north by northwest

We’re on vacation! Almost, at least. Evan is finishing up an 11-day theater workshop in Minneapolis, so we’re combining the goal of collecting him with visiting Lily, exploring a bit of the upper Mississippi River valley, and traveling through the north woods to spend a week in a cottage on Lake Huron. Last night we arrived, complete with 5-month-old Oliver and a ton of gear, in Cleveland, where we spent the night in Lily’s apartment. Lily and I walked the dogs through Cleveland Heights, loving the beautiful houses and the comfortable sight of all kinds of people and canines on the streets and sidewalks, taking advantage of the fact that it’s still quite light at p.m. when you’re this far west.

This morning, after we breakfasted at On the Rise (amazing croissants!), I gave Terry a quick tour of Cleveland highlights before we headed west on I-80 through northern Ohio, Indiana, and Illinois. Other than some unpleasant traffic and smog around Chicago, it was a gorgeous day and an easy (if long) trip. It helped to realize that we’d crossed into central time–somehow it made the drive seem shorter to set back an hour. We especially loved the undulating corn fields in western Illinois and the towering windmills (I had no idea they were on such a huge scale). Crossing the Mississippi at Moline, Illinois, was genuinely exciting, and we stopped to take pictures in a couple of river towns. Tonight we’re staying in Clinton, Iowa, and will take our time driving up the Big River tomorrow, hoping to land in Minneapolis by late afternoon. I hope to keep adding pictures even though they aren’t edited…blogging via iPad will be part of the adventure, I guess!

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