Vermont

I woke up this morning to the news that Vermont and upstate New York were buried under two feet of snow yesterday! To think that a mere two weeks ago we were there basking in sunshine, 60+ degree temperatures and glorious colors makes me realize, once again, how incredibly blessed we were.

After we saw Niagra Falls, we traveled straight through to Vermont, and then slowly worked our way back. Vermont lived up to it's reputation as an absolutely beautiful state, and also as a very liberal one, politically. Obama signs were everywhere. And there were many other signs of it's leftward leaning as well. We had several unique experiences there. This picture of Daniel was taken in the Brattleboro, VT home of Nobel prize winning author Rudyard Kipling (author of The Jungle Book, among other notable works). A family friend had rented the home for the week, and we spent two nights there. It was really fun! There is a delicatessen in Brattleboro that is to die for (albeit expensive).

We spent a couple of days touring the quaint covered bridges in the area. (They are all pretty much alike and clustered together.) We did have a very "Vermont" kind of experience at one of them that is better told in person than in print. (Hint: public nudity is legal in Vermont.) We were fascinated by the old, old cemetaries; grave stones that date back to the early 1800's, men who gave their lives in some of our nation's early wars, and stones listing the names of numerous family members (many of them children) who died over a short period of time from various epidemics that swept through New England. The Green Mountains of Vermont are not green in October, but multiple shades of yellow, red and brilliant orange.