You see some out of the ordinary things on US 40, the National Road. Casey, Illinois has some of those things. The world’s largest wind chimes broiught us to a halt a we drove through this little town. The “coming soon” foundations for the allegeded largest rocking chair was a hoot. I wondered how long the chair has been “coming soon”.
World’s largest wind chime
And it will arrive when??
This is a section of the very old road! Watch for the signs which will occasionally lead you to a short stretch like this one.
Sher and I are traveling on the National Road, aka US 40. We will be sharing photos of some of the things that we “discovered” along the way. Our first leg was eastbound from Richmond Indiana towards Columbus Ohio. We traced from Columbus east for a while and then returned to Indiana for family business.
The last couple of days we traveled west from Indy towards St. Louis. It is a treat to cruise along at 50 mph and really take in the sights. (Saves gas too!)
In Brownville, Ohio you can see one of the remaining original mileage markers.
On a recent trip to Columbus Ohio to visit family we all ended up downtown looking for a place to eat. Our son recommended a place called Fabian’s Pizza. This place serves real Chicago style deep dish pizza for sure.
Sher’s veggie deluxe
Located on High Street a few blocks north of the convention center, Fabian’s can’t claim fast service, but the pizza is excellent. Served at your table in piping hot deep dish pans, I had the chicken BBQ and Sher had her favorite, the veggie special.
Pepperoni ! !
Our son and his wife and three kids had a large pepperoni and a small supreme. Coupled with a large house salad to start the meal off, we all were more than full when we left. (Sher and I both had leftovers in a take out box!)
Inside Fabian’s
It did take about an hour after we ordered to get our pizzas, but I have to say it was worth the wait. If you like Chicago style deep dish pizza and find yourself in downtown Columbus, be sure to get to Fabian’s. You won’t regret it.
Supreme deep dish
We were visiting family near Columbus Ohio this weekend. We all piled into their van and headed out for the day. We ended up in downtown Columbus and were amazed by the huge crowd at the conention center for the Arnold Schwarzenegger Sports Fitness Festival. According to local media over 180,000 people attended the weekend event. This is a yearly event for Columbus,and is one of a series of events from around the world that carries Schwarzenegger’s name.
One company’s banner with a vintage picture of Arnold
The crowds were huge. We walked through the convention center to see all of the events in the outer hall ways. The actual event required an admission charge which we passed on.
The streets and sidewalks were packed!
The Navy Seals gave folks a chance to prove their strength
Silver Springs is one of Florida’s most famous state parks. We went there today and truly enjoyed to beauty of the park. We first went to the entrance that leads to the campgrounds and the main hiking trails. Here we paid our $8 entrance fee. The ranger directed us to the north entrance, and our receipt got us in there too.
The entrance from the parking lot
The entrance from the huge parking lot is quite impressive. Once past the long walkway we got to an area that overlooked the water. In addition there was a large strip building that looked like a shopping mall. There was a restaurant, ice crea store and a gift shop open. It turns out that there were also meeting rooms and an outdoor amphitheater for large groups to host events in this complex.
Some of the big fish swiming over the eel grass
The water was really striking in its clarity. These springs are the largest in the country and discharge about 500 million gallons a day! You could see the bottom no matter how deep the water was.
We only saw this bird’s head: he spent most of the time underwater fishing!
Glass bottom boat
We were considering taking one of the famous glass bottom boat trips. Just then a tour bus load of people showed up, and we found out that the next available trip was after the tour had their boat rides. Maybe the next time we visit we’ll take the glass bottom boat trip.
This bird repeatedly ducked his head in the water then vigorously splashed the water with his wings for about 15 seconds.
Silver Springs State Park should be on your list of attractions when you are in the Ocala area. The scenery is pretty, there is lots of wildlife to see, and their trails are fun to walk.
Here is one photo that leaves no question as to when it was taken!
Just when you think you have seen everything, here comes a self propelled two seater bathtub.
Yes, this is a motorized bath tub.
Today I heard Sand Hill cranes, looked up and there were three graceful cranes in flight. These photos are the result.
A nice trio
Grateful for the photo ops
Lots of folks bring their dog(s) with them to the Flywheelers show in central Florida. With all the different kinds of transportation being used, you see different ways that the dogs ride as well.
A couple of brothers have their own bed to enjoy
One way to stay warm!
The back of a golf cart is a nice perch
Got a blanket to lay on!
“I’ve got my own basket!”
This pooch was a ham for the camera.
Lots of folks have their dogs with them at the Florida Flywheelers antique tractor February show. Some walk, while some get to ride.
“Is it really that cold this morning?”
A favorite
A good view of the road for this little guy
A pair of cute little ones
Today Sher and I finished setting up for the Flywheelers show that starts Wednesday. Final cleaning of some of the glassware and a couple of cabinets was needed. Then we finished putting the price tags on anything not already priced.
Later in the day friends of ours kindly let us borrow their golf cart. We took it for a tour of the grounds looking at lots of the other vendors and their displays.
On our route we passed a couple of areas that were filled with antique John Deere tractors. This show is featuring John Deere. I’m not really sure what that means, but there are a ton of the old green and yellow tractors on display. There are other different makes of antique macinery here, but the John Deere machines are everywhere.
An impressive line up of antique John Deere tractors
An old Case threshing machine
We also drove through the Flywheeler’s Village. It will be very busy during the show, but today we could see all of the old fashioned looking buildings. There were many, many of these.
