Goodbye New York, Hello Maple Syrup
Friday, March 15th, 2013
When I think of the stereotypical image of New England – the fall leaves, the bright green grass, the serene neighborhoods, the flowing maple syrup – I think of the upper three states: Vermont, New Hampshire, and Maine. I had never been to any of these so I was quite anxious to get into them. On the other hand, the stereotype of New York is the hustle and bustle of Times Square, which the northern part of New York is really nothing like. On Thursday, July 12, 2012, I got to travel from one area to the other and experience the seamless transition between the states. Of course, this was no simple afternoon drive; it was all part of the quest that my friend Bob and I were on as we wove our way through the New England area. Read the rest of this entry »
In the old days of going to California – like in the 1980’s and 90’s – my trips to southern California were usually to see Bob, and thus I would generally spend most of my time with him. But usually during my weekends, it doesn’t often work out that I get to spend much time with Bob as he lives about an hour and a half away from the Hollywood Shows, and I am usually out of there by Sunday or Monday. For this particular trip, I chose to set aside two days so that he and I could maneuver about the L.A. area like the old days. So he took off Monday from work and we planned out a few things to hit on Sunday and Monday. 
I had trouble convincing everyone in my family to go to Berlin. Part of the problem was a pesky travel agent who told my Mom and Diana that there was no reason to go there, that only the southern portions of the country were scenic. I knew that it wasn’t going to ‘beautiful’ there, but still was desperate to make the trip (having arrived too late in Germany when I visited in 
I had been on the road for two and a half weeks: two weeks on a road trip traveling with Bob throughout New England – inhaling the historical sites, the Presidential locations, famous graves, Diners, Drive-Ins, & Dives, a National Park, local cuisine, roadside curiosities, TV locations, and the beauty of the great northeast – plus another half-week at the 18th International Sons of the Desert convention in Manchester, New Hampshire. Yes, that was a long sentence…so just think how long the trip had been. But on Sunday, July 22, 2012, it all came to an end. 
The second half of the New England road trip began on Wednesday, July 11, 2012. Bob and I had seen and experienced a great deal and it seemed like it had been forever since we began the road trip. But even though there was as much time on the road ahead of us as there was behind it, I could feel the pressure that time was pushing on us, knowing how much we still had left to see as we began the descent toward the end. Nevertheless, it was nothing worth stewing about so we pressed on as best as we could, beginning with the sights in Hyde Park, where we had just spent the night.