Observations from the Window 5.21

"the bridge"

Sunday was just a gorgeous day and I did something I have been wanting to do since I moved to the Village. During the warmer times of year I've always loved to jump in the car, put the top down, and just drive. Just drive to nowhere and see where I end up. It's one of the few times I allow my brain to just shutdown and not think about much of anything but the road ahead. Unless I'm driving to think which is a totally diff mode and a totally diff story.

In New York I'll sometimes just cruise around with the top down and stereo blaring, dodging cabs and basically adding to the din that is the city. It might not be the same as Interstate racing my brother but red light racing a cab with a toll has its own appeal. Still given enough time I like to get as far away from the metro area as I can and Sunday was just perfect.

What I'll do is check the traffic map and head in the direction that gets me out of town as quick as possible. The problem is that always has seemed to be any direction but north and I always wanted to make a run up the Hudson Valley. Sunday the driving gods smiled on me, a gorgeous day and open roads to the north.

After a touch of Interstate I drove along the river on Route 9 as far as Highland Falls which is just south of West Point. A stunning road to drive considering it is just thirty minutes from downtown Manhattan. In a perfect world I would have cut over to the east bank of the Hudson and driven north to Hyde Park, the once home of Franklin Roosevelt, but I didn't have time. That and I had already had too much sun because seems I don't own a proper hat and I'm too stubborn to put the top up.

I ate lunch at an interesting spot that had a sign out front which said it had the best "New York style" barbecue. Now I love BBQ, any kind of BBQ, but I must confess I had never heard of the New York style. After an awesome pulled pork sandwich I have to report it's awesome but it tastes like ... BBQ.

Maybe sometime this summer I'll get to Hyde Park but the gods would have to smile on me once again. That and the beach would have to stop calling my name.