Catch up -- Part 2 - Burlington

In the summer, I suspect we would have given Quebec more time. Sam said that the Gaspe Peninsula, which is due east of Quebec City and north of Maine is wonderful. But I suspect it's desolate in the winter, so we will have to find out on another excursion.

We aimed towards Burlington, Vermont at mid-morning on Monday February 15. Presidents Day. Which meant nothing in Quebec. The uneventful journey without anything on the agenda led to the parting photographs of the Quebec flag, the phone booth and the plastic awnings, all of which had made an impression upon me, and which I felt needed to be captured on film.

Once crossing the border, we ate "out of the box" for lunch. Sitting in the parking lot of MacDonalds in the New York border town. Upon entering the MacDonalds, we were surprised to be assaulted by what seemed to be thousands of french-speaking teenagers on a school outing. We thought we were done with French, but no.

"The box" is what didn't get eaten in our effort to clear the fridge and the cupboards before leaving the house. Nuts, dried fruit, salami (Salumi Salami, from Seattle -- best salami on the planet. No joke. Go find out for yourself.) Crackers, home made bread pieces. We'd been generally using this for snacks, but an occasional lunch was the idea.

We chose to cross the border on I-87 to enter New York state, then take the scenic route down Grand Isle in Vermont. Grand Isle seems to be a series of islands hanging into Lake Champlain. Again, it looks like a happenin' place in the summer, and pretty desolate in the winter. Lots of skating. Fishing from ice shacks. And, we found out later, ice golf.


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Upon approaching Burlington, Susan talked me into staying at the Motel 6 for $45 a night. I'm not sure I've ever spent that little for a hotel room. But, the building was fairly new. The rooms were clean. There were certainly no "extras" (including tissues or hair dryer), and internet access was an extra $2 a night (for one computer only) but the big advantage was that we were happy to spend the night elsewhere.

Elsewhere was strolling downtown Burlington, and dining at American Flatbread.

The American Flatbread experience gets me thinking about traveling in the age of the internet. The last time I did a trip of significance was in 2005, to Provence and Paris. I remember relying on a guide book for culinary recommendations. Now, I rely on Yelp and related sites. In Quebec, there wasn't too much activity on Yelp, and I felt a bit lost. Of course, there's always just wandering around and taking chances, which is fine.

In Burlington though, we cooled our heels a bit in the Motel 6, and had a little time to research culinary options. We boiled it down to two. One called Tilly's cafe, that people LOVED. But sadly, was closed. The other was American Flatbread. That people also loved. Very much. Organic. Locally sourced. Delicious. Fantastic. People were effusive in their praise. And, it was still in business.

Sunday night was Valentines Day. (Anniversary of our first date!) American Flatbread was packed, with an hour and a half wait. Which allowed us to wander Burlington a bit more and have a drink. All ages. All demographics. Vast beer list, including those they brew themselves. I felt the urge to photograph, and have lots -- it was a photogenic place. Here's a few, and a few more on Flickr.











Looks like a fun place, eh!?

The beer was very good. Our waitress was exceptionally accommodating in allowing us many tastes. The flatbread was good too. Pizza. Exceptional? I don't know. We had one with a locally sourced sausage and some mushrooms. I think I prefer Pepe's in New Haven (more of a tomato pie there), or even Upper Crust in the Boston area. But it was a fun place with a good vibe. I'd recommend it.