SUNDAY COFFEE WITH JEB



Seniors Discover Ibiza Off The Coast Of Spain

UnknownGet your coffee, senior friends, we’re heading for Ibiza, one of the Balearic islands, off the east coast of Spain. This archipelago of Spain is found in the Mediterranean Sea, not far from Valencia.

Ibiza is where millions of folks enjoy the year-round climate and Ibiza Town and Sant Antoni is where the exciting and lively nightlife is found. Ibiza is home to quiet villages, yoga retreats and beaches, from Platja d’en Bossa, lined with hotels, bars and shops, to quieter sandy coves backed by pine-clad hills found all around the coast.

I would head off first to the beach of Talamanca with its calm and shallow bay on the south east coast. And I would not want to miss the magnificent cathedral constructed during the 13th and 14th centuries on the site of an ancient temple dedicated to Mercury.

 Seniors Enjoy World Heritage Town

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Ibiza Town (Eivissa), a World Heritage Town, the capital and largest city on the island, is the port city overlooking the Mediterranean. Ibiza Town was founded by the Phoenicians 2600 year ago, and since then has been continually populated.

Although called Ibiza in English and Spanish, the official name is the Catalan Eivissa (as restored in 1986) and its inhabitants call it the Vila d’Eivissa or simply Vila (“Town”).

Sa Penya is the most distinctive neighborhood in Eivissa, where the cobweb of streets stretch out to the ancient walls of the city. This is where senior visitors congregate to please their palates, shop and inhale the spirit of Ibiza Town.

Seniors Are Charmed By The Island

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The  nightlife is legendary, with world-class restaurants, a great selection of bars in the pretty Old Town and in trendy Marina Botafoch, and where the world-famous Pacha nightclub with the best DJs of the world play each night in summer. The island charms visitors all year long from nations around the globe.

 Seniors will find a fine array of small boutiques, high-end fashion stores, specialty shops and a variety of novelties. Ibiza attracts an international crowd all year round and is known for celebrity spotting during the summer months.

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Ibiza offers senior visitors museums, beaches, cruises along with Es Vedra, Dalt Vila and Cala Comte, as well as a host of holiday rental villas and luxury hotels. Wikitravel notes that Ibiza Town is full of character, heart, soul, spirit and history and is home to the amazing UNESCO World Heritage listed site Dalt Vila – a huge, walled fortress surrounding a cobbled street town.

So seniors, set your sails for Ibiza.  Read up on the plethora of amenities this exciting island offers. Many visitors enjoy biking around the island to get to know the terrain.  Enjoy you stay in Ibiza. -jeb

 

 

SENIORS VISIT OHIO



Seniors Check Out Reynoldsburg

a-welcome-sign-in-reynoldsburg-ohio-usa-boasts-that-the-midwestern-EMXTEY Reynoldsburg, senior travelers learn, a city in Fairfield, Franklin, and Licking counties in the  state of Ohio, is a suburban community in the Columbus, Ohio metropolitan area with a population of nearly 36,000.

Originally called Frenchtown, Reynoldsburg was platted back in 1831 by John French, and named for him. The present name is for John C. Reynolds, a local merchant. A post office called Reynoldsburg was established in 1833, and the name was later changed to Reynoldsburg. The area started developing rapidly after the National Road was built.

For you salad lovers, the city is known as the birthplace of the tomato and it celebrates a fun annual summer festival dedicated to tomatoes. Reynoldsburg’s Tomato Festival features a host of activities, all revolving around the tomato.

Seniors Hike the Trails at Blacklick Woods

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The area also has some interesting historical sites. The Alexander W. Livingston House is listed on the National Register of Historic Places. The house was built in in 1864-1865 by Livingston, a horticulturist, who is world famous as the developer of the tomato into a stable commercial crop.

For me personally, I’d want to check out Smokey Bones Bar and Fire Grill, The Thirsty Turtle and spend some quality time in Blacklick Woods Metro Park. In addition to the golf courses, the park offers an extensive network of hiking and biking trails, picnic areas, and a nature center.

Before departing I would visit the Reynoldsburg Truro Historical Society, a group dedicated to promoting and preserving the local history. Senior visitors will find an interesting collection of tools, costumes, photos, household furniture, farm items and published materials relating to historic Reynoldsburg and Truro Township.

 Seniors Enjoy Reynoldsburg’s Scottish Heritage

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Also known as the Heritage Sports Complex, Huber Park is situated on 42 acres of land. The park includes a classic paved trail that can be used for biking or jogging.

Reynoldsburg has a very active Scottish American Society, which celebrates the city Scottish heritage year-round. The society’s main event of the year is the Reynoldsburg Tartan Day that highlights pipers, Scottish highland and country dancers, Scottish games, athletic demonstrations and weaponry displays.

Senior bikers, the Motorcycle Hall of Fame Museum is nearby in a suburb called Pickerington where over 200 motorcyclists are enshrined into the Hall of Fame, one of the museum’s main galleries.

Senior travelers, plan a stop in Reynoldsburg when you are in the Columbus, Ohio area. A fun time awaits your visit. -jeb

SENIORS STAY A LITTLE LONGER IN CALIFORNIA



Seniors Visit The Old Community of Newhall

newhallwalking240x160Senior travelers will find Newhall, California, the southernmost and oldest community of Santa Clarita, just outside of Los Angeles. Established in the 1850′s as a stagecoach stop, today, it is notable for its antique car shows, mountain surroundings, and ranch houses.

Named after businessman Henry Newhall, Newhall is home to the William S. Hart County Park, featuring tours of the famous silent movie maker’s mansion.

The Old West still lives in Newhall’s Western Walk of Fame and the William S. Hart Regional Park with its exhibition of Western life and an example of an old-time ranch house and the original Saugus train station.

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Seniors Find Interesting History

Newhall is also home to the Pioneer Oil Refinery, the oldest surviving oil refinery in the world and the first commercially successful refinery in California. Senior visitors can enjoy the William S. Hart Museum and Ranch along with the Placerita Canyon Nature Center and Old-Town main street shops. Then there are car shows and a meal at the legendary Way Station.

Decades before the city of Santa Clarita, there were two small towns in the Valley: Newhall and Saugus. The Santa Clarita Valley was simply an area of ranches and farms in northern Los Angeles County.

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Newhall was the place where ranchers bought groceries and other needs — and, at Saugus, shipped out what they produced via the railroad.  Eventually, Newhall and Saugus were absorbed into what is now Santa Clarita.

Beale’s Cut was the first man made passage from the San Fernando Valley to Santa Clarita and Northern California. Beale’s Cut was completed in 1864 by a crew headed by General Edward F. Beale and was 90 feet deep.

 Seniors Have Fun At the Cowboy Festival

Santa Clarita has hosted countless location shoots in its scrubby hills for Hollywood’s cowboy pictures. The Walk of Western Stars is an extensive sidewalk tribute to the movie, TV and radio legends.

The small shops in downtown Newhall mostly close by dinner time. Not a bad time for a stroll —  It’s just you and the memories of Clayton Moore, the original Lone Ranger; Tex Ritter the singing cowboy; Hoot Gibson, rodeo champ actor and director. Remember all those folks? Maybe not if you are not as old as this senior, but I loved them all and watched many black and white TV shows featuring those cowboys.

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You don’t have to be a cowboy to enjoy the Santa Clarita Cowboy Festival in Old Town Newhall. Suspending inside a larger than life horse shoe, festival goers will step back in time to the 1860’s.

This is Newhall, seniors. Set your GPS for this exciting old western setting and enjoy the flavor. -jeb

 

Filed under : Family Travel, United States

SENIORS ALWAYS ENJOY CALIFORNIA



Seniors Find Flowers Galore in Borrego Springs

images “Super Bloom” draws crowds this time of year in California and no better place to see them than Borrego Springs. Many of this years blooms have been lying dormant for years, but today a spectacular display is in view for senior visitors to the area.

It is estimated that over 150,00 folks will travel to this little town that lies 85 miles northeast of San Diego to enjoy the wide array of beautiful flowers. The natural show at Anza-Borrego is expected to roll along through May, with different species blooming at different elevations and in different areas. Folks are making a “beeline” to  what The Washington Post calls “Flowergeddon.”

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‘Super Bloom’ is what they call a mass amount of desert plants that come to life with blazing orange poppies in particular filling up memory chips in cameras. The wet winter is the principal reason for the display and it is said that this happens only once every ten years.

Seniors Awed By Thousands Of Acres Of Flowers

Much of what senior visitors will see takes place in Anza Borrego State Park that has 640,000 acres for you to take in. The name of Anza-Borrego State Park is derived from a combination of Juan Baptista de Anza and “borrego” which is Spanish for little lamb, in honor of the local herds of bighorn sheep.

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While there are hundreds of species, you will note the spiny ocotillo cactus, my wife’s favorite, with flaming tall red blooms that the hummingbirds enjoy. The town is the only California town that is completely surrounded by a state park.

The locals in Borrego Springs call the visitors “flower peepers.” This Master Gardener would be one of the more enthusiastic “flower peepers” there. I had a garden back in Illinois the size of a football field and I grew many flowers.

Yellow, orange, purple and magenta blooms abound in every direction. Visitors come from as far away as China and Japan to enjoy the scenery, with the Bigelow Monkey flower an 8 inch favorite of Asian tourists.

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 Seniors Find Town Surrounded By Beautiful State Park

In Borrego Springs the locals (population around 3,500) are completely surrounded by nature, set in the midst of Anza-Borrego Desert State Park.  Senior visitors can hike a desert canyon or just relax by the pool, play some golf or watch the roadrunners, and always amaze yourself with the dark night sky.

There is no hustle-bustle in Borrego Springs, a small town with a homey feel. This stop is a wonderful opportunity for seniors and others to enjoy Borrego Springs. A local landmark is the traffic roundabout between the airport and downtown, known as Christmas Circle.

Seniors, enjoy Borrego Springs and the beauty that surrounds it this time of year. -jeb

Filed under : Editors Choice

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