Smos on the Road
by Leanne Smoliak
The highlight of our summer was an accidental 21-day road trip. Now, one might ask, how can a 21-day road trip be accidental?
This is how. We were invited to a family wedding in Boston. Flights booked, bags packed, then, wham, Brad’s doctor told him three days prior to our flight that he could not fly. He did say Brad could drive. Three and a half days later we were in Massachusetts.
Somewhat apprehensively we chose to go through the USA. It was a quicker route, and we would see many states we had never been through. We weren’t sure what we were headed for but we wanted it to be as easy as possible. Quick also mattered as we only had a short time.
Every person we met was warm, kind, and helpful. We were particularly impressed with the roadside rest stops. Each state had a design theme—from rustic cottage, to mid-century modern. The best thing? Washroom attendants.
Brad remembered that road-tripping with his family always included a cooler packed by his baba containing a mason jar of cherry Kool-Aid along with ham bunwiches. In the spirit of recreating these sweet memories I packed these items in our cooler.
GPS is just fine for directions but not for trip planning. Our paper maps reminded me of my mom as the ever-present navigator in the passenger seat during our family’s road trips.
Off we went. We planned our trip so that we spent nights in small places, or on the perimeter of big cities. Truck stops, cafés and diners were what we were after. Brad went for every special on the menu. Some were more special than others. Chicken fried steak? Not so bad. The white gravy on top of the Plaster of Paris-textured mashed potatoes, not so good. We had some of the best eggs, hash browns and sausages in diners that had been around for 85 years and fantastic Reuben sandwiches from roadside truck-stops delivered by waitresses who had been working there since the sign went up.
The worst meal? Not in a homey diner. It was in a chain called Crackerbarrel. I ordered chicken and dumplings. I had a bite, Brad had a bite, then I asked the server to take it away. I could not look at it. Raw dough in more of that goopy white gravy. What is it with the white gravy?
Best part? The server whispered to us; ‘I don’t eat here.’ Ha ha.
In New England we ate our weight in oysters and became connoisseurs of clam chowder. It was at an old dining car in Worchester, Massachusetts that we found the best clam chowder, not at the fancy pants restaurant that claimed to have the award-winning clam chowder. Brad ate two entire lobsters one night, along with a pound of butter.
Boston is a food mecca. Of course, there is a lot of seafood, but it was the north end, Boston’s Italian section, that got my attention. Larger than NYC’s Little Italy. We had some of the finest Italian food we have ever had. One morning we sat in the centuries-old Caffe Vittoria enjoying the most perfect cappuccino and cannoli. The cannoli were filled to order which meant that the ultra-smooth ricotta filling was surrounded by a crispy, not soggy shell. I can never go back to a pre-filled cannoli again.
We took our time and saw the sights on our way home. We filled the car with snacks, just as we did as kids. (Pringles were a delicious blast from the past.) We picked up some yummy snacks from Trader Joe’s too.
A car makes travelling so much fun. We always had local beer and cider in the cooler along with some wine for our evenings at our motel. Speaking of motels, they are hard to find. Lots of Hilton Garden Inn-style hotels to be found though. We did find the perfect 1960s motel in Whitefish Montana. We will be going back to the Chalet Inn for sure.
Road tripping isn’t for the faint of heart. You better like each other—really like each other. If you have lots of time, good food, a variety of playlists, and a deep love for one another, it is a blast. Brad tells the same jokes and stories he did 32 years ago and he still gets me going.
So, after 21 days, over 9,500 kms, 14 states, nine of them twice, and two provinces, would we do it again? You betcha! We are already planning our next road-trip.