Dog Day Twelve

Our trip moved on from Maryland to Pennsylvania on Thursday. With only about 100 miles to travel, we slept late and had lunch with Fern in a nice restaurant in Columbia. Our crab cakes were pretty good, though a little bland for Louisiana taste. Kallie ordered a bison burger medium well. It came out medium rare and on the second try crunchy. Soup and french fries almost filled her up. At least they took it off our bill.

We said our goodbyes to Vanessa, Fern and Richard at three different times. The set-up where Kay and I stayed with Fern and Kallie and Erin stayed with Vanessa and Richard worked surprisingly well. It helped that the two houses are less than three miles apart.

I asked Sac for a route that avoided toll roads. She sent us around Baltimore on I-695 and north on US 1 through suburban Maryland. By doing so, we also missed the Baltimore Harbor Tunnel and the Delaware Memorial Bridge, but we did drive over the Conowingo Dam where my family ran our boat back in the '70s. Sac's next move was puzzling. After 60 miles on US 1, she sent us down Longwood Drive toward Longwood Gardens. I knew the area well enough to be suspicious, but I played along. Immediately Sac called for a "sharp left", the right move to leave Longwood Gardens and get back on US 1. What was that all about? I hollered. Kay laughed and laughed. I got back on US 1 and ignored Sac the rest of the way until I needed exact directions to Judy's house.

We arrived in West Chester a little early so I took the family on a tour--first to Henderson High School which had been completely rebuilt and then to our house on Oneida Lane, which was essentially unchanged.

Kallie got a big surprise at her Aunt Judy's house. About 90 minutes after we showed up, they went to a neighbor's house to pick up Judy's new puppy, an adorable six-week old cockapoo--jet black except for a tiny white patch under the chin. The naming process is still underway--we've gone through Luna and Chloe so far--this morning we're back to "puppy." Puppy managed to coax Kallie out of bed at 9:30. Judy's other dog, an American Eskimo named Buddy, has the biggest adjustment to make. Right now, he's moping on the couch in the living room.

Day Eleven - Birdlands

Though I had many opportunities to take this picture, photo credit to http://www.flickr.com/photos/sfgamchick/2479829530/)

Birds (and to a lesser extent pandas) were the theme of our Tuesday. We got up relatively early and went to the National Zoo in Washington, DC. We drove as far as Greenbelt, MD and then took the train into the city. This all by ourselves as Vanessa had to work. She did provide good directions. The weather was beautiful all day and evening.

As usual, we had to eat as soon as we reached our destination. We had a nice lunch at a Thai restaurant on Connecticut Avenue. My plan for seeing the zoo worked perfectly for about an hour and a half. Walking the short "Asia Trail" near the entrance gave us a look at the famous giant pandas, Tien Tien, Mei Zhing and their baby. Nearby was the birdhouse, where I took dozens of pictures of exotic birds from all over the world. In a return visit to the pandas we saw them wake up and eat popsicles. There I made a tactical error after hearing a report that the red panda (whose habitat near the giant panda was being renovated) had been relocated to the small mammal house. I asked Kallie if that was nearby. Pretty close, she said. It was at least a half-mile downhill, which meant another half-mile walk uphill to get back to the zoo exit, and then another mile or so walk from the exit to our train station. I enjoyed seeing the red panda, though I couldn't get much of a picture because of the crush of youngsters against the glass and the nervous "head down" pacing of the animal.

At about 3:45 p.m. I slumped into my seat on the Red Line train. We arrived back at Vanessa's in Columbia promptly at 5 p.m., our intention all along as the caravan for Oriole Park at Camden Yards in Baltimore was scheduled to leave at about 5:45 p.m.

The game between the Orioles and the Houston Astros started at 7:05. We took our seats in the lower stands just as the first pitch was thrown. The game was an exciting back-and-forth affair with three home runs, innumerable pitching changes and arguments by both teams about ball and strike calls on the same batter. It was also "Wild Bill Hagy" Night in honor of a dedicated fan who'd passed away. We arrived a little too late to get a Hagy #34 t-shirt.

The medium-sized crowd seemed a little subdued until the Orioles' game-winning rally in the bottom of the eighth. They stood and cheered on the 3-2 pitch that third baseman Melvin Mora, 0-4 to that point, drove to right-center field for a two-run double that gave the Orioles their winning 6-5 margin. In the Astros' ninth, the fans stood throughout the final at bat, a strikeout by Astros centerfielder Michael Bourn.

All around the stadiums are signs saying "This Is Birdland." Erin and I developed a "Birdland" game to amuse Kallie. When she least expected we showed our claws and cawed loudly right in her face. She recoiled in fright every time. The oriole is not a very scary bird, but no matter.

Traffic between Baltimore and Columbia is a lot better than the Washington Beltway so we had little trouble getting home.

Check out more pictures from the day at www.photoblog.com/dadlak

Today we leave our wonderful hosts in Columbia for my sister's house in West Chester, PA. Our tentative plan is to see the historical sights in downtown Philadelphia on Thursday.

On To Day 12

Day Ten - Age of Aquarium

We took it easy Monday morning, then went into Baltimore to visit the National Aquarium. They had a number of excellent exhibits. My favorite was a colorful array of frogs. I've posted pictures at www.photoblog.com/dadlak. We had planned to go to the National Zoo in Washington, but the forecast was iffy, a factor that played out when the rain started in Baltimore at about 4 p.m. We didn't get too wet going from the aquarium to the car.

In the evening we ate dinner with Fern at Vantage Point. My mussels and linguine were surprisingly good for institutional food. Everyone enjoyed the time together and conversation. After dinner it was time for the Red Sox and Phillies on ESPN Monday Night Baseball, one of the most satisfying regular season games I've ever seen on TV as the Phillies won 8-2. They opened with two first-inning home runs, one each by Jimmy Rollins and Ryan Howard. Howard homered again on his second at bat, stretching the Phillies' lead to 4-0. The Red Sox answered with two solo home runs off Phillies' starter Cole Hamels, but the Phils offense struck right back with four in a rally that featured triples by both Pat Burrell (his first triple since 2006) and Howard (the 5th triple of his three year career). The defending world champions were never really in the game, to the delight of the assembled Phillies' fans and Yankee fans who'd come down from New York.

On To Day Eleven

Day Nine - Father's Day in DC

June 15 - I got to choose the itinerary for Father's Day. We'd already decided to go to All Souls Unitarian Church in Washington DC in the morning. Perhaps a little on the morose side was my choice of the Holocaust Museum as the afternoon activity. No matter--the crew went along happily and I got lots of Father's Day hugs and well wishes along the way.

The whole junket isn't worth a Google map. We (Vanessa) drove into the city and in a kind of UU miracle, she found a street parking space less than two blocks from the church. The unrestricted parking spot was about two long blocks from the subway entrance, so we left the CRV there all day while we went to the museum. Two ministers and a 35-member group called the Jubilee Singers combined to present an exciting worship service. All Souls Unitarian is on a campaign to make its congregation a model of mulitracial and multicultural (primarily as regards sexual orientation) acceptance and cooperation. Their dynamic leadership and congregation makes me believe they can do it.

The Washington subway system makes no accomodations for weekend sightseers. On top of a reduced weekend schedule, our trains to the Mall were delayed for track maintenance. We also messed up buying our tickets, putting them all on one card. The turnstiles wouldn't allow the same card to be used multiple times in succession. A ticket agent helped us sort that problem out.

We arrived at the Holocaust museum at about 1 p.m. and ate a quick lunch in the museum cafe, strangely a vegetarian restaurant. I probably should have gone for the hot dog from the vendor rather than the veggie panini. Going to the museum and lunch required three passes through the metal detector. Yuk!

By 2 p.m. we were in the main museum exhibit--organized in a timeline from the rise of the Nazis to power in Germany in 1933 to the formation of the State of Israel in 1948. What came in between was a sobering commentary on humankind. I spent about three hours watching every film, reading every word and looking at every picture and exhibit. The rest of my family wasn't quite so thorough and finished at least an hour ahead of me, which gave them time for a quick visit to the Washington Monument.

The actions of Nazi Germany in the name of racial purity were appalling. The response of most of the rest of the world was none too inspiring, except for the eventual defeat of Hitler by the Allied forces. Many countries turned away Jewish refugees from Germany, both prior to the Holocaust, and again once it had begun. Anti-semitism was at its most virulent in Germany, but doing its own insidious work in other countries as well. The morning's church service and the afternoon's museum exhibit displayed stark contrast between the power of love and acceptance and the destructive nature of hatred and intolerance.

After church we headed to Silver Spring, MD for an outdoor dinner. The weather was beautiful all day. The Austin Grill mostly made good on their claim to "authentic Tex-Mex". Back in Columbia for the evening, we watched Tiger Woods get into the US Open playoff and the LSU Tigers lose their College World Series opener while we played pool.

For pictures from the day, please go to www.photoblog.com/dadlak. Thanks for visiting.

And Happy Father's Day to my dad and to all other dads out there!

On To Day Ten

Day Eight - East Coast Corridor

We start our run up the East Coast corridor today with a short jaunt to Columbia, MD. Here's the Google map of the route, with a stop at our old Richmond house along the way. There's a lot of urban interstate driving on this route, including about 30 miles on the Washington DC Beltway. I don't think Kallie will be doing much driving today. Maybe in Columbia.

Chester to Richmond

Richmond to Columbia, MD

Check out my photoblog for pictures from the day. www.photoblog.com/dadlak

We had a fun morning at the Wilsons', sitting and chatting on the sun porch, enjoying a big home-cooked lunch and tossing frisbees around on our way to the car. Allen and I played a homemade version of frisbee golf incessantly during our time together in Orangeburg, SC. The year of 1986 was essentially an extended tournament interrupted by work and sleep (and sports on TV). Kallie called a shot into the pool. Unfortunately, the frisbee sank, putting us down to one.

We drove through Richmond on our way to Columbia, MD and looked at our old house (significantly expanded by the current owner) and the hospital where Kallie was born. We hardly recognized any other landmarks or roads. Without Sac we would have really been lost.

The trip from Richmond to Columbia featured (and not in a positive way) the infamous Capital Beltway. We averaged about 20 mph for a stretch of about 30 miles from just south of DC to the reconnection with I-95 just south of Columbia. I was amazed at the volume of traffic at 5 p.m. on a Saturday. You'd think that a few people would be home with the their families or on the golf course, but everyone seemed to be on the highway.

On To Day Nine

Day Seven - Crossing Virginia

June 13 - We're at the Wilsons' in Chester, VA. I worked and partied (and watched football and played Frisbee golf) with Allen in South Carolina about 20 years ago. The 430 mile trip took 9-1/2 hours. Props to the girls for being ready to go at 8:00 a.m. We ate a late breakfast on the road; the girls at Subway and Kay and I at McDonalds.

We drove on I-40 and I-81 as far as Lexington, VA where we found US 60, a two-lane road that headed dead east to Richmond. We ate lunch at Nick's Italian Restaurant in Buena Vista, VA, just east of Lexington. Owned by a pair of brothers from Montenegro, Nick's food was surprisingly good given that it's in a drab-looking town of 6,000 in the middle of Virginia. There was a sign proclaiming Buena Vista as the home of Phillies manager Charlie Manuel. It's been a good year so far for Charlie.

We let Kallie drive out of Buena Vista, not realizing just how far up in the mountains we were. Her 25-mile stint consisted almost entirely of curves and downgrades--another new driving experience. She took it slow and did quite well, even though six or seven cars passed her, a couple even going across the double yellow lines. Near Amherst, VA we saw a sign warning of a roundabout ahead (Sac told us about it as well). Not knowing what this might entail, I suggested that Kallie pull into the CVS on the corner and let me take over. The roundabout turned out to be not much more than a curve in the road, but better safe than sorry. My leg of the trip--about 100 miles, was much straighter and flatter, what I had in mind for Kallie when I looked at the map.

Sac provided excellent directions and we pulled into the Wilsons' driveway without incident at about 5:30 p.m. We visited for awhile and then went to dinner at a Mexican restaurant in Chester. We considered a Mexican restaurant in Buena Vista for lunch, but Kay, who was driving at the time, opted for Italian. Good choice.

All the kids (Kallie and Erin and the Wilsons' two sons, Riley and Owen) went swimming after dinner. Riley and Owen provided the entertainment with a water basketball matchup and a diving contest. We called out scenarios and they tried to dive them. Among my favorites were "YMCA" and "speedboat wreck".

The Wilsons have a Noah's Ark scene going here - two horses, two dogs, two cats and two sugar gliders (flying squirrels). Their property was a working dairy farm in a previous life, so there's a barn. The house dates back to 1877.







Here's our route from Pigeon Forge, TN to Chester, VA

Pigeon Forge to Chester

On To Day Eight

Day Six - On Top of the Smokies

June 12 - We spent almost the entire day in the Great Smoky Mountain National Park, driving from Pigeon Forge to Cherokee, NC on the other side, with a side trip to Clingman's Dome, the highest point in Tennessee.

Kay wanted to eat a picnic lunch by a creek, but lacking the wherewithal to create a picnic, we stopped at Subway in Gatlinburg for sandwiches, chips and cookies. We were happy to find Subway open before 10 a.m.

Gatlinburg looked like Myrtle Beach in the mountains, with pancakes. We didn't do a study, but it looked like you could eat at a different pancake restaurant every day of the week.

Once we got into the park we wasted little time rolling out the food (continental breakfast at Vacation Lodge being a pretty barren event). Kay mentioned Cade's Cove (?), which turned out to be 24 miles away in a different direction than Cherokee. Instead, we chose The Chimneys, which Kay recognized as soon as she saw it. The girls ate their sandwiches on the rocks in the creek. I was happy to make my way down to creekside. I waited as long as I could, but finally had to make the trip up the hill to the restroom. The trip and the minibottle of wine with lunch left me a little groggy, but I persevered up the mountain to Clingman's Dome, the highest point above sea level in Tennessee.

There Kallie and Erin took the half-mile walk uphill to the observation tower, while Kay and I pulled out the folding chairs and sat at the overlook. Eventually I bailed out to the more comfortable car front seat and took a nap while we waited for the girls to come back from the top of the mountain.

From Clingman's Dome we continued on to Cherokee, NC, where our goal was to buy hamburgers and other supplies for a picnic supper back at The Chimneys. Cherokee has a lot more to offer, mostly regarding Native American culture, as the town is mostly occupied by the Cherokee Indian Reservation. I imagine, however, that the biggest draw is the Harrah's Cherokee Casino. We drove past it on the way to the Food Lion grocery store. We probably should have explored more, but Erin had been to Cherokee already and I was still tired and ready to eat and get back to the motel.

Our cookout went well. Kay made sure I could light the fire, buying both Match Light charcoal and giant starter-soaked matches that double as kindling. Not having any way to deal with leftovers, we just ate burgers and a little macaroni salad.

Sac got a little confused on the way back to Pigeon Forge...I'm not sure why given that we were on the Parkway almost the whole trip. But we find our way on our own. Back in town, the girls got their go-kart rides while I took it easy in the room, playing my online Scrabble games and downloading pictures from my camera.

Head over to www.photoblog.com/dadlak for today's pictures. Don't know if I'll have time to add many here.

Tomorrow we ride more than 400 miles to Chester, VA to stay with the Wilsons. I worked with Allen back in Orangeburg. He and his wife Laura have two teenage boys. They all live in a big farmhouse with horses and a pool. We haven't seen them for quite awhile--maybe since we left Virginia in early 1994. (Kay reminds me that we did see them in Baton Rouge on a couple of occasions, most recently at a wedding in Allen's family--he grew up in Baton Rouge and went to LSU).

On To Day Seven