Three and a half years ago, a very good friend of mine "kidnapped" me and took me on a 10 day road trip out west. We both referred to me as her co-pilot. We had a wonderful time, and I've been longing for that kind of experience again. With her encouragement and the encouragement of others, I've decided to venture out on a trip of my own. I'm told that it's freeing. I'm starting slow and small; as those of you who know me are aware, I tend to be a rather late bloomer. So, it's taken me all that time to decide that I can do this. I'm only planning to be gone about 5 days. I am leaving tomorrow and starting out towards Grand Rapids, MI, which is the only place I've actually made hotel reservations. From there, I'm planning to go to Holland, MI and then on to Indiana, with the hope of seeing some Amish communities. Oh, and a chocolate factory. I'm going to try to see where the wind takes me (and it probably IS going to be windy; we still have winter weather 5 days in to Spring!) and be open to new things. The only caveat I've set for myself is that I will try not to eat at any place familiar to me. (I'd say no chains, but there are a lot of chains that are not in MI, so I will allow myself to go to chains we don't have here.) So please, follow me along in my adventure and feel fee to leave any comments!