Travel Chaotically! ~ New Haven, CT and Narragansett, RI

More exercise and "eatmeal" (Fred-o's name for oatmeal in childhood - makes sense right?) for an excellent start to our day!  Sad how little used the exercise rooms of hotels seem to be!  Then we were off on what B deemed to be the most scenic route from Fishkill, NY to New Haven, CT for a meet up with another dear J at Frank Pepe's Pizzeria!  Golden trees decorated our path despite the clouds.

Great eats with great peeps!  White Clam Pizza along with Frank Pepe's original tomato pie!  But as ever, the real treat was being witness to the incredible resilience of the human spirit, the traumas and triumphs that all too often remain unheard - but on special occasions are burdens shared - like a gift - between those who once were strangers, but are now friends.  You are incredible, J.  Thanks so much for sharing YOU, with me!

After our nice lunch and visit, we were on the road again, heading for a "lovely B and B" B had reserved in Narragansett, RI!  There was distinct foreshadowing of what was to come, when during lunch B received a strange call from someone who initially failed to identify themselves, asking if we were still planning to arrive and when.  Ummm - yes.  And, as there was no stipulation for a specific check-in time - when we get there!

I hardly have the strength or words to explain the creepy that was Sheppard's Place B and B!!  Suffice it to say that the guy "running it" appeared to be stoned out of his mind on our arrival.  When we could not find it around dusk, we called him for assistance, giving him our precise street and exact location - which turned out to be directly behind the house!!!!  He could not give us ANY helpful pointers at all!!!  We found the house ourselves, the front being hidden by a large hedge and the sign beside the drive that entered the hedge as a crescent, being very small.  Turns out we were the only guests that night.  It was pretty clear that he was hoping we would not be showing up!  His assistance and information was equally lacking in any direction toward a place to eat supper.  He gave some reference to "lots of places down that street".  The place was clean, but between him and the decor - strangely creepy.  It was already over decorated with wreaths and fake flowers and copies of paintings by the old masters and books and lamps and doilies on EVERY possible wall and surface.  Fake vines twirled up most pieces of furniture!  THEN, as if that was not enough, there were skeletons, pumpkins, witches, spiders, webs, and all manner of Halloween decor thickly spread on top of that!!!  Later we determined that stoned dude was "running the place for my mom".  Throughout the night there was a great deal of coming and going by the dude and his bud.  So, we got little sleep and when we did, we both had nightmares!!  B going so far as to awaken me when he shouted out in terror!!  It is truly the only place where we have arranged to stay that I almost made B leave - whether we could get our money back or not!!!  Anyhow - we survived!!!  HA!  The next day we were up and outta there.  We drove along the RI coast and had a walk along a trail by the ocean.  Very pretty even with the clouds in this off season.

Bittersweet, I think!

We saw huge mansions along the waterfront as well as homes for normal folk.  Gradually we wound our way back to CT and continued to enjoy the pretty fall foliage on the hillsides. Back on the free way there were many toll booths and some chaos as we made our way to and through New Jersey on our way to Newark. 

More on TURNING THE CAR IN to Enterprise, NJ, and NY coming your way tomorrow!!! Travel chaotically! - les