When someone mentions New York, it is easy to immediately think about the Big Apple and all that can be found in the state’s biggest population center. But when I drove into what is often referred to as upstate New York and traveled through mostly rural areas, I saw a part of the Empire State I had never seen before - rolling hills, wooded mountains, mesmerizing lakes, clear rivers, and those ever-changing leaves that become so prominent this time of the year.
At this point in the trip, I had begun to recognize that I only had a few days remaining before I had reached the end. But the great thing about this trip was that I had made every day a great one with lots of sites to visit - and today was going to start with the National Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum.
Walking through the hallowed halls, I was slightly surprised to see so many mentions of guys who have been prevented from being a Hall of Famer - Pete Rose, Alex Rodriguez, Barry Bonds, Roger Clemens, and others. While they haven’t yet been voted in and may never get voted in, they still have a presence throughout the museum. So, they will always have that!
Having spent the morning checking out this really cool place, I continued driving through the incredible scenery as I ventured to Syracuse for lunch. I didn’t stick around to check out much in Syracuse or make stops along the way at sites I thought would make for great pics. But I did make good time pulling into Buffalo.
The interesting part of arriving in Buffalo is that I had put on my list of photo stops the Peace Bridge. I drove to where the map in my rental car showed me to go to the Peace Bridge while not recognizing that I was actually entering an area that was considered outside of New York while not actually being in Canada. I got out of the car to get a few pics of the bridge, hopped back in and saw the “Welcome to New York” sign that started my confusion.
I quickly noticed that there was a border entry station in front of me and that I was going to need to be prepared to show some documentation. I had fortunately brought my recently-secured passport just in case I did have a chance to go to Canada, so I was able to show them everything I might need. There were a couple of minutes of tension for me as I waited on the guard to go through everything and ask questions as to what I was doing.
By the time it was over (a few minutes), it was determined that there was nothing all that unusual about someone driving to that spot and taking a photo and then coming back. So, I was let through and I went on to the hotel.
The staff was exceptionally nice when I arrived at my resting place for the next two nights, and one of them actually went outside to move her car so I could have a parking spot at the front. I was really impressed with their hospitality.
That night, I took the train northward to have dinner at the Anchor Bar, which is the original home of buffalo wings. I thought they were great and the bar itself was really cool. I definitely recommend!
Back to the room, I was ready to tackle the next day at one of America’s greatest natural sites - Niagara Falls.
No comments:
Post a Comment