Day 6: Back in the U.S.S.A.

First off, I wanted to say to those of you who are still following along, congratulations! I'm proud of you. And those of you leaving comments, thanks also, it's nice to know that people are reading and correcting my typos. This trip is really all about you, so your feedback is greatly appreciated by myself and my entire staff. No seriously, feel free to keep commenting, I like it.



We started today with a return to our new favorite place, Fran's. It did not disappoint, as I learned that the breakfast is as good as the dinner. We had the same waiter, who seemed like he might have remembered us from two nights before, and still treated us quite well. I also learned that the name for Canadian bacon in Canada is "peameal bacon," not "back bacon" as I had previously thought, but it's still every bit as delicious as I could have hoped.



As the icing on the cake, they had about the least tasteful men's room ad I've ever seen, and it was for a racetrack nonetheless.



With our bellies full and spirits lifted, we made our way back out of the city of Toronto. Along the way, we did catch sight of something that my associate thought was an indication of a rather startling conspiracy.



With the city behind us, we made a beeline across southern Ontario towards Michigan. It was a long drive. We saw a little of this:



And a few of these:



Not to mention a lot of this:



And still more of this:



Along the way, we were amused only by the Canadians' helpful suggestions.



There were also versions in French, but I couldn't get a good photo.

After a few hours, we made it to Windsor Ontario, the city across the straits from Detroit. The sign at the entrance hailed it as "The Place to Be." It was pretty much this:



We opted for the tunnel crossing into the US as opposed to the bridge, so our run for the border took the form of a slow subterranean crawl.



A few questions from the immigration department later, we were in Detroit. Hard to say what I thought of my first extended voyage through anglophone Canada, but I suppose now I have a better understanding of why so many comedians come out of that country.

After spending a long time in a tunnel, we were anxious to drive, so here's the extent of what we saw in Detroit:







After taking the Interstate through half of Michigan, we decided it was about time to go Charles Kuralt and take some of the back roads, see some of the Real America. So we got off I-69 and onto old Highway 12.



And saw a little of the followng:







Going through Sturgis, it was starting to get late and so we opted to stop for a local dining experience.



Then decided it was time to zip back to the Interstate. Apparently there's a reason why they're called the "back roads."

We rolled into South Bend, Indiana about 9:30, and got to our hotel around 9:45, after a little unnecessary difficulty finding where it was. So now we're experiencing the best of what South Bend has to offer.



Under an Indiana full moon.



Tomorrow we get back to the real sightseeing action, and if all goes as planned, my next entry will be coming from America's third-largest city. Till then!