First on the agenda was our second college campus tour of this trip. We’ve tried to make it a tradition to tour a college whenever we have opportunity to do so on our family vacations. We’ve only done so twice before this trip, but that’s because of both a lack of vacations and that the tradition is relatively new. Pam always tells people we do this because they’re free, but it’s also inspiring for the kids, I believe.
We went out of our way to see Hillsdale because of their history, and also because they do not accept federal money to operate their school, and therefore do not have to acquiesce to government oversight of how they choose to teach. Quite admirable, in my opinion.
We had to get back on the road after that, and again road construction and detours interfered. We didn’t make very good time for the first couple of hours, but we did get to see the character of rural Michigan and Ohio until we made it past Toledo. We didn’t stick around to find out if the John Denver song was accurate. They may have rolled up the sidewalks precisely at ten, but we were miles away by then.
Lunch was pizza at a travel center. The travel center is interesting, or at least different enough from what I am used to to mention here. Imagine, if you will, a cross between a giant truck stop and a rest area; that’s what it is. While you’re there, you can get gas, a meal, souvenirs, auto repair supplies, postage, road snacks, et cetera, et cetera, et cetera, and then hop back on the tollway. There is no other option for egress, so you don’t have to take care of your toll as part of getting off the highway.
Back on the road and across the top of Ohio, around the outskirts of Cleveland, and then we turned south. As we passed Chicago, Toledo, and Cleveland, we were oh so very close to seeing the Great Lakes, but we didn’t catch sight of them from the turnpike, and there was no slack in the schedule to go see them. So Salt Lake is still the only Great Lake I’ve seen.
We cut across the southwest corner of Pennsylvania, which was beautiful country. We drove through a tunnel that had to have been a mile long as we passed through the Appalachians. We stopped for dinner just after we crossed into Maryland, and ended the day at a friend’s house in Leesburg, Virginia. She was actually Mica and Delia’s clogging teacher before she moved out of Oregon, so it was one the the trip’s highlights for the two of them.
21 July, 2010
Day Seven: Friday, 16 July, 2010
Happy Birthday, Delia!
All were up on time, down for breakfast on time, and driving away only ten minutes late this morning. We had an appointment for a tour of the University of Notre Dame in South Bend, Indiana at 3:00, after losing another hour heading east, so we really had to move things along.
Looking at the number of miles involved, we should have been there with an hour to spare, but, even though we didn’t actually go into Chicago, we still had plenty of traffic issues to deal with there, plus road construction, plus sitting in a mile-long line just to pay a toll of $0.60. Annoying, to say the least, and I will apply the term to all of the toll roads of the trip here and drop the subject. We arrived five minutes late, and had to sprint to catch up to our group.
I soaked up lots of interesting trivia on the University of Notre Dame tour. I had heard of “Touchdown Jesus” before, but I was unaware that the campus also had statues of “Touchdown Moses” and “Fair Catch Corby.” Lots of amazing old buildings and art to look at.
After the tour, we had a great dinner at a Greek restaurant called Alexander’s Grill. If you’re ever in South Bend, I highly recommend it! They even came and sang happy birthday to Delia.
Then it was back on the road, crossing into Michigan not long after. Mica and Delia were involved in their own worlds, so Pam and I listed to a new audiobook about Arlington National Cemetery. The whole long history of the property was covered, with lots of great stories. The name of the book is On Hallowed Ground by Robert M. Poole.
We pulled into Hillsdale before sunset, by design. Tonight was laundry night. I made two discoveries tonight, neither of them pleasant. First, I found that I had left a stick of gum in the pocket of my white shirt, leading to its untimely demise. Second, I recalled that I had not collected the garment bag from the closet at the bed & breakfast before we left. To compound the magnitude of the error, there was money in the jacket pocket because I had yielded to Pam’s advice to not keep it all in one place.
Fortunately, the hostesses of the house are both honest as well as accommodating above and beyond the normal call of duty. They have agreed to put the items in a box and ship them to our hotel in DC. Let me herein also give a plug for The Nauvoo Grand. Nicest people, great breakfasts; they take care of anything you need.
The laundry is folded, the showers are taken, and it’s off to bed for the lot of us.
All were up on time, down for breakfast on time, and driving away only ten minutes late this morning. We had an appointment for a tour of the University of Notre Dame in South Bend, Indiana at 3:00, after losing another hour heading east, so we really had to move things along.
Looking at the number of miles involved, we should have been there with an hour to spare, but, even though we didn’t actually go into Chicago, we still had plenty of traffic issues to deal with there, plus road construction, plus sitting in a mile-long line just to pay a toll of $0.60. Annoying, to say the least, and I will apply the term to all of the toll roads of the trip here and drop the subject. We arrived five minutes late, and had to sprint to catch up to our group.
I soaked up lots of interesting trivia on the University of Notre Dame tour. I had heard of “Touchdown Jesus” before, but I was unaware that the campus also had statues of “Touchdown Moses” and “Fair Catch Corby.” Lots of amazing old buildings and art to look at.
After the tour, we had a great dinner at a Greek restaurant called Alexander’s Grill. If you’re ever in South Bend, I highly recommend it! They even came and sang happy birthday to Delia.
Then it was back on the road, crossing into Michigan not long after. Mica and Delia were involved in their own worlds, so Pam and I listed to a new audiobook about Arlington National Cemetery. The whole long history of the property was covered, with lots of great stories. The name of the book is On Hallowed Ground by Robert M. Poole.
We pulled into Hillsdale before sunset, by design. Tonight was laundry night. I made two discoveries tonight, neither of them pleasant. First, I found that I had left a stick of gum in the pocket of my white shirt, leading to its untimely demise. Second, I recalled that I had not collected the garment bag from the closet at the bed & breakfast before we left. To compound the magnitude of the error, there was money in the jacket pocket because I had yielded to Pam’s advice to not keep it all in one place.
Fortunately, the hostesses of the house are both honest as well as accommodating above and beyond the normal call of duty. They have agreed to put the items in a box and ship them to our hotel in DC. Let me herein also give a plug for The Nauvoo Grand. Nicest people, great breakfasts; they take care of anything you need.
The laundry is folded, the showers are taken, and it’s off to bed for the lot of us.
20 July, 2010
Day Six: Thursday, 15 July, 2010
We were all up on time because Pam had something urgent to accomplish early and the girls wanted to be there too. We went first to the visitor’s center. All of the shows in Nauvoo are free, but the tickets are first come first served, so we wanted to be there as soon as they opened in the morning. After picking up tickets, we went to a dramatized retelling of some of the stories associated with the Mormons leaving Nauvoo called “The Trail of Hope.” It was poignant as well as informative.
Next, we divided up to attend separate things. Mica and Delia went to see a show called “Just Plain Anna Amanda.” I have no idea what it was about, but Mica thought it was great and of course Delia couldn’t help but be enraptured. That girl has drama oozing out her pores. Her new dream is to come back next year to be one of the volunteer performers in the Nauvoo Pageant. They also got to take a wagon ride around town. The wagon rides, carriage rides, and oxen rides were all canceled yesterday because of the heat, which is somewhat validating that it wasn’t just me being a wimp about how hot it was. I was told that it was the only day all year that they’d had to cancel those rides.
Meanwhile, Pam and I got to go through the Nauvoo Temple, which has been rebuilt using the same pattern from the original building and, as much as possible, materials constructed using the same processes as those available at the time the original building was built. You can see minor imperfections and bubbles in the glass of the windows, for example. One of our dear friends from Aloha works there now, and he took us on a tour of the whole building, which was great.
We met up with the kids for lunch and then had a quick nap. Too much energy expended the day before, added to too many late nights already, meant we really needed it. We were back downtown by 3:00 for another show called “High Hopes and Riverboats.” It was a romantic comedy/musical set in old Nauvoo. It was a lot of fun, and, as expected, Delia gushed about it for the rest of the day, throwing out exact quotes of all her favorite parts. When you see her next, ask her to tell you the jackknife in the pocket quote. It’s very entertaining.
We also ran into some friends from my Ricks and OSU days. What a small world.
After the show, we drove the half hour to Carthage, IL, to tour the original county jail from the 1840’s. For those who don’t know, that was the location where Joseph and Hyrum Smith were shot and killed by a mob.
When we got back to Nauvoo, Delia wanted to go see the pageant performance again. I was shocked. Just kidding. Pam acquiesced and took her, while Mica and I stayed at the B&B and started getting things ready for the early departure tomorrow, where it’s on the road again…
Next, we divided up to attend separate things. Mica and Delia went to see a show called “Just Plain Anna Amanda.” I have no idea what it was about, but Mica thought it was great and of course Delia couldn’t help but be enraptured. That girl has drama oozing out her pores. Her new dream is to come back next year to be one of the volunteer performers in the Nauvoo Pageant. They also got to take a wagon ride around town. The wagon rides, carriage rides, and oxen rides were all canceled yesterday because of the heat, which is somewhat validating that it wasn’t just me being a wimp about how hot it was. I was told that it was the only day all year that they’d had to cancel those rides.
Meanwhile, Pam and I got to go through the Nauvoo Temple, which has been rebuilt using the same pattern from the original building and, as much as possible, materials constructed using the same processes as those available at the time the original building was built. You can see minor imperfections and bubbles in the glass of the windows, for example. One of our dear friends from Aloha works there now, and he took us on a tour of the whole building, which was great.
We met up with the kids for lunch and then had a quick nap. Too much energy expended the day before, added to too many late nights already, meant we really needed it. We were back downtown by 3:00 for another show called “High Hopes and Riverboats.” It was a romantic comedy/musical set in old Nauvoo. It was a lot of fun, and, as expected, Delia gushed about it for the rest of the day, throwing out exact quotes of all her favorite parts. When you see her next, ask her to tell you the jackknife in the pocket quote. It’s very entertaining.
We also ran into some friends from my Ricks and OSU days. What a small world.
After the show, we drove the half hour to Carthage, IL, to tour the original county jail from the 1840’s. For those who don’t know, that was the location where Joseph and Hyrum Smith were shot and killed by a mob.
When we got back to Nauvoo, Delia wanted to go see the pageant performance again. I was shocked. Just kidding. Pam acquiesced and took her, while Mica and I stayed at the B&B and started getting things ready for the early departure tomorrow, where it’s on the road again…
15 July, 2010
Day Five: Wednesday, 14 July, 2010
We had just a short drive (relatively) scheduled for today, so I wasn’t too cranky about getting on the road late. From Cedar Rapids, it’s only a couple of hours to Nauvoo, Illinois, our next stop, and we arrived there in time for lunch. We crossed the Mississippi River at Ft. Madison on what appeared to be a World War I-era bridge. I didn’t mind paying the toll if it meant they would keep the bridge from collapsing while I was on it.
It was hot today. And sticky. The term sweltering comes to mind. I lived in the Phoenix area for a couple of years, so I know what hot is, but it has been a long time since I felt something like this. In Phoenix, when you walked outside it was like stepping into a wall of heat, like what Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego must have felt. In this case, however, the humidity was the worst part of it. Anytime we left our air-conditioned car or any building, I would have to wait a minute or so to see because my glasses would fog up. I didn’t know this until after we came in for the night, but the high for the day was 111 degrees with 85% humidity.
We’re still alive, though.
All the heat sapped our strength to the point that we checked into our bed & breakfast in the afternoon, and opted for a nap before heading back out again. After dinner we headed down to the main field, where there was a country fair going on. Delia tried most everything offered: walking on stilts, handcart pulling, period dancing, playing graces, stick pulling, what have you.
When the sun went down, the Nauvoo Pageant began. It was a great show! Great performances by all. The song and dance numbers were perfectly executed, the stories were soul-stirring, and the finale, where they turn on the lights to the temple on the bluff behind the stage, was jaw-droppingly dramatic.
More to come from Nauvoo tomorrow, and here’s hoping the weatherman is right and it will be cooler.
It was hot today. And sticky. The term sweltering comes to mind. I lived in the Phoenix area for a couple of years, so I know what hot is, but it has been a long time since I felt something like this. In Phoenix, when you walked outside it was like stepping into a wall of heat, like what Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego must have felt. In this case, however, the humidity was the worst part of it. Anytime we left our air-conditioned car or any building, I would have to wait a minute or so to see because my glasses would fog up. I didn’t know this until after we came in for the night, but the high for the day was 111 degrees with 85% humidity.
We’re still alive, though.
All the heat sapped our strength to the point that we checked into our bed & breakfast in the afternoon, and opted for a nap before heading back out again. After dinner we headed down to the main field, where there was a country fair going on. Delia tried most everything offered: walking on stilts, handcart pulling, period dancing, playing graces, stick pulling, what have you.
When the sun went down, the Nauvoo Pageant began. It was a great show! Great performances by all. The song and dance numbers were perfectly executed, the stories were soul-stirring, and the finale, where they turn on the lights to the temple on the bluff behind the stage, was jaw-droppingly dramatic.
More to come from Nauvoo tomorrow, and here’s hoping the weatherman is right and it will be cooler.
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