Road Trip

Finding vegan food when you're dining out can be tricky, but finding it at your all-American rest stop can be close to impossible ...  Before we set out on our drive to New York on Saturday, Josh and I each had a quick blueberry muffin for breakfast, but we knew that wouldn't be enough to get us all the way to New York from Maryland (about five hours of driving). 

 

In Northern New Jersey we finally stopped to use the bathroom and grab some food at a rest stop that featured Burger King, Popeyes, Nathan's, Cinnabon, Auntie Anne's, and Starbucks.  Not the worst selection, but not exactly vegan-friendly either. 

 

Thank goodness for iPhones!  A quick search got me to this page on Auntie Anne's website, which says that their pretzels are vegan (as long as you don't choose a cheese-flavored one or a pretzel dog!).  A giant pretzel isn't exactly healthy, or even really all that filling ... but it was enough to get me through the drive without *too much* complaining. 

Before we got to our final destination in New Paltz, we stopped in Woodbury, NY to visit the Woodbury Commons Premium Outlets - which is supposed to be the best outlet mall in the country.  Just a few of their more "premium" offerings: Armani, Bottega Veneta, Canali, Roberto Cavali, Missoni, Kate Spade, Diane Von Furstenberg, La Perla, Prada, Versace ... the list goes on and on. 

Unfortunately, Josh and I aren't really great shoppers.  Try as we might, we couldn't just splurge on a bunch of stuff we didn't need.  We went to a bunch of stores, but I came away with one pair of jeans and one skirt, while Josh didn't get anything at all.  I was really hoping to find some great sneakers at the Reebok outlet, but no such luck ...  A big rain storm hit toward the end of our visit which soaked everyone and forced us all under the awnings for about a half hour to wait it out.  (See post-rain puddle picture).  By the time the rain let up we were ready to get out of there and on our way to New Paltz for the next step in our weekend adventure ...