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Thursday, 05/22/03; Milford, Connecticut

 

The Big Apple!

 

We started out at our regular time from Joppa, Maryland, northeast of Baltimore under a dreary, gray sky, but at least it wasn’t raining – yet! The route had been plotted as far as White Plains, NY, but we didn’t really know what might transpire today. Dennis was in the lead and he wanted to enter Manhattan for a photo op at Central Park. It was his call and Keith and Joann agreed to follow. It pretty much depended on the weather. If we had excessive rain, we probably would scrub the plan to enter NY City.

 

The rain held off for several hours as we sped up the I-95 and the New Jersey Turnpike. The roads were generally in poor shape and we were shaken to our bones as the tires hit potholes and bumps in the pavement. The roads were especially poor in the many construction sites. This showed that they recognized the problem, but for us it was too late! The turnpike was pretty fair, but we opted off it at one point for the I-195. This road was so bad and had so many trucks that we went back to the toll road. Finally, we reached a sign directing us to the Holland Tunnel.

  

Tunnel toll; Holland Tunnel

 

The weather was only drizzly at the time, so we ventured into the lion’s mouth! We missed the turn for “Uptown” and wandered around in the crowded streets trying to get our bearings. (Keith had some suspicions that Dennis was trying to get even for the endless wanderings he had lead yesterday in Washington.) Whatever, Dennis finally got straightened out and we began a painful drive northward in search of Central Park. Even the blasé New Yorkers took notice of our cars. At one point a young man came up to Keith’s open window and stuck out his hand and said, “Give me five!” After the touching of hands, he was on his way and we on ours. The melee on the street continued for about 45 minutes. At this point, Dennis decided to try for the Hudson River Parkway and he finally succeeded in locating it. We thought we had it made, but there was an accident ahead which delayed us for several miles – bumper to bumper. Traffic finally cleared and we were off to cross the George Washington Bridge and get on up north. When we arrived at the approach to the bridge, we were somewhat confused by the signs, but Joan spied an I-95 sign and Dennis decided to take it instead of the bridge. We got embroiled in more construction and a military convoy, but we finally got off Manhattan.

Manhattan Island street

 

By then, it was beginning to rain hard. Once in Connecticut, we decided to exit the Interstate for fuel and food and to plan our destination for the evening. We had finally obtained new coupon books and decided to call it a day when we arrived in Milford, CT – so here we are! The rain has stopped, but it is still very cloudy and cool. The weather forecasts lead us to believe there will be more of the same for several days to come. We look at the California weather on TV and wish for some dry, warm air.

 

Driving in Connecticut

Milford, Connecticut  motel

 

At the start of our tour, the Olsons began the practice of awarding the Smiths refrigerator magnets in the shape of the states we have covered thus far. Tonight was another “awards ceremony.”  They presented 12 magnets. In all, we have traversed 20 states (plus the District of Columbia) as of today. This is half the number that we will visit on this tour. Some we will call on more than once.

 

If fate continues to favor us, we should be on Cape Cod tomorrow evening. Check back and see.

 

Regards from,

 

The Undaunted Four

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