Gone skiing

Just some this and that to wrap up this trip.

Except for the first part of the trip when we left in freezing rain, we had wonderful weather... we followed spring the whole way.. and when we got to St. Simon's Island on the border of Georgia and Florida we were is full bloom.
As as we drove North the trees were just coming out..and this weekend  in Toronto the blossoms are now fully.  So three weeks in April was a good time to go driving south.
We used out Garmin (GPS) system a great deal , but I always travel with a map on my lap.  That way when we had time I could take us off the interstates and a slower and more interesting drive to see the sites.  However, if there were to be a next time, I would make sure I have lots of big scale maps for each state.
And the interstates and toll roads were all in good nick.  Peter did all the driving, and I the navigating and it worked.  It is no wonder so many Americans never leave their country.  The interstate system is simply amazing, clean, lots of places to stop and very clear directions, with lots of warning, when off and on and service etc. were coming.  And so much to see along the way.

I spent a long time planning the trip.. mapquest was a great tool, and the idea was not to drive more than 4-5 hours a day.  This meant lots of time for stops along the way, and an arrival at a new place, and settled in daylight, in fact before rush hour.

The only day we had a longer run, was to Asheville, but we had lots of daylight to look around and a whole morning for exploring before we left.
As with us, we took tours everywhere, but NOT large groups.. and we do not feel we have to hit every museum and catherdral  We are much more likely to walk and stop and stare, or sit at a busy cafe to asorb the place .  There is no test of facts at the end of the day!  So just enjoy whatever strikes your fancy.  We learned many years ago when traveling to a new face we will never see everything so relax and enjoy.
If you like a place: go back to revisit ...eg  we loved a restaurant the first night in Charleston SC so we went back again . Same with Savannah.. loved the market square and the river walk so we went back a few times.  May not suit everyone, but suits us.

We continue to be asked the diffence between Charleston NC and Savannah... Restaurants are better in Charleston (for foodies) and Savannah is probably more of a party town Charleston is older and have been at the preservation longer, but Savannah is doing a great job of catching up in this regard.

The Stuart McLean cds were a really treasure on the longer drives.  Hint to self.. more of the same, and maybe some audio books.  The radio drifted in and out with static alot, NPR especially seemed to be on a continual fund raising drive everywhere, I can only take so much of Rush Limburgh(!) and the rest of the stations are religious.. which I wouldn't have minded if they played more good old fashioned gospel music!   Our car came out the year before you could plug your own ipod in.. Anyhow we will get  that side organized before we do another long trip.  And thanks to the secret santas for the Stuart McLean.

We did find it best NOT to get into political discussions.   The Democrats think all Republicans are devils, and DEFINITELY do not even think of mentioning Obama might have had some good ideas, to the Republicans.  Even when staying with family and friends we stayed right out of this one.  Talk about polarized.. very worrying actually.

The other thing we noticed and we could not figure it out... there were very few places we stopped where the crowds were mixed.  We stopped at a Huddle Hut for lunch on our way south, and we were the only white people in the place(this was just off the interestate) and other times we would be with all whites..eg.. the cute little place we went for lunch in Canton.   must be some sort of a code that we do not know.. . The two places we visitied where the crowds mixed and socialized in bars and restaurants were Savannah and Cleveland..   This is in no way anything more than a passing observation on my part.  Just something I noticed.

Oh. and in Charleston WVA at the fun sports bar, two of the guys at the bar were phoning home ... in Spanish.. then would talk to you in English.  Mexicans are now quite far north!!

It was a great trip..    I keep a blog when I travel on big trips, for myself, really.. but nice to know there are others that check in from time to time.
As Bugs would say.. that's all folks.

We left for Niagara on the Lake around 11 and as we had some time, when we got into New York we got off the interstate and headed towards the Lake for lunch.  This trip pretty much runs along Lake Erie, so we thought we should at least have a look at it.  I directed us onto a little beach road and we drove along, looking at still boarded up summer cottages, some pretty run town little towns till we came to Dunkirk, NY.  It is defintiely a summer cottage place,.  And the day was lovely , there was much activity with boats getting put in for the weekend.  There was not much open for lunch but we did find a Greek restaurant which stays open all year.  When asked by the waitress where we were headed we reported Niagara on the Lake... she said ah the casino.... Guess she was not a theatre goer..
And a couple of hours later found us through the Nexus pass bridge in Niagara falls, and settled into a lovely bed and breakfast on Lake Ontario.  Shaw Theatre Festival, whose home is in NOTL, is just starting for the summer season, and the shows are in preview.  There was a play by Somerset Maughm called Our Betters, playing that night, but it started at 8 pm and has two intermissions.  I did not think we would stay awake for that,(!) we opted for our favourite spot.. The Angel Inn, for some supper and an early  night.
The are some of you reading this that have never been to Niagara on the Lake.  Suffice to say it could not be more different from Niagara Falls(both the US and Canadian Cities)  The first settlement here was in 1781  (the first in Savannah was 1751) and it still retains much of its colonial charm.  It is however, much better to visit in the spring or late fall when the town is not quite so over run with tourists.
We were amazed to discover at breakfast the next morning that our b and b  The Old Stone House has 6 bedrooms in use.. we were twelve for breakfast.. and we had not heard a thing.  It is the quietest band b we have even been to.  It is a wonderful town for walking and we did a good long walk in the early morning before we tackled the most amazing breakfast.

Then it was off to see our favourite musical Guys and Dolls.. A very good production indeed with a superb Adelaide(always my favourite all time part) and great cast all round. As many of you know we have seen by our count this show in various countries at least a dozen times.  This show holds up very well and be hopefully a big summer hit for the Shaw Festival.
And by 4 pm we were home .  7880 k
One last post to come.  

The weather stays lovely and clear.. not too hot and no rain.   We headed on our way to Cleveland.. a pretty clear run four hours from Charleston WVA.  About two hours out, Peter noticed that we were going to pass right through Canton.. and the ProFootball Hall of Fame.  Needless to say, a stop was quickly arranged.  It is a very well run place.. not too big, but with lots of memorabelia from and about your favourite playes.   And there were some very nice men who acted as volunteer guides.  Can you imagine a better job for one's retired husband?  We took a slight wrong turn and ended up in downtown Canton... pretty sad and empty so I am sure there are happy to have the museum to bring people there.
We did have lunch at a very pretty little local place and it was in a nice neighbourhood.  The houses and the gardens looked just like a street in north Toronto. so all is not lost in Canton Ohio.

When we planned the trip we decided to stay right in downtown Cleveland, to be near the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame.  And so it was we drove up to the very lovely Renaissance Inn.  This was a much more upmarket Marriot than we have been used to,  a really lovely old hotel that has been lovingly restored.  Downtown Cleveland has been restored, updated and looks very good indeed.  We walked to the museum(open evenings on Thursday).  It shares a huge waterfront site with the football stadium and a knock out looking Museum of science.  Wonderful use of waterfront space.... They have built quite inventive ways of getting over the throughways.. including one through a multistory parking lot.  The museum is a great.. loads of fun and as typical of the music it showcases verges on sensory overload.   It was such a fun place to visit and I would love to go back.

We also dropped in to have a look at their new downtown casino.  It is run by Caesars., and it quite large... huge numbers of  slots of course.  It has been placed in an old underused office building .. and there had been plenty of those.    But here is the thing... there is no one really on the streets. No one lives downtown... we did not see one dwelling or condo between the hotel and the casino and museum.

We had a lovely time in the old fashioned bar/restaurant in the hotel.. reminded us of the Royal York and to be fair it seemed busy, as was the museum.  The staff told me they have been quite busy, so I suspect Cleveland may be driving some of their economy with tourism. Not a bad way to go.   We would definitely go back.  Cleveland has always had one of the best symphonies in the U.S. and has just opened a new Museum of Modern Art which I would love to see.

And we had a good early morning walk all around the squares and streets of downtown.  We love doing this when we travel.  You can really get a feel of the city and we try to head out before breakfast to get in our walk. The streets started to fill up with people coming to work mostly by car from the suburbs.   We did enjoy our lovely breakfast in the executive lounge(included!) before we left for our final drive home.

After we had visited the beautiful Biltmore estate we got underway for Charleston West Virginia.  I had expected this to be quite a difficult day.. I could not have been more wrong.  The roads were fabulous and not too crowded.. divided four lanes all the way.  And the scenery!!! The Blue Mountains, and then Adrionracks...not too sure where one starts and one ends but if you get a chance take the drive from Asheville to Charleston be prepared to gasp with delight.  When we turned north into West Virginia I had not expected the roads to be as good as they were.. including truck escape lanes in case their brakes failed.. and tunnels right through the mountains....Simply stunning.