Up the Great River Road to Quincy

Such an adventure we had on the way to Quincy yesterday. 6 severe storm warnings had been posted, but we lucked out--the storm was moving rapidly N-NE and we were approaching from the S-SW. We missed the brunt of the storm (65 mph winds), but when we arrived at the campground last night, we needed to put fresh water in our tank (there was no fresh water hookup at the site) and the handle to that compartment broke off. Storm clouds for round 2 were rapidly gathering. Lisa, aka MacGuyver, figured out how to get the compartment open, we got the fresh water in, and the heavens opened up. We ended up having to get level, hook up electricity, et al, in a major downpour, with lightning and thunder. We love our firsts, but that was a little much.

Saturday dawned sunny and nice, and my brother and his wife picked us up at the campground around 11AM and we proceeded into Quincy (my family's ancestral homeland) for a tour and a visit to our favorite restaurant from 1927. Turns out there was pretty major storm damage in Quincy--huge trees toppled everywhere--but we carried on our tour. When we pulled into the Maid-Rite parking lot, it was eerily empty. Sign said: Closed because of power outage. Foiled! So we found a cute grill on the riverfront, next to our grandfather's old riverfront warehouse, and had a nice lunch.



And then we got my big brother's famous tour of Quincy, since he remembers much more than I do. Here's my favorite mansion in this town full of old brick mansions. Notice the roof tiles are also flowers....



And here's the funeral home that was once operated by the ancestors. Apparently, it was for sale a few years ago for $200k. It appears to be off the market and sort of sliding down hill, but it's still a beauty.



Many card games have been played, despite the heavy bug population. Pat won the first round of Hearts, I was leading the second round of Hearts, which was called due to bugs, and Lisa won the game of Golf. Much fun. We grilled out steaks and had an early celebration for Pat's upcoming 50th. So great to have all these visits with family.