Retirement, Part VII: Road Trip!

Friday, September 7
I’VE ONLY GOT 9 DAYS FOR MY NEW ENGLAND ROAD TRIP! I got myself packed in a hurry and hit the road. First stop – New York City to visit with Robb and Vanessa. I got there just after dark and met up with them at The Parlour, one of Robb’s favorite old pubs. The whole cougar concept was confirmed that night when I chatted the evening away with a 19 and 24 your old, although I’m going to argue that since I’m reliving my youth, I’m really only 16 years old myself. That puts me right on par; no they’re still a little young.

Saturday, September 8
I wake at Robb’s and plot my stops out on a map when Vanessa comes in, acts curious and mentions how cool the trip will be. She’s doing some independent contracting right now, so it only made sense for her to come with me! So, that quickly, I have a driving buddy with a plan for a whirlwind tour of the North East and Canada in (now) 8 days.

We abandon Robb, leaving him to bachelorhood. First stop – Mystic, CT. It’s a cute little town with a lot more going on than Pizza. Actually, the pizza didn’t look appetizing enough to eat. Thankfully, we landed in time to celebrate Taste of Mystic with them. We had some very tasty filet tips and chocolate bread pudding. Mmm. We drove to Watch Hill quickly enough to see the Nation’s oldest working carousel. I can’t recommend it, but it’s worth mentioning, because “it was in the book.” We weren’t so lucky with our sleeping arrangements. I was hoping to hit the window between the summer crowd and the fall leaves rush, but it seems that there are a lot more travelers on the road than I expected, making “Vacancy” a more difficult sign to see, thereby increasing the rates. We stayed in Rhode Island at a “Resort” which was little less than a decent one bedroom apartment with a shower, but the bed was good enough for me, and the water was warm.

Sunday, September 9
We made our way to The Breakers, a Vanderbilt Estate on the cliffs overlooking the Newport, RI coast. These people knew how to spend some money. In fact, they made Paris Hilton look like a miser. They had not only hot and cold running water, they had both hot and cold fresh and sea water. I can’t imagine the trouble they had with their plumbing… OK, quickly to Plymouth, MA to see the biggest let down of the trip, a rock. It broke in two some time ago, but to preserve it, it’s been concreted back together… Again, we did it. Now up to Boston to see the Boston Common, the Nation’s oldest park. That place is huge and very pretty with lots of flowers and statues in the middle of a city. I suppose it’s much like Grand Central Park in NYC, but not as well planned from a geometric standpoint. We have roast beef sandwiches at Kelly’s and share our fries with the seagulls. We rush to Salem for the Witch Trials tour, but it was falsely advertized and already closed. Damn! I take photos of tomb stones anyway, simply so that I can trespass in the cemetery. We sleep in New Hampshire.

Monday, September 10
We begin our lighthouse tour up Maine’s coast. It’s a long drive, and the lighthouses aren’t easily accessible, but we make our way. OK, Vanessa was a sport. We end up in Portland and look for a deal on lobster, but apparently Portland is a stop for cruise ships, and that killed any chance for a deal. (I guess lobsters only fall from the sky outside of Portland.) We leave Portland, because Quebec is a long way away. We enter Canada, without any help from the Border Patrol. I don’t think the Bounty appreciated my sense of humor, but at least he confirmed that our drivers licenses would get us back into the US. Round Two for interesting sleeping arrangements… We get a room at the Motel Royal, from here on out referred to as “The Royal Palace.” Words can’t describe the experience, so you’ll have to ask.

Tuesday, September 11
It was nice to see that those damn French remember 9-11, and having a real New Yorker with me was a benefit. It seems that everyone really loves NYC. A storm had been following us from Maine, and finally caught us in Quebec. With cold and rain, it made sense to take a bus tour of the city. I froze my butt off and take complete responsibility, seeing as how I was wearing a mini skirt and refused the pants Vanessa (the smart one) offered. My theory is this; when in France, “fashion before function.” The weather called the trip a little shorter than expected, so we made our way to Montreal in time for an early arrival to our hostel. This was my favorite bed of all, but first we had a tasty steak and fries and Steak and Frites. They don’t have a liquor license, so we brought in wine from a local shop. For whatever reason, dinner took us about 4 hours, so we shared a second bottle of wine and a crème brulee with our 23 year old waiter, Gabriel.

The hostel deserves a paragraph of its own. For a whole $20, you get a bed and hot shower. Those are my two basic requirements, but this place offered so much more! You might even think I’m talking about the free laundry, wireless Internet, coffee and bagels, but actually there’s still so much more. I’m talking about Roy and Lauren! They’re both taking up residence at the hostel, and boy do they add flavor! Anyway, I slept incredibly well under the pouring rain and remained a whole lot drier than my car.

Wednesday, September 12
This was the coldest day by far. Vanessa and I walked around St. Catherine Street before hooking up with Sylvie, a friend of mine that worked for Nissan Canada many moons ago when I worked for NRD. We’d had made plans to find each other downtown in the underground malls. It took a little bit of up and down to find her, but it all worked out. The three of us had a wonderful breakfast and did a little shopping before Sylvie had to leave for an appointment.

After that, Vanessa and I took the AmphiBus (boat on wheels) through Montreal. It turned out to be a lovely day, even if it was cold… After the tour, we hooked up with Gabriel again. He took us to his favorite art gallery and then to a market and chocolatier for food to eat above the city on Mount Royal. What a great view! With night quickly approaching, we headed back to the States to sleep in Vermont.

Thursday, September 13
On the To Do list for the day – Shelburne Museum, Ben & Jerry’s Factory Tour and dinner in Kinderhook. Well, little did I know that the Shelburne Museum was so fascinating! I’d expected a 3-4 hour visit, but we got there at 10am and didn’t leave until almost 4pm; and we were pushing it! I can’t even describe the things this crazy woman collected, but it’s all absolutely fascinating and I’d recommend it to anyone that happens to be pass through Burlington, VT! Behind schedule, I should have blown off Ben & Jerry. It was a must on my list, so we went, but it wasn’t worth it at all. Don’t go out of your way; it cost us a gourmet meal with some great company. L We arrived at the Van Schaack House (Vanessa’s friend’s B&B) too late to sample Herminio’s culinary talents, but John did let him prepare tea and cookies for us to accompany our conversation until the wee hours of the morning.

Friday, September 14
Thankfully, Herminio cooked us breakfast before we headed south to Olana. At this point, I’ve seen lots of nice houses, and this was another, but it had an absolutely amazing view. Last stop, SUNY Purchase to sample college life again and to wish Matt a happy birthday. We made it back to NYC before too much weekend traffic and hung out for the rest of the evening with Robb in front of the television. He was happy to have us back, and we were happy to be there.

Saturday, September 15
Lenny and I finished up the trip with enough time to do some laundry before heading off to India!