinated chicken skewers wit peanut sauce and cucumber dip; Seasoned shrimp wrapped in fine noodles and crisp fried served with a dipping sauce; Crispy Thai rolls stuffed with glass noodles and veggies served with a tangy plum sauce; Fried chicken wing stuffed with a mix of ground chicken, glass noodles, Thai spices, served with a sweet and sour sauce.

In spite of my not being drawn to the spicy side, I ordered the classic Tom Yom soup. Once I got used to the chili hitting the back of my throat, rather than my whole mouth, the lemongrass soup with chicken and straw mushrooms was Tom Yum.

I'm one to stick to Pad Thai, but decided on a different noodle dish, Pad See U. Stir fried flat rice noodles with broccoli and egg in a sweet black bean sauce.

Esther had the Asparagus Salad of asparagus, chicken breast, shrimp, roasted shredded coconut served with a Thai-style dressing.

Dessert was a banana crepe with coconut ice cream plated with raisins and cashew nuts and drizzled with chocolate sauce.

QUAD CITIES CONTINUED

We sort of walked off the lunch with a very quick tour of downtown LeClaire and visiting the Buffalo Bill Museum where they collect, preserve, interpret and exhibit historical, cultural and educational artifacts depicting the heritage of this region, particularly life along the Mississippi River in eastern Iowa and western Illinois and its early pioneers like Buffalo Bill (William F. Cody). Buffalo Bill was born in a log cabin two miles west of Main St., LeClaire on what is today Territorial Road. Then two years later, Isaac Cody (Buffalo Bill’s father) built the home overlooking the Mississippi River.

Abutting the museum, founded by the LeClaire Women's Club in 1957, is the Lone Star Steamboat which was used to transport cargo and tow other boats along the Mississippi River. You can go aboard the steamboat on your own or take a tour of both.

The evening was spent having dinner at Farradday's Restaurant, the more upscale dining of the Isle Casino and Hotel in Bettendorf that sits along the Mississippi River. Its casino area is located on an old riverboat. We were there for the entertainment as Vickie Lawrence was performing. She talked about her career, Carol Burnett and transformed herself to "Mama", the character that she portrayed on tv. She sang, danced and was extremely funny.

NEXT DAY IN THE QUAD CITIES

The first stop on the next day's itinerary was the German American Heritage Center in Davenport, and last remaining immigrant hotel of the 1800's in the region. This form 1862 Germania Haus/Miller Hotel explores and celebrates the immigrant experience telling the story of how they contributed to and influenced the development of the community, region, and country. I also took a photo from one of the upstairs windows.

Bucktown Center for the Arts is quite different from a place such as Figge Art Museum. Where the museum houses collections and exhibits from mostly non-local artists, Bucktown gives the opportunity for that artists to create on site in a refurbished warehouse and everything's for sale.

Esther, Eunice and I met a few artists such as Lori Boutott who creates beads for other artists to use in their jewelry as well as for the someone who may want some particular type of bead for their own use.

Lori's cat is around to keep her busy when she takes a quick break. He will bring rolls of knitting wool into one area to distract her.

Jack Wilhoit focuses on artistic photography. Doors and bicycles are his thing from the photograph to the three dimensional.



The Crane and Pelican Cafe in LeClaire, a city near Davenport and along the Mississippi River. Owned by Amanda Harvey, a former mixologist, the restaurant is quiet and cozy yet sophisticated. All of the rooms have large windows with views and the walls have artwork available for purchase.

Executive Chef Fritz is in charge of the bill of fare, which can be more defined as comfort food. I had a gyro of lamb and beef with a side of Asian Slaw. Dessert was a tasty orange crepe.