9-stop odyssey up to the cape

Around 9:30 or so Zelia and her stunning daughter V pick me up. Last week of summer, tests all taken, we are finally driving up to my mom's house on the Cape.

STOP #1

Zelia's stunning daughter V is not thrilled with her mom's driving.

"Why are you driving so slowly?"

"Why are you taking the Hutch to Greenwich when it's faster to stay on 95?"  

"Mom! You are too close to that guy in front of you!"

We pull over and V takes the wheel.

STOP #2

We drop V off at her boyfriend's house in Greenwich and return to I-95.

STOP#3

Zelia and I both need coffee. We stop at an off-road food court type place somewhere in Connecticut. Everyone is wearing a mask; the bathrooms are clean; and the indoor space is wide open.

We go to a Dunkin' Donuts, get our drinks, and are back in the car, back on the road, all within ten minutes.

My order of "coffee with just a tablespoon of half and half" somehow gets interpreted as "coffee with lots of half and half plus a tablespoon of sugar." It is undrinkable and I toss the entire cup.

STOP #4

We need gas; too bad we didn't think to get gas at our last stop where there was both a food court and a gas station.

STOPs #5 and #6

We've now been in the car about four hours, have just traveled through RI, and are hungry. We turn to YELP and find a cute-sounding place nearby. 

A few more exits and we are in Marion — a quaint New England seaside town. And for the first time in a year I see the Atlantic.

We get back in the car, drive another mile, and find Kate's. It's the perfect place for lunch. 

And because it's pretty empty, we are comfortable eating indoors. My first time having a meal in a restaurant in six months.

STOP #7

We want to bring my mom a pie, and I remember there's a great pie place in Marion. Or rather, there was a great pie place in Marion. So we go back to YELP and find an "artisanal bakery" about 10 miles away. We're in no hurry. It's an overcast, rainy day. So we follow Google maps and end up at a house with a bakery in the garage, and a sign that says it's open only by appointment. We leave not feeling like we missed out.

STOP #8

We pick up an apple pie at Crabapple's, not too far from my mom's.

FINAL STOP

We arrive around four — to my mom's bright smile and exuberance. It feels so good and so right to be here. It's been a long summer away.