After I got hit with a sudden and ferocious illness on the Saturday before our move, we were still able to get on the road as planned. Joshua had took on the responsibility of taking care of me and packing up the house with some gusto. Thank goodness for Joshua. A huge thank you to all of our friends who helped us...we would have been lost without you!
Leaving Rochester was rough and we are pretty sure that packing and loading the truck was a hellish experience. After we finally left Rochester, everything went quite smoothly. It felt good to drive out of New York state and we pulled over at the Pennsylvania welcome center to do a subdued, and as a result somewhat pathetic, happy dance.
Our first stop was Pittsburgh where we spent a lovely evening dining and chatting with our friend Keith. We were extremely impressed with the beauty of Pittsburgh from the freeway and amused by the quirky-ness of Pittsburgh once we got onto city streets. I'm still moderately alarmed by the art-deco/Gotham city "Cathedral of Learning" that looms ominously from its central location in the University district. Good Indian food, interesting place. We love Keith!
We decided to drive on for another hour or so and crashed at a Red Roof Inn which offered a welcome $46.99 a night. A decent sleep and then on to Kentucky the next day. Wednesday was our longest day of driving, about eight hours. Not so bad as far as road trips go, but by the time we arrived at Mammoth Cave National Park, we were ready to get out of the truck for the day. We had a relaxing evening, spent some time on the easy foot trails near the hotel and chilled out. Joshua decided which tour he would go on the next day, and I decided that for the purpose of continuing to get healthy I would sleep in and relax the next morning. Joshua enjoyed his tour the next morning and we were off again!
When we finally drove into the state of Alabama we were struck by its beauty. I had heard people say that it was beautiful, but this was amazing. The hills, comprised of the lower tip of the Appalachians, and the lush foliage made us very happy indeed. The weather has been warm, but so far nothing much worse than Rochester, though I'm sure it will get warmer yet. We've heard high praises of the winters though, so I think it will all be worth it. Our visit with our friend Steve was wonderful. We very much enjoyed seeing him in his element and meeting his new friends. Steve and Jill came with us to Auburn and helped us to get settled and for that we extremely grateful. Our apartment is cute, newer than our place at Goler house and we are getting closer to having the place set up.
We are close to many restaurants, including a delightful pizza place called Mellow Mushroom Pizza which has already yielded a delicious dinner. There is a grocery store that carries organic milk in carton containers, a Hastings and a CVS within about a 15 minute walk from here, a perfect activity for after the sun goes down. Yesterday, Joshua and I spent some time wandering around campus. It is amazing! Huge but well appointed. I'm looking forward to exploring in the library and Joshua is going to get to meet with at least one member of the faculty tomorrow.
It is strange to be in a town and know absolutely no one. That is sort of new for us as we had begun to feel pretty established in Rochester. I would regularly see people around town that I knew and we often had social activities planned with friends. For now, it is just Joshua and I, in our somewhat messy apartment, catching up on sleep, e-mail and watching TV. A short reprieve before the start of more travel, teaching and researching.
Joshua's mom and sister arrive tonight for a few days. They are going to help us get even more settled and we are going to run some errands. We are going to buy some fun things like a vacuum cleaner, garbage can, sheets, etc.
So far nothing to weirdly southern has occurred except for the appearance of a couple of confederate flags on the way down here. The Alabama flag looks much like the confederate flag minus all the of the color...just a giant red x over a white back ground. Also, Cracker Barrel seems to be a popular place. My pancakes were delicious, but I've never had pancakes that tasted so fried.
More soon.
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