Thursday, September 24

The order of things—beginning with Gaithersburg, MD:

1. Breakfast at a bagel place. Good coffee.

2. Purchased a styrofoam cooler to keep Lee's gifts from melting.

3. Left Gaithersburg for New York.

4. Called Alamo Lost and Found. They had Chuck's coat which they agreed to mail to our next stop in Boston.

5. Drove on long stretches of 10 lane freeways.

6. Stopped at a rest stop in Maryland and decided to jump for a cross-country ride to Annapolis on 301 so we could see some countryside. After several hours we decided to turn the GPS on so we could arrive at our host's before Friday.

7. Alas. That meant "flying" on the New Jersey Turnpike. Not a great experience, but we coped until our GPS told us to “Stay on I-95N” while the readout was pointing toward a road that would take us through the Lincoln Tunnel to our destination. Unfortunately we stayed left while I cursed Ms. SmartyPants of the GPS. Quite a bit later we took the George Washington Bridge (Chuck hummed Persichetti's piece while we crawled over during 5 pm traffic.)

8. Did I mention that we ended up driving through the Bronx and Queens? We wanted to see New York, but that was not the kindest way.

9. Then we had to swing South to get the Long Island Expressway. There was a fast Express lane with lots of signs explaining HOV safety. (We have no idea what HOV means.)

10. Now I know why New Yorkers drive with fists full of dollars in their right hand. Toll roads. No nickel and diming you either. We paid 5 to 10 bucks a time. When we leave for Boston we plan to take the ferry. That is not cheap, however. That will cost about $70.

11. The good news is that after a long day of driving (Did I mention the Mazda does not have cruise control), we arrived just before dark. We had traveled through 4 states.