After the ferry ride, there was nothing to do but drive. I climbed into the back of Otto and started to write this very feature for you, our rabidly clamoring audience. Kristanne, however, was left alone to face the rigors of our drive up the East Coast to Easton, Maryland. She singlehandedly battled the Evil Timed Traffic Lights, spaced sinisterly at 1/2 mile intervals, designed to do nothing more than drive a traveller batty. Frothing at the mouth with frustration, Kristanne pulled into the World's Most Hypothetical Historical Site to gather her patience.

OK, it's not actually called the World's Most Hypothetical Historical Site. Technically, it's Fort Raleigh, the earliest colonial settlement in America. Jamestown went and stole all their thunder, and let me tell you, they're more than a little bit peeved about that down at Fort Raleigh. Tease them about that at your own peril. I suppose it's pretty neat that there was a settlement at Fort Raleigh, and it does deserve some commemoration. However, what they've done is pretty much an entire fabrication of history. The interpretive exhibits are chock full of "replicas" and "simulations." Not a genuine article exists. Then, you go out to the fort, a somewhat lackluster set of halfhearted earthen lumps. Ok, you say, it's been a few years -- this is probably what's left of the fort. Nope. Not even close. They bulldozed up a few berms into a square and called it a fort replica. In the interest of verisimilitude, they even put up a sign reading, "Don't Walk on the Fragile Earthworks." Why not? Can't you just bulldoze 'em right back up again?

Slightly disgusted, we drove up to the Kitty Hawk memorial to Orville and Wilbur Wright. As you probably know, these folks are the founders of human flight. They were also boyhood heroes of mine, so we were pretty excited to see the exhibits and historical memorabilia. Though pretty crowded, this exhibit was kinda great, full of the tools and plans Orville and Wilbur used to design the first airplane. Pretty cool.

Sure, it was cool, but we had a lighthouse to see. That's the Cape Hatteras Lighthouse you see up there, and as I'm sure you can tell, it's Scenic. Darn Scenic.

We pressed on, eager to meet Kristanne's parents at the house of their friends Bill, Betty, Donna, Josh, and David in Easton, Maryland. After an invigorating (and slightly confusing) trip through the ten dollar toll tunnel that takes you under Chesapeake Bay from Virginia Beach up into Maryland, we came into Easton just in time for dinner and some pleasant conversation. We even got to sleep in an air-conditioned room, courtesy of Bill, Betty, Donna, Josh, and David. It was great!

It was great, but there was more Scenery to be had. We present the final Scenic Shot at left as a warning to others. This is the Scenic Shot gone to seed, once a certain self-conscious decadence has crept into the art. This isn't Scenic; this is self-indulgent. We promise to get back to that wide-eyed fresh-faced naivete that has been our hallmark here on the Odyssey just as soon as possible. See you next time on the Odyssey!