Jan 29, 2019 - Home, sweet, home

Another continental breakfast at Best Western, then on our way home. We got to the ferry and it was closed due to high winds and resulting ice jams. It's unusual for it to close, and was closed from about 9 am to 6:30 pm. So we had ro drive about an extra 50 miles around. Arrived home about 12:30 pm. Hated to see vacation end, but there is no place like home!

Jan 12, 2019 - Escape to and from New York

. A few months ago, I got an email from my daughter Sarah in New York City, with a schedule of JetBlue tickets from Minneapolis to Boston a few days before Christmas. This was a surprise to me, and I emailed back saying there must be some mistake, going to New York wasn't on my bucket list. "Talk to your wife", Sarah emailed back. . The two of them had cooked up this trip, knowing I'd be against it, bought the tickets, and it looked like I was committed, or should be. . The plan was to fly into Boston on December 19th, our son Glenn...

Oct 20, 2018 - Mayberry to the Adirondacks

As the hurricane was so bad and the road conditions in SE NC remained closed for a LONG time, we stayed put in Mayberry for a while. The time got closer and closer to the time Emily was scheduled for her basket class in TN and subsequently, our trip to the Adirondacks, so we chose not to go back to Cyndy’s for now. Instead we just jumped on I-81 and headed north. We arrived at Wendy’s house (Emily’s sister) in Fonda NY on 05 October. Saturday 06 October we met some of our Broadalbin friends at a birthday party near Schoharie NY. I have...

Oct 8, 2018 - Travel to Oneonta, New York

Our departure was delayed as we had to have a tire checked. When Roland was checking air pressure last night, he realized a truck tire was unusually low. Although it held air overnight, we decided to err on the side of caution. He found a tire center nearby. Sure enough, it had a small screw in it. It was 11 before we left the campground. Well...our journey is coming to a close. We only have travel days ahead of us. Traveling south from Colchester, VT (north of Burlington) to NY is not on interstate after the first hour. We chose to travel...

Oct 7, 2018 - Newark, NY for the summer

We arrived at our New York home base, which is at our son, Ralph and daughter-in-law, Becky’s home in Newark, NY, ready to settle down for the summer months on our personal site on their property. We’ve been RVing for forty years and the days of moving every two to three weeks are getting to be too much for these old bones. In our senior years we have essentially shifted from the exploring style of travel to the more common “Snow Bird” style; a few months in New York in the summer months and a few months in the southern warm climate. This...

Oct 1, 2018 - New York

Josh, Melissa and Kathy met us for our 4-hour NYC tour provided by Tour by Locals. Our driver, Raul, picked us up on time but said our guide went to the same address in Brooklyn! The two had worked together for years so Raul entertained/informed us in general for about an hour until we picked up Ibraham, a Muslim from Senegal. Ibraham was a character from the moment we met him. He joked with Raul and had clever insights into each of us very quickly. Has been in the US for 17 years, a tour guide for 8 and speaks 5 languages. We have had...

Sep 30, 2018 - Newburgh to Manhattan, NY

I woke up to shower at 6:00 am to find no water in the entire camp! We were on the road by 9:30 and at our parking garage at 127 Perry (near 11th Avenue) by 12:30. Great garage in a residential area on the lower westside. Tried Uber but ultimately a taxi to our Airnbn at 763 2nd Avenue (between 40th and 41st). Ok, private, clean bath but grungy around walls etc. The other Kwellers were coming from Queens, needed to settle into their Spring Hills Suites Hotel and had work to do. Bob and I tried to get tickets for Come From Away but no go....

Sep 29, 2018 - Newburgh, NY

Nice morning! Lots of kids in camp but we are able to take advantage of most of the amenities which are quite good. We drove to downtown Newburgh which is very blighted but is the home to the Washington Headquarters for more than a year (4/1782-8/1783) during the Revolutionary War. Until I read a book about Washington, I had not realized that albeit the Revolutionary War was over 7 years long, they took off for the winter and the officers were joined by their families! By this time the colonies had taken the British in Yorktown and were...

Sep 28, 2018 - Rhinebeck to Newburgh, NY

Rained all night and until 9:00 when I got Bob up! We drove down the Taconic Parkway to Hwy 84 and 9W south to West Point. As mentioned before (!), the last time we were here there was a government shut down and all we could visit was the museum. 5 years later they have a fabulous Frederick Malek Center with many exhibits on the lives the cadets, Line of Grey honors, war history etc. We took a 1 ¼ hour bus/walking tour with an excellent guide. He provided so much information of which we were not aware that I hope I can remember 10%! Thomas...

Sep 27, 2018 - Rhinebeck, NY

Sunshine this morning and temps in the 60’s. A nice fall day. Today we are going to the FDR Home and Presidential Library and the Vanderbilt Mansion which were closed due to government shutdown in 2013 when we were last in Hyde Park. We had an 11:00 hour tour with a Ranger who was a real hoot! Franklin’s father, James, bought the 110-acre property in 1867 for $40,000. It included a house and working farm overlooking the Hudson River. Franklin ultimately expanded the holdings to nearly 1,500 acres and planted over 500,000 trees now run by...

Sep 26, 2018 - Lenox, MA to Rhinebeck, NY

We had dinner at the Sloane Tavern, Cranwell Spa and Golf Resort. The dinner was not very special (Bob had a hot dog and I had a vegetable fritto misto) but the place was very interesting. In the early 1900’s Lenox became known as the “Inland Newport” where millionaires spent summers including John Sloane of W & J Sloane (relative of the Vanderbilts) . In 1893 he bought the Tudor-style cottage (cottage defined as a secondary residence with a minimum of 30 rooms and 20 acres) for $50,000. Frederick Olmstead (landscape architect of Central...

Sep 25, 2018 - Accurate forecast of heavy rain

As predicted, we got up to heavy rain, so another relaxing morning. We went to our Peekskill coffee shop for crepes and coffee and back home to dry out. I'm sure nobody needs to see photos of rain, so my last two are of Adriana's basement full of jewels. They are all for sale so if you see a piece you fancy, let me know. Collecting is Adriana's passion and many a Sunday she spends at flea markets so, besides the jewellery, which she also fixes if stones and the like are missing, she also likes to buy furniture, paintings, ornaments...