Chautauqua

It had been about 20 years since Don and I were in Chautauqua. The Poe's have had a house there for a very long time, and Don's friends Rudy and Diane have lived there for over 20 years. Now, three of Don's Accenture co-workers have houses there too - all on the lake.

So we decided to make a trip to see a few people. Greg and Merry were gracious enough to drive up with us and host us for two nights. We arrived on Thursday night and met at a restaurant in Bemus Point for dinner.

In the morning, we got up, had breakfast and went for a 20-mile bike ride halfway around the lake. It was 47 degrees when we first started out, and it sprinkled on us a few times, so it wasn't the warmest ride we've ever done.

After riding bikes, we changed into our tennis clothes and drove over to the local tennis courts. It was in the mid-50's and cloudy by then, and after about 5 or 6 games, it started to rain a little harder than a sprinkle so we called it a day. We tried!

Friday night, we drove down the road to the home of our friends John and Eva. They took us to a very nice restaurant called the White Carrot. We got to take a tour of their house and see the sunset out back before we left for dinner. I forgot to get a picture of them!

This morning, we got up and headed straight out to play tennis. Again, it was around 47 degrees outside, but running around warmed us up. We got two sets in before we had to head back to shower and get ready to leave. Greg and Merry went back home, and Don and I drove around the lake to the house of Rudy and Diane, who live in the town of Lakewood.

Don went to Case Western Reserve with Rudy and Diane back in the mid-70's. Don and Rudy were on the Case wrestling team together. Rudy & Diane are both doctors in Lakewood, NY. They have five children who are now out of the house and living adventurous lives.

This is a picture of their beautiful home taken from down by the lake.

It was very nice to catch up with these friends over lunch at a local burger & brew place. We definitely need to visit Chautauqua before another 20 years is up! And next time, we will do it in the summer.