Our vacation is nearly over. This afternoon we'll board the Auto Train for the ride down to Florida, avoiding a drive through most of Virginia, all of North Carolina, South Carolina and Georgia. Apart from saving mileage on the car, it'll preserve my sanity. I hate driving through South Carolina.

This is also the part of the trip that is utterly devoid of scenery. Driving through New York and Pennsylvania was beautiful. Traffic wasn't bad either. It was also relatively cool.

Having been away from the Finger Lakes for two years, the feeling of enchantment was very strong. Toward the end of our visit, I could somewhat place myself in my adolescent mind that lived in Upstate New York and took the landscape largely for granted.

But I could also recall my Dad, who never seemed to tire of the views of the hills and the fields and the trees. I don't think I will ever tire of them again, or take them for granted. It is a stunningly beautiful landscape.

To be sure, the region suffers economically and there are stark reminders of that everywhere. But there are also signs of renewal.

Apart from the landscape, there is so much history there. Not all of it is great, General Sullivan driving the indigenous people from the Finger Lakes under orders from George Washington in 1789 is a shameful legacy. But abolition and women's rights are two progressive movements that owe much to the region.

We'll be going back. Mitzi is as enthralled as I am.

I ❤️ NY.

Originally posted at Nice Marmot 06:54 Monday, 22 July 2024