The Perils of Getting Out and About

Carolyn J. Rose

 

From the earliest days of wandering tribes, travel has been perilous. Wild beasts. Lack of water. Bad water. Lack of food. Harsh terrain. Raiders. Storms. War.

 Many of those perils, unfortunately, remain. And new elements have been added. An occasional chain motel sadly in need of a good scrubbing and a staff overhaul. Outrageously incorrect rental car charges. And that damn virus.

 I’ll get to some of that later, but first a few positive reflections on our trip to Upstate New York.

 The flight was tiresome but smooth and the deep-dish pizza at the Chicago airport made the long hike to our gate worth it. The dining choices in Washington were, for someone who can’t digest red meat, not choices at all.

 But anyway, the next morning we headed to Herkimer (The sound of the word makes Mike grin) to meet friends and cruise on the Erie Canal. 

No mules were harnessed for our journey; a motor on the boat did the work. And we weren’t required to get out and open or close the locks.

 

After a stop at Constable Hall where we touched a piece of history—a paperweight gifted to the first owner by Alexander Hamilton, it was on to Alexandria Bay. 

There we boarded a ship bound out through The Thousand Islands to Singer Island and a mansion/castle. 87 steps up to the top floor. I was powered by feelings of relief that I didn’t have to clean the place or pay for repairs. (Think millions. And then add millions.)

 

Still enjoying great weather, we drove through the Adirondacks to Woodstock where we visited friends and family and where the rain caught us. 

Still, we forged on through the storm to see what was once, but is no longer, the world’s largest garden gnome—a gnome outstanding in his field.

 

And then we returned to find we’d been billed for turning our car in 150 miles from where we actually handed off and a day later. I expect we’ll be contesting that for weeks.

 

And, when the fever and sneezing kicked in, we discovered I had a souvenir of the trip I didn’t want—covid. I’m better now. Not 100%, but strong enough to take on that rental car company if I need to. And, in a few weeks, I expect I’ll be ready to start planning another trip.