1,665 miles traveled

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This east coast road trip has taken us 1,665 miles into adventure after adventure. I can barely believe it is already over and I am sitting at the Newark, NJ airport waiting for my flight to London. I had an amazing time with Alex. Even though I had come to help drive, Alex insisted on driving the entire way the first day. I didn't mind not driving, it was nice to be able to really soak in the scenery. The first night of the road trip, we stayed at her friend Hal's place. They know each other from when they both worked at Barnes and Nobles in Florida. Hal is starting grad school at UNC at Chapel Hill and was able to give us a bit of a tour of the campus. Chapel Hill is a beautiful college town. I absolutely loved the old colonial look the buildings around town had. Walking around the campus, I could feel the rich history that UNC held within its borders. I also quickly learned that the school color is not baby blue but rather Carolina blue (kind of like it's burnt orange and not orange for UT). The fire trucks were even "Carolina Blue". Chapel Hill is a very small town with a very unique feel to it. Just like Austin, Chapel Hill was home to various local businesses. Hal took us to a local brewery where we were able to sample all the variety of beers that were made in-house. My favorite was the more German made beer (which reminds me! I'm very excited for Oktoberfest! :D). We then found ourselves at the Chapel Hill Botanical Gardens. These gardens reminded me of my grandmother's garden. I recognized a few plants from her garden from when I was a little girl, especially the lambs ear plant. Later that night, Hal and his girlfriend took Alex and I to a local wine bar. We arrived and met more of their friends and enjoyed some live music and great conversation. Sadly, we couldn't stay out too late because Alex and I had to get back on the road bright and early the next morning.

It was another 12 hours from Chapel Hill to Buffalo, NY. We passed through Pennsylvania, Virginia, and West Virginia to get to New York state. The land was just beautiful and nothing of what I expected. It was so lush and green you couldn't get bored with the scenery. I really enjoyed North Carolina, Virginia, and West Virginia the most. I had no idea how beautiful these states are and this road trip has broadened my horizons in the American perspective. I used to think I would only love Colorado or Texas but now I have discovered a whole new face to America I never knew before.

We arrived at Buffalo just in time for a real New York pizza dinner with Lindsay and Rick, Alex's friends who took it upon them to show us a great time in Buffalo. That first night we went just a mile from their apartment to a restaurant that had an outside deck facing Lake Erie. We arrived just as the sun was setting and it was just an amazing view. I have never seen a great lake while on land (have on an airplane) and it makes you feel so small to think that mass of water is just a lake. Across the water you could start to see the lights from Canada flicker on as it got darker. Never in my life did I give Buffalo, NY a second thought until Alex announced that she was going to move there. Not until I saw Buffalo myself did I realize that it is a very neat city. This small city has a vast amount of culture to offer. Not to mention it's also a hop, skip, and a jump away from Canada and Niagara Falls. After a much needed night's rest, we ran errands the next morning. A bad situation for Alex turned into a really good opportunity for me. Alex had ordered her new passport in time to receive it before she left Florida but never received it in the mail. She found out that it was lost in the mail and that she would have to go to a passport office to get a new one. Luckily, there was one in downtown Buffalo. I had been worried about only having four empty pages in my own passport and was able to get 52 pages added. As they say, kill two birds with one stone! We were able to pick up our passports the next morning. My passport now looks like a book more than a passport! The passport office taped the additional pages into my passport. I must say, this was a very expensive paper and tape purchase! Even so, we were very excited because this then meant we would be able to go to Canada and see the Canadian side of Niagara Falls. Things were going our way! For dinner that night, Rick took us to a Hibachi Japanese Grill. This was by far the most entertaining Hibachi Grill I have ever been to. The cooks wore cowboy attire and the manager walked around with a squirt bottle filled with sake. You probably guessed it, the manager and cook would point the bottle at our faces and squirt the sake at us. Our choice was to either drink it or wear it. Somehow , we managed to do both! They also wouldn't stop pouring the sake into our mouths until we absolutely couldn't have anymore. It made for a very entertaining evening. If you have never been to a Hibachi grill, I highly recommend it. It is so fun watching the cook make your order right there at your table. They also have a few fun tricks up their sleeves while they cook. That night we went out to downtown Buffalo to experience the nightlife. The bars are open till 4 am in Buffalo! We didn't manage to stay out that late but it was fun to experience the night life. The next day was going to be a huge day anyway.

This brings us to Friday. Friday is when I met my sister, nephew, and niece all in one go! I have been pen pals with my sister since I was 13 years old and have always wondered how and when we would meet. I never intentionally planned for this to be when I would meet her but the stars aligned and Alex ended up going to a school three hours away from my sister. How could I pass the opportunity to go another hour and a half to meet her. We decided to meet up for lunch at a restaurant in Rochester, NY. The drive there was an interesting ride. I don't know if I'll ever be able to really describe my feelings. It was a mixture of just about everything, nerves, anticipation, excitement, happiness, etc. No bad feelings though but also calmness. It felt like I was going to meet an old friend for lunch. That lunch was a few hours of my life that I will never forget. Finally being able to see my sister's personality in person rather than on paper, meeting and getting a feel for who my niece is, and seeing my nephew act so shy around me are all things that burnt in my mind. I loved every second and look forward to seeing them again in the future. I was most nervous about meeting my niece. I knew nothing about her and didn't know what to expect. I was happy to see that I got along with her so well. It helps that I'm only 5 years older than her so we are more likely to be friends in the first place. She's starting her senior year in high school and has aspirations to go to college. I'm very excited for her and wish her all the best in her last year. My sister is so like my dad, very calm, quiet, and sweet. My nephew was so cute and hopefully next time he won’t be so shy around me. It was a special day and I'll treasure these memories forever.

That night we were back in Buffalo and Rick and Lindsay took us to an All-American County Fair! I was so excited that in my last days in America I could do something so American. There were fried food stalls every few feet and fair games all around. I loved walking around and taking it all in. We tried out the drunk goggles at the police booth and completely failed at the straight line task. I think the goggles are rigged! I could barely keep my balance standing still! So lesson learned… don't drink and drive people!! You look like a fool doing the silly tests in front of the officer! (all kidding aside, don't do it! It's dumb and could end up being the last thing you do! Public announcement)

The next morning was move in day for Alex at the dorms of her college. It only took us an hour to get all her things from the car into the room and partially set up! I was amazed how fast it could go when you have four sets of hands. That left us with plenty of time to go to Niagara Falls. Niagara Falls is what I have been really excited to see in Buffalo. I never thought I'd see it so soon in my life but am so happy for the opportunity. I wanted to see both views of the fall, the American and Canadian. I wanted to judge for myself which view was the better and I agree, the Canadian is the better view. I really liked the American side though because you could see the build up of the water as it gets faster and faster as it gets closer to the drop-off. There is such power in that water, I could stand there all day and watch the current go by. As you walk closer to the drop off you can feel the mist on your skin. On a hot summer day it feels great but it's hard to think of people seeing Niagara Falls in the winter! Within the mist a beautiful rainbow emerged and created such a picturesque scene. Personally I enjoyed being on the American side more because it wasn't as touristy as the Canadian side. Once we were in Canada it was a completely different feel. There were tons of tourists everywhere and to get to the views you first had to pass a bunch of touristy shops and venues. I hate how such a natural thing can be so cheesed up with tourist attractions. Once I got to the railing and saw the view all the annoying touristy things fell to the back of my mind. It was so beautiful. I never knew that there were two drop offs to the Niagara Falls. Each one is about a mile walk from another but you can see both from either side. The more impressive one is the horseshoe shaped fall. The water all falls into the center creating this massive mist spray. The view is awing. There is a spot where you can be right at the drop off at the horseshoe. That spot is my favorite, it humbled me to see the power of the water so closely. I heard a horrible story of a girl falling into the falls and dying. She wanted to take a picture and stood on top of the railing and slipped right in. I bet it took just a split second for that to happen. My dad warned me to be careful and not to be stupid when I told him I would be going to Niagara Falls. I now see why! I don't know why people think they could be the first to survive a fall down the Niagara.

We returned much faster to America than it took to get to Canada and Alex and I spent the rest of our day settling her into her room. Our last errand was to run to Wal-mart for a few petty items. That errand turned into a hilarious adventure. I have learned that I really don't like following gps on the google maps app on the iphone. I just can't get the directions right. Well this time I was doing a great job. I concentrated very hard on the phone and making sure that we were going the right way to Wal-mart that I never noticed we were being lead to a Wal-mart in Canada! Next thing we know we are on the Peace Bridge at the Canadian border. We had already crossed the bridge and were in what I call, no mans land. I didn't have my passport on me. Why would I? we were going to Wal-mart! Alex did have her passport I.D though so that helped. As we u-turned on the bridge we contemplated what would come of the situation. We had to make it back into the US through the border check and here I was without a passport. Somehow, I feel that this could happen on a regular basis and that Alex and I are not the only dummies who would do this. At least that's what I'm going to say because that was a ridiculously hilarious situation to be in. The border patrol guys probably thought we were crazy. As we approached them we were laughing hysterically and could barely control ourselves as we were being questioned. Oh goodness. :D Obviously, all is well and we made it back to America.

Today I've been on my way since 6 am. I had a layover in Baltimore and Betty Tam, my friend from study abroad in Singapore, made the effort to come to the airport to see me. It was so sweet of her! Everything worked out perfectly and we were able to sit and chat for about 45 minutes. It meant the world to me that she would make such an effort to just see me for such a little bit of time. She's such a sweetheart and I wish her the best in her senior year of college! Can't wait for that reunion she wants to do in Singapore with everyone!


And here I am now… 6 hours into my layover in Newark with 4 more to go! Going strong. My next flight takes me to England where Becky, another friend from study abroad in Singapore, will be picking me up. I'm so excited! I have always wanted to go to England. :D Until then!!

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Photos

Family Ties
Meeting my niece for the first time!

Photo 19
I had a wonderful time meeting these two sweet ladies.

Sisters
After 10 years of being pen pals we finally meet :) Special day

All American Fair
of the last American nights I got to spend one at an All American County Fair!

powerful Niagara currents
currents just before the fall

American View
Niagara Falls from the American side

Rainbow
View of Niagara and Canada.

Canadian View
In Canada! The view is amazing

The Niagara Falls horseshoe
so spectacular

The people I shared this with
Lindsay and Rick showed Alex and I a great time around Buffalo, NY and Canada. They were amazing and I loved every minute of it!

New River Bridge in W. Virginia
Worlds longest single arched steel bridge.