I was a little concerned about staying near the downtown area of an unfamiliar city rather than out on the bypass. Often the motels which aren't near the freeways don't get the customer traffic and tend to be less clean. The Quality Inn proves me wrong. The drive out of town in the morning brings a smile to my face as there is little traffic on this Saturday morning.
 
I-64 takes me around Charlottesville and gives a pretty view of the mountains. Just past Charlottesville I hop off the freeway onto Hwy 22 which meets up with Hwy 15 in Gordonsville.
 
Both roads are pleasant and have a mix of straights and curves through farmland. Along Hwy 15 I have to stop to wave at the cows and get good karma. I'm not sure that it worked though since the bike develops a bit of a backfire shortly afterward. Maybe if I wasn't drooling and didn't have the bottle of A-1 Steak Sauce in my hand at the time my luck would be better.

In Orange, VA Hwy 20 leads toward I-95 and D.C. Traffic is BAD and it's stop and go until the turnoff for I-395. Staying on I-295 off to the left is a view of the mall I haven't seen before, even though the mall is familiar. In my infinite wisdom I elect to stay on 295 and immediately start the D.C. crawl. After a couple of miles enough is enough and the gps routes me back to I-95. Funny how I-95 is a better choice. These back roads are loaded with national agricultural research facilities. It's astounding to see these large tracts of farmland this close to D.C. I'm sure there's some money here.

Baltimore passes by quickly as does Ravens Stadium and I can't help but thinking about the move the Browns made many years back. Having spent part of my youth in Cleveland watching Jim Brown run at Municipal Stadium, the move still doesn't sit well with me.

One of the totally nonsensical plans on the trip is to eat a Philly Cheese Steak at either Pat's or Geno's 9th Street and Passyunk Avenue in South Philadelphia. They have a famous rivalry with Pat claiming to be the originator of the cheese steak. Geno is clearly the showman of the two and whereas Pat owns a corner of the intersection, Geno appears to have bought the rest of the intersection.

Thank heaven for the gps as it takes me right to the intersection. Buildings are tight and traffic is heavy. The parking spaces in the middle of the street between the two lanes of traffic confuse me, but it's clear you make room where you can.

A motorcycle is about the only vehicle that could find a parking spot in this area and I park very near the intersection. There are close to 100 people in each line for Geno's and Pat's. I've done my research and know the lines move quickly. I also know the lingo and am ready for one, provolone, with which should secure me one sandwich with provolone cheese and onions. On the way to the window Geno's has a series of pictures plastered on the overhangs, walls, and ceilings of the celebrities they've served. Across the street is a storefront with custom motorcycles also paying homage to Geno's. The person in front of me tries to give them a credit card. Rookie. At the window I give my 3 word spiel and get a knowing look from the clerk. Was the wait worth it. Yes for the experience. No for the sandwich.

It's easier getting out of South Philly than getting in. Within a couple of minutes I'm cruising by the harbor with my eyes set on the beast, I-95. The thought occurred to me that it would be fun to head toward Atlantic City and work my way up the coast along the Garden State Parkway. Hah! What am I thinking. Every mother loving son and daughter within a 100 mile radius has the same idea. I-95 starts to look good again.
 
Throughout the day I've been stuck in traffic jams meant only for weekday traffic. Let's talk about the Delaware Toll Road. I'm sure there was a glacier in this area recently, but with the all the 10 mile backups to pay a toll and the subsequent hit to global warming it has gone the way of the Dodos. Every other lane is a EZ Pass lane and this makes for some interesting jockeying for position at the booths. At one point I picked up a toll ticket in Pennsylvania, drove 1/2 mile around the corner and had to stop at a booth and pay. That, in itself made me laugh so hard I almost fell off the bike. All in all the traffic increased my travel time by 3 hours. In the end, I can only blame the traffic congestion on tourists like myself.

Rayway, NJ was a pleasant surprise. There are some nice little houses near the motel and I'm conveniently close to the Verrazano Narrows Bridge and Manhattan. I'm really looking forward to tomorrow.