Coast-to-Coast Road Trip Begins!

            After months of disuse, we’re resurrecting this blog to share about the adventures we experience during our 2-week Summer 2012 Coast-to-Coast Road Trip.  Our plan is to dip our toes in the Atlantic Ocean on June 20^th and then head west in a one-way rental car, traveling through Maryland, the District of Columbia, Virginia, Tennessee, Kentucky, Illinois, Missouri, Kansas, Colorado, Utah, Nevada, Arizona, and California and then dip our toes in the Pacific Ocean before flying back on July 5^th…just in time to participate in our dear friends Joanna and Del’s wedding on July 7^th in Yardley, PA!     We hope you enjoy our tales from the road! 

            On Wednesday, June 20^th, Molly picked up Benno after work and we left DC at 7:00pm.  In order to make our “coast-to-coast” road trip officially coast-to-coast, we first drove to Annapolis, Maryland, and put our feet in the waters of the Chesapeake Bay (the closest we could reasonably get to the Atlantic Ocean, given our time frame).  We decided it counted because it smelled like salt and had small waves.

            From there we began our journey west, bound for our first night’s stop in Moneta, Virginia.   There, we met up with Molly’s family (Scott, Jenny, and Eric Metcalf and Becky, Isabelle, and Desmond Silvis) who were spending an extended weekend at a rented lake house.  Arriving at 2:00am didn’t allow us to visit much, except over a leisurely breakfast.  Even though we had to miss the family vacation, at least we got to crash it for a little while!

            This morning, we left Virginia and headed south with our sights set on reaching Nashville, Tennessee, by dinner.  We enjoyed beautiful weather driving through the mountains of Virginia, got to listen to our own music through the rental car’s auxiliary jack, and had a nice picnic lunch in Bristol, VA, just shy of the TN border.  Peanut butter and jelly sandwiches, carrots, celery, green pepper, cucumbers, blueberries, pineapple, and trail mix made for the world’s healthiest road trip lunch ever! J 

            We stopped at the entrance to the Smokey Mountains to buy our National Park Pass from two very sweet, very talkative, and clearly very bored women, who were so excited to finally have someone in their shop. 

            With Benno’s guidance, Molly memorized the names and locations of all 46 countries in Europe, which, when added to the 55 African countries she learned this spring, comprises fully one-half of the countries of the world (101 of 202).  I’ll match Benno’s knowledge of all 202 within days at this rate! J 

            We’re looking forward to joining Jim, Ruth, Sophia, Olivia, and Stella Lauer for dinner and Hillary for an overnight stay in Nashville soon!  (written at 6:00pm, Thursday, 6/21)