Slow Road through Ohio

Our trip home was deliberately lazy as we steadfastly refused to follow a schedule. So we took a more scenic route on Highway 33 as opposed to Interstate 77. Leisurely cruising through small towns with the sunroof open in beautiful weather was the order of the day. We took a drive through Athens and the campus of Ohio University, alive with students grilling out and tossing frisbee. Athens is the home of a favorite restaurant of mine...Casa Nueva. I originally had lunch there with Connie years ago and have been a fan since. They are worker-owned and were always using local ingredients. Their housemade salsas and guacs are worth the visit alone. Alas, we didn't stop this time and drove on instead to Columbus. Check them out at www.casanueva.com.

Continuing our visits to old favorite haunts, we headed to German Village in Columbus as soon as we hit town. Strolling amongst the historic homes admiring the architecture would be cool enough, but there was no way I was skipping a visit to one of my all-time fave bookstores, the Book Loft. I've mentioned it before and it's 36 rooms of books and feels like you've had a spa treatment after a lengthy visit there. Stopped at Hausfrau Haven, an eccentric wine and gift shop and moved on to the food...

Lunch was at the outdoor patio at Lindey's. We both had some flavorful lobster bisque and I had a terrific fish sandwich with a lemon-caper mayo.

Soon, we were on the road again...