:: hem ::

*In fairness to our hotelier hosts, Steve's complaints about shower-head height were immediately disqualified, except in particularly flagrant and degrading instances (see Nashville, TN).

November 13-15
Atlanta, GA
Hampton Inn Atlanta Midtown
Mysterious Water-Siphoning, Floor-Soaking Curtain

November 18
Nashville, TN
Best Western Music Row
I Swear it's Like Sternum Height

March 6
Galway, IRELAND
Roisin Dubh
Rapidly percolates through ceiling fixtures below

On the way back to NYC from Pittsburgh we stopped off in Shartlesville, PA, and ate at Haags Hotel. Home cooked PA Dutch food served family style (huge amounts of everything filling up the table) or ala carte. You can get the food to go if you are in a hurry. There is a great local and cheap bar in the front. Its a nice little town with no corporate franchises in site. If you want to do a little tourist thing that doesn't take too long, checking out "Roadside America" is a must.

As Hem were on tour in October and November, it was time again to enter once again into the wonderful world of truckstop cuisine across the country. Since we all live in New York City, this is quite an adjustment. New York must be the best food city in America, and we're all spoiled. Truckstop food is usually pretty bad, and trying to decide between a microwave-and-eat burrito and another pack of beef jerky is a decision we all get pretty tired of making. That being the case, we were thrilled to stumble upon "Allen Brother's Fresh Fruit and Vegetable and Garden Center".

We were headed south on 91 on our way to Northampton, MA from Burlington, and Tim Broun, our loyal tour manager, decided we should get some gas. We pulled off the interstate at exit 5 in Vermont and there it was, complete with a Citgo gas station. Perfect! Fresh apples! Pears! Whoa, this is some truckstop! The four of us (Bob, Gary, Dawn Landes, and Tim) piled out to see what they had inside. This place was a goldmine: outside was a huge variety of fresh, locally grown apples and pears - Empires, Jonagolds, Cortlands, Macouns, $9.95 for a half bushel. This was too good to be true. Finding a fresh apple on the road is hard enough - these guys had 6 or 8 different kinds! After we recovered from our initial shock, we trundled inside, and were not to be disappointed. They have their own bakery! No Way! Fresh bread?! Holy Cow. Apple Cider donuts! Fresh sandwiches made right there on the premises on home-made bread. Fresh roasted turkey, anything you want, made right before your eyes. Nary a Slim Jim in sight. No plastic-box-sealed, 3-week-old, nasty sandwich made God knows where and dropped off to decompose in the fridge till one of us is so desperate we buy it! No sir! Not at Allen Bros.! Home made Vermont maple syrup candy, good self-serve coffee, homemade desserts, and everything was cheap. They had pizza too, made right there - we didn't try any, but it looked pretty good. Oh, every place we stop on the road should be like this! They had a cheese selection -actual cheese- not string cheese. Vermont Cheddar, (of course), Gorgonzola Dolce, Explorator, Brie, Goat Cheese. And in the next aisle, WINE! Yes, they did have the usual lousy cheap American bottles, but good stuff, too. A few Italian, a couple French and some good Californians. Our pick would be the 2002 Ca' Del Solo 'Big House Red'. A cheeky little number made from a blend of Syrah, Malbec, Mouvedre and even a little of the Italian grape 'Dolcetto'. Pretty good, not unlike a decent Cote Du Rhone. A good bottle for $8.99. I realize this might not sound all that special to some of you, but you're not on tour! We really do get desperate for a decent meal on travel days, and this place was a miracle. Well, we're off to Northhampton for a night off... till next time, eat well and drink wine!

We should also to mention a great diner, Libby's Blue Line Diner in Colchester VT. On South Park Drive, across the street from our hotel (The Fairfield Inn, Colchester). Almost the entire band had breakfast here and we loved it. They serve a great, old-fashioned American breakfast. Good coffee, excellent eggs, good bacon and sausage, homefries, you name it. Good toast, too. They use a lot of locally grown ingredients and it shows. Nothing like a good meal first thing in the morning (well, first thing for us is around noon..but that's touring for you). Try Libby's, you'll love it.