After seeing the Chicago skyline and paying over $5 in tolls to go about 20 miles (STUPIDEST THING EVER), and a bit of a detour, we made it to St. Joe. First we went and saw the house that we lived in. It looks exactly same, they haven't even painted it, and we moved in 1993. We also saw the homes of some of my family's childhood friends.
Next stop was The Neon Grill for lunch. It's just a tiny, little drive through; you can't even go inside the place. My family has fond memories of their french fries, burgers and lemonade; and we remember it for the mint green Cadillac on the roof. While it may not be quite as good as I remembered, it was still worth it. Next we drove to a park and ate our lunch over looking Lake Michigan.
After lunch we drove to see the ocean and the lighthouse (my mom has a statuette of this lighthouse in my dad's office) and enjoy the sun. We walked out on the jetti and watched some Coast Guard boats before heading back. We drove to see my first elementary school, E.P. Clarke, where my mom was a crossing guard and I went to kindergarten and the first half of first grade. Sadly, the Mushroom castle is gone from the playground, but otherwise it looks very much the same.
We also saw the Ponderosa restaurant where my family would eat from time to time (it's closed now); and the new Church building.
Last but not least, we went to Kiwanis Park to see if they still had the giant metal slide I remembered. It's gone, but the big twisty slide is still there and now there's a skating park.
A 2+ hr trip later, minus tolls but with more traffic, we were home again in time to study. Don't know if we'll ever go back but it was sure nice to visit and reminisce.
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