And a Christmas New Year: The Victoria and Bentonville, AR

The Victoria Bed & Breakfast

Today the road has brought me to Bentonville, AR.

This outing was a surprise even to me as I had just come back from a 7 day trip to Tempe, AZ where I visited some friends over Christmas.  But as I told a friend of mine, I just didn’t feel traveled out enough.  I thumbed through my list of B & Bs and found The Victoria and it had one room left for New Year’s.  I booked it and headed south.

Relatively speaking the drive was a picnic as it was the shortest I’ve had in many a moon (less than 6 hours).  So it was that I found myself in Bentonville on the afternoon of New Year’s Eve and at The Victoria, owned and operated by Michael and Joana Garrison.

The Victoria has a self check-in procedure.  I was given a door code to let myself in and found a letter with my name on it welcoming me to the inn and guiding me to my room on the second floor.  After picking my breakfast time, I headed up to my room:  The Emperor.

This was a very elegant room with large paintings gracing the walls, a writing desk, an old-fashioned gas stove, a leather easy chair, and a large king bed.  After settling in, I made a quick exploration of the property. 

The Victoria has six rooms, each with a royal theme.  There is also a seasonal swimming pool and a hot tub on the property.  The mansion is surprisingly snug with the communal dining room serving as the commons area and the bedrooms being very close together.

After settling in, I headed off to worship at St Stephen. I have a feeling this is a very new building as it had a modern feel to it and was the second largest chapel in which I’ve attended a service. 

St Stephen

I felt a real sense of serenity as I worshipped.  There was no real “a-ha” moment to the service to cause this feeling.  I just felt His presence and just rested in it for the service.  Afterwards, I took a few snaps of the Christmas decorations around the chapel and then searched up a place to have dinner.

I had dinner at Table Restaurant on 6^th.  The restaurant looks like it was once a house and has upgraded café food to a fine dining experience.  I had a hankering for some Mediterranean food so I gave the Lamb Burger a taste and it really hit the spot.  After satisfying my hunger, I returned to the Victorian and then walked the few blocks to the downtown area.

Table on 6th

Lamb Burger

Downtown Bentonville has a wide variety of shops and restaurants, but it also has some great Christmas lights.  I first went to the outdoor ice rink and took in their magic for a spell before heading to the town square to take in their holiday cheer.  Then I took advantage of the nice night and wandered about the neighborhood for some exercise and to find more Christmas lights.

One thing I noticed was that many homes seemed quite well to do and I would later learn that Bentonville is one of the wealthiest cities in Arkansas and either does, or did, have two billionaires living in the city.  After a good long walk, I returned to the inn where I watched a little TV before going to bed.

I had an early breakfast the next morning and headed down at 8:15am.  I formally met Michael and took a seat at by the window.  Michael gave me a mason jar full of water before taking my egg order.  I opted for a vegetable omelet with a side of turkey bacon.  Before sinking my teeth into that, I had a fresh from the oven cinnamon roll and some fruit from the buffet.

Breakfast was exquisite and I returned to room to relax for a bit before heading to nearby Fayetteville to once again enjoy Arkadia Retrocade.

Arkadia Retrocade

I had visited this arcade back in March on my way home from Hot Springs, but didn’t get to fully enjoy it as I was on a tight schedule.  This time I was able to indulge my video game loving heart to the fullest.

I said it in March and I’ll say it again.  This is one of the two best retro arcades I’ve visited and is #1 in terms of pure value.  For $5, you can game all day.  I was so lost in the treasure trove of games that nearly five hours passed before I knew it.  I had a fantastic day of gaming as I set personal bests on Crystal Castles, Burgertime, Fix it Felix, Jr., Dragon’s Lair (haven’t quite mastered the timing of the arcade version), Donkey Kong 3, and Kangaroo.  I also conquered Sunsetriders, Spider-Man, Captain America and The Avengers, and, for the first time, Double Dragon II:  The Revenge.

Then I drove back to The Victoria and made the short jaunt to Flying Fish.  This is a casual seafood restaurant which also serves some Cajun fare.  I ordered a cup of seafood gumbo along with shrimp jambalaya and bread. 

Flying Fish

Seafood Gumbo with Shrimp Jambalaya

This is how gumbo is supposed to be.  A good gumbo is more like stew than soup and this one was right on the money with a thick, brown broth.  The jambalaya was spot on and I used the seasoned bread to mop up the remains of my gumbo and jambalaya sauce.  Then I walked for a few miles around town to get some more Christmas shots before retiring to the inn for the night.

Breakfast this morning was a repeat of yesterday’s though I had an orange roll instead of a cinnamon roll and nibbled on a cranberry (I think?) scone instead of having fruit.

And that brings this adventure to an end. It serves as a nice bookend as I’m starting the year in Arkansas and will also close it there when I visit Arsenic and Old Lace of Eureka Springs for my annual Christmas review. As to what happens in between. . .well, we’ll just see where the road takes me.

But if you find yourself in Bentonville, spend a night in regal elegance at The Victoria. You’ll find royal comfort, delicious food, and gracious hosts.

Until the next time. . .happy travels.

Arcade Nirvana

Jeff enters Galloping Ghost

And now for a travel tale of a different type.

For my regular readers, you know that I was once a serious video gamer and that I’ve occasionally visited retro arcades to revisit that aspect of my childhood.  A few months ago, I read of a place in Brookfield, IL called Galloping Ghost that claimed to be the world’s biggest retro arcade.  I told my old friend, Jeff Bevirt, about it.  Jeff is still a serious gamer and he was intrigued, so we decided to take a weekend road trip to visit this arcade.

It had been a really long time since I had a true buddy road trip.  Having a friend along not only makes the time go faster, but it also helps to have someone with whom to share the driving duties so neither of us gets overly fatigued.

We got an early start, leaving Omaha around 8:30am.  I took the first leg of the drive and took us to Walcott, IA where we took a lunch break at Gramma’s Kitchen at the world’s largest truck stop.

Gramma’s Kitchen

Gramma’s Kitchen serves old-fashioned comfort food (and some not so old-fashioned, as well), includes a gift shop, and just has the feeling of yesteryear with its vintage signs and knickknacks.  Jeff ordered a meat loaf dinner which included a trip to the tiny salad bar where he got some prime rib and mushroom soup.  For myself, I decided to try the Frisco Burger.  My burger was delicious with its crispy bacon, vegetables, Swiss cheese, and toasted sourdough bun.  Should I ever eat here again and get a burger, I’ll be certain to get it medium well, as my choice of medium was just a bit underdone for my tastes, though tasty.  I ate half of my burger and saved the rest for my evening meal and Jeff took over the drive from this point.

A few hours later found us in Chicagoland where I had a premium king suite reserved at Embassy Suites in Naperville, IL. 

This Embassy Suites was a bit different from others in its construction.  Embassy Suites tend to be built in an atrium style, but this one was actually designed like a regular hotel.  Our room wasn’t quite ready when we arrived, but we got it about 10 minutes after our arrival.  We deposited our gear and Jeff ordered some bedding for the hide-a-bed and we left for Galloping Ghost.

About 40 minutes later, we arrived and managed to get a spot in the parking lot.  A few minutes later, we entered a place I can only describe as arcade nirvana.

Galloping Ghost is owned by Doc Mack who co-founded the business back in 2010.  Originally the arcade boasted 130 games, but Mack has multiplied that many times over and, today, the arcade contains over 700 video games and a separate venue contains 75 pinball machines.

For $20 you can play all day and that’s a bargain as you will play an equivalent amount in about an hour or so and you’ll need far more time to truly get a feel for this place.

Jeff and I spent the first half hour just wandering through the rooms admiring the games and marveling at the variety.  Not only did I see games that I see at nearly every retro arcade, but I also saw rare treasures, games imported from Japan, prototypes that never had a formal release, plus some originals.  In the second to last room we explored, we found a roped off area consisting of numerous games being prepped for future release as the arcade features a new release each week.

Interestingly, some of the games actually share a cabinet and a switch is available so you can toggle between them.  From watching various interviews online, I’ve learned that Mack and his crew hope to get each game its own cabinet.  But it’s a painstaking process as they try to get an original cabinet and, failing that, they create a similar one for the game.  Truly these are people who appreciate classic games.

Then it was game time!

I made a point of mostly avoiding games that I have played at other retro arcades to focus on the ones I had never played.  Jeff and I teamed up to defeat Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles:  Turtles in Time, and Contra:  Evolution (an updated version of Contra released in 2011).  Later Jeff would join me to help me finish off Two-Face in Batman Forever, a prototype game.

Then we split and I wandered about and was stunned to find either limited release or never released sequels to Joust (Joust 2:  Survival of the Fittest) and Mappy (Hopping Mappy).  Then I started playing long missed favorites such as Crime Patrol and Mad Dog II:  The Lost Gold from American Laser Games.  I also enjoyed Biohazard: Code Veronica, an import shoot em up from Japan better known as Resident Evil in America.  I also dabbled in Timber, a spin-off of Tapper where you chop down trees while avoiding obstacles.  I took a crack at Super Burgertime which beat me to a pulp.  I also rescued the children and stopped Mr. Big in Michael Jackson’s Moonwalker; played a Dragon’s Lair II cabinet for the first time since a video game convention in 2010; came within 2 Sinibombs of destroying Sinistar; got creamed in Cliff Hanger, a diabolically difficult Dragon’s Lair style game based off two Lupin III movies; experimented with Hologram Time Traveler, but threw in the towel as I had trouble viewing the screen.

But the most interesting game I played was an interactive movie called The Spectre Files:  Deathstalkers.  In this game, you take the role of a private eye searching for a missing heiress in a haunted institution.  Whenever the game stops, you have to make a choice.  Choose correctly and the game continues.  Choose wrong and you will come to a premature end.  I really dug the mash-up of cheesy horror film and choose your own adventure.

Not every game works at peak capacity which is to be expected given the age and rarity of these machines, but that number was shockingly small and most worked like a dream.  The games are also packed tightly together so gaming could get a bit snug when the arcade is super busy.

After 6 ½ hours of gaming, my feet were done in and Jeff was a bit tired so we headed back to Embassy Suites.  Jeff’s bedding hadn’t been delivered so both of us ended up having to call the front desk to finally get some sheets and a blanket for him before finally retiring about midnight.

The next morning, we enjoyed Embassy Suites’ famed cooked to order breakfast before heading back to Omaha, planning to possibly return next year to enjoy Galloping Ghost once more and explore Chicago a bit.

But if you’re in the Chicago area and you are a video gamer, visit Galloping Ghost (9415 Ogden Ave in Brookfield, IL).  Once you visit this retro arcade, you’ll be hard pressed to want to visit another.