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Tourists Go Home

(Posted Saturday a.m. because the wi-fi here was very intermittent last night- pictures will be added later). Our final day of touristing started early. We left the Holiday Inn and drove around the south side of the Baltimore Inner Harbor. Lots of townhome type condos with great views of the water, and many with dock space too. There are hundreds of tiny neighborhoods in Baltimore, separated by the bigger streets, canals, hills and the ethnicity of the residents. The road to Fort McHenry then passes some industrial areas, including the Domino Sugar plant, where there were huge piles of sugar (white, light brown and dark brown) just sitting in the open air. Some of the piles were covered with giant tarps too. The Fort is on a beautiful peninsula that sticks out into the bay. It's a lot of acreage considering it's right in Baltimore harbor. It had a huge hospital during WW I, but that has been removed and the Fort is much like it was in 1814. We were just in time for the
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Drivin' and eatin'

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Not much of interest for most of today. Packed up our stuff in the rain and drove to Newburgh for lunch at the Town and Country Diner. Very nice. The owner is an older Greek man, and he is also the host, waiter, cook, busboy, and presumably the janitor. Very good food. Then we pushed on through lots of traffic jams and construction zones to Baltimore, arriving about 6pm. The kids tried to swim in the indoor pool, but it had been taken over buy about 20 kids under 5 who were shrieking and running around, so we left. We found a place for dinner in a neighborhood across the Harbor called Mamas on the Half Shell We had great crab cakes, clams casino, crab chowder, and a huge seafood club sandwich, plus sides and a salad. Delicious! We drove around the Harbor a little on our way back to the Holiday Inn and packed it in, with everyone exhausted after a long day of driving. Tomorrow it's off to Fort McHenry and Mount Vernon to wrap up our trip. See you then.
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Last Hurrah

Glen Lake is beautifully quiet and peaceful once the 4th of July revelers leave. We had a private breakfast on the deck, and spent most of the day enjoying the water, which has climbed up close to 80 degrees. More kayaking, swimming and paddleboarding, mixed with an errand run, lunch with my dad, and a visit to my cousin Laurie's grave filled our agenda for our final day here. At 5, we made our last trip to Martha's (mint chocolate swirl,,,mmmm,,,) then drove by the old family homestead on West Mountain Road, and a few neighboring streets. Then we drove to Chris' house and picked up my dad. We all drove to Diamond Point, and after a few wrong turns found the house he lived in for a few years on the late 1940s with his father and mother. Dad and my grandfather drove 24 miles every day each way to Fort Edward where dad went to school and grampa worked. They did this for 2 years, and in the winter months had to park the car on the main road and walk down, because there were
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Happy 5th of July!

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We got in pretty late from the fireworks so I am posting this on the morning of July 5th. We had a great day yesterday. The weather has been perfect, with temps on the low 80s, very little humidity, and full sun with just a few clouds occasionally to provide a break from the direct rays. After a great made to order breakfast of french toast, bacon and fresh fruit, we all swam, kayaked, paddleboarded and sunbathed all morning and until about 2pm on the brand new dock. Then it was off to collect my dad and cousin Fred, for a trip to visit my Grandma "D" in the Indian River nursing facility in Granville NY, about 25 miles away and just 5 miles from the Vermont border. She has been there a few years and seems to be happy with it, though her diminishing faculties make it hard to communicate sometimes. She seemed to recognize us all and remarked on how tall Sarah and Sam were getting. She doesn't get much company (Fred and Uncle Bill mostly) so I think she
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Lakes, Pools and Rivers

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We had a great day enjoying the beautiful Adirondack weather (85 degrees and virtually no humidity) with my relatives. We spent the morning at the Lodge (great sunrise!) after a delicious hot breakfast in the dining room. Sarah and Samuel went kayaking and paddleboarding and played horseshoes. They each mastered the board on the first try, and were paddling around the beach area in no time. Then we headed to my brother Chris' house and met my dad, sister in law and nephews, and swam in the pool, followed by hot dogs, burgers, cole slaw and potato salad, Next we drove to my cousin Fred and Uncle Bill's boat dock on the Hudson River, and went for a nice ride on their new pontoon with my neice Mikayla.  Fred hooked up a tube and tow rope, and we took turns riding the waves up and down a 3 mile section of the same Hudson River we crossed on the George Washington Bridge downstream yesterday. We grabbed a quick dinner of Mr. B's Roast Beef sandwiches (a local f
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No more Manhattans for us...

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I have very few pictures to share today because Sarah has gone to bed and didn't share from her phone or Amy's. So here is today's rundown, and a few pics I took. More tomorrow. I made a bagel run, bright and early to the Skyline bagel and deli store. It was well reviewed on Yelp and they were just as nice as the reviews said. Great fresh bagels and New York City coffee, which Sam has become a fan of. We left the hotel for the H & M store on Times Square, where Sarah and Amy found lots of bargains on  some great stylish clothes. Sam and I wandered around and saw some huge lines for Madame Tussaud's museum and some artwork celebrating the busy city. We stopped by Carlos Bake Shop, where "Cake Boss" goods are sold. We all returned to the hotel and packed and checked out while they found our van in valet parking. Next we drove to the Klienfeld Bridal shop on 20th Street, Say Yes to the Dress (one of Sarah and Amy's favorite shows) is fil
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I'll have another Manhattan

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Busy day! We left the hotel and started walking towards Central Park. We passed Carnegie Hall on the way and then entered the Park near Columbus Circle. We found some giant rocks, baseball fields and lots of bicyclists and runners. We exited the Park near the Tavern on the Green and walked over to the Julliard School, Avery Fischer hall and the Metropolitan Opera. We went to a sandwich shop on Columbus Avenue and enjoyed watching the busy cooks make dozens of orders very quickly. Then we made our way to the Museum of Natural History and got through all 5 floors! Sam, Amy and I are on the steps. When we got finished there we went back over to the Park and walked to one of the lakes. It started to rain so we got a cab back to the hotel to get ready for dinner and our show. Sam likes to watch Guy Fieri on the Food Network and one of the restaurants he's showcased is a pizza place called Don Antonio's pizza. Not your typical pizza joint, this p
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