LINCOLN IN IOWA

I went to the post office today (two days after Christmas) to mail out Christmas cards to a long time pen pal in England and an uncle (not a real relative, just someone we knew from the refugee camp).  Better late than never I said.  This year I was really late with my Christmas mailing.  I dropped off the U.S. cards on the 22nd because I had a difficult time writing my Christmas letter.  I wanted to include an update with the cards but did not want to write about all the setbacks I have experienced the last 12+ months.  I wonder what president Lincoln wrote in his Christmas letter after the many job lost, a few defeats in politics, unsuccessful business ventures and other setbacks.

These photos were from our road trip on Lincoln Highway in September 2012.  The statue below might be in front of City Hall in Grand Junction, Iowa.  I like the sculpture in front of a private home (top photo).  It was a creative work of art made from a dead tree. 

We went to see the movie "Lincoln" a few weeks ago.  It was a good movie but I was not impressed.  The cast did a good job of acting the roles they were assigned to but the screenplays were typical of Hollywood drama.  I am glad the movie did not show when Lincoln was assassinated.  The movie was about the final months of the president, how he tried to heal the country from the war and the division, there was no need for the details of his death.       

There are two of Lincoln busts overlook a bend north of Scranton, Iowa.  If we did not have the guidebook, we probably would never find the monuments and thought they were just part of the cornfields.  Someone or a very dedicated group took good care of the busts because they look good having been put in placed since 1924.
(PS:  I just noticed that this post is the One thousand one hundred eleven (1,111) post published in this little boring blog of mine since that dark stormy night in August 2006 - congratulations to ME - haa haa).

THURSDAY RAMBLINGS - CHELSEA, IOWA LIBRARY

I did not understand why it was so important to Qaptain Qwerty and why it made him happy when he found free WiFi at a coffee shop or at a library wherever he happens to be while travelling. Now I do. Since we have wireless internet connection at home, there would be no need to sign up for data service for "Bo" except when we are on our road trips. All of the library branches in St. Louis have free WiFi and most of the restaurants/coffee shop, even supermarkets now offer this service. I think it is a smart business decision. Last week when I met a friend for lunch at a restaurant that has free WiFi, I brought along the iPad and we were able to do research on the topics we discussed. I like taking pictures of library or post office when driving thru small towns. The town of Chelsea, Iowa has only one building to house both its City Hall and Library. I am sure the good people of Chelsea are proud of their town because any town that has a library, no matter how small the collection is, would get my respect.

When I mentioned to my husband that I got a few really good books from the library, he said, "I never knew you ever gotten a book that you did not like or think it was a good book." Reading has always been one of my favorite activities besides watching hockey/football. One of the books I recently read was about I.M. Pei, the world renown architect, and I found so many interesting things about his life. I always thought Mr. Pei only designs museum like the Louvre Pyramid in Paris and the Guggenheim in New York. I learned that he works included John Fitzgerald Kenney Library in Boston, MA; Four Seasons Hotel in NYC; Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in Cleveland, Ohio; Mile High Center in Denver, Colorado and so many others. If you did not already know a lot about I.M. Pei, please accept my humble suggestion to read about this giant of modern architecture. From his acceptance speech for one of the many awards he earned, I.M. Pei "Let us all be attentive to new ideas, to advancing means, to dawning needs, to impetuses of change so that we may achieve, beyond architectural originality, a harmony of spirit in the service of man." Would you like to share something interesting you read recently?

PRESTON'S STATION - BELLE PLAINE, IOWA

George Preston and his vintage gas station, bought for $100, was a historical site on Lincoln Highway. George himself was a celebrity when he was invited to be on the Johnny Carson show on March 21, 1990.

After George passed away in 1993, his son Ron continued to reserve and maintained the Station.

There was a vehicle with a Missouri license plate parking in front of the building when we got to the station. A nice gentleman came out from the house and we told him that we are from St. Louis, Missouri and about our adventure on Lincoln Highway. He introduced himself as the son-in-law of Ron Preston. He informed us that Ron passed away a few weeks ago. The visitation was in Gladstone, Missouri and burial was in Belle Plaine.

We hope the family will continue to maintain Preston's Station as it is a historial site and a treasure on Lincoln Highway.

LINCOLN CAFE - BELLE PLAINE, IOWA

Saturday, September 3rd - It was cloudy in the morning and after we got on the road the rain came down so hard that we could not get out to take photos of the Youngville Station and Cafe in Watkins, Iowa.

Youngville Station and Cafe was an excellent example of restoration. It was listed on the National Register in 2007. The town of Youngville does not exist, only a nice name, fitting for this 1931 rural station on Lincoln Highway. It was drizzling when we got to Belle Plaine.

It was already 10:30 am and perfect time to stop at Lincoln Cafe for breakfast. Everyone looked up and smiled at us when we walked in. They probably watched us taking photos outside. Or the way my husband kept moving his Mustang to get in the exact good parking spot, away from the puddle.

The small dining room at Lincoln Cafe was cozy and so welcome. The server was so kind to explain to us about all the murals around town. We joined in when a table next to us talked about the Iowa v. Illinois football game that night.

There were a lot of street improvement as Belle Plaine was getting ready for its Centennial celebration in 2012.

I did not take photos of all the murals around town. I thought the above 3-D was special and interesting.

After watching the train went by at a nearby depot, we were back on the road.

(Saturday, October 1st - This is the first weekend that we have no scheduled activities. We were out of town the first three weekends in September. It is nice just to relax and do nothing, well almost nothing. It is sunny and in the upper 50's so we decided to steamed clean the carpet in the kitchen and the family room. The other rooms will be cleaned in the Spring.)

2011 WESTWARD ROAD TRIP

(In a blink of an eye, the month of September flew by. It is Friday, September 30th and here I am trying to catch up with postings that will be in reverse chronological. To all my adoring fans and faithful readers, thank you for your concern. I am fine, just got off the blogging tracks and it took awhile for geezer like me to get back - haa haa.) Our 2011 Westward road trip began when we left St. Louis around 1:00 p.m. on Friday, September 2nd. We stopped for an early dinner in Hannibal, Missouri. After checking in at a hotel in Cedar Rapids, Iowa, we walked across the street to a local diner for homemade pies. The next day, Saturday, September 3rd we drove a fairly straight line across the vast land of cornfields of Iowa. At around 5:00 p.m. we crossed the state line into Nebraska.

Sunday, September 4th - we woke up to a beautiful day in downtown Columbus, Nebraska. After 8:30 a.m. Mass at St. Bonaventure Church, we got back on the road continued following Lincoln Highway. Exactly as written in the Lincoln Highway Companion guidebook by Brian Butko, trains were a constant companion as we drove across Nebraska. Giant grain silos, cows and horses dominated the landscape. On Monday, September 5th, we could not wait to get on the road to get out of Nebraska. Nothing against the good people of Nebraska or the State, just a negative experience in Sidney, NE that almost ruined our vacation. I promise I will explain later what happened. We cross the state line into South Dakota at 10:50 a.m. After visited Crazy Horse Memorial and Mount Rushmore, we drove to Sturgis. I was tempted to get a tattoo and a Harley to drive around town with the boys! After dinner at Easyriders Saloon, we were ready for a night of rest in a room with clean bed and no extra charge for soap and towels - haa haa.

Tuesday, September 6th - It was a sunny but a bit cool morning when we arrived in Aladdin, Wyoming. After a good breakfast at Cindy's Diner, we felt strong and ready to face Devils Tower National Monument. After Devils Tower, we took I-90 straight into Montana. It was a nice surprise and a learning opportunity at Little Bighorn Battlefield National Monument. We arrived in Gardiner, Montana around 9:30 p.m. only to be told that our room reservation was cancelled. Fortunately, we were able to find another hotel nearby. Another not-too-pleasant experience but when we spoke to that hotel the next day, the matter was resolved to our satisfaction. I promise to share the details in future post. We spent the following day, Wednesday, September 7th, at Yellowstone National Park. It was most memorable and definitely one of the highlights of our trip. Old Faithful was as young and energetic as ever!

Thursday, September 8th - We drove thru the Grand Teton National Park. After exited the South Entrance, we proceed on US-191 and stopped for a night in Rock Springs, Wyoming. The next day, Friday, September 9th, after breakfast we decided to visit Dagget County, Utah before heading toward Vail, Colorado for a niece's wedding on Saturday, September 10th. JP was one of the flower girl at our wedding 23+ years ago!

Sunday, September 11th - We did not leave Beaver Creek, Colorado until after a 10:00 a.m. brunch. I did most of the driving heading east on I-70. CP took over when it was getting dark. We stopped for the night in Hays, Kansas. The next day, Monday, September 12th we got up around 6:30 a.m. eager to get on the road. We had a wonderful time but after 10 days on the road, we were happy to be home.

We pulled into our driveway around 5:30 p.m. After we unloaded everything from the Mustang, I took off to a city council meeting scheduled at 7:00 p.m.

I spent the next two weeks washing, cleaning, putting together a spreadsheet of expenditure, organizing items we collected from places we visited and sorting thru all the photos. Then my home laptop was attacked by virus. The "computer guy" was busy so it took a few days before I got my laptop back. Fortunately I saved all my correspondence and photos on the flash drives. I only had to put back all the favorites websites and re-connect the printer. It feels good to return to normal routines. I look forward to sharing photos and stories from our trip. Thank you for visiting and please come back again soon.

STILL IN IOWA

Our road trip would not be completed without a few hundred of photos of CP's pony. (Strangers, mostly men, still engaged in important discussion with CP about the Mustang but not as much as when we drove the T-bird). Above is the Lincoln Hotel in Lowden, Iowa. It opened in 1915, had 12 small rooms with one common bathroom at $2 per night. The hotel is currently operated as a bed and breakfast. We did not go inside so we could not tell you how nice it looks. Visit www.lincolnhoteliowa.com for details.

Clinton is the last town in Iowa before we crossed the bridge over the Mississippi River to enter Illinois. I always like these welcoming signs. CP was being such as good husband. He patiently turned around so I could take a good photo since I did not know about the sign and missed it the first time.

At first look, there is nothing special about this building on Main Street in Lowden, Iowa. That was what CP said to me, "What are you taking picture of this ugly building for?" After I told CP to look up to see that it was an Opera House in 1895, he acted so surprise, "You are so observant. How the heck did you see such details?" How else would I spend my time and energy until hockey season starts again in 88 days!

A very nice mural on the side of the building of the American Legion Post 356.

Time stood still - we found "the red, white and blue marks: sometimes painted on telephone poles" exactly the way Effie Gladding described in her book, "Across the Continent by the Lincoln Highway" published in 1914. The above mark must be painted when the road was re-aligned in 1931.

Here is a one lane (and only one vehicle crossing) bridge somewhere in Wheatland or Calamus, Iowa. We slowed down upon approaching carefully crossing the bridge even though there was no vehicle anywhere as far as the eye could see!

I really enjoyed my visit to Iowa. It helps that it was sunny with comfortable temperature. Our next Lincoln Highway road trip will be going West from Cedar Rapids, Iowa, Nebraska, Colorado, and Wyoming.

THE PEOPLE OF IOWA WELCOME YOU

On Saturday, July 2nd, we began our Lincoln Highway Adventure with a 5-day road-trip from St. Louis to Iowa - Illinois - Indiana - Ohio, then a visit to my husband's family in Michigan. We packed on Friday evening as to get on the road at 8:15 a.m. the next morning after bagels and coffee. We filled up the cooler with ice, water bottles and mocha drinks. We headed west on I-64, then north on US-61 and after a few stops for photos, we arrived in Hannibal, Missouri. We had 15 minutes to order breakfast at the Mark Twain Dinette (they stop serving breakfast at 11:00 a.m.) We filled up the gas tank on the Mustang (the T-bird is not comfortable for long distance). At 12:18 p.m. we were in Lee County, Iowa.

There is a Vietnamese expression, "Di Mot Ngay Dang, Hoc Mot Sang Khon" meaning {A person gains an education when travelling} or something like that :) Up until July 2nd, I never knew about the Avenue of the Saints. Visit http://www.iowadot.gov/ for more information about this important highway connecting St. Paul, Minnesota, running thru Iowa to St. Louis, Missouri.

I would like to compliment the people of Iowa for the excellent coordination of the red, white and blue signs. We purchased a handy glove-compartment guide, "Lincoln Highway Companion: A Guide to America's First Coast-to-Coast Road" by Brian Butko. The guide provides charted maps, must-see attractions, places to eat and interesting facts along the highway. Iowa did a great job at strategically placing the familiar big L signs at intersections really helped us to stay on the right track without a need for constantly looking at the guide.

We enjoyed driving along the endless fields of corn. Far and between the fields are homes and red barns dotting the landscapes. We stopped a few times to take photos of decorated barns, especially those painted with the American flag.

After Cedar Rapids, we drove thru Mount Vernon, Lisbon, Merchanicsville, and stopped in Stanwood for a cup of coffee and homemade pies at Ditto's. CP had a raspberry cobler and I had the usual coconut cream pie. We highly recommended Ditto's when you are in Stanwood, Iowa.

The next towns were Clarence (look for interesting photos in the next post), Lowden and Calamus. At 4:41 p.m. we stopped in Grand Mound to add more gas before crossing into Illinois. The price per gallon was around $3.89 for mid-grade.