Cleveland: A Week of Fall-tastic Fun

On our first night there, we decided to take a trip to Target. We especially enjoyed browsing through the Halloween section.

Day 2: Fall foliage!  As a Floridian, this is something I rarely see.

Me, enjoying the scenery on our hike.

Lindsey's grandpa told us about this awesome place called Gervasi Vineyards.  Yes, this  is in Canton, OH.  Beautiful, isn't it?  Complete with wine-tasting and dinner at the bistro, it was an awesome experience!  Thanks, Mr. Grandpa Glorioso!

I took a picture with fall colors every chance I could get.

Day 3: A visit to Amish country!  It wasn't everything I hoped for, but I did get to see some Amish people.  The Amish guy using a leaf blower made the experience- we were trying to figure out how he justified that when they aren't supposed to use modern technology.

On our way back from Amish country, we passed a pumpkin patch.  And, since we don't have *actual* pumpkin patches in FL, we had to stop!

Before our pumpkin carving.

The finished product.  Lindsey's on the left, mine on the right.

Day 4: I got to see one of my oldest friends, Sarah Micklewright!  It was awesome catching up.  She came with us to a rainy fall fest, one of the coldest days I was there.  See, even the Clevelanders were cold on this day.

Here we are again!

We had to take pictures here... what are friends for if not being huge dorks together?

We went to Trader Joe's to pick out our perfect pumpkins.

Our pumpkin family.  Sarah's, the one on top with the monocle, is still my favorite.  Mine are the bottom left two... the simplest ones, but they do look happy, don't they?

Day 5: After dinner with Lindsey's family because her sister was in town, we took the train downtown to Cleveland and walked around seeing the sites.  It was also freezing this day.

The tower.

Day 6: A trip to the Rock'n'Roll Hall of Fame and Museum!  Necessary picture with a guitar out front, of course!  I picked this one because it reminded me of palm trees in FL.

Me with the Rock Hall

And, it's time to go home.  I'm sorry I didn't take any pictures the last day... but I did take pictures on the plane when I left.  This is flying over Lake Erie toward Chicago.  Bye, Cleveland!

And to end my trip on a high note, I ran into my sister at the Chicago airport!  Surpised?  It wasn't as random as it sounds, but still, it was about as random as it could possibly get in an airport like that.  She was on her way to India, and that morning texted me to tell me she'd be in the O'Hare airport.  Lo and behold, so would I!  She sat with me at my gate (her layover was much longer than mine) until I boarded my plane.  We laughed a lot and had fun, and I think people around us were quite amused.  Allison looks quite fresh in this picture, just embarking on her great international ventures, and I look quite gnarly as I am exhausted from a week of touring.

Ah, friends... for me, the word "friend" is not one I use lightly.  I've never considered myself a person with friends in great quantity, but one with friends in great quality.  Unfortunately, many of them have lived long distance and so I don't get to see them often.  Lindsey is a friend that even if we don't talk for months, can just pick up where we left off the last time.  Sarah, one of my first friends, has been awesome to re-connect with.  We hadn't seen or spoken with each other in years, yet we randomly reconnected when she happened to live in the same city as my other friend!  Now both of them hang out without me... but it's ok, I forgive them.

To the good times!