Atlanta, Continued!

   It was the first sunny day that we felt like shedding our winter jackets! And, what a fun and filled day it was.
    Dennis, Mark R and I started out with a trip in the Tesla to Starbuck's.

Interior of Mark's Tesla

    Later, we went to a place called Murphy's where we met Mahmoud, our friend who we met in Costa Rica. It was lovely to see Mahmoud and catch up with him. His wife, Nadia, was working, so, sadly, we did not see her. We loved listening to Mahmoud talk about the medical apps that he has been working on. Besides his fulltime job, he is also finishing up an MBA at Georgia Tech so that he can work his way into management. When Nadia does her residency, we hope that they move closer to us so that they can come visit us someday.

Dennis, Mark, Mahmoud, Mark

Mahmoud and Mark

     After that, we went to Ponce City Mall, a new multi-purpose shopping center in mid-town Atlanta. It is connected by Atlanta's beltline, a 22-mile walking/biking path that circles part of the city. It will eventually also have a trolley line. It was a very impressive place - great shops, restaurants, but also businesses and residences. It was such a warm and sunny day that people were out in droves along the belt line walking and biking. People are so ready for warmth and being outside.

Mark and Mark at Beltline outside Ponce City Mall

     Then we went back to Ansley Park. Dennis, Mark R and I drove around looking at the huge variety of architecture in their neighborhood. Mark W stayed home and read. (He's deep into Salman Rushdi's book Two Years, 8 Months and 28 Days) Mark and Dennis also painted swatches on their house as they are narrowing their color choices.
     Then, we went to a thank you to fund raisers for Lambda Legal, an organization that supports lawyers to fight for LGBT rights. It was at the new Civil Rights Museum in downtown Atlanta which has only been open for a few months. Mark borrowed a sports jacket from Dennis as it was a rather elegant affair. The participants were an interesting and eclectic group and we had great conversations. And, the museum was open to us to wander. The first floor is about the Civil Rights Movement and is an effective and interesting place. We sat at a lunch counter, for example, put on headphones, closed our eyes and were transported back to the hateful sounds that the sit-in participants were subjected to. It was awful. For me, the breath in my ears was very unnerving.
    Upstairs it was more about Universal Human Rights and more powerful exhibits with focus on the violators and the heroes. Evocative and effective.

At Lambda Legal Event

Dennis and Barbara at Civil Rights Museum Exhibit

Looking at  photos of the arrested Freedom Riders

     Afterwards we went to Tamarind Seed, a Thai restaurant where we've been before with Dennis and Mark. Very good.
     The next day, January 31st, we had a leisurely start to our day and then drove about 5 1/2 hours, all on interstates, to Jacksonville.

A wonderful stay in Atlanta! January 28 - 31st

   We had a fabulous stay at "DenMark" house in Atlanta with great and generous friends, Dennis and Mark. It was a very social time and lots of fun.

   We drove from Charlottesville, taking Route 29 through western Virginia where we were not too far from Appomatox. We drove through a very poor area in South Carolina, too. The highway was lined with many churches, (you could see a church in the rear view mirror as you approached the next one, rather like a church relay system), gun shops, "Title for Cash" shops, pawn shops and "adult" shops. So many contradictions. We also passed what was billed as the "largest Confederate store" in the South. The sign said that the "new Confederate calendars" were just in. Clearly, we did not stop, imagining that Dylan Roof who murdered people in the church in Charleston had probably stopped there. Chills up the spine.
     We arrived at Ansley Court in Atlanta to be greeted by Dennis. The weather was surprisingly chilly, but sunny. Mark R had to attend a fund raiser for a woman running to be the mayor of Atlanta and when he came home we had a homey spagetti dinner and stayed up late chatting.
      On the next day, a Friday,  Mark, Dennis and I spent the entire day chatting. I spent a few wonderful hours in their study with the fireplace going and a book in my lap, although more talking than reading was actually done.
     But, in the evening, we went to the condo of two of their friends, Rusty and Matt and then out to dinner.

Atlanta Skyline from Rusty and Matt's

I had roasted root vegetables and Mark had salmon. Mark R's salmon came raw and it took so long to get it replaced that Mark R did not get to eat! It was ridiculous. I know that it would not have happened with Nick in that kitchen.

Mark, Sean, Hillary, Rusty, Matt, Mark, Dennis

     From there, we walked from there to the Alliance Theater where we saw the play, Disgraced, which won a Pulitzer in 2013. Central to the plot is the difficulty of being an immigrant and assimilating to the American culture. The main characters were a husband and wife; Amir was a successful lawyer, born in Pakistan and raised a Muslim. He changed his name and his history to disguise his heritage. He professes to have left Islam behind. His wife, a white middle class American artist, has "discovered" Islamic art and has incorporated the design and symmetry into her work. She hopes to have a major art show. Amir's nephew who has also changed his name (to Abe) is re-identifying with Islam and has begun to question America's anti-Muslimism and actions in the Middle East. He asks Amir to help defend an imam who is in jail. Amir does not want to get involved, but pressure from both his nephew and his wife does convince him to attend the imam's hearing. This affects Amir's relationship in the law firm where he had hoped to be made a partner. The firm finds out about Amir's deception about his past and pass him over for a fellow lawyer, a black woman. She is married to the Jewish art dealer who Emily, Amir's wife, hopes will show her work. It is a well-written play with many thought-provoking lines. The author gives the audience no easy answers and plenty to ponder. The woman who played Emily is a friend of one of the men we attended with (Hillary). There was a Question and Answer period afterward for which much of the audience stayed.

Stage of Disgraced

    Afterwards, we walked to Joe's Bar where we all talked about the play.

Joe's Bar

    Then  - home.
   Another highlight- Mark R has a Tesla and we had fun driving around. It has huge acceleration; we have rarely felt such a G-force!
   

Charlottesville: research, lecture, January 26

 Today we had a sumptuous breakfast at the Inn - all homemade. Strudel, eggs, sausage, breads, fruit.....Wow.

No need to eat the rest of the day! (But, we did)

  We headed into Charlottesville, about 30 miles away, and found the Albemarle Historical Society and an archivist, Mrs. O'Bryant.  (We were lucky to be able to park with all the snow banks, but Mark's handicapped placard came in very handy.) We are on the hunt for photos of Charlottesville around the time that Anna Gardner lived there - from 1865-1871. We found some great photos in books, but will need to find out who owns them and if they are digitized. We did not have the time to do as much digging as was really necessary, but did get some leads.

Old Charlottesville

    Then, we picked up fellow researcher Gayle Shulman who helped me out in 2004 when I got a grant to research Anna's trail in the south. Gayle has written quite a lot about the black community in Charlottesville and at slavery at the University of Virginia. The three of us went to the Jefferson School which has a new and exciting exhibit about the Jefferson School which has only been up about 3 months. The room about the school has an entire wall devoted to a wonderful photo from the Boston Public Library showing Anna with her students at her Jefferson School. The original photo is less than 3 inches wide, so to see it on an entire wall was amazing.  We met the director of the project, Andrea Douglas who was very informative about where we can find photos. So, that was very exciting.

Gayle and Barbara going to Jefferson School exhibit

Quote at exhibit by Anna Gardner

Not the building that Anna Gardner taught in, but still the school that she started. It is now a wonderful community center with an exhibit dedicated to the legacy of the school.

   Then we took Gayle back home, drove out to Nellysford and had a quick Mexican lunch at Margarita's.
    We drove into Charlottesville (lots of traffic) and managed to find our way to CitySpace to give my lecture on Anna Gardner. It was a lovely event sponsored by a chapter of the African American Genealogical and Historical Society here. Caruso Brown gave a lovely introduction and Gayle Schulman introduced me. Mark, as usual, beautifully choreographed my slides with the lecture. It was not a big crowd. The streets here are still quite a mess from the snow which was probably part of it. Anyhow, I made some great contacts and am really glad to have done the event.

Caruso Brown introducing me and Mark ready to coordinate slides

 

Lecturing

Afterwards Gayle and Arthur took us to Bizou, a wonderful restaurant. And, it was Restaurant Week so there were wonderful 3-course specials. It was all delicious and we had great conversation. (Mark had Pot au Feu and I had trout.)

Arthur and Gayle having fun at the restaurant

    We had an unusually late night for us, not getting back to the Mark Addy Inn till 10:30.

Unstuck! Washington DC to Nellysford, VA, January 25

   Today dawned sunny and cold and beautiful. The street did not get plowed. The good news: we did not get plowed in. The bad news: the street was not plowed! We took a good look at the intersections we would have to go through and decided to pack the car and chance that we would make it. There was a lot of drama in the streets with cars being stuck. A big truck got stuck in the intersection we needed to go through. He stayed there expecting others to back up and people got stubborn. At one point, from three roads, there were 5 cars all having a kind of stand-off. But, eventually, reason prevailed and some backed up and the truck was able to move. That took over half an hour.
   Mark was able to turn the Prius around in the space we had cleared. We got in the car and we took off down over 2 blocks of totally unplowed streets. (But, cars had been through and had made tracks.) We were lucky that we did not have to stop at the intersections and we just kept going. We were afraid we'd get stuck at a stop light getting onto Virginia Avenue, but...we didn't. Whew.

The Washington Monument

The Jefferson Memorial

The Icy Potomac

Once we got there, it was clear sailing and beautiful with few cars on the roads.
    We did get in a half hour traffic jam on 95 S because of big trucks removing snow from the lanes.
We then went off 95, via Virginia State Route 3 and 29. We passed by Charlottesville and took secondary roads to Nellysford, Virginia. A small village.
     We are at the Mark Addy Inn and we are the ONLY guests. There is no central heating, but various stoves going around the big, rather ramshackle, but charming house. We have a heater in our room. The views of the mountains are gorgeous. We drove into Nellysford (about a mile and a half) and ate a late lunch at the Wild Wolf Brewery and Restaurant which is a "farm to fork" restaurant. Everything was from a 30 mile radius - organic meats, homemade everything. Mark had a fabulous Reuben sandwich and I had fish tacos. We bought some beer to give as presents. 
    We are now back at the Inn reading and emailing. (No tv except in the parlor)

View from the Mark Addy Inn, Nellysford, Virginia

Barbara in front of the Mark Addy taking Mark's photo

Mark in front of the Mark Addy Inn

Close up of Mark at the Inn

    

Still snowbound, January 24

   Today dawned sunny and cold with a full moon in the sky at dawn.
   We went out around noon, up 25th St to the Trader Joe's which was amazingly open. We bought a few things like eggs and milk so that we can have dinner at our hotel tonight. There were lots of people walking about and the main roads are plowed, but none of the secondary roads in this neighborhood have been touched yet.

The Trader Joe's sign in the snow, but the main entrance was open.

   Then, we went to the Taste of India just off Pennsylvania Avenue for a delicious lunch. I had saag (spinach) which was nice and spicy and Mark had butter chicken. We were the only patrons.
    Then, we went "home" and we tackled the shoveling of the car. It was pretty laborious, but it we were nice and warm and there were lots of people out walking by and chatting. The hotel loaned us two shovels. We did a pretty good job and Mark was able to move it back and forth. Now our fingers are crossed that we don't get plowed in tonight.
    We watched the Patriots play Denver in the AFC championship which was in Denver and the Patriots lost. We also watched some of the Australian Open.

What our street looked like!

  

The Prius not long after Mark started shoveling.

When we were about half way.

When we were almost done.

Snowbound, January 23

  Power stayed on and we spent the day mostly in the hotel. We did venture out for a short stroll, but only a few sidewalks were shoveled so we did not make it far. We did go to our car and retrieve a few things including my knitting - such a good snowbound thing to do. We ate food that we bought - mostly fruit and toast and ate lunch at Dish, the restaurant here. It was pretty good.
   All these shots were taken early in the day, so half way through the storm. More photos tomorrow!
 

Traffic banned in Washington D.C.

Mark by our hotel, but this is not our car which is in the street.

    Overall, we were grateful to have the day to do nothing. The street in front of us is not plowed and no one is going anywhere. There are a lot of nurses staying here from the nearby George Washington University Hospital.
    Nantucket was slammed by snow and gale winds. We heard from Nick and Liz early in the day, but not later, so we assume that they lost power. It is ironic that last year when we were traveling, the same thing happened to the island while we were traveling southward.

Our house from the cottage, taken by Liz

  

Jonas - Snowmageddon - arrival in Washington, D.C. January 22

  Today we got up early and had a wonderful breakfast at the Staybridge Inn. Mark went and got the car and I got the luggage ready. We were on the road by 7:15 because we needed to beat Storm Jonas which is expected to deal a blow to the eastern seaboard.  Luckily, we use Waze for navigation because the Lincoln Tunnel had an oil spill accident and it routed us nicely to the Holland Tunnel. We drove easily down Manhattan and into New Jersey. It was an easy trip which we split in driving and stopped at a supermarket in New Jersey to get some supplies in case we are stranded in a hotel without power for a few days.

Leaving NYC, the World Trade Center in the early morning light.

Not many cars as we traverse down Manhattan

    And, beat the storm we did. We arrived at the River Inn by around noon. And, what a surprise the Inn is. It is on a lovely residential street in the Foggy Bottom area. Our room is large with a full kitchen, large bathroom and sitting area. We had no idea. We have parked on the street to save ourselves the $40 per night fee in the covered parking. This may turn out to be a mistake, but we will see.
   We texted our friend Anne Maton when we arrived as we were supposed to meet her and her significant other, Damon, for dinner. We knew that was off as the city closed the roads to all traffic after 3 p.m. (And the Metro is closed for Saturday and  Sunday already.) So, we drove out immediately to meet them at their apartment on Wisconsin Ave near the National Cathedral. Damon made hearty chili, a perfect selection for a snow storm. We had never met Damon and chatted as long as we dared as the snow started to fall.

So nice to have chili with Anne and Damon

Anne, Mark and Barbara, friends from teaching in Cairo

     Afterwards Mark and I walked across their road to the Acme Supermarket and found...lots of empty shelves. No eggs. We got some salad fixings, oil, vinegar, some bread, butter, jam. With what we bought earlier, we should be fine.
    Our hotel is only 3 1/2 miles from Anne's. Mark drove home in the increasing snow. There were few cars on the road. Now, we hunker down.

Reunion with an old friend, NYC, January 21

  Today was another chilly day, but sunny. The East Coast is battening down for a HUGE snow storm which will affect the entire coast and put Washington D.C., our next destination, in the bull's eye. Hence, we will leave here tomorrow as early as possible and hope to get there hours before it hits and shuts the city down.
   Today we had a very good breakfast at our hotel on 40th Street, between 8th and 9th Avenues, the Staybridge Suites. Then, we went to the nearby subway station and were definitely obvious at the "out of towners" as we tried to get Metro tickets. The machine was a cash only, but...would only give $9 in change. We had to get $10 tickets and had a $20 bill, so no go. So, we got out of line to search for smaller bills because there were people behind us. Eventually we conquered the machine and got our tickets. And then, Mark struggled with putting the ticket in the turnstile. Oh dear....out-of-towners written all over us.
   Anyhow, we took the C train to 86th street and walked across Central Park which was beautiful, although cold. (31 degrees with a breeze, I'd say)

A chilly walk through Central Park

Barbara in Central Park

Mark in Central Park

We went to the apartment of an old and dear friend who we had not seen since 1984. It was wonderful. We met his two daughters which was a treat. The three of us had planned to visit the Museum of Modern Art, but we had 31 years to catch up on, so....between the three of us, we managed to tell story after story and did not get to the Museum. We had a lunch at a local diner, Three Brothers and then went back to his apartment to talk some more. We are so happy to have reconnected.

The View from Weldon's apartment

So nice to meet up with Weldon after 31 years!!!!!

   Then, we took the bus down Fifth Avenue and walked back to our hotel and went to their happy hour which featured tacos so...that was dinner. We met a nice family visiting from Texas and had a nice chat with them, especially the 20-year-old son.
    What a nice day.

New York City! ...And, a visit with Alex! January 20

  Another cold, crisp day today and a nice driving day. We left Ted and Bev's and drove to New York City. We let "Waze" guide us and we came in along the Hudson River and under the George Washington Bridge.

View of the George Washington Bridge

We sailed in and only exited just before our hotel which is on East 40th Street. We are at the Staybridge and like it a lot. We have a little kitchen and it is a great location. The only downside is that the parking is a few blocks away, so we off loaded and then parked and walked.
  We found a nice little sushi restaurant, Aya, close to the hotel. Then, we got a few snacks on 9th Avenue (apples...). We met Alex Kopko for dinner at an Irish pub on 39th Street - Tir Na Nog. We had a nice private table so we could have a proper chat. It was great to see her and hear all about the process of getting auditions etc in the world of acting. She had a ticket to see Avenue Q. We walked her a few blocks on her way there.

Alex, Mark and Barbara at Tir Na Nog Irish Pub, NYC

  

Movie: Sisters and a bit of shopping, January 19

   Today was very cold and windy....brrrr! Winter has hit and a bit storm is predicted for the weekend which we are keeping an eye on.
   Bev, Mark, Annah and I went to Vanity Fair and did a bit of shopping. I got jeans and some more long underwear because it is bloody cold. Beverly got some Patriots gear.

   In the afternoon we spent a lovely afternoon laughing hard at Tina Fey and Amy Poehler in Sisters. Then, off to Not Your Average Joe's for dinner.

Lovely Day to Leave the Island, January 18, 2016

  Today we left the island on the noon boat. The Prius is loaded to "the gillens". We had a nice morning with Nick and Liz before heading for the boat and Mark had his last physical therapy on his knee. The water and sky were very blue, a little bit rocky. Of course, we threw our pennies overboard as we rounded Brant Point.

  We drove to Westport, Massachusetts to visit Ted and Bev where we had a wonderful chili dinner with their friend, Annah.

   A good start to our holiday.

On the Road Again with the Whites, 2016, traveling in the U.S.A.