Sunday, 10/24
It was my day to work. Hours were spent washing the windshield (the first time in a month, thanks to few bugs at this time of year and the rains while parked), plus thorough dusting, mopping, vacuuming of the interior and some more outdoor chores. Setting off to buy some new windshield wipers, we encounter our old friends as they arrive from having spent four days immersed in New York City. What fun for all of us to see each other again!
Doris had already made her famous chili plus "wings" while Tom pulled out his grill and others whipped up more food, including special desserts from "the #1 bakery", found on Hoboken, NJ, and popularized on one of the food channels. Once again, good friends shared good times. It just doesn't get better than this when on the road. Maybe that's why it's difficult to part from them.
Monday, October 25, 2010
Towards Washington, DC
Saturday, 10/23
Leaving Delaware was another drive along country roads. First, were the beaches facing the Atlantic, then turning west, through little towns like Bridgeville, boyhood home of General Custer, and more corn and soybean fields, just like in the Midwest, except smaller fields.
A major RV park in College Park, Maryland was our destination for today. Doris & I couldn't write this blog until later because the group we'd left behind reads our blog and we wanted to surprise them with our decision to change plans and enjoy Washington with them rather than bypassing the Capitol and move further south.
Finding the park was easy, just off busy I-495 (the outer beltway). The park is filled with RVs and trees. Living in a forest only a few miles from DC gives a false impression of how close we are to the "headquarters" of the most powerful nation in the world.
Leaving Delaware was another drive along country roads. First, were the beaches facing the Atlantic, then turning west, through little towns like Bridgeville, boyhood home of General Custer, and more corn and soybean fields, just like in the Midwest, except smaller fields.
A major RV park in College Park, Maryland was our destination for today. Doris & I couldn't write this blog until later because the group we'd left behind reads our blog and we wanted to surprise them with our decision to change plans and enjoy Washington with them rather than bypassing the Capitol and move further south.
Finding the park was easy, just off busy I-495 (the outer beltway). The park is filled with RVs and trees. Living in a forest only a few miles from DC gives a false impression of how close we are to the "headquarters" of the most powerful nation in the world.
The Capital Area and The Beach
Friday, 10/22
Weather continues to encourage exploration, so off to the countryside surrounding Dover. Knowing that the Amish live in the area, we searched them out and found a fabulous country store with Amish delights ... especially in the bakery session.
The Amish are gentle people who specialize in farming the old fashioned way. No electricity, no cars, no telephones. They take care of each other during difficult times. One thing for sure: They are hard workers. Along with their draft horses and buggy-pulling horses, they are a special feature of the Indiana, Ohio, Pennsylvania and even little Delaware.
This election year, Delaware has produced a lightening rod of a candidate for US Congress. On this day, we found two political statements within a mile of one another:
Leaving Dover and the nearby Amish community, we continued south on towards the beaches of Lewes and Rehoboth Beach. Lewes is an old Dutch town that once relied on fishing and crabbing, like its neighbor, Rehoboth which was founded by the Methodist Episcopal Church, they are now tourist towns, catering to the big city populations attempt to escape the sweltering summer heat and humidity. We found them and the beaches to be very quiet at this time of the year, a pleasure for us. Home this night would be another Elks Lodge parking area. Again, nice people to greet us and make sure we were comfortable.
Weather continues to encourage exploration, so off to the countryside surrounding Dover. Knowing that the Amish live in the area, we searched them out and found a fabulous country store with Amish delights ... especially in the bakery session.
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| Doris doing what she happily does best: finding the best carbs for my waistline. |
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| Sharing the road with the Amish. |
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| I'll leave the caption for you to create! |
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| The Amish and their manure spreader at work ... a subtle (?) political statement. |
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| Neighbors for the night at the Lewes, DE Elks Lodge. Sure was quiet. |
The First State
Thursday, 10/21
We thought California roads were bad, but the highways circumnavigating NYC, including those in Connecticut, New York and New Jersey are strong contenders for #1 in the involuntary dental filling extracting business. My God! How our coach stayed in one piece is a credit to Monaco, the manufacturer. Accentuating the problem is that one has to drive at 65 mph over the ruts, bumps, pot holes and occasional pieces of other vehicles in order to keep from being run over by other, highly aggressive drivers. And it makes little difference how little or large their vehicles. Combine bad roads and "kill or be killed" drivers and we have one stressed driver: Me. No wonder my sister says they avoid I-95 and the New York area when they make their snowbird trek from Vermont to Florida. We'll do the same when possible.
As we headed south, things got better. After refueling near Philadelphia, we crossed into Delaware and off the interstate to the capital, Dover. What a treat! A small city in the 49th largest state that was the first to ratify the constitution, Dover gave us more history, narrow streets to enjoy (although our coach "owned" them as we explored historic downtown) and more autumn beauty. Having stocked up at our first Costco since leaving the west, we ultimately landed at a local Elks Lodge for an overnight.
We thought California roads were bad, but the highways circumnavigating NYC, including those in Connecticut, New York and New Jersey are strong contenders for #1 in the involuntary dental filling extracting business. My God! How our coach stayed in one piece is a credit to Monaco, the manufacturer. Accentuating the problem is that one has to drive at 65 mph over the ruts, bumps, pot holes and occasional pieces of other vehicles in order to keep from being run over by other, highly aggressive drivers. And it makes little difference how little or large their vehicles. Combine bad roads and "kill or be killed" drivers and we have one stressed driver: Me. No wonder my sister says they avoid I-95 and the New York area when they make their snowbird trek from Vermont to Florida. We'll do the same when possible.
As we headed south, things got better. After refueling near Philadelphia, we crossed into Delaware and off the interstate to the capital, Dover. What a treat! A small city in the 49th largest state that was the first to ratify the constitution, Dover gave us more history, narrow streets to enjoy (although our coach "owned" them as we explored historic downtown) and more autumn beauty. Having stocked up at our first Costco since leaving the west, we ultimately landed at a local Elks Lodge for an overnight.
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Dover, Delaware. One building among many that shows the history of this small, but important state. |
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