grand tour

Where does the time go?! I think that in the recent days, it has neatly disappeared into our mileage meter as we have navigated the freeways of the South. We drove through five states during our ten day stay there. I already mentioned we were in Georgia, but here are some moments from the others:

NC
I tasted some of the best coffee I have had at the Crooked Door Coffee House in a small town called Marion. I forget the name of the process for this coffee, but it involves making a coffee concentrate by pouring a gallon of water through a pound of ground coffee and allowing it to soak for ten to twelve hours. The result is a soft chocolaty flavored liquid best served iced! After trying a tiny blue cupful of it, the regular coffee flavor tasted second rate. Apart from the friendly huge windows overlooking Main St., the wi-fi connection, the fireplace room with tall green velvet armchairs, the hardwood floors, the friendly barista and the redbrick walls, it also had an attached art gallery that made me wish I lived in a house with plenty of empty wall space.

VA
"If you could have anything for dessert, what would it be?" Uncle Gary asked first my sister, then me. We both answered promptly, "Flan!" But realizing such a wish was probably a bit unrealistic for the afternoon barbecue moment, we also added that chocolate would also be good. But some wishes just come true, and our taste buds were happily surprised by delicious caramelized flan! (My favorite!!) It was a small moment, but it captures in my mind the essence of the friendship, hospitality and surprise element that was part of our time in Virginia. A lazy day on the lake, a movie, cute dogs, a surprise birthday party for my dad, reconnecting with friends we hadn't seen in years....aaaah!

SC
Panera: not only your neighborhood soup and sandwich hangout where you can meet Spanish-German men with tropical-sea-colored eyes planning to sail in the South Pacific for six years, but it is also the tasty intersection for friends who knew each other way back when Alosta Place at APU was called home. In this case, it was Abbey from California, and her beautiful children. It is the people, you know, that make travel worth its while. And their smiling faces certainly made the stop in Anderson worth its while!

AL
The Toomers' home has a backyard view toward a jungle much like the one in our beloved Shell, although the foliage is somewhat tamer since Auburn is not quite the Amazon. I think the fact that it was raining only made the comparison more appropriate. I love surprises. So does my family. So we successfully surprised Aunt Trish by showing up at her coffee shop in the university town of Auburn where we enjoyed catching up and tasting some good southern barbecue!

Our road tripping continued upon our return to California, but now we are helping my sister pack her five years worth of belongings in too few suitcases. Condensing drawer-fulls of books, photos, cards, memories, backpacks, shoes and clothes into a space that fits within the airline allowances is no small task! My parents leave tomorrow. Perhaps they will need another vacation to recover from this vacation! I know I could probably sleep for a week straight through. But how else would we have gotten to see all the incredible people and places that we have!?