Fond Memories

When I was a child my family used to travel from NW Pennsylvania to the Philadelphia area at least once a year to visit family there.  We traveled diagonally across almost the entire commonwealth on the Pennsylvania Turnpike, aka America's First Super Highway. The first section of this toll road (turnpike) was actually opened just nine years before I was born and... eventually it had seven tunnels between my house and my grandmother's.  I found it all rather amazing, but I also remember the tunnels as stinky, dark and sort of scary. I understand at least one reason why people try to hold their breath in tunnels. Anyway -- the tunnels brought together both directions of traffic into a single lane in each direction. Don't know if it is still that way. I do know that several changes have been made over the years.  Anyway -- the phrase "light at the end of the tunnel" has always had special meaning for me.  

As the years passed by though -- cross commonwealth carsickness tempered the excitement of travel.  The only thing that saved me was the sight of an orange roof.  Howard Johnson's.  The best restaurant ever.  The best ice cream ever.  28 flavors!  We would stop for one meal along the way.  For me it was always "Grilled Frankforts and Boston Baked Beans with Brown Bread" which, by the way,  cost under a dollar. (I ran across an old menu on eBay recently so I know this is accurate.) My big sister had more expensive tastes in food -- always preferring to order the "Crispy Fried Chicken dinner for a little over $2.00.  It came with cranberry sauce, French fries and coleslaw.  Makes my mouth water to even remember. My dad used to grumble that the chicken would take a half an hour, but always let her order it anyway.  I think the grumble was part of his "Dad" routine. 

All the Howard Johnson restaurants are gone now.  I think the last one was in Lake George, NY.  It was sold and closed in 2023.  Odd thing -- I used to live about 12 miles from Lake George and I never knew that there was a Howard Johnson restaurant there.  Drat.  However... the  childhood HoJo memories remain.... a favorite meal and an ice cream cone on the way out to eat in the car.  Nice. I will just hang on to those small bits of childhood ....  No harm in that.