Dale & Patti Schumacher's Travel Log: The Big Apple / Move to the Pocono Mountains

Been a few days. Thursday was a long day and we were tired. Got a great night's sleep. Did some RV maintenance and other domestic stuff on Friday, after a slow start. Saturday was moving day. Finally time to put our thoughts together.

Thursday - October 15, 2015: Up early to play commuter. We had a 30 minute drive to the New Haven Line train station and a two hour ride to Grand Central Terminal. Patti continued to remind Dale that she doesn't like Morning People. Over the past 37 years, Dale has evolved into a morning person. Of course, Patti clarifies her position by saying she doesn't like morning and she doesn't like people; nothing personal. OKAAY-AY

We love visiting Manhattan. Wouldn't want to live there, just visit. We've talked about staying a month one of these days, probably in the Fall. We boarded the train about 9:30 AM, so the train was not crowded. There were two "loud women" sitting near us. One of them decided to take a phone call and increased her volume a few decibels. We certainly we know where stereotypes come from - they are real, somewhere. Amazing - TMI. We didn't need to know about her most recent doctor's visit, really. It was fun, looking at one another and laughing, without a word said between us.

Grand Central Terminal was busy. People headed in every direction. We felt we were in the way much of the time. We had two destinations in mind: the Astro Diner and Central Park. We had a 15 block (or so) walk UP Fifth Avenue. In total, we logged 15,700 steps that day. That's approximately 7.75 miles. Reminded us of a day we spent in Key West in early July. We logged over nine miles that day.

First stop was the Astro Diner. We found this place when were in The City, staying at the Plaza during the Christmas Season, celebrating our 25th Wedding Anniversary (2004). Not much has changed. This is where Patti had her first "grilled" bran muffin. They asked. She said yes. Loved it and has ordered it ever since. The first few times our friends at Cracker Barrel looked at her a little strange. Now, it seems everyone will do it, without question. So, Patti had a grilled bran muffin with her egg-white omelette.

Then, off to Central Park. We think we were a week or so early here. Some color, but not as much as we were seeing in Connecticut. The City generates so much heat that it may not be able to get cold enough to prompt the trees to start the process. Still a beautiful place to be when the sun is shining. Love it. After some meandering around the Park, it was time to get a cool drink. Starbucks has frozen drinks. Up Fifth Avenue we headed, toward Grand Central Terminal.

On the way to Starbucks was St. Patrick's Cathedral, home of Cardinal Timothy Dolan. Cardinal Dolan grew up in the St. Louis area. Very kind and well spoken. The cathedral is beautiful, in the heart of Manhattan. We sat for a moment, taking in the peaceful environment before heading back out into the chaos. Starbucks and frappucinos.

Time to head back to New Haven. We "blew up" Facebook, so this Blog Post may seem redundant. Hope you get to enjoy The City as much as we did. We've gotta get back there for a bit more than a day. We wanted to get back to Ground Zero, but didn't. Many other places we'd like to see again. Before we're 70, or 75.

Friday - October 16, 2015: Domestic Day; a day to relax a bit from going here and there. Needed to check out a maintenance light on the Van, low tire pressure. Must have been the cold weather. Added a little air and all is well. A little maintenance on cabinet doors. Been a while since Dale has done such manual labor. He did OK and didn't have to search for too many back-alley words to get it done. Time to enjoy the RV, do some shopping and laundry, etc. Ready for a travel day on Saturday.

Saturday - October 17, 2015: Travel Day, lots of traffic for a Saturday morning - maybe not for southern Connecticut, just outside NYC. Traveled across northern New Jersey and just crossed the border into Pennsylvania - Pocono Mountains, through the Delaware Water Gap. It was fascinating, a clear GAP in the mountains. Stopped in Stroudsburg PA for a few days, a KOA near Bushkill Falls.

We pulled in a bit late in the day, although it was before dark. The RV Park was sponsoring a Trick or Treat night for the kids. We were totally unprepared; the neighborhood kids didn't even bother to come by. Windy and cold in the evening; a threat of freezing temperatures overnight.

174 miles today.

Sunday - October 18, 2015: Sure enough, we had freezing temperatures overnight - 28 degrees. The water supply hose froze; but thawed before noon. No damage. Sunday night will be colder. When we contacted the RV Park, we requested a bit longer, "pull through" site. It was not available on Saturday night, but would be available Sunday through Wednesday. We moved.

Starting week nine; 56 days on the Fall Color Tour. That is a long time to be away from things familiar, especially for those that thrive on routine. Saturday was a pretty hectic travel day, so we opted for a recovery day. After thawing the water supply hose and moving to a nicer site, with a much better view, we started to update our BLOG.

Friends we haven't seen since 1988 (27 years) live in New Jersey and have a cabin in the Poconos. We're friends on Facebook and they noted that we were in the area. We hooked up and planned to visit near Long Pond PA, home of Pocono Raceway on Monday. Watch for the details.