June 5,6 Thurmont, MD and Hartford, CT

Flash:  The Mercedes has been driven for two days with no major problems.  Sure, the engine still idles rough and guzzles gas, but otherwise she is running smooth and strong. 



This is the rear side of Monticello

We opened the day with a trip to Monticello.  This was way overdue for me.  My family lived in DC in the 60's and I successfully avoided seeing this or any place with historical significance.  Today, it's a short run to Monticello from Waynesboro on a few miles of curvaceous and lovely rural two-lane.  Like Mount Rushmore, Monticello in real life is a bit smaller than I expected (it looks HUGE on those nickels).  But the place is beautifully preserved and presented by the foundation that operates it.  We enjoyed the garden tour.  Thomas Jefferson was presented as being an innovator, always looking for the breakthrough result in agronomy, architecture, and all his pursuits.  He rarely found those breakthroughs, but never stopped trying.  Writing the Declaration of Independence, the Virginia Statute on Religious Freedom and establishing UVA were certainly impressive accomplishments.  He never stopped trying and kept thorough written records of everything he did.

Our next stop would be Arlington VA, home of my high school buddies Joe Thomas and Les


Marion Arkin and Nance in Arlington

Jackson. We fought with our GPS to get us from Monticello to Arlington while avoiding I-95.  We finally convinced the fractious software to route us on US 15 and Lee Highway (US 29) to I-66, a spoke of the DC interstate system that would vector us directly to Arlington.  More cruising through rural Virginia's lush green hills and valleys followed.  Best of all, it was unseasonably  cool. Temperatures managed to stay in the low 80's all day. 

We were trying to beat the rush hour in DC but snippets of time lost here and there delayed us.  There were some rush hour snarls developing on I-66, but nothing too horrible.  We arrived at Joe and Marion's around 4:30 PM.  We had lots of fun telling the usual stories and had a wonderful dinner at a local east Indian restaurant.

Next time, we will stay longer in DC.  On this trip, it was wise to keep moving.  Maine is still a long way off and DC's congestion is not suitable for antique car touring.  Joe gave some good directions to get us out of town to the north, headed toward Harrisburg, PA.  We managed to make it to Thurmont, MD, a rural area in the Catoctin Mountains, home of Camp David.  A Super 8 provided a quiet and comfortable evening.  It was quite a contrast from the hubbub of Washington, just a short distance to the south on US 15.



General Lee on his horse in Gettysburg.  
This battle turned the tide to the north.

On Friday, we visit some of  the Gettysburg, PA civil war points of interest.  A visitor center offered an impressive movie and cyclorama.  The latter is in impressive 360 degree painting of the Gettysburg battlefields.  Although the painting is huge, it is far too small to represent the enormity of the ferocious fighting that enveloped this small town in Pennsylvania.  I found the driving tour of the actual battlefields especially emotional.  The massive memorial statues and the vast expansive areas involved made me think of how the horror and destruction  impacted this quiet, peaceful looking community.

I left thinking that the long and ugly civil war may have resolved very little. Yes, it did the very difficult and important work of ending the institution of slavery in the south and the north.    But having listened to hours of AM radio in formerly confederate states this week, the hostility toward the federal government is alive, well and may be growing.  The government is portrayed as doing nothing right serving only to bring unwanted rules, regulations and taxes upon the people.  This constant din of criticism, cloaked under the guise of patriotism, cannot be healthy.

We moved on to a short and sweet visit to Hershey.  We didn't have time to sample (gorge) on Hershey Bars or Reese's, but we did walk through the beautiful Hershey Hotel.  What gardens and elegance, like the Biltmore, Hotel Del Coronado and those few remaining great American hotels.

I have been to Hershey several times for the big swap meet, though I have gone to the hotel just for the wonderful brunch.  It was strange to see those vast parking lots filled with nothing but nothing.

Getting to Hartford from here had its problems.  We lost an hour or so due to heavy traffic near NYC and made a couple of embarrassing navigation errors.  We ran low on gas and had to pay $4 a gallon at a rural Shell.  This was not entirely our fault, gas stations get scarce whenever you get anywhere the Big Apple.  But all ended well when we arrived late at my brother's lovely home in Burlington, CT.