Springboro, OH – We are just south of Dayton, Ohio tonight,
after a very wet and windy drive. There
was a thick fog in Windsor this morning when we pulled away from the hotel and
headed for the Ambassador Bridge, which would take us into the United States. (Today's picture is of the bridge as we saw it last year, returning to Canada.)
As we crossed the bridge we could barely see its huge
trusses and cables, so getting any kind of view of the area was out of the
question. I was hunched forward in my
seat, trying to read the directional signs for RVs through the mist and fog as
we approached the border crossing. Even though
I could make them out, we still had to be redirected by an attendant! Someone should go through all those hoops
with the eyes of a newcomer so they could see how unclear the signage actually
is!
Our border official was unsmiling and terse as he shot
questions at Val and requested a look-see inside the RV, opening the bathroom
door in case we were harboring any fugitives in the tiny space. Still, we were not searched beyond that,
unlike the van ahead of us in the line. So
we bid farewell to our native land and headed past the factories and mean
streets of Detroit, shrouded in the mist, dodging some sizeable potholes along
the way.
Sudden gusts of wind made Val grip the steering wheel a bit
tighter as we left the urban areas and passed fields and farmhouses. The windshield wipers got a good workout
today as well. At least the temperature
did not dip to freezing levels, so it was just wet, not icy. We actually caught glimpses of green grass in
some areas, even though it had been extremely cold and snowy only days before.
Our route followed Interstate 75 the whole way. Michigan went by quickly and we then entered
Ohio, passing through Toledo and on toward Dayton. The concrete walls at the Dayton interchanges
were decorated with space shuttles and biplanes to remind us that we were passing
through the area where the Wright brothers’ airplanes first slipped the surly
bonds of earth.
There’s an airplane
museum nearby where visitors can actually take flight in a replica of the first
plane. Val said he was really not
tempted to see what it was like seeing the ground drop away from a machine made
of rags and old bicycle parts.
Springboro is a suburb south of Dayton where the country’s
most affluent neighbourhoods can be found, although we didn’t see them from the
interstate. The town was also a way
station for fugitive slaves using the Underground Railway to find freedom.
Brisk winds were still whipping our hair about as we walked
from the hotel to a nearby restaurant for dinner. We were glad to get back to our room
afterward, armed with hot drinks from the dispensers in the lobby. Nice touch.
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