Fall in the Northeast! - 15 Day Plan! - 9/16/19

On Monday September 23rd Cassi and myself will take a 15 day journey through the Northeast! Finally! Winter is coming. So, we must hurry! Originally, I planned to spend some warmer months in the Northeast. Spending a month or two in Maine, New York, New Jersey, Massachusetts, etc but my love for out West has kept me there longer than planned. Which is okay. That is something I continue to learn during the year. Accepting. Accepting that some trips have not gone as planned, accepting that I have not found work on the road, accepting that I have lazy days, or accepting that I can get frustrated with the dogs for no reason at all. The biggest challenge I've had to accept in August is that I have been home for over a month. This is my second time back in Kentucky and one of my goals the second time around was to not stay in Kentucky for more than 30 days. Well, I have to accept that I have been home much longer than 30 days. In my eyes, the past 30+ days have not been productive or getting me closer to my goals. But, the past 30+ days have been full of healing, recovery, laughter, connection, friendship, family, and love.

I have be Thankful for that and for all of those things. After acceptance comes the process of moving on. And that is what my 15 day trip to the Northeast will be. I am excited and nervous to get back on the road. 2019 has been a year of constant change for me. You'd think I would be use to it by now. When I am on the road and constantly moving, I adapt and I enjoy moving to a different place every day. When it is time to slow down and stay in one place for a few days to weeks I experience anxiety...because it is change. The same goes for the exact opposite. Now, that I have been sitting still for 30+ days I am nervous to get back on the road and face the challenges of constant travel again. Of course, my nervousness will not keep me from packing up and traveling again but it is good for me to talk about. Just because someone travels alone, tries new things, quits their job, and they make it look easy...it doesn't mean that it was easy. So, I don't want to hide that. I don't want people to think that I snap my fingers and things just fall into place. I don't want to sell some perfect lifestyle. What makes a lifestyle perfect is your outlook on the lifestyle, your willingness to accept, and willingness to move on! So, as you see the beautiful pictures, read inspiring words, or follow along my journey keep this in mind.

Okay, anyways! Lets get back to this future trip! I have decided to not drive the RV (Jolene) to the Northeast. For many reasons. 1. It's only 15 days. 2. We are spending 4 days in NYC and I don't feel comfortable paying tolls for 4 axels, driving in NYC traffic, or trying to find campsites close to main attractions. 3. It is the same price to drive the Maxima and stay in Airbnbs as it would be to pay for gas in the RV, campsites, etc. The dogs (Chibi + Charlie) will be staying with Mom & Daniel in Kentucky with the RV. The RV is their safe place and they enjoy Gigi and Dan Dan dog camp so I am so thankful to have their support! I must say...I will miss my babies for 15 days! I just got back from 7 day Orlando vacation and left the dogs in Kentucky. It was nice to be able to travel without them but I did find myself worrying about them throughout the trip. So, it will be interesting to see how this trip goes, with it being double the amount of time. Distance makes the heart grow fonder...or something like that. Ha!

After Cassi & I pack up the Maxima we will head to the following places! First stop, Bellevue, PA! We will be renting a guest suite in a nice ladies home for one night. It is a 404 mile drive from Kentucky so this will be the perfect place to just relax and watch the sun set.

The second day we drive 366 miles to Newark, NJ and rent a room for 1 night. We rented this space because of the view and proximity to New York City which is our third stop. 

After NJ we arrive in NYC which looks like an hour drive! After finding a parking spot...somewhere. We will spend 2 nights in Lower East Manhattan in the East Village! Our first night in NYC we have tickets to Broadway! And guess what we are going to see! 

.

.

.

Any guesses? 

.

.

.

THE MOULIN ROUGE! 

Can you tell I'm just a little excited. I will have completed my trio. The moulin Rouge Film, visiting the Moulin Rouge in Paris, and now Moulin Rouge on Broadway! We will spend 2 nights renting a room in a gentleman apartment. This is something I have never done but relax! We booked on Airbnb, the owner has great reviews, pictures look nice, and it's only 2 nights. While we are in this location we plan to visit the 9/11 memorial, multiple museums, Central Park, ride the ferry past The Statue of Liberty, and anything else we can squeeze in! 

After our busy visit in Manhattan we will take off through Brooklyn to spend 2 nights on Coney Island! Another positive is it is our own private apartment! No sharing! 

For the next 2 days we will drive a little over 230+ miles each day. So, we consider these travel days. Probably find some local cuisine after settling in and explore the little towns. Our firs night we are in Boston, MA where we are renting a room and the 2nd night we arrive in Maine! Ellsworth, ME. We will stay in this house for 2 nights. During these two days we will visit the city of Bar Harbor and Acadia National Park! The house is about 15 miles away and I am so excited to see the Maine coastline! The house is retro and we have a level of the home to ourselves! I can't wait for some clam chowder and lobsta!!

We will then start our decent South and spend one night in Camden, ME which is a small quiet town. The house we chose is close to Downtown so we can walk around in our warm sweaters and find a patio along the coast to drink wine and share a charcuterie board! haha at least that would be my dream dinner while here. 

Our last 2 night stop will be in Cape Cod. Ahhhh Sighhhhh. This is a little out of the way while heading south but. Who cares! It's Cape Cod! We were able to rent a small condo/apartment close to the beach for 2 nights. More wine and exploring! Ha! 

After Cape Cod we will spend one night in Philadelphia, PA and then visit family in Columbus, OH. Next stop, back to Kentucky! 

To recap in 15 days we will have drove through 10 states, slept in 8 states, visited 1 National Park, and drove over 1,600 miles! This will be a different type of trip then what I have been doing in 2019. Sleeping in Airbnbs and visiting major cities versus driving the RV through back country roads and sleeping in state parks. But, I am excited for the change and I welcome it! We will end our adventure together on October 7th. At that time I will start packing up the dogs and RV and taking off for good to prepare for winter! 

During the months of November, December, & January I would like to settle in Arizona, New Mexico, cheap areas of Cali, or some place 'warmer' for the winter. I can deal with 30 to 40 degree temps but I cannot deal with another snow storm in the RV like I had last February! So, keep your eyes on the blog and Facebook for more updates on the Northeast adventure! Once I return I will update you on my plans for the winter! Thanks for reading!