America will have to wait

A morning 20 mile backtrack in the drizzle took us to Saint-Simione where we arrived 2.5 hours early for the ferry. We filled the fuel tanks and settled in for a relaxing lunch at Auberge Sur Mer, a restaurant up the hill from the terminal. I had a grilled cheese sandwich. Magnifique. Eric had the Salade Poulet. Barely edible. He wolfed it down.

We emerged from the restaurant and there was no rain and some





blue sky. Hallelujah. There is a god; maybe even a few.

As someone who gets nauseous in a bathtub, I was worried to see the large waves and white caps out on the river. From experience, I knew these conditions would affect my stomach big time. This was no time to get sick. Covering the 100+ miles to Fort Kent before dark would be challenging enough. Doing so after being sick would be impossible.

They say that people with exceptional balance are more susceptible to motion sickness. I've stuck to this theory as I've explained to people why I sit on the upper deck in the freezing winds while they opt for the comforts of the cozy lounge.

Spending today's ride topside did me good. The fresh air helped me avoid an embarrassing incident like the one I had on the Adriatic back in college.

The ferry took us to Rivière du-Loup, a town due east across the river. From there we headed south
hoping to make it a few miles past the U.S. border.

About 30 miles short of our goal, Eric insisted that we call it quits for the day. He was concerned that the sun would be setting in 30 minutes, that there might not be any hotels ahead and that moose were more prevalent at dusk. I preferred to keep going but I trusted his judgement. He tends to know what he is talking about.

I confess, getting away from the 30 mph wind gusts on rte. 185 was a relief. I will never get used to the way that feels, especially when you are going 70 mph and have trucks bombing by. That said, I was so looking forward to being back in the land of the free. This land is your land, this land is my land. Go USA! I'll have to wait til tomorrow.

Just before leaving the EconoLodge for dinner a car with two huge speakers on top drove by making a loud announcement. I thought that a criminal might be loose, or that maybe we shouldn't be drinking the water or some other high priority announcement. I asked Eric what was going on. He put his Android phone down and opened the door. He translated for me; "Bingo starts at 7 p.m. Get to St. Peter's early to secure a seat". Marvelous!

For dinner we walked a half mile down to the lake to a place called Quai des Brumes. It's quite cold outside with a hefty breeze. It's really unfortunate because I was forced to listen to Eric complain about it the entire way here.

As I write we are sitting at the
Quai des Brumes. It is part tavern, part restaurant.





Tonight it's having a beer special; buy a 32oz mug of the local brew and you get to keep the mug. We ordered two and then announced that we have no room in our bags for the mugs. The locals in the place have taken notice. Everyone is being so nice to us. I'm not sure how we will figure out who will get the glassware but I intend to milk it for everything it's worth.

I did ask our waitress to say a few words on camera for our blog. Her response was very odd. She clearly had misunderstood what I was asking. Awkward.

I just heard about Steve Jobs' passing. I can't tell you how sad this makes me. He will go down as was one of the great people in history. A big tip of the cap to him.

A favorite story I have about Steve dates back 20 years when for the second time, my boss Gary, cancelled a lunch date with him. Shorty after Gary did this I was standing next to the fax machine when a handwritten note from Steve printed out. It said something like "Who the f... do you think you are. My time is more precious than yours. Forget the whole thing. I'm no longer interested in partnering with you guys." I might have actually kept that fax. I think it's in a box in my attic somewhere. Jobs was one of a kind. The world will really miss him.

We still have 450 miles to go before we are home. On top of the nearly 800 we've gone, this will be by far the longest trip we've ever taken. It's certainly been a memorable one. I'm sure the next couple of days will make it even more so.

Thanks for the many emails this week. Keep em coming.

G.


- Posted from George's AT&T
iPhone