Those who have read my other journal-ly thing about my trips West via car will, probably, be shocked to learn that I haven't ever Wandered East. I've actually been to New York City as part of a college tour a thousand years ago. And I've driven to my sister's house near Albany (captial of New York and the confluence of the Mohawk and Hudson Rivers). I went to college in the Far North Country of New York, near Massena and the St. Lawrence Seaway. Those things were all well and good, but I hadn't Wandered East, if you know what I mean.
Being the soul that I am, (kind of teacher-y and all), I figure that I'd better show a map of Massachusetts (huge name for a relatively small state).
Find Boston and North by North East between Gloucester (pronounced glaw-ster) and Saugus and you'll find Salem. Ignore the tidy roads indicated, since they are an optical illusion designed to lure the unwary.
I traveled to Salem via Bristol Connecticut. Massachusetts is a pretty small state. Connecticut is even smaller.
Just as a warning: no matter how hard you squint, you're not going to find Bristol. However, if you find New Haven, you're on the way to Bristol. In a manner of speaking.
CT is nestled under Massachusetts, and is smaller than MA. Of course, then there's Rhode Island, which is dinky. However, there is no correlation between size and attitude, believe me! These states are two of the original 13 (quick - what are the other 11?) and Massachusetts boasts enough history inside its borders to keep almost anyone happy.
Why go to Salem? Why not Boston?
Well, because, as intrepid an explorer (okay, as fairly decent a wanderer) as I am, I really don't like big cities. For Boston, I'm thinking that a nice tour bus is in order. That way I don't have to worry about parking, running over wayward pedestrians or finding gas for a car.
No, I had an idea and Salem seemed to fit the bill. (It's a story idea, of course. Other ideas I might have are best kept to me!!!)
And I wanted to go before the made influx of tourists massed for the annual invasion. So the end of March seemed logical. There would be only about a 50 percent chance of snow on any given day. And the sun had climbed enough in the sky that I figured I'd only have to wear gloves and a winter parka. Not bad at ALL!!!
Crys lives in Bristol, and I went there via the Berkshires, which are very old and rounded mountains enclosing some absolutely gorgeous scenery. Don't ask - when I was going to Bristol, I wanted to arrive before dark, and for reasons we shall see, I didn't return to Rochester the way I drove out. So I don't have pictures of that part of the trip - This Time. Next time? That's another story.
My faithful Monte Carlo has over 136000 miles on it, and I didn't want to put it into strange territory until I'd had a chance to suss my way through first. I, therefore, rented.
The place I used is extremely reliable and has some excellent weekend rates, so I was able to upgrade to a Malibu.
On top of all of the other "things to do before you leave the house", I must now add a small but significant codicil in the form of something that looks like math, but isn't. I promise.
Car weight divided by engine size = the responsiveness of the car.
The Malibu is a pretty chunky car. And, from the complete lack of responsiveness, it's a chunky car with a small engine. I should have checked: I know better. Check your rental car or cars and trucks. Make sure that, if you're looking for pick up to get clear of the train track before the 4:52 from Oshkosh comes in, you can actually rely on the engine to HAVE pick up! Both CT and MA are hilly and an overburdened engine can only do so much.
I missed my Monte (sniffle).
After some moderate adventures (I too can become lost, sometimes for hours), Crys and I reached Salem on Saturday afternoon. Properly humbled by the need to ask repeatedly for directions (about every two miles), I pulled into Salem and followed the almost invisible signs toward public parking.
Oh simple JOY! A ramp garage that looked like it had been around during the 1700s! Low ceilings and poor signage in faded paint greeted us as we rambled through to find a parking slot. But we'd MADE it!
After sticking a finger out the window and seeing it come back a few seconds later with frostbite, I figured jackets were in order. Since we hadn't taken 'em off, all we had to do was open the car doors. Within three minutes, we had reached the streets of Salem! YAY!!!!
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