Woke up in lovely Lewisburg and was treated to breakfast by friends Linda and her (celebrity!) lawyer husband Jeff. He had to fight off potential clients and aspiring lawyers at 7:30am at the local bagel shop! Linda was a Susquehanna classmate/friend of bro Chris’ and worked at SU in Development before joining Jeff as a co-pilot at their firm. My senior year I got know Linda serving as class agent for the annual fund campaign. Funny how “giving” brings people closer 36 years ago and reunites us on the Thor Tour! Before I pulled out of town, of course fueled up with some excellent espresso straight from Paris (aka The Paris Bakery). Nicest pastry shop ever and the owner/employees were dressed like French bakers.
Heading towards Bellefonte, my end goal for the day, I passed by beautiful farmlands with draft horses probably part of a settlement of Amish. Had the opportunity to snap a photo of a young couple out in their buggy. I then hesitated, out of respect I think, to take pics of a large family being driven by the patriarch in open carriage. It would made for an epic pic with the family dressed in bright colorful shirts and dresses with the dark forest in the background. The man waved back at me and smiled, so I just lived the moment. They were followed by a group of boys in hats and royal blue shirts with the eldest ones riding double on push scooters with younger siblings. They also waved and had huge grins on their faces. Seemingly simple life, but hardly in this modern world.
Made it to Bellefonte with an hour to spare before an expected, crashing T-storm with streets flooding. Thankfully i got settled into the Reynolds B&B and was treated to an incredibly satisfying dinner by family friend Doreen and her boyfriend Bob (pictured outside the beautiful B&B). Doreen is a Penn St friend of Margot’s who graciously hosts us every year for PSU football games. Bellefonte has a charming green that sits on the river running through the town. It’s a great place to unwind after a big college football weekend or all day bike ride. Back to Happy Valley in the fall!
