I started out determined to make the best of it, even though I really would have preferred to head straight south out of Washington. That was going pretty well until I got a “driving award” (read: ticket) for going through the wrong lane in a toll plaza. In my concern over not flattening a very small sedan in the next lane while moving over to a lane that accepted cash (the others were all “EZ Pass Only”) I failed to notice the signs that said trailers had to use lanes 8-12. I was pulled over immediately upon leaving the booth. I guess the state of Maryland would prefer 12-ton vehicles to disregard the safety of others or else just take the lane with no cash option and blow off the toll. If staying in Maryland a few days had been an option I would have gone to court to plead my case on this one. It seemed really, really silly.
After roughly $60 in tolls plus the $90 for the citation, we arrived at our campground in Jersey City, just across the water from Manhattan in the late afternoon. Proximity (walking distance to the train) and view (you can see the Statue of Liberty quite well) are the only things this place had going for it. Otherwise, well....look at the photo below and you be the judge.
Okay, so I’m still trying to be positive. In addition to Lady Liberty, you can see the new World Trade Center Tower being built, which is a phoenix rising from the ashes if ever there were one. The construction site is not too noisy and they knock off at 3:00 p.m. The neighbors are nice. I thought, “You know, a kitty is a good thing (public defecation habits notwithstanding). I went back into the Bob to find Joel and Kristin using the walkie-talkies (one indoors, one out) to gab at each other: “Wabbit season!” “Duck season!” “Wabbit season!” “Duck season!” I can just about always count on them to make me laugh.
So we are here, we are alive and well, nothing truly terrible happened, it’s only money, and a cat taking a dump is kind of funny. Tomorrow we will go check out all those great NYC sights I have been avoiding all my life. Despite the rocky start I am sure I will end up happy we did this.
-Jenni