Road Trip Pictures

I'm writing a lot of posts lately. This is because I have been busy, busy, busy. I have been doing a lot, and not having time to blog about it, so I've had several things to blog about for a while. I'll try to get back into the habit of blogging regularly as things happen, though, because it is better for my sanity.

Emily and me on the drive.

So, here's the update about my road trip to New York! Emily and I left on Saturday, June 13th. We drove through Wyoming to Greeley, Colorado, and stayed with our friends Melissa and Pat. They are great! They fed us, gave us a place to sleep, and took us to church. And the best thing, of course, was to catch up with them about what's going on in their lives! Pat has had limited use of his legs for most of his life, so it was great to see the progress that he's made in exercising and walking! And we had fun playing their Wii and laughing. It was so fun to see them!

These are some windmills that we saw while driving through Wyoming.

Sunday morning after church, we left Greeley and drove to Nauvoo. That was quite the day. We both really disliked Nebraska. First of all, there were a lot of inconsiderate drivers. They would drive in the passing lane, even if they weren't going fast enough to pass the vehicle that they were next to. There were also some car problems. And the GPS was directing us in a direction we didn't want to go. We eventually got it figured out, but the rest of the trip we joked about Nebraska.

This was a strange bathroom that we encountered on our drive.

If we aren't supposed to drink the water, is it safe for our hands?

We drove across the bottom of Iowa on the most direct route, Highway 2. Its speed limit was actually quite a bit slower than the freeway's, but that didn't slow us down. We arrived in Nauvoo, Illinois, about 12:30 that evening, and slept in the basement of some senior missionaries. They were so nice and let us sleep there, and eat some of their food. They were great.

Monday morning, we had planned to visit the Nauvoo Temple. But, after a couple of setbacks that took some time, we decided to just do a little driving around to see some of our favorite spots in Nauvoo and then hit the road. We drove by the Nauvoo Temple. It is so lovely. I can't wait until the next time that I can go inside.

We also went down by the river. I love the Mississippi River. When I first went to Nauvoo on my mission, I thought that I would miss having mountains near where I lived. I grew up with mountains, and there are plenty of mountains here in Utah where I live. The first time that I drove by the river during the daytime, I looked out from the car, and asked out loud, "What lake is that?" I couldn't believe that it was a river. The sisters got a good laugh out of that! But the Mississippi soon replaced the mountains in my heart. I loved the river road that we would drive on our way to Carthage.

I'll admit, I totally stole this picture from the internet.
But I have some pictures just like this somewhere on my CDs of pictures from my mission.

We also went to the Pioneer Cemetary up on Parley street. I think that's my favorite place in Nauvoo, aside from the temple. It's lovely and quiet. And there are people there who really lived in Nauvoo, and sacrificed there, and loved there, and died there. They really belong there in Nauvoo, and I envy them that.

Here are some pictures from the cemetary.

We drove all day Monday. The drive took us through Illinois (we were starting on the western edge of the state), Indiana, Ohio, Pennsylvania, and New York. I had never visited Indiana, Ohio, Pennsylvania, or New York, or Nebraska for that matter. So I got to "see" some new parts of the country. Mostly I saw them from the car, though. We were so tired of driving by that point that we rarely stopped. And when we did stop, we stopped at these weird convenience stations that they had attached to the toll road free way. You get a ticket when you get on the toll road, and then you pay your toll when you get off of the freeway, with the cost depending on how far you went on the freeway. If you have to get off the freeway to eat and get gas, it creates a longer delay, and I'm sure would use a lot of paper for the tickets for everyone. So the state has provided exits that lead only to these convenience stops with gas stations and fast food. They have barbed wire around the area to prevent anyone but freeway users from getting in and, I assume, to prevent freeway users from getting out without paying. They also had exits just for a car repair shop and for a police station. Interesting.

We got to Buffalo, New York, late that night. Benjamin had kindly made dinner for us, so we ate and then went to bed. The next day Emily and I lazed around a bit, went to the pool, and then went to Niagara Falls! I enjoyed seeing the falls, although I thought they would be bigger. Because I had been lazy and sleepy that morning, we didn't have time to cross over onto the Canadian side, so I still have never been to visit our friends to the north. But I'll make it to Canada one day!

Some fun pictures at the Falls.

I had no idea that Canada would be that close!
I thought that those building were Toronto, but it's actually the city of Niagara Falls.
If I had known then what I know now,
I would have taken the time to go to the Canadian side.

Emily was kind enough to drive me to the airport that evening. And she was kind enough to come back and get me when I realized that I'd missed my flight. I spent the night at their apartment again, and got to go out to eat Buffalo wings with them and a bunch of Benjamin's co-workers. Then, on Wednesday morning, I finally came home! It was so good to see Dave, and it has been good to get back to work, even if I am a little stressed at trying to make up hours!

And, in honor of Buffalo, here are the lyrics to the song that was stuck in my head the majority of the time I was there!

Buffalo Gals, won't you come out tonight,
Come out tonight, come out tonight.
Buffalo Gals, won't you come out tonight
And dance by the light of the moon.

As I was walking down the street,
Down the street, down the street,
A pretty little gal I chanced to meet,
Oh, she was fair to see.

Buffalo Gals, won't you come out tonight,
Come out tonight, come out tonight.
Buffalo Gals, won't you come out tonight
And dance by the light of the moon.

I stopped her and we had a talk,
Had a talk, had a talk,
Her feet took up the whole sidewalk
And left no room for me.

Buffalo Gals, won't you come out tonight,
Come out tonight, come out tonight.
Buffalo Gals, won't you come out tonight
And dance by the light of the moon.

I asked her if she'd have a dance,
Have a dance, have a dance,
I thought that I might have a chance
To shake a foot with her.

Buffalo Gals, won't you come out tonight,
Come out tonight, come out tonight.
Buffalo Gals, won't you come out tonight
And dance by the light of the moon.

I danced with a gal with a hole in her stockin',
And her heel kept a-knockin', and her toes kept a-rockin'
I danced with a gal with a hole in her stockin'
And we danced by the light of the moon.

Buffalo Gals, won't you come out tonight,
Come out tonight, come out tonight.
Buffalo Gals, won't you come out tonight
And dance by the light of the moon.