Drive to NOLA [Day 1] Boston, MA - Winchester, VA

In the morning of the mildest (and the warmest) Christmas day ever, we set out from Boston. The gorgeous sky showed a blue rarely seen in winter, and the vegetation was still green. As Bo said, it felt like we were traveling in spring, while it was supposed to be a chilly Christmas.

The GPS led us into a neat highway: Connecticut Route 15, or the Merritt Parkway. Paralleling the more popular route I-95, it is much narrower and curvier, while with richer culture and history. Still, the blue sky accompanied us throughout the travel.

We took the Tappan Zee Bridge across Hudson River, and entered New Jersey. In one day, we drove across 8 states (Massachusetts, Connecticut, New York, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Maryland, West Virginia and Virginia).

 

Winchester is the town we spent the night at. Before checking into the motel, we stopped by the Old Town for dinner. It's definitely a hidden gem - a downtown composed of traditional American architecture, civil war history, and laid-back atmosphere.

Union Jack Pub (http://theunionjackpub.com/), one of the top-ranked American restaurants in town, was the only open one on the street. They serve decent British food such as fish and chips, banger and mash, and a variation of pies, for affordable prices.

Built in 1940, the Old Court was used as a hospital and a prison during civil war. Since Virginia was first controlled by the Confederacy during the war, it was used first by the Confederacy, but then by the Union at the end of the war. Other historic buildings on the street have a similar history.

Old Town Winchester totally made our day. It was the greatest surprise of the day. After wandering about the tranquil downtown and enjoying the antique atmosphere, we headed over to our motel and got ready of the next day.