Tag Archives: bridges

facing my first week in minnesota…

Posted on by under America, Photos, Thoughts, Travel

As I sit here sipping a cup of coffee, comfortably ensconced on my “new” bed, I’m also debating whether I need another filter for my water. Somehow it still tastes chlorinated. Do they have Brita pitchers up here? I will have to check, when I go looking for the skirt hangers that I forgot to buy, earlier.

While I gather my thoughts together, considering my recent trip north, I would also like to take the time to welcome my new followers. I seem to have picked up another handful over the last two weeks. Welcome to my blog, and thank you for taking the time to read about my continuing journey as a nanny and a girl that just likes to write about what she does. Whether I’m reading, listening to music, watching movies, or wandering around my new hometown, I hope that I can share my experiences in an interesting way. I don’t consider myself unusual, but since every person is unique, and they have completely unique experiences in their lives, you may find my comings and goings unusual. In that case, hold on for the ride, and I hope you enjoy it as much as I do!

On Friday morning, I got up and hit the road, right on time, with plans to stop just outside of Gary, Indiana, for the night. I’ll just let you get that song well-stuck in your brain (but who could ever not love listening to Robert Preston sing?) before I continue.  : )   My route sent me north, through Asheville, NC, where I had a moment of wistfulness over not being able to visit the Biltmore Estate while I was at home. But it’s on the to-do list for the year, so hopefully we will get there over either Thanksgiving or Christmas. Someday, I’m going to see it during spring or summer, too, when the flowers are in bloom!

The drive to Kentucky was free of any problems, as was the entire trip, for that matter. But up until that point, my brain had been a bit foggy, and I was fighting to stay alert. Not quite sleepy, but capable of becoming so. I finally decided that my contacts were giving my eyes the symptoms that I was sleepy, even though I wasn’t. Time for a new pair, but I went ahead and switched to glasses, and then I was golden.

One of my first stops in Kentucky took me to a Burger King that was full of beautiful photos of horses and races. It finally occurred to me that I was in horse racing country, and checking the atlas confirmed this, as there were all sorts of famous race tracks, horse farms, and museums listed on the closeup of… was in Lexington? But the pictures on the wall also jogged my memories… had I ever been in this particular Burger King before? By the time my route veered towards Louisville, I realized that if I’d kept going in the same direction, I’d have ended up in Cincinnati. Bingo. In past years, my trips to Michigan went over that route, and the pictures in that BK must’ve stuck in my mind from nigh on eight years ago. It’s funny, the things you’ll remember.

I came through Louisville, which I can never think of without remembering the movie Elizabethtown, and how the girl tells Orlando Bloom how to say it. “Lou-uh-vuhl”, she said, if I recall correctly. It sounds a bit odd to me, trying out that pronunciation, but if I ever stop in Louisville, I will do my best to pronounce it right. My first trafficky spot took me over some interesting bridges, and I found myself taking pics of several bridges on the whole trip. The landscape doesn’t always photograph well, when you’re driving at high speeds.

When I stopped for the night, I felt like I had windmills in my brain, because of the miles and miles of them that I’d come through in Indiana. Something about them really messed with my mind, because though you can eventually see that they’re lined up in rows, when you’re looking across the entire landscape, you feel like there’s an optical illusion playing tricks on you. They all appear to be moving, and you can’t always see the pole that holds them up. So, these windmills always seem to be about to tip off their “tower” and tumble into the road, like tumbleweeds, but they never do. And because each row has a considerable distance between it and the next, your mind is looking for a logical arrangement of them, but it can’t find anything logical to settle on. Good thing the road was mostly straight, I found those windmills way too distracting.

Arriving at the Country Inn & Suites, I was highly amused over my good fortune to stay in a room by myself, when it had two queen-sized beds in it. As I may have mentioned, I resisted the urge to jump on them, as I was really tired. The website said they have rooms with one king-sized bed for the price I paid, but none were available when I signed up for that room. So, I had myself an inward chuckle over it, and then used one of the beds to put all my stuff on. As a former housekeeper, I also made sure I didn’t mess up anything that I wasn’t really using. So, no, I didn’t try out both beds to see which was more comfortable, and I didn’t move any towels that I didn’t need.

I was further amused when I found that right next to my hotel was a restaurant called The Tilted Kilt Pub & Eatery. I couldn’t quite decide whether to be awestruck, shocked, or go eat there for dinner. But as I’m eating on a particular diet plan right now, that wasn’t really in the game plan. So, upon leaving town, I attempted to get a picture, when I was across the highway at the gas station called Luke. Sorry, couldn’t pull off and get a picture of the eatery when I was closer to it, so you’ll have to settle for the cropped picture, taken at some distance.

After more bridges and toll booths than I can keep track of, the landscape began to change again. After the rolling hills of Kentucky and Tennessee, I reached the fields of Indiana, which had enough trees on the edges to block my view to beyond the horizon. Or at least, it seemed like I could see to the edge of the world, if I climbed onto a roof or something. But then the land of Wisconsin began to remind me of my years of traveling through Michigan. Every summer, I either hopped on the bus in Detroit, or drove myself to the U.P., and Michigan is mostly flat, until you reach the top of the “mitten”. Wisconsin, likewise, was starting to think that flatness was boring, and began to develop some rolls.

More and more pine trees appeared, and the uniformly green swathes of forest were sometimes broken up by farms, but nothing you could call a mountain. And then, suddenly, these rocky formations leaped up out of nowhere. I didn’t get my camera out in time to take pictures of the cooler looking ones. The area was called something Bluffs, as I recall, and if I was touring the country for the sake of having a good time, I’d have stopped to explore them.

I saw signs for the Wisconsin Dells, and my memories took me back to a favorite book, by Lori Wick, called Sophie’s Heart. A wonderful book, by the way, and one of Lori Wick’s best. It was funny, as it suddenly occurred to me that the story of Sophie involved her becoming the housekeeper for a family in Wisconsin, but she could’ve been their nanny, too, because the children looked to her for companionship and advice. That is, having lost their mom, they had no woman of the house, except Sophie, and their dad was still recovering from his loss, too. But rather than tell you what happened, I’ll get around to the point. The only time I’ve ever heard of the Dells is when the kids in the book try and trick their dad into taking them there for Sophie’s birthday, and it wasn’t until I read that, that I found that the area was full of water parks. I’d like to go there someday and try out some of them.

My arrival at my destination was only slightly marred by Google not having the exact spot, because the area is newly developed, so I was in the wrong spot. But I wasn’t far off. I drove around trying to figure out where Google had gone wrong, until the family called me back, and directed me the last mile to their house. And now, I’m in the process of settling in, unpacking my suitcases, arranging my books, and getting cozy. It looks like my bed may end up being my “blogging zone”, as it’s pretty comfortable, and my computer can work as a heater, if I get chilly. Not that the weather’s chilly here, right now, but with the AC on, it can get a little cool downstairs.

And just to show that I’m settling in, bit by bit, here’s a picture of my bulletin board! It’s been a long time since I had a bulletin board in my room, I’ve missed it. Picked up some colorful push pins at Target, and I was good to go. Now, I’ll have to get a few more pictures to fill up the bulletin board that’s over my bed!

road tripping & the Natural Bridge of Virginia…

Posted on by under America, Exercise, History, Nature, Photos, Travel

On Thursday, I left Clemson at 8:30 in the morning, headed to Maryland, and figuring it would take me about 12 hrs (I hoped) to get there. Of course, depending on traffic, this could vary. My departure time was likely to put me in the middle of either D.C. or Baltimore traffic. But you accept these bumps in the road, even when you don’t like ‘em. I had a cinnamon dolce latte and a cinnamon chip scone from Starbucks, to start my day, and what could possibly be better? Of course, that was right after the ATM refused to give me any money, so I had to go get some cash, after buying some gum at Walmart.

Considering I haven’t done a long road trip like this, by myself, in over a year, I think I did pretty well. But I didn’t have any sleepy spells that required pulling over fast. I try and time my stops so I can fill up the gas tank, eat, and use the restroom, all in one stop, and keep the trip moving quickly. But I’ll still stop at a nice rest stop, like this, stretch my legs and enjoy the sunshine. I enjoyed the flowers, and the white ones smelled wonderful, though I have no idea what they are. Several other travelers were walking their dogs, and of course, for all your drinking and snacking needs, there are all the vending machines you could possibly want.

After about 4 hours, I stopped at a Love’s gas station, in North Carolina, and took notice of the station across the way. Yes, of course I’m familiar with Kangaroo gas stations, but it occurred to me that my Aussie friends would find it odd. I don’t know if they have them in Australia. On the way to this stop, I kept wishing I could find a good place to pull off along the highway, or that I had the nerve to do it, in order to get a good picture of some of the views. This stretch of I-77 and I-81 go through the Appalachians, giving you a glorious view of the “ground level” below. I may be a chicken, but I don’t want to be the person remembered for stopping to take a picture of the view, and then getting run over by an 18-wheeler. They really ought to make a Scenic Overlook for a spot or two, on that stretch, though.

When I was well into Virginia, and had probably been driving for about 7 hours, I started to see signs for the Natural Bridge of Virginia. Now, I’ve been seeing signs for this place since I was about twenty years old, but have never stopped there. I read about it, a few years ago, and found out that not only had Thomas Jefferson owned it (bought it for 20 shillings), but it’s still privately owned. The point being, the whole area is well-kept up, there’s no graffiti, and there’s no litter on the ground. A publicly owned property would generally be strapped for cash, and unable to keep people working there and caring for the area. So, please, if you go to visit, do not be upset by the $19 entrance fee (general entrance fee for one person, with no extras).

I followed the Lee-Jackson Hwy back into the hills, and then came around a corner to find a small hotel or two that take care of the tourists, and the gift shop which guards the entrance to the Natural Bridge. There are some caverns, Safari-type place, and something called Foamhenge, just down the road, so if you want a fun place to take the family for the weekend, this would be a good choice.

In the evenings, there’s a light and sound show at the Natural Bridge (at 9pm, every night), which is why there are benches all down below the Bridge. I think I read that Calvin Coolidge had something to do with starting that program, back in the 1920′s, but I still need to read my souvenir book, to find out some more details. It details the Biblical Creation story, as the signs will tell you, and I asked a couple, when I was down there. They told me that it’s amazing, so I think I’ll definitely have to come back, some time.

When I had my ticket, I could’ve taken a shuttle bus, but that would be wussing out, especially when I’d been stuck in the car for hours. I walked down the 137 steps, looking at some of the beautiful, dead trees that are still along the path, one of which was 1600 years old, before it died in 1980. At the bottom of the stairs, some older gentleman hole-punched my ticket, and wished me a good day. Such nice men. The building they were standing by is a restaurant on the creek, where you sit, eat, and enjoy the sunshine, before or after viewing the Bridge. But since I had a time limit for my stop, I kept moving.

I’ve never seen anything like the Natural Bridge. I read that it’s taller than Niagara Falls, which I’ve seen, and I’ve never seen the Rockies, which are obviously taller. But when you’re at the foot of a mountain, you can’t always take in the height of it, because you can only see the part that’s closest to you. And when you’re at a distance, you don’t often get the scale of it. If I’d been in some huge caverns, I think the height would’ve been disguised by continuing stretch of the ceiling. But here, I felt like an ant looking at a giant. You can see the top of the Bridge, but it’s backed by the surrounding blue sky. I have never felt so small.

Whether the pictures will even give you the gist of how little I felt, I can’t be sure. My video, which I may eventually post on FB might give you an idea. But it was only a little cool down there, but I was feeling shaky. In fact, the trembly feeling that it gave me, the feeling didn’t go away, the whole time I was down there. I felt more comfortable when I wasn’t looking at it, but you couldn’t really look away, though you couldn’t take it all in. If no one was watching, I think the feeling I got was of wanting to sit down on the ground, back up against a wall, preferably in a crevice where I couldn’t be seen, and try and take it in. I wasn’t in the presence of the Creator, but I certainly felt that I was in the presence of something He created, and it was unnerving.

I couldn’t stay long, like I said, so I walked under the Bridge, and went over to the benches on the other side. Someone working there was waiting for 3:30 to roll around, to give another spiel to anyone, on the history of the Bridge. I could have stayed, but I felt like if I sat down to listen, and got caught up in the history, I might never leave. And I had another 5-6 hrs to drive, still.

So, I didn’t dawdle, but strolled back the way I’d come, always feeling more comfortable when I wasn’t looking at the Bridge, but wanting to look, just the same. It’s beautiful, magnificent, mesmerizing. Remember how I told you to not be upset over the entrance fee? Well, it’s worth every cent, and I was only there for about 45 minutes, from start to finish. Though I was tired and having mono makes you get winded much more easily, I still climbed those 137 steps, instead of taking the shuttle up the hill. I needed my exercise for the day, you know.

Back at the gift shop, I purchased their souvenir book about the Natural Bridge’s history, and took a quick wander through the shop. It’s quite large, and has a lot of interesting stuff in it. If your kids can be trusted to not touch or break anything, you could easily spend an hour looking at everything in detail (unless your kids have a short attention span). I especially liked the stuffed animal section, full of stuffed toys that looked like American animals… squirrels, opossums, otters, and many others. I need to remember to look up Fiesta brand stuffed animals, because my Aussie girls would probably get a kick out of them.

Once I was back in the car, I followed the Jackson-Lee Hwy back to I-81, but on the way, I decided that I would really like to live on Off The Beaten Path. I kid you not, I saw a street sign with that on it, and “Path” was in smaller letters, just like “Road” is on my street sign. Wouldn’t you like to write on an envelope that you live at 15 Off The Beaten Path?

I caught the tail end of DC traffic, and some of that was from a car accident. But I knew that if I hadn’t stopped at Natural Bridge, I’d have spent all that time in traffic, so that made it even more worth it. When I was approaching Baltimore, I began to look for signs to the Harbor Tunnel, because that’s the fastest route (if there’s no traffic) to get to the other side of Baltimore. Following a deserted highway, I found myself second in line to pay the toll and go through the tunnel, but instead, we had to sit and wait for 10-15 minutes. My conclusion is that there was a fender-bender (or a flat tire) in the tunnel, because I saw blue lights coming and going, and then finally, the cops led each line of traffic into the tunnel. I didn’t think they’d let us in, if there’d been a leak, you know.

Finally on my way again, when I was close to my destination, I needed to put gas in the tank, so I stopped for that and ran in to get a bagel and white chocolate mocha from Starbucks. Just what I needed to get the rest of the way. The only thing left was to get off at the Havre de Grace exit (if you’re not paying attention, and miss it, you have to pay a toll at the next exit), and then pay the toll to cross the Thomas J. Hatem Bridge. I’ve always wondered what it was like for Mr. Hatem, growing up. Did he get teased about his name?

Off that bridge, and a few minutes later, I was hugging my cousin. 9:45pm, about 13 hrs after departure. Not too bad for a first road trip, after getting home, wouldn’t you say? My return trip will be shorter, in two weeks, because I’ll be returning from Pennsylvania, which only takes 10 hrs. I hope you enjoyed my trip, and please join me again soon, as I’ll have baby cousins and friends to show off.   : )