Day 5: Raleigh to Tampa 1729.3 miles

Soundtrack: Salmon Burke, Steely Dan, Dylan.

I was in Raleigh for about 8 hours. Just enough time to sleep, shower and get a Nana breakfast in. Back on the road quickly, so I could make it to Keen at a decent hour.

A couple stops along the way were very necessary. The first of course being "South of the Border" a ridiculous area right over the SC border. Not completely sure what it's purpose is besides the over abundance of cheese... but it was fantastic.




The parking lot safari is a fabulous addition.



I actually got out of there with not a single cheezy souvenir.... just a new friend:)

Savannah was the next required stop. SOOOOO BEAUTIFUL. I parked for an hour and just wandered around. It is such a visitor friendly place and so easy to get around.


An awesome 50s theatre with a classic car parked out front.... so cute.


Paula Deen's restaurant. Literally 50 people standing outside on a Saturday afternoon waiting for a table. It was 102 degrees!!!


Awesome Bridge over the Savannah River.


And after 1729.3 Miles, finally the Keen!!

Day 4: Brooklyn to Raleigh. 1042.7 miles.

Soundrack: Bruce Springsteen (have to in New Jersey), Gillian Welch.


After escaping NYC thru the lincoln tunnel, i travelled towards PA. A required stop on this trip was always Roadside America. So cheezy its awesome!!.



A whole tiny world inside a random building on the side of the highway.



Best Part: The night pagent. They turn down all the sky lights, turn on the lights inside the houses, and play "God Bless America" with fake fireworks timed to the music. I was hysterically laughing the entire time.


Worth every penny.



Finally made it to Front Royal, VA. The northern entry point to Skyline Drive, and home to "Dinosaur Land". Amazingly low budget replicas of dinosaurs, right on the side of the highway. So great!!



Looks just like the real thing. Best part: The 15 year old working there sitting on the curb in the parking lot smoking a cigarette, look on his face: I hate my life. I cant see why when you get to hang out with these guys all day.


Three hours at 35mph. Worth every second. So beautiful and relaxing.


Was also a nice break from the heat. Shady and breezy.



The one rest stop smack dab in the middle. Pulled up to stretch my legs and use running water. A tiny little bambi was just hanging out in the parking lot. Unfortunately being harassed by a group of people, but, still super cute.


Had to get over the fear of heights pretty quick. The first couple vistas gave me wobbly knees driving by.






The Gillian Welch soundtrack was a coincidence, but adds to the video beautifully. Had no idea the camera had audio.


Sunset over the mountains, finished the drive right before dark.

5 1/2 hours more to Raleigh.... A failed attempt at seeing monticello and a super annoying search for dinner was all that happened after.

Nana waited up for me and we gossiped over a cigarette before I passed out after a lovely long day.

Day 3: Bakehouse to Brooklyn 320.2 miles

Soundrack: Irish Punk... The Pogues, Flogging Molly, The Tossers, The Navigators.






Started the Day off with a goodbye lunch with Lisa at Bakehouse. Yummy Yummy sandwiches and company of course. Said goodbye to Patty and Frank too, with a promise of another stop on the way back.


It was a lovely drive thru the Poconos and beyond until NJ, where I was stuck in bumper to bumper traffic for over two hours trying to get to the GWB. Once in the city I realized how my boat of a car is much more annoying to drive in the city than the mini. Met Rachelyn in Union Square finally, she hopped in the car and we zipped over to Brooklyn for a reunion diner at Diner.


Diner was super yummy and nostalgic, and if not for the annoying waitress would have been perfect.



We had dessert at the Blackbird Parlour on Bedford. Super Cute.


Drinks at the Biergarten.



Then back to the apt to have some drinks (bought at Hanna of course) and see the puppies (Wally and Rocco)! Fun night of lots of food and drinks, just like old times.

Day Two: 180.2 Miles

Soundtrack: Ray Charles Anthology and the Indiana Jones Theme...

So, Day Two had a lot of potential as I was planning to take Lisa to the Scranton-Wilkes Barre Yankees after a day touring the local Salvation Armys. Unfortunately, the pouring rain prevented the Yankees Game (my bad luck regarding rain-outs strikes again). The burning pain in my left eye stopped our Salvo trip at one and resulted in an emergency trip to the optometrist.


I know looks like an exciting afternoon.


After a stern lecture from Dr. Evans about sleeping in my contacts, he thankfully gave me some RX drops and a new pair of contacts for the trip.


Lisa couldn't help but giggle through the exam.


Due to the rain, we decided to catch a movie. I was apparently able to enjoy Indiana Jones even with only one eye working:(


I accidently bought two childrens tix to the movie, the old man at the counter must have believed we were under 12.


La Tolteca for the second night in a row. Unfortunately, no mariachi band tonight.






Lisa got talking to the waiter in Spanish... he apparently asked for her number, but got el wrongo numero. Creepy.


The food is awful good though.



Calling it a night by the fake palm trees. After that we head home to the DeVivas for some lounging and laughing. Gotta Rest up for day three: NYC!

Day One Pt Two

The Saloon: Soundrack: Aretha, Otis, Billie...



Met Ryan, Lisa's AWESOME boyfriend...After dinner we went to The Saloon... awesome local pub full of wood paneling and Art Nouveau.

House dart board plays Cricket from the ground up. The moat around the bullseye makes it hard to hit them. The board sure is pretty though.
Car bombs!



Cigarette Machine.



Lovely Lisa and I.


Ryan and Lisa....


My "derby" bruise. And by derby i mean the bruise i sustained from getting stuck in my trunk:(

Day One 152.2 Miles

Soundtrack: Otis Live at the Whiskey

"Fixed" Mirror
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Step one for the roadtrip.... gluing the side mirror back on, again. This time I did it myself though! Unfortunately, didn't have the same luck with the trunk. I have been unable to get into it for the last year, so the day before I leave i try to fix it. Crawling into the trunk through the passway from the back seat. Apparently just hitting the lock from the inside with a screw driver doesn't work. Taking it to The Woodland Roadhouse eventually got the trunk open, and then, unfortunately, it wouldn't close. So after all that, I had to pack the trunk from the backseat in small bags that would fit through the passway.



Passway from the backseat.

Ithaca Behind me...



Finally on the road i head towards Wilkes Barre, PA. Home of my Aunt and Uncle The DeVivas. My only passenger for this trip... Music, Sunglasses and a map... What else would i need?

5 pairs of sunglasses should do me I hope.