A few days before I arrived in New England , my cousin Michelle asked me if I would like to drive from Massachusetts to Philadelphia with her to deliver supplies for St. John following the devastation done by Hurricane Harvey. Michelle had lived on the island and was there for Hurricane Hugo, so she was very familiar with the damage a hurricane could cause.
I am always up for a road trip, plus I am geographically challenged whenever I go to the east coast. As compared to Texas everything looks pretty close, so passing through 5 states in 4 hours seemed like a breeze.
Friday night, we gathered at my Aunt Claire’s house to go through the supplies that had been donated to this beautiful island that had been ravaged by the storm, I was impressed with the generosity of so many as we sorted through mosquito netting, medical supplies, MRE’s, water filters and a variety of other items that were being requested.
It was like playing a game of Tetris as they carefully placed every box in her SUV until the only space left was for Michelle and I.
Saturday morning with some great tunes and a car full of gas we headed out.
There is nothing quite like a road trip for 2 friends who get so little time together. We filled in the spaces of one another’s lives that had passed over the years, catching up with all the important and silly moments we had missed.
The time flew as we passed from state to state.
When we finally arrived at the airport in Philadelphia the sponsors carrying the supplies to St. John were thrilled with the stash that our car held and escorted us directly to the tarmac where the supplies were unloaded.
Our car was emptied and Michelle made sure every box was properly labeled for transport.
Having completed our mission we decided to do the only logical thing when in Philadelphia… see the Liberty Bell.
My image in the past of the Liberty Bell was always of this very small bell in front of Independence Hall that people would walk by. Instead this beautiful reminder of our American Heritage has its own building.
The line to get to it is very well organized, there are dozens of photos and stories to read as you wait in line to view the bell. We arrived just before closing, and the line was short with a quick wait to get in.
We were able to get some great pictures, as all the tourists seemed respectful of allowing everyone to get their moment with one of our nations most well known symbols.
We spent a few minutes after walking around the historical streets of Philadelphia, where so much of our nations history was made.
Visiting the Liberty Bell costs nothing, the only thing we paid for was parking and some great souvenirs.
In the visitors center we had a chance to take a picture with Rocky Balboa before heading back to our car for the drive back to Massachusetts.
The sun was starting to set, and there was a misty rain falling as we drove away from The City of Brotherly Love.
Again the music was playing and conversation was flowing when Michelle turned to me and asked “Do you want to go to Mystic Pizza.”
Something about the place sounded familiar, and pizza is always great, especially on the east coast, so I said yes.
After a little Googling, I was able to find the location in Mystic Connecticut, it was a mere 2 hours out of our way, but the reviews and the history sounded great, we rerouted our GPS and headed to the coast.
It was dark when we arrived in Mystic Connecticut, but I could tell this was a beautiful coastal town.
There was a limousine parked outside the pizza place, and inside their was a huge neon sign saying A Little Piece of Heaven. The movie Mystic Pizza showed on several TVs in a continuous loop.
We sat at the bar and ordered 2 slices of the special of the day.
The bartender brought them to us and asked if we had every eaten there. We shook our heads no, and he let us know since it was the end of the evening and the pizza was not as fresh as he would like he was not going to charge us for our slices.
Well I am not sure what fresh pizza tastes like there, but I will say that was some of the best pizza I ever had!
We walked around the place taking in the pictures and memorabilia before heading back to the car.
The 90 minute drive home seemed like five minutes as we laughed and talked about our day and future plans.
We arrived back to my Aunts house late, exhausted but happy. Five states, a rescue mission, history and pizza filled my head as I fell asleep that night. It was a great day and I look forward to another one of Michelle and Jill’s excellent adventures!
Pink Hat Gypsy 