A sampling of interesting restaurants.
We had dinner at Mangia! Mangia!, self-described as “A Really Good Italian Restaurant”… and we have to admit, they weren’t lying.
The large parking lot was packed, but we managed to snag one of a couple empty spots. We were worried that they’d be too busy, but were seated straight away.
The menu:
Jenn’s veal parmigana & noodles:
My lasagna:
I also had a baked spud side:
Dessert menu:
We shared a cannoli:
Everything was delicious. We can see why it’s a popular place.
We drove our coach 238 miles, about five hours of driving, from Shipshewana, Indiana to Newbury, Ohio.
Here’s a map showing our route, heading east:
An interactive map, with potential stops pinned:
Departing; we cut through the empty site in front of us for an easier exit:
Amish rush hour:
Angola roundabout column:
“Welcome to Ohio, the heart of it all”:
Ohio Turnpike:
The Ohio Turnpike service plazas have RV hookups, with 20, 30, and 50 amp electricity, and nearby potable water and dump station, for only $20. Though limited to 40 feet; we could only fit if we disconnected our truck and parked it elsewhere:
Huge truck parking area:
Tiffin River Service Plaza — notable for us as we have a Tiffin motorhome:
BK for lunch:
Plus Starbucks coffee:
Back to our coach:
Back on the Ohio Turnpike, aka I-80 and I-90:
Covered pile in a maintenance area, I guess sand or salt for snow:
Another Ohio Turnpike toll plaza:
Another large service plaza:
Rough road:
They weren’t kidding:
Yet another large service plaza:
Exiting the turnpike:
I-480 East:
Big geodesic dome over the world HQ of ASM International:
Punderson State Park:
Camping check-in station:
Our site… once again, not entirely level:
We had breakfast at The Omelette Shoppe in Traverse City, Michigan.
Cinnamon roll:
Eggs Benedict and hash browns:
German omelette:
Also pancakes:
Tasty stuff.
We visited the Henry Ford Museum of American Innovation in Detroit, Michigan.
But first, Lamy’s Diner within the museum for lunch:
Menu:
Classic diner food:
McDonald’s sign:
Presidential cars:
Trains:
Classic cars:
Sports cars:
Planes:
Hallmark collectable ornaments:
Bikes:
Machinery:
Cobbler:
Sewing machines etc:
Model T car:
Exploded Model T:
Glasswork:
Dymaxion House:
Wienermobile:
An interesting collection.
We attended a game of the Detroit Tigers vs Boston Red Sox, playing at the Tigers ballpark, Comerica Park.
Jenn’s game summary:
The Tigers completed a 3-game sweep of the Red Sox on a pleasant evening in Detroit. Nice stadium with a couple of fun things (carousel with tigers instead of horses and a baseball-themed Ferris wheel). Tarik Skubal pitched very well and efficiently—11 strikeouts and only one walk. Amazing homerun robbery with assist (scoring: F9-8) by the Red Sox to steal a run from Kerry Carpenter that will be in the highlight reels for years. Exciting steal and advance on a throwing error for some 9th inning heroics by the Tigers and a walk-off single to end it—a fun game.
An interactive map of the ballpark:
Entrance, with lots of tigers:
Big tiger:
More tigers:
Team store:
Carousel:
Kielbasa and pierogis:
Fried Classics:
Elephant ear:
Baseball bat drink of Tiger Fuel:
Selfie from our seats:
View from our seats in Section 126, Row 27, Seats 1 & 2:
Play ball:
The mascot, Paws:
Run scores:
We liked how the sculptures captured the motion:
Ferris wheel:
Exploring the ballpark:
Nice stats display:
New pitcher:
Tigers win:
We ate at Big Boy in Port Huron, Michigan. Notable as we had previously visited the original location in Burbank, California. This franchise wasn’t quite as iconic.
Menus:
I had a cookies & cream shake:
My burger and waffle fries, and Jenn’s Philly cheesesteak and fries:
Fairly tasty, but nothing too exciting.
We drove our coach 249 miles, about five hours of driving, from Ravenna, Ohio to St Clair, Michigan.
Here’s a map showing our route, heading west then north:
An interactive map, with potential stops pinned:
“Is your TV Antennae Down?” — okay, pedantically that should be either “are” or “antenna”:
Leaving West Branch State Park:
High arching bridge over rail line:
Ohio Turnpike I-80 West:
“Trucks and slower traffic use left lane”; unusual:
Large service plaza truck parking:
Service plaza food court:
BK and Starbucks coffee for lunch:
Paladin in his dash bed with some roadworks:
Ohio turnpike I-80/90 West:
Another service plaza, with RV elctrical hookups!:
Toll plaza:
I-280 North:
Oregon?!
Bridge over Maumee River in Toledo:
I-75 North:
“Welcome to Pure Michigan”:
Not the best road surface:
TA fuel stop:
I-75 North:
“Speed limit 70, truck speed 65, minimum speed 55”:
“Welcome to Thousand Trails St Clair”:
Gate:
Our site:
We rode the Scenic Railroad train in Cuyahoga Valley National Park, doing the Vamos Vino Grape Escape wine tasting journey.
Akron Northside train station:
Train engine:
Each train car had different activities, including murder mystery, cigars (in an open car), cocktails, bingo, trivia, etc:
The Silver Lariat dome train car, which we were in:
The dome car table and seats:
Wine tasting menu:
Winemakers talking about their wines:
First tasting (in a souvenir glass):
Selfie:
Food tray… described as a “tasty charcuterie box, filled with artisan cheeses, cured meats, and other treats”… with some corn chips and no meats:
Wine tasting:
The “scenic” tour was not particularly scenic (and hard to see out the dirty dome windows anyway):
Looking out of the dome over the roof of the train:
Train conductor:
Downstairs in the train car:
Last tasting:
Train car:
Somewhat disappointing, but it was a thing we did.
We attended a double-A baseball game between the Akron RubberDucks (Cleveland Guardians affiliate) vs Somerset Patriots (New York Yankees affiliate) at Canal Park in Akron, Ohio.
An interactive map of the ballpark:
Entrance of Canal Park:
Team store:
The Dog Pound:
Food:
The ballpark:
Our seats, right behind home plate: section 12, row A, seats 9 & 10. It had been raining, so an usher kindly wiped our seats for us:
Selfie:
Our front-row view:
Play ball:
Home run:
Mascots:
Exploring the ballpark:
Popcorn and hot chocolate:
Jenn admired this pitcher’s long hair:
A baseball on the field:
Dancing grounds crew:
On our tour of covered bridges, we also stopped off at the Bird-in-Hand Farmers Market in Bird-in-Hand, Pennsylvania.
Our purchases; our first shoofly pie, very much like a date pie (and quite tasty), iced cinnamon raisin bread, fudge, and interesting honey flavors:
