Hawthorn Suites - Ann Arbor

Phew... Going through US Customs was a bit trying... No searching but a lot of questions meant - I supposed - to catch us with something bad... Who knows. We did not loose any meal. We're in the middle of a fairground, with a weak WiFi but OK. The only analog TV channels are from Detroit but the Detroit area offers 22 digital channels, many

Longer day than expected but we grinded the flying condo to a halt. No problem other than a sticking lock on the propane door.

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After saying our goodbyes to everyone at Cedarlane RV Park this morning, we're on the road to Michigan, in the home! Gray skies and cool winds can't dampen our spirits - we are SO looking forward to this next week's travels - when we leave Michigan, we'll head south on I-75 towards Florida, with a two ...

... each other by the end of the first week or better yet by the time we pull out of our driveway Sunday morning.

Would appreciate any tips to make life easier along the way so please feel free to share your knowledge and experiences.

Mr and Mrs Travelalong
Tecumseh, MI

The morning leaving the island was quite surreal for me.  For the first time that I can remember I was properly prepared for a trip with a surplus of time to leisurely pack my belongings.  Suprisingly, I did not mentally prepare myself for the fact that I would be living in a foreign country for the better half of a year.  On this particular day, I solely was thinking about finally escaping my tiny hometown.  I have to admit that at some points this summer I speculated whether or not my ...

... few squares), HUGE farm vehicles (very high, I think they spread fertilizer), mostly John Deere tractors, some irrigation (actually saw some spouting water - all this trip we had only seen idle irrigation equipment) - little towns, some prosperous, many less so, back to the Amish buggies in northern Indiana around the pretty town of Middlebury, and on up to Michigan!


We camped last night at a fun but crowded campground on Gun Lake (where Al Capone ...

... by the end of December. Saturday was the really big day - we were throwing a party for my Mom's 90th birthday, and like our visit, this, too was a surprise for her, despite our having told her all about it many times over! What a great day it turned out to be - almost 40 old friends and family gathered to share memories and photographs, enjoy birthday cake, and join in singing Happy Birthday to Mom. Great fun! Pictures to follow!

Flight arrived in DTW on time. I had lunch and cigarettes at the FOX Sports Bar. Spent the next two hours at the lounge before going to the gate. Unfortunately, our flight was running late. We left 45 minutes behind schedule.

... concerns about demonstrations and unrest. I am not sure how often I am going to be able to blog and send updates, but I hope it can be more than sporadically. From what I have read, there are many internet cafes and some hotels offer a business center. I am just not sure what sites are restricted to contact from China (being communist and all!). I will certainly be in touch as frequently as ...

... would awaken the first born. So I venture out about 11 into the gloomy skies over Edinburgh. First stop was the train station to buy our ticket back to Glasgow-Prestwick International Airport on Tuesday. Then on to Princes Street and the finest tourist shopping district in the Gaelic speaking world. What plaids! What keychains! What prices! I handed the sales clerk my American Express card and she said: "William D. Bartine, II ...

... s no press to greet us in Ann Arbor this Saturday afternoon as we pull into the campus area to make my reading from GUITAR ARMY at the Shaman Drum Bookstore on State Street, although one would have to say that this is one of the very few books actually set in Ann Arbor and one of the confrontational cultural artifacts-like its contemporaries, the LPs Kick Out the Jams by the MC5 and The Stooges-that put Ann Arbor on the national and international cultural map ...