ING DONG, AVON CALLING
It's 6am. I can hear the crunch and wet rasp of ocean surf on stones and shells; surprisingly noisy, easily audible above the soundtrack of Pink Floyd's
Time
from Radio Q 104point3.
Home, home again
I like to be here when I can
When I come home cold and tired
It's good to warm my bones beside the fire
Far away, across the field
The tolling of the iron bell
Calls the faithful to their knees
To hear the softly spoken magic spell
Inland, the ghostly whoot of a freight train penetrates at the level of bone structure, and we can only be in one place. We must be back on the road, in the US of A!
This is Avon-by-the-Sea, New Jersey. We're parked outside our adopted home (see photos) where we stopped for the night. The house is being rebuilt after hurricane Sandy, although we understand from a local that there only used to be little chocolate-box bungalows here. Apparently some less than chivalrous folk have capitalised on dubious insurance claims to build these monstrous mansions.
Down the coast is the notorious Atlantic City, which we'll be exploring later today. Right now, the sky is lightening - it's grey (or gray, since it's an American sky), but unseasonably warm (up to 66F). We plan to get on our way soon, but first, let's catch up from yesterday.
Three days in NYC is barely enough to scratch the surface, nevertheless we were glad to get on our way. The open road beckoned! Up early, we packed, breakfasted, and I even had time to get my hair cut and beard de-hoboed before we got a taxi to Tappan, up-state New York. We arrived in good time at the Camping World Depot, and our RV was pretty hard to miss. It is a beast.
We threw our bags aboard, completed the paperwork, and Sarah volunteered to sit behind the wheel first. Very brave, because this thing is BIG. Sarah drove us up to a mall 10 miles away, where we stocked up. I don't need to tell you (or maybe I do?) just how wonderful and pleasurable an experience it is food shopping in the States? The only challenge is squeezing it in the trolley. Hang on! Problem solved. Take two trollies.
I drove next, South on the Interstate past Newark, and then East, fighting our way lane to lane to reach the coast as quickly as possible. Perth Amboy was the gateway; then just a few more miles further to Ashbury, and Avon-by-the-Sea. So pretty, we just had to stop. This is the beautiful Belmar Beach.
We've drifted a few miles down the coast this morning, since writing the above. We stopped in the cutesie little town of Manasquan, NJ, and got a new broadband card and a few other bits and pieces. Now South…..
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