Tuesday, May 16, 2006

97 Trip Part 2

Another thing about that trip-I had hired a car at Logan. It was a Ford escort -what we would have called a Ford Mondeo.
Anyway, it was nice car, except that the steering wheel was on the wrong side. It was also cold. There was a knob on the dash that said 'A/C'. I had no idea what it meant so left it alone. Now I have posh car and know it means Air conditioning and I needn't have been cold!

The amount of times I parked the car, and when returning, got into the passenger side. I then had to get out and walk around the car to get in the drivers side. Yes, people did notice.

I recall parking at a mall, that was was split over two sides of a road. There was no way to walk from one side to the other. I had to get into the car and drive to the other side. Walking would have taken 30 seconds!

Only once did I drive on the wrong side of the road. In New York State, just before going into VT. I had turned right at a junction and just went the way I would in the UK. I nearly went head on into a woman and her car. Much to my surprise she did not give me the finger or anything.

Oh how I wished I had a sticker that said I was British and excuse my driving! On the other hand, I was quite pleased not to be recognisably foreign.

Oh and I just remembered being at traffic lights, waiting to turn right and the lights were on red. I was first and cars behind me were tooting their horns at me. I had no idea why. I later realised I can turn right even tho the lights are red.

I had booked a room at a lesbian run farm in Maine. Rural they said. In the middle of f'ing nowhere I discovered. It was dark, really dark I was driving along Rt1 I think in Maine and there was nothing, just trees and the moon. I was scared. I just knew this was a Stephen King story in the making. I eventually found a garage with a shop attached. I went in. there were 5 people in there, talking with eachother. They stared at me and just carried on talking. I asked for help and they were very amused. They commented to eachother on my accent like I wasn't there. They didn't help and I got out of there quick. I pictured meat hooks in the back room.

Anyway, about another 100 miles, I came across another shop. I went in. Guns all over the wall, and Jesus Loves You stickers. Okay, so I knew not to ask if they knew of a farm/motel run by lesbians. I did however ask if they knew the name of the farm and he said yes and gave me directions which I am sure were good - in the daylight. I went the way he said and was still not sure. I saw a house and went and knocked on the door. An elderly couple answered and did not seem phased at all, despite the fact I had driven over their lawn to their door. Well, it was dark. Very dark.

Eventually, I found the right track. I heard this awful crunching and I stopped my car and got out. I was on ice. Just as I got out the car, I noticed that in front of the headlights, the road seemed clear. I took a closer look-it was clear alright, no road, no trees, just a sheer drop. I backed away very slowly.

Once I found their farm, I got out the car and promptly fell flat on my face in the ice and snow. Just then 3 wolves came barking and howling towards me. Just before I wet myself, a woman also came, and yelled at what turned out to be her dogs. They left me alone and I managed to get up, cold, shaky and by this time feeling quite unreal.

Thankfully, my room was lovely, warm and cosy with a huge old fashioned bed with a deep mattress.

1 comment:

Kerry said...

Ah yes, the bear. You should have been here when they closed the village landfill. Poor things were so hungry they were roaming the village streets looking for something to eat. People had to reinforce doors and we had to stop putting our garbage out in sheds and on porches so they wouldn't break in.

And as for the moose, believe it or not people seem to think they are approachable. I think just about anything can annoy them. Noise, camera flash, you name it. They are quite aggressive and can be deadly given their size and strength. We have them here in the Adirondacks. They are really something to see.

If you ever get back to the US again you'll have to look us up for sure. We'd love to have company! If you'd like to drop me an email (kcrone at roadrunner dot com) I'd love to send you out a new mug from here for your collection. :-)