June 2008
You may not think of New Haven, Connecticut as a typical place to go on vacation for the Fourth of July, but my mother won a free trip there and offered to take me along. We stayed at the Omni and basically ate all weekend long! Besides the free meals included in the prize at the hotel's 19th floor restaurant and the Playwright Irish Pub, we also went to Frank Pepe's Pizzeria and a fantastic Spanish tapas place called Barcelona. We also drove out to Olde Mistick Village in Mystic and to the Indian casinos since there really isn't anything much to do in New Haven!

Frank Pepe's Pizzeria is a New Haven Institution. They originated the New Haven style of thin crust pizza.

The view from our 16th floor room at the New Haven Omni was spectacular

The view from our 16th floor room at the New Haven Omni was spectacular

The view from our 16th floor room at the New Haven Omni was spectacular

The view from our 16th floor room at the New Haven Omni was spectacular

The view from our 16th floor room at the New Haven Omni was spectacular

This church was across from our hotel

Walking around the Yale University campus

Walking around the Yale University campus

Walking around the Yale University campus

Louis Lunch is allegedly where the hamburger was invented. Sadly, they were closed for the Fourth of July when I was there.

The old bar at Frank Pepe's Pizzeria gives it such a classic look

You know you're in New England when the birch beer is white!

That's a coal fired oven. It gives Frank Pepe's pizza a distinctive taste.

Yum! Frank Pepe's Pizzeria started the New Haven style of thin crust pizza.

Experimenting with long exposure times, but I forgot my tripod at home!

A duck and her ducklings at Olde Mistick Village in Mystic

A duck watches over her ducklings at Olde Mistick Village in Mystic

The ducklings fight to be on the top of the pile

The ducklings clamor over each other until they start falling off

These ducks were waiting outside the hair salon. Insert your own joke here.

A duck wanders around Olde Mistick Village in Mystic

Mohegan Sun was more fun than Foxwoods

Taughannick Falls is located on the first floor of Mohegan Sun

This amazing massive glass scultpure is in front of Taughannick Falls at Mohegan Sun

The view from our 16th floor room at the New Haven Omni was spectacular