Thursday, July 22, 2010

New Life Hiking Spa -- Day 3


This morning I skipped the Stretch class, which I regret. It's my favorite class here at New Life. But at 6:45 am, I just couldn't pull myself out of bed. Still, I managed to be up in time for breakfast at 7:30. There was a choice of an omelet with sun dried tomatoes and basil or plain scrambled eggs, both gluten free. I went with plain scrambled and asked them to substitute the tapioca tortilla for the whole wheat muffin. It came with just a dab of delicious blackberry jam (the kind that makes you want to lick the plate to get every last drop) and a slice of cantaloupe and a very tiny garnish of three blueberries and a slice of strawberry.

I was hoping to do the intermediate level hike today, to give myself an extra challenge, but when I put on my hiking boots I realized I had a large bruise on my ankle and the boot was pressing on it. On the beginner level hike you are allowed to wear sneakers, so I had to change into those and go on the "nature walk." It was still a 5 mile walk, though, so I got my exercise for sure. It was a beautiful walk down 2 miles of gravel road along a lake, then a 1 mile loop through the woods, then back along the road we came in on. I especially loved hearing the frogs croaking along the lake shore.

Lunch was served back at the spa, where we had a wonderful zucchini soup (the recipe is on their website) and little English-muffin pizzas. Mine, of course, had to be made on the tapioca tortilla, but it was good. It was loaded with a lot of mushrooms and black olives (not my favorite), but by this point I am learning to eat what I'm served to avoid being hungry in the afternoon.

After lunch we took an excursion to the Rutland Area Food Co-Op (that's it's name). I didn't buy anything, but they did have a number of gluten free items, including Bob's Red Mill mixes, Mary's Gone Crackers, and Kind bars. So it would be a good place to stock up if you were in the area. Our guide was there to talk about alternative grains such as millet and quinoa, which of course I already know about, but don't serve often enough. Perhaps I'll get motivated to try millet again when I get home.

There was an evening Yoga class, then off to dinner where we were served a choice of tofu or salmon with an orange glaze. Needless to say, I chose salmon. It was well-prepared and the sauce was good. It was served with a brown rice and spinach pilaf and steamed veggies. Up until this point I had not been concerned about the lack of salt on the table, but the rice was bland and really needed a bit of salt. Fortunately, a fellow guest sitting at my table had a secret salt shaker that he has been sneaking into the dining room in his pocket -- LOL! He generously shared, and the rice was quite good with just a small sprinkle of salt.

I should say that dinner is always served with a salad, but I've gotten tired of eating them. The field greens and celery are ok, but I've never been a fan of raw onion, bean sprouts, or radishes. At least there are never any croutons on them!

For dessert they served strawberries Romanov, which I was told I could eat, but the server mistakenly put one in front of me that was garnished with wheat germ. Fortunately, I was suspicious and asked what was on it. She apologized and went back to the kitchen to get an ungarnished serving.

I had a massage tonight for my poor weary muscles and I am having a glass of my Vermont wine while I type, but I had best get to bed if I want to get up for the early morning Stretch class. Good night!

Sandy

No comments:

Post a Comment