Start - 9/3/2014, 8:44am, 16,835 miles on the odometer
We left Chicago and started our journey down Route 66 in the Corvette. Of course our first stop was to have breakfast at the famous Lou Mitchell's on Jackson St. What makes them so famous is that they have been doing business on the same block since 1928! So of course it has been a staple for route 66 travelers to start (or end) they trip there. They greet you with fresh donut holes no matter what time you show up. They are famous for their fresh squeezed orange and grapefruit juice, homemade bread, fresh made orange marmalade and breakfasts that will fill up the heaviest eater. I asked about their omelets and the waitress said that they use 3 eggs, but it comes out to be about 4.5 eggs all together. So being the lighter eater that I am I ordered two eggs and she put down 1 egg! So I was a little suspicious. But when she brought it to the table the 1 egg almost equaled 2.5 eggs. Plus they give you toast and potatoes! Then at the end of the meal they give you a petite bowl of ice cream to "cleanse the palate". Chicago wasn't as bad as we thought or were told it was. We walked the streets and felt very safe. It isn't as congested as New York City and not as crowded.
As we continued down the road we made wrong turns, u-turns and not even close turns (thank God for my smart phone and Google maps!) But we always got back on track. One funny thing happened in Joliet, Illinois. Firstly Illinois is very proud of their 3 "giants" on 66. They are statues that were created in the early 1950's and you would recognize the mold of them as they are the large man that usually holds a muffler in his hands in from of a garage. Well, Illinois has three of them: one is a spaceman, one holds a hot dog and one holds an American flag.
We have gone through towns with names like: Romeoville, Elwood (where the Blues Brothers took that name for John Belushi's character), Chenoa (which is just a spot in the road now), Shirley, Funks Grove that sells maple SIRUP, McLean where Adilai Stevenson and his cousin McLean Stevenson who paid Coronel Blakes on the M*A*S*H Tv series were born and Atlanta with it's big smiley face water tower.
We arrived in Springfield, Illinois where it is all about Abe Lincoln. We started by having lunch at the Cozy Dog drive-in. What is so special about that you ask? Well, that is where the corn dog was first invented and served! We then went to visit Lincoln's tomb a little outside of town in Oak Creek Cemetery. It is a very impressive place outside and inside. The inside is all marble and very well maintained. As you walk through the hall to his tomb you can see how much this man was loved because of the care that was taken in building the whole building. He is buried under the big marble square and his wife, Mary and three of his sons are buried in the wall opposite of him. His oldest son, Robert is buried in Arlington National Cemetery. Then we went to his museum and spent almost three hours there. It is split into four parts. Journey 1 is his life from growing up in Kentucky and getting into politics. Journey 2 is his journey through his presidency and assassination. Then there are two short movies. Next door is the library that is just as big if not bigger than the museum.
Today we were traveling through a lot of corn fields going on the old roads of 66 that aren't used anymore since a better highway was built. We even found a 1.4 mile stretch of road that was brick! Our last major stop today was at the St. Louis Arch. We took a tramcar up to the top of the 630 foot arch and could see forever! We tried to get to it about 7 years ago, but weather forced us to forgo that. And after driving in St. Louis we both agreed that we are NOT city people - never have been, never will be. We are in Pacific, Missouri tonight and will be in Springfield, Missouri tomorrow. As you can see we aren't in any hurry!
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