Pocono Raceway

You may be wondering why we chose to go to the Poconos if we weren't going to spend our time in one of those heart-shaped bathtubs at a resort.

Here's the reason. Pocono Raceway offered a chance for my husband to knock off a couple of items from his bucket list.

The entrance to the Pocono Raceway.



A rock with Richard Petty's
 name and racecar number.

The raceway offered a number of different affordable driving and/or riding experiences. He also was able to visit the race track, plus we were in the infield of a major race track even if the place was empty aside from us and other drivers or riders.
All of this is very thrilling if you have been a NASCAR fan for your entire life.

Wednesday was the day he was scheduled to take a ride in a stock car  at 165 mph around the 2.5 mile track. He decided not to drive because he determined he would get to go faster if a pro was at the wheel (and he was right - the guys who were driving crept along while he whizzed by them).



This is the infield.

 

These were the cars that would be used.

 


I don't know if these were Sprint cars or ARCA or what.

My husband had to put on a racing suit.



Then he waited.



He had a big smile on his face the whole time.

OK, he's not smiling here, but I love this picture of him.



This is my picture of a picture that the stock car people took.



This is the backside of him; I was taking this picture while the (ah hem) professional photograph was taking his picture.

 

Also my picture of their picture. I couldn't get over the infield railing to take a picture of him in the car from this side.
The driver's name was Steve.

This is my picture of him in the car, taken from the infield.



He's getting ready to go!

There he goes around the track at 165 mph. (And didn't I line that picture up well?)

And he's back, and shaking hands with one of the fellows who worked there.

Sometimes you go do things with the guy you love just because you love him. This is one of those major dreams - he's always wanted to ride in a stock car around a race track. I am glad we were able to go to Pocono so he could have this experience. It made the whole trip worth it.

But there was still something in Pennsylvania for me . . .

Stroudsburg, PA

Our first full day in Pennsylvania found us a little unorganized and not sure where we should go. For folks who normally visit places like Myrtle Beach and Williamsburg, finding little guidance as far as spots to visit was a bit unsettling.

My husband latched on to a brochure I found advertising something called The Country Kettle, a gift and candy shop. He punched in the GPS for that and soon we were spending about 40 minutes driving down 290, I think it was, to East Stroudsburg.



A shop full of expensive goodies - and fudge.

The store was interesting, full of Disney characters and expensive doo-dads, along with a back room full of candy (including fudge). Further along there was a Christmas Store. I took my camera in there (I forgot it in the Country Kettle).



A large selection of ornaments yielded two
fire trucks for my tree. 



I loved the Star Wars nutcrackers - and immediately
wanted Lord of the Rings ones instead.



This showcase of Russian nesting dolls was lovely.

After a snafu with traffic and a bit of a discussion between us about directions - men just will not listen, will they? - we finally ended up avoiding the bypass of 290 in favor of business 290 because of roadwork and a six or seven mile traffic backup. This route took us through Stroudsburg proper. It is a lovely and apparently thriving area - lots of folks about, and I could see little stores that looked intriguing. One of the churches had a 1788 date on it. The city, which is the county seat, was founded in the mid 1700s.



The first store that caught my eye was this one - one I suspect community leaders
 would rather not have there.



The theater reminded me of the Grandin Road area of Roanoke.



A good view of how Main Street looked.



This says "Stroudsburg Birthplace of the Nationwide J. J. Newberry Co. Stores."
I loved Newberry's when I was a child - there was one in Salem that I visited frequently
with my grandmother. Good memories.



Another shot of Main Street. It was very well-kept and I thought a lovely community.
We did not stop, unfortunately.



I saw several book stores while we were in the Poconos - and I was so glad!



This was on the other end of Main Street. Condoms on one end, psychics on the other.
 

By this time we were quite a ways from our hotel in LeHighton even though that was where we were heading - back to the hotel. We did not stop in Stroudsburg because my husband had another destination in mind. If I ever get beyond the Mason Dixon again, I wouldn't mind visiting this county seat for a day, and actually walking the street instead of just driving through.

To the Poconos

Last week, while I was showing you pictures of spiders and nothing special, I was in Pennsylvania with my husband for our annual vacation.

We went to the Poconos. Specifically, we went to the LeHighton area, which is about 30 minutes from Pocono Raceway. We stayed at a Hampton Inn, and not at a resort, because all of the resorts I could find were either smoking facilities or so old that I dismissed them out of fear of mold and mildew.

I do not recommend visiting the Poconos in the manner that we did (that is to say, staying in a hotel and winging it), because the area is spread out and we spent a great deal of time in the car. There are many small townships in the area that one could spend days exploring, but part of the time it rained and in many instances things I wanted to visit - museums and such - were closed "for the season" and/or were only open on Saturdays. We were not there over the weekend.

Staying at a resort probably means you are stuck at the resort unless you venture out, but I daresay the resorts are set up to keep you occupied.

Having said that, the area is lovely, not too much unlike my beautiful county here in Virginia except a bit more mountainous. The communities, however, seemed more economically depressed and reminded my husband of West Virginia. The townships were in between mountain ranges rather like West Virginia, as well.

I took these shots from a Walmart parking lot near LeHighton. The Walmart was built upon a high hill and had the best views that we found, over all.

I thought it was pretty country. Apparently it is good for growing Christmas trees, because on the way in, we saw many evergreen farms. There were rows upon rows of growing trees.

I had a hard time getting photos of those, as we were driving close to dark and it was a little foggy.

Stay tuned for more about our great Pennsylvania adventure.

My New Mini

While we were in Charleston, I found a guitar store that carried a small-bodied guitar I'd been looking at online.

It's called a Taylor GS Mini. It's a high-end student guitar, much better than something you would pick up at Walmart, anyway. I'd been checking forums online and the Taylor had been highly recommended as having a clear, crisp sound considering its size. If you follow the link, you'll see it's not that expensive for a guitar.

However, I wanted to play one before I made the purchase. I seized the opportunity while we were out of town, and ended up buying it.

The guitar has a different look than most western-style instruments. This one has a mahogany color. It sounds nice, though it has taken me a while to adjust to the smaller fret board.




My new little baby.



My new baby next to my Takamine classical parlor-sized guitar. It's just a little smaller than it's older sister. Note
the difference in the size of the neck and the fret board.

Many guitars come in what they call a "dreadnaught" size. I simply can't play them well because I can't hold them. I also have trouble reaching around them because I have problems with my back. They are big guitars.

This little mini seems to be working out well, and I am playing more. That was the goal, to play more. I used to enjoy making music but had let that get away from me during life's other pursuits. Now I'm hoping to return making lovely sounds.

Charleston - Downtown - Part 7

During our September visit to Charleston (before the rains and the major flooding), we took a bus tour downtown. Unfortunately because of my health issues we could not spend much time walking around the city. Most of these photos were taken through the bus glass. I also have no idea where the structures are, for the most part. So few captions. The homes are old and huge, massively impressive structures.






I think this is called Battery Park.



The pink house to the rear is for sale for $7.5 million.

Charleston Trip - Part 6

I am stunned at the news photos of flooding in Charleston. It is hard to believe I was there only 10 days ago. The rains began the day we left. I feel sure the area I am about to show is completely underwater at the moment. I am sorry for the folks who are having to deal with this terrible situation.

One of our favorite outings was a visit to the Charles Towne Landing State Historic Site.  This is the original location where English settlers landed and set up camp, so to speak, in 1670. They remained in this spot for 10 years before abandoning it for the peninsula that is now Charleston. The park was very picturesque and the exhibits informative.



Husband at the entrance to the visitors center.



Interesting map that shows early European settlements on North America



A model of the ship that took them across the sea.



Inside exhibits showing English settlers meeting Native Americans.

Information about slavery in South Carolina.



Dearest husband looking at an exhibit.

The park grounds were beautiful and well kept.



An animal park was available, but it was a long walk so we did not venture there.

Backside of the wooden palisade around the settlement.

A beautiful expanse of cypress trees.



An incredibly old oak tree.

Another old tree. (I wonder if it lost its limb in this flooding. I hope not.)



A rendition of a boat that was used to bring merchandise to the settlement.

Boat innards.

Our guide on the little boat.



The marsh around which the park was situated.

Cannons on the battlement for protection.



A common house used for many different activities.



A little shed made of sticks.



Our guide around the settlement in the palisade area.

If this hasn't flooded out entirely, I suggest a visit to this park if you vacation in Charleston. This was such a lovely and quiet spot that I didn't want to leave.