The Okie Legacy

Vol. 1, No. 27
Saturday, 9 October 1999

New England Through Oakie's Eyes

I just looked at the mileage gauge on the car today and we have gone about 3400 miles since we left Oklahoma two weeks ago. How times does fly and memories & miles accumulate.

Two weeks out finds so many great memories to write about. So many in fact that it will keep me busy for awhile after I get my thoughts and photos in order. Just to update you now I will tell you a few of the memorable places, things and people that I have seen and met along the way.

Traveling along the roads of New England I kept thinking, "Why do we put boundaries on and around ourselves? There is so much to learn from others and their cultures out there if only we would keep and open mind and heart to share the different cultures and friendships. Showing respect and learning from and about each other. It can be so enlightening. A great learning experience for all."

The New England countryside in upper state New York around the Adirondacks and Finger Lakes really shined with the fall foliage while we were there. We traveled through Vermont, New Hampshire, Maine, Massachusetts, Rhode island, Connecticut, Long Island, Manhatten, Brooklyn, Staunten Island, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Washington DC and Maryland so far.

Most of the time we stayed in Country Inns / Bed & Breakfasts along the way. The New England countryside is one of the most relaxing and memorable experiences for this Okie. I really loved seeing the countryside and the changing of Fall Foliage colors. I also enjoyed meeting some online friends that I will never forget their hospitality they shared with us.

The countryside was dotted with the New England styled white framed houses w/shutters and old white steeple churches with bells in the steeples. I also snapped a couple of photos of covered wooden bridges that stretched across the little streams.

There is so much history around you up this way. It's like stepping back into time. I've seen so many great places and have taken photos of some of them that I will share with you in future newsletters.

This weekend (Oct. 7, 8 & 9th) finds us in the Nation's Capital (DC). We arrived here Thursday evening about 6PM on the NW outskirts of Washington DC. Got caught up in the rush hour traffic of DC and it took us an hour and half to get to the our Hotel in downtown DC (just east of the Whitehouse and across the street from the Treasury building).

We have survived! Our son had booked a room for us and was waiting for us when we arrived.

About the DC traffic ... Stay away from the circles in DC. They are a bit confusing and can lead you way off target and on strange adventures. Adventures are what I take instead of getting lost. Don't we all?

Speaking of adventures, NYC gave us some unique experiences in traveling the streets of Manhatten. I realized that New Yorkers on foot traveler faster than the cars on the street. Traffic can be bumper to bumper and at a creeping crawl. they even creep to a standstill in the middle of intersections while pedestrians speed between cars.

As to parking in NYC, there is a Battery Park Quick Park parking garage near the Liberty and Ellis Island area. I did get some great shots of Miss Liberty that stands out in the harbor and also of Ellis Island.

It was cloudy and cool when we arrived around noon to take the ferry out to the Statute of Liberty. Bought me a NYC Sweatshirt to keep warm on the Ferry ride to the Islands.

Riding the ferry out and back I tried to imagine what my ancestors must of felt when they passed Miss Liberty and landed on the shores of this strange new world at Ellis Island. Waiting in the huge waiting hall to have physical and mental tests done.

Both Liberty and Ellis Island are massive places and a must see item to add to your agenda if you pass through NYC. If you are ever in New Jersey around Stanhope, you need to check out this great Bed & Breakfast, Whistling Swan Bed & Breakfast Inn. You can make reservations online and see what they have to offer.

New Jersey, when you get out of the NYC area, has a beautiful countryside of quaint little towns. We stopped at Blairstown, NJ where David lived when he was a young boy before moving to California.

Don't forget to see Gettysburg in Pennsylvania on your way. Bring your Civil War history books with you and climb the towers to view the area of this famous battle.

OAKIE'S LINKS

Speaking of the Miss Liberty Statute, this is what a friend sent me concerning what the Local Masons have done at Lone Grove, Oklahoma.

At 34th and Park Avenue, NYC, the Empire State Building stretches towards the sky as we get caught in the NYC traffic.

This old covered bridge at Bath, New Hampshire caught my eye, so I just had to snap this one for prosperity or whatever. Let us not forget the famous Ellis Island and Statute of Liberty

The lake at Lake Placid Lodge, Adirondacks, NY, in the early morning hours with the morning dew rising from the lake greeted us in the wee morning hours while we snuggled under the covers and browsed out the big picture window. Such a cozy place!.