Back on the road again

Tuesday, June 2.

It was a gorgeous day in west Michigan as we departed for the east coast. Having replaced our electric vehicle with a hybrid (a Honda CRV if you must know), we were eager to tackle our first major road trip in more than three years.  Yes, yes we did the trip to Sault Sainte Marie Ontario and a trip to Chicago but we were keen to drive back to New England to see family.  And that would have required God knows how many stops to charge yada yada yada.

But enough complaining. It was a pretty quick drive to our first stop, Cleveland. From our condo we drove right to the Cleveland Museum of Art to check out the Manet-Morisot exhibition now underway. And what a place! Located at the edge of an large oval green space close to the Botanical gardens and the Museum of Natural History this place is truly amazing.

And Grand Rapids please take note: the museum is free and ticketed exhibitions are free for military!

It was a moving experience for the both of us to revisit (once again) so many paintings of two of our favorite artists Edouard Manet and especially Berthe Morisot.

The exhibition was well laid out, easy to navigate and very well signed.

Just to give you a quick sample of Berthe's work:

A Summer's Day, 1879

And this:

Woman Sewing, c. 1879

And just one more:

Interior, 1872-73

From the exhibition hall on the lower level we moved upstairs and visited several of the galleries dedicated to Impressionism, Realism. We  skipped through the Abstract Expressionism to visit the photography gallery which was dedicated to early images of France during the time of Manet and Morisot. 

I was particularly taken by this image of Notre Dame taken by Charles Soulier from the early 1860s:

We made our way back down to the main floor and enjoyed a cup of coffee (our afternoon "hot beverage"in honor of Sheldon from the Big Bang) while soaking up this the incredible open space. 

We were fortunate to strike up a conversation with a fellow who has long since retired from the Cleveland Symphony where he played the viola. What began as a simple "where do you live?" turned into him sharing some wonderful stories with us.

From the museum we made our way back to our car and allowed Google maps to navigate us out of the nexus of meandering streets and residential neighborhoods to our hotel in Streetsboro (SE of Cleveland proper, getting us on our way to PA). When checking in, I learned there were not a lot of options nearby for food but one recommendation was for a Mexican restaurant, Don Patron. So after settling in off we went for a meal of tacos with sides of rice and beans washed down with as tasty cerveza.

Back to the hotel we relaxed until bedtime. Tomorrow it's off to our next stop, Gettysburg National Battlefield Park. We'll spend two nights there which will give us a good full day to pay our respects, particularly to the men of the 3rd and 5th Michigan regiments who suffered terribly in the Wheatfield and Peach Orchard on July 2, 1863.

Stay tuned!

 

West to Grand Rapids

After a round of goodbyes we left the MacDonalds and Watertown a little before 10am Thursday and headed south on I-81 toward Syracuse. (It should be recalled that in 2019 we traveled at the very opposite end of this highway. Beginnings and endings?)

We stopped for the night at Mentor, Ohio, just short of Cleveland. That evening we thought it fitting to drive to nearby Grand River, Ohio, for dinner at Brennan's Fish House overlooking the, umm, Grand River. (I ask you, How many Grand Rivers are there in the USA?) Very homey and packed with lots of folks, the various varieties of fish offered came fried only. I had Lake Erie Yellow Perch and Susie had the Walleye. Tasty to be sure, but fried was the primary flavor. Coleslaw and french fries (or mashed potatoes) were the accompanying sides.

Back at the hotel we spent the remainder of the evening reading (me) and puzzling (Susie) until lights out.

Friday morning, our last day of the 2021 road trip, came with overcast skies and rain. We pulled out of the hotel a little after 8:30am driving in moderately heavy rain for the next four hours or so. By the time we reached Lansing the weather had eased and the rain stopped. After some 330 miles we pulled into our driveway about 2pm. 

We unloaded the car, drove to stock up on groceries and called it a day.

Two thousand three hundred miles in 9 days of remembering and reconnecting with family and old friends. Susie commented to me that seeing her former co-workers from Rutland Regional again after some 16 years it was almost as if she never left; that's the touchstone of genuine friendship. 

Safe travels to you.

one of the hallmarks of a good marriage

perch and fries

Returning to Grand Rapids, Michigan - working remotely and looking for a home

As we move ever closer to a permanent home in Michigan, we also move our concept of home as well: it's now "returning" as opposed to "visiting" or "going to" Michigan. As we contemplate our trip back to Providence to tidy things up one last time, those ideas will become even more fixed for  both of us.

We waited until the Memorial Day Weekend was over before packing the car and "returning" to Michigan. I officially started work as a part time employee the end of May so I also spent the better part of our final days preparing for working from the road. Meanwhile, Susie continued to pack our stuff up:

We left Providence Wednesday afternoon and spent a leisurely three hours or so driving up into the Catskills in search of respite at the Archer home in Prattsville. We passed through a rather serious thunderstorm around Albany but by the time we pulled into the Archers we were rain free. Gloria had prepared an incredible meal which was patiently waiting for us: a wonderful salad of greens balanced by a scrumptious slow-cooked pot roast with carrots and potatoes. My God how that woman can cook!

We spent a wonderful evening of warm conversation and good food before hitting the sheets. It was so dark and quiet in those mountains. . .

the Archer home in Prattsville

From the Archer home we meandered our way up New York state roads to Oneonta where we picked up I-88 to Binghamton. From there we navigated our way to I-86 and found ourselves virtually alone on the highway for mile after mile. Not a car passed us nor did we see or pass a car. It was strangely pleasant -- the landscape reminded us of Vermont -- gorgeous in other words.

Along the way we stopped at a rest area that must rank as one of the attractions along the Southern Tier Expressway: the Allegany river rest area. The architecture and interior decor was straight out of someone's dream of what a rest area would be like if Indians (i.e., native Americans) designed them. Incredibly beautiful and very touching. If you find yourself driving this way go see this.

Allegany River rest area along I-86

Once we hit Erie, Pennsylvania, located unsurprisingly along the eastern shore of Lake Erie, we picked up I-90 and turned south to Ohio, one of the more misunderstood states. Just before reaching Cleveland we stopped for the night at a Red Roof Inn in Willoughby.

After checking in we drove to nearby Mentor-on-the-Lake to see what it held in dining possibilities (none) and settled for an unremarkable meal at a Friday's near our motel.  Still, the lake looked impressive:

Mentor-on-the-Lake (Lake Erie that is)

TGI Friday's for dinner 

With an early start the next morning we were in Grand Rapids before noon.

The next phase of our lives - the search for a new home - began in earnest with an occasional aside to see an old friend or two and some family. Fraught with frustration and uncertainty, we were constantly reminded at how really difficult it is to find a place to call "home." But find it we shall.

Tomorrow we leave for Providence, although it's quite possible that we might see a home early in the morning before we depart: that's how crazy we have become. But this place has real potential.

Anyway, we will spend the night in Batavia, New York (nope, not sure why), arriving in Providence early afternoon the following day.

Stay tuned for what happens next!