Day 15: Home Sweet Home

This morning we woke up in Ypsilanti, Michigan, and tonight we will sleep in our OWN BEDS. I am writing this blog from the comfort of my bedroom at home. We didn't do much today outside of driving, riding, the occasional pit stop, and more driving and riding. We did, however, stop in Louisville, KY, on the way home to pick up a key to my new apartment. (I also would like to apologize that there are no hats today; Daddy and Fowler grew weary of them.)

Around Nashville, we decided it was time for supper. We drove through the traffic and upon entering Franklin stopped at Cracker Barrel for dinner. It was your average Cracker Barrel, or so we thought, but it also happened to be the dinner choice of Miley Cyrus and her boyfriend. They walked in, right past our table, and Mom said, "That's Miley Cyrus." The entire trip we've been making associations of the people we see to the people we know back home, so I assumed this was another look-a-like. We noticed the restaurant staff getting a little giddy and realized Mom was right and it was indeed Miley Cyrus. We gawked of course, but tried to keep it cool and didn't do anything as outrageous as ask for a photo or autograph. We continued on with our meal as she ate her chicken-and-dumplins. At one point she craned her neck and looked back at our table. I'm sure she was thinking, "Hey sweetie-- those are the people from the Today Show!"

Well, we have finally made it home. After 3,879.9 miles, over 2000 photos, approx. 21 athletic facilities and 10 colleges, 16 states and 8 state capitols, plus 12 hotels and countless interstates, we are home. Real life resumes tomorrow as the fast food detox sets in. We are so excited so many of you were able to come along on the journey with us. Thanks for reading and also for your comments and feedback!

Until our next adventure, happy trails.

Day 14: Chasing Waterfalls

I forgot to mention yesterday that we went through the town where Johnny Appleseed was born. Sorry folks for the incomplete information.


Today was another long car day and tomorrow will be as well. Leaving early again, we drove from Verona, NY, to Naigara Falls State Park. At the Falls we took the Maid of the Mist boat tour through the waters and, well, the mist. We were grateful for the blue "souvenir ponchos," no matter how remarkably unfashionable, because we were soon soaked with splashes from the massive waterfalls. We have seen a lot of neat man-made stuff on this trip, but the most impressive remains the natural, God-made stuff.
The Falls were huge and wrapped all the way from the US to Canada (across one river)! We saw them from the water, from stairs along the side of the cliff--right in the face of the Falls-- and from an observation deck. We didn't have our passports, so we saw it all from the US side. They were impressive to say the least and with the heat, the mists were quite refreshing. Interesting to note: This morning the television announced record highs in temperature for upstate New York. And we thought we were coming into milder weather this time of year. Such is life, and we Alabamians were able to take the heat. The blue ponchos, however, worked as heat insulators or some type of Reynold's Wrap. We all got pretty steamy and abandoned them to the recycling bins by the time our sightseeing was over. We also tried to get Daddy to barrel over the falls, but no barrels were to be found.


From Niagara Falls we had a nice six- to seven-hour drive on to our next destination, Michigan. Lots of time for quality conversation (i.e. naps and reading.) We passed through Pennsylvania and Ohio (Cleveland & Toledo) before landing at Ypsilanti, MI, for the evening. Before checking into our hotel, we went to Ann Arbor to see the "Big House" at the University of Michigan.



Tomorrow marks the final day of the trip as we wake up in the morning to head SOUTH. Last hotel stay for a while... we're looking forward to our own beds!

Day 13: Halls of Fame

It's the thirteenth day of the trip, and tonight we're all pretty tired. We're sleepy (despite the on-and-off car naps) and we're tired of the GPS and Google Maps. Today we spent a lot of time in the car. I can't even remember where we slept last night, but we just checked in to our hotel in upstate New York to crash. When we left the hotel this morning (oh yes, it was Maine) we went to see one of Bangor's most prized sights: the Paul Bunyan statue. He was a towering 30-feet tall, but at six thirty in the morning, none of us really found him that impressive. Interesting, but not the coolest thing we've seen. Fowler argued that this statue could be considered our final destination since it's the farthest North we traveled. Whatever you wish.


From Bangor, we drove several hours through Massachusetts and Vermont (via Maine's state capitol) before arriving at the Basketball Hall of Fame in Springfield, MA.



The museum was neat, and had several interactive exhibits that confirmed I was both offensively- and defensively-challenged. Those in my family with the basketball gene, however, really enjoyed it. We learned a lot about the sport's history and its greatest players, coaches, and contributors.

From there, we proceeded on to Cooperstown, NY, to visit our second sports hall of fame. Dad and Fowler immediately went into the Hall of Fame while Mom and I visited a used book sale across the street. We soon joined them, though, and all saw the museum's exhibits and Hall of Fame gallery. We saw some of Babe Ruth's bats and Hank Aaron's locker among many other baseball artifacts. We were there only a few weeks ahead of the 2010 induction of three new honorees.







From here on out, we have a lot of road to travel and long car days. Tomorrow we plan to see Niagara Falls, and depending on time, press on to Michigan. Another early morning coming, so goodnight everyone!

Day 12: Independence Day in Acadia

We spent most of the day today in the beautiful Acadia National Park. Words can't really describe, so here are some pictures.

For since the creation of the world God's invisible qualities—his eternal power and divine nature—have been clearly seen, being understood from what has been made, so that men are without excuse. -Romans 1:20

Your righteousness reaches to the skies, O God, You who have done great things. Who, O God, is like You? -Psalm 71:19

When we left the park, we drove through the town of Bar Harbor, Maine, where a big Fourth of July celebration was going on. From there, we went on to Bangor, Maine, where we are spending the rest of the evening. We've gone as far North as we're going on the trip, so tomorrow begins the journey home with a few stops on the way. Hope everyone had a great Independence Day!

Day 11: Witches, Lobsters, and Lighthouses

Saying goodbye to Boston as the Independence Day crowd was rolling in, we made our way out of town and into Salem, Massachusetts. Our first stop there was the House of the Seven Gables, an old colonial home made famous by Nathaniel Hawthorne's novel, The House of the Seven Gables.


The owner of the house, his cousin, is said to be his inspiration for many of his writings, including his first novel, The Scarlet Letter. The house was really neat and had a hidden staircase which we all climbed into the upstairs bedroom, one of America's oldest domestic living spaces. The walls were slightly hairy because they were made with horse hair plaster. The boards in the floor were 23 1/2 inches wide because pieces of wood 24" and larger had to be sent to England for the king's navy to use. The house's gardens were neatly manicured and smelled wonderful. They told us there would be a wedding there tonight and we saw the tent with chairs and tables set up. The house sits on the harbor with an excellent view.


As many of you know, Salem is most famous for the witch trials of 1692 when 23 people lost their lives for accusation of practicing witchcraft--14 women hanged, 5 men hanged, 1 man pressed to death by heavy stones for not confessing, and 3 died in prison. Forbidden by the Puritans, witchcraft is now legalized by today's government. Well, we decided that our favorite witches were not the museum's inanimate life-sized wax figures but rather sandwiches, and left Salem for lunch. (I know it's cheesy, but if you would have seen that museum you'd cut me some slack.)

We drove into New Hampshire for lunch and then continued on to Freeport, Maine to visit a massive L.L. Bean store/headquarters that was recommended to us. Traffic was bumper-to-stickered bumper on account of the toll booths and holiday weekend. By the way, toll booths are slightly annoying because you have to keep one dollar bills handy and traffic slows significantly. I guess roads have to be taken care of one way or another. After all, no sales tax on many goods here. This brings me back to what I was saying... L.L. Bean.


It was huge. All of their products were there in the large facility including rooms for monogramming, engraving and alterations. There were at least five separate stores: Home; Fishing & Hunting; Bike, Boat & Ski; General; and Outlet. We shopped around but didn't buy anything. We saw two enormous stuffed moose... mooses... meese... whatever they are. The L.L. Bean company was having a 4th of July celebration with lots of events planned for today and tomorrow. The stores were conveniently situated in a larger outlet mall complex. Mom and I walked around and did more shopping while the guys did something else (not sure what.)

We left the mall and went back toward Portland for dinner. Apparently you can't visit Maine without eating lobster, so for dinner, we opted for the Lobster Shack in Cape Elizabeth. It was on the water with a great view of two lighthouses and the setting sun. We sat outside on a red picnic table on the cliff to eat. We got googly-eyed lobster and tried to protect our meals from the seagulls. Lobster is a chore, and in my opinion, not worth the work. I had some tasty clam chowder though. After we finished eating, we rushed to Fort Williams to try to make it in time to see the Portland Head Light before the park closed at sunset. The ranger was locking the gates when we got there, but he kindly let us in for a quick view. It was actually great timing because the sun was setting and it was beautiful. The water and the cliffs were really impressive. We left the Fort and went to check out a few other lighthouses before retiring to the hotel. We saw the Spring Point Ledge lighthouse and the Bug Light lighthouse. We even saw some fireworks on the water!



We just checked into our hotel and are going to crash so we can get up and leave early in the morning. We would like to try to beat holiday traffic, but we'll see. We're planning to spend Independence Day in Acadia National Park. We hope you and your families have a wonderful and safe Fourth!

Day 10: Baseball Tonight

More history this morning. We returned to the Freedom Trail and went inside some of the buildings we saw yesterday. The Park Street Church was the first stop. In this church, Adoniram Judson and Luther Rice were commissioned for foreign mission to India. These two guys were among the very first foreign missionaries from the US. The church was also the starting point of a Billy Graham revival that grew to 20,000 with 1,000 conversions in a day.

From there, we progressed on to the Old State House and Old South Meeting House but did not go inside. We went to the King's Chapel (if you read yesterday, this is the Anglican church built on a Puritan burial ground.) Since the 4th is this weekend, Boston is in the middle of something called "Harborfest." At King's Chapel, the special holiday event was "Tory Stories." These stories were told every half hour by actors who represented Loyalists, those in the colonies who remained dedicated and submissive to the rulers of England in the time surrounding the Revolution. It was pretty entertaining. Paul Revere was a member there and actually cast the bell in the church. He was a man of many trades, including dentistry, but thanks to Longfellow is most famous for his "Ride."

We went down to the Boston Harbor (site of the Boston Tea Party.) We sat there watching the ships roll in, then we watched them roll away again.

We also saw the original Cheers which inspired the television series and a replica Cheers made to look exactly like the TV show.

After this, we went back to Faneuil Hall a second time for lunch before taking the subway out to Harvard University. The campus was old and classic, and the bookshop was teeming with tourists. Sidenote: New England has good bookstores. After Harvard, we went a few subway stops back toward town and got off to see MIT. Schools, schools, schools. And I thought it was summer? At least we were not studying economic theory like the guy who sat next to me on the T.


We went back to the hotel for 15-minute power naps and freshening up before getting back on the T to make our way to Fenway Park. We followed the red crowd and found it with ease, making it into the park shortly after the gates opened and in sufficient time for batting practice. About the time Mom could say she was looking forward to a night without history, Dad told her the stadium is 98 years old. We saw the 1918 World Series trophy. Mom and I held down the seats while Fowler and Dad attempted to catch baseballs from practice. I'm actually writing all of this from the very comfortable Seat 18 of Row 7 here at Fenway. We're facing the Green Monster, or as the Bostonians say, the "Green Monstah." I must be lost in Blackberry Land, because I looked up to ask Fowler if the first inning was over and he said the THIRD inning was over. Hey, at least I knew JD Drew used to play for the Braves. Well, the game's almost halfway over, so I guess I should pay attention... Or at least look up so I don't get hit by a foul ball.






That's it for today. Tomorrow's Forecast: Salem, Massachusetts, then on to Maine via New Hampshire!

Day 9: Boston's Freedom Trail

First of all, my apologies to any of our readers who are bored by early American history. I know many of the entries have revolved around historical sights, but such is New England and Joiner road trips. I'm trying to include the basics, so maybe it won't be too boring. More randomness in the coming days.

We got an early start this morning and drove from Quincy into Boston. We parked our car at the hotel, rode the hotel shuttle to the subway ("T") station, bought our passes, and rode the T into the city. Today's sightseeing consisted of one thing: The Freedom Trail. We began by taking an hour and a half walking tour of some of the city's major historic sites.

We saw Boston Common (America's oldest public park), the Massachusetts state capitol ("State House"), and the Park Street Church (birthplace of American Sunday School.) From there we walked to the 350 year-old Granary Burial Ground, the final resting place of many American Revolutionary heroes.

You could easily tell the place was old because of the appearance and number of headstones. They were all over the place. In the past rain has washed them into the streets, and they were replaced in convenient spots. James Otis, the man who said "Taxation without representation is tyranny," is buried there, as well as John Hancock and Robert Treat Paine (Declaration signers), Paul Revere, Benjamin Franklin's parents, Samuel Adams, and the five victims of the Boston Massacre.

We continued along the Freedom Trail throughout the city and saw the Tremont Temple Baptist Church (called "The Pulpit of America" by D.L. Moody) and the King's Chapel Anglican Church. King's Chapel was built on top of a Puritan burial ground because the Puritans would not give land to the Anglicans for their church. We saw Boston's Old City Hall, the Old Corner Bookstore ("Birthplace of Literary America"), and the site of America's oldest and first public school. We saw the Old South Meeting Hall (where the Boston Tea Party was planned) and the Old State House. When we arrived at Faneuil Hall, our guided tour ended and we went inside the Quincy Market for lunch. It was a big, open market with every food imaginable. We tried some New England seafood in the form of lobster bisque.


After eating lunch, we decided to continue the rest of the trail on our own and started walking toward the Old North Church. This is the famous site where the two lanterns were hung to warn the colonists that the British were coming, and by sea, to Lexington and Concord. We also saw a few other sights across the Charles River, including the Battle of Bunker Hill monument and Cobb Burial Ground.
Paul Revere's House

U.S.S. Constitution (War of 1812) and Navy Yard



Tomorrow we plan to go back to the Trail and go inside some of these historic buildings. Also on tomorrow's agenda is Harvard University and a Boston Red Sox game! The trip is over half-way done...