D.C.

My first trip to the capital!  Our journey to D.C. was to pay a visit to Aunt Jean.  Eating at home for a change was a dream.  Jean's Maryland place is their family home, and it was so fun to see where Jean, Kathy, and Jim grew up.  Even better, we visited the A Frame that Ben's grandfather built in the woods. After some Maryland crab cakes and a visit to Old Town, we were met with colder weather as we drove to the coast of Delaware.

The cafe on capital hill served cozy mulled wine

An exhibit on Yoga deepened my appreciation

Riding The Blue Ridge Parkway

November 2- On a whim, we decided to take our fun bus south to Nashville.  I couldn't believe the level of crazy going down at 6pm when we arrived.  First stop, the legendary Grand Ole Opry.

Surprise guest appearance at the Opry: Dierks Bentley.  It wasn't until I was an audience member that I realized it is indeed still a live radio show.  Who knew?

The following morning we paid a visit to The Hermitage, Andrew Jackson's pad.  

Next, we hitched a ride on the Blue Ridge Parkway over the mountains and through the woods to Asheville, NC.  What a gem.  We celebrated 10,000 miles at Asheville Brewery with a friendly bartender and fellow VW bus owner.  I was quite impressed with the diverse fare, particularly the Himalayan restaurant.  While wandering the streets and pubs that night, we were disappointed to see that we missed a Dr. Dog performance by a day.  What a shame.  Not to be overcome by poor planning a second time, we secured tickets to a show in Charlottesville two days later.  So, we took advantage of Asheville's yoga, dog park, and float tank facilities, then journeyed on.

Chasing Fall

On the way we stopped and paid a ridiculous sum of money to tour the Biltmore Mansion- the Vanderbilt's gigantic monstrosity of a house; largest in America, I believe.  They were gearing up for Christmas and it was a fascinating peek at an extravagant time in history.  I kept channeling Downton Abbey.  The tour was completed with an endless tasting of their ho-hum winery, which made me feel a little bit better about getting my money's worth.  Would we do it again? Eh. The extreme abundance made me feel a little gross.  Fascinating, but gross. Like the admission price.

Mr. Vanderbilt's view

 

The impressive Arboretum.

We made it to Charlottesville just in time for the Dr. Dogg show.  I'm pretty sure we were the oldest people in the place.

 Monticello, Thomas Jefferson's place, was my favorite historical home to date.  What an innovator.  Just the garden alone was worth the visit.

Kansas & St. Louis

After the wedding festivities, we picked up our dogs to hit the road. Beans was so anxious to loose the "kennel" smell that he rolled in the first steamy pile of hobo poo he encountered. Not only would we not have shower access for a week or more, we certainly weren't planning to wash the dogs anytime soon. Ben did his best to wash Beans in an irrigation ditch with soap, but we were forced to share the bus with his odor for days to come. Oh, the trials of bus life.

We passed through Lawrence, KS- Ben's old college digs. The campus and bar tour was a delight.

After a pit stop to visit his pals Matt and Mark in Kansas City and have a go at Trivia Night, we continued on to St. Louis just in time for Halloween.

The Moundbuilder Civilization of Cahokia -  the oldest pyramids in North America.   I have spoke about this place to 6th graders for years and finally had a chance to see in person.  The site was just outside St. Louis and was once a thriving metropolis.

Effingham is a real place.

Abi & Andrew's Wedding NE

After zig zagging through middle America as we awaited our brother and sister's big event, we steered toward Hastings, NE to reconnect.  First stop: Pacha Soap Headquarters.  Andrew and Abi started their humble soap company in the garage.  For every bar they sell, another is donated to a local shelter- part of their Raise the Bar campaign.   Now, Pacha Soap is available in Whole Foods Markets across the midwest.  

The Lovebirds

Andrew behind the wheel.

The only dog park we've seen with hay bales.

 

We loaded the wagen with flowers and wedding garb, then sailed on to Lincoln where we spent the next days in a quaint B & B catching up with family.  The wedding was on site and magical.

Margaret and Soy Bean

Our nephew, sweet little Sawyer.

The ceremony was held outside on a gorgeous October day and we shook the rafters with a foot-stompin' bluegrass barn dance.  The highlight was Abi's aunt teaching the lot of us to square dance.  

Sisters

And so we cruised on, sporting our matching Dirty Hippie Pacha shirts.