Buffalo weekend: getting home.

I left Buffalo around 7am on Saturday and planned on taking a much faster route home. I took I-90 straight across to Syracuse and stopped in at my old stomping grounds. As soon as I got off the highway toward the University I saw a guy holding a sign that said "I need Tickets" and I thought, "Oh no, tickets to what?" I had assumed this would be a sleepy Saturday morning on campus, but little did I know The Orange was playing Georgetown in a much-anticipated rematch. Thankfully I was there just after 9am (the game started at noon) and I was able to get a parking spot on Marshall Street.

One of the main reasons I wanted to stop was I had yet to see Newhouse III, the newest addition to the school I attended. It's really a beautiful building, very airy and modern and full of state-of-the-art technology and spaces to collaborate and study. The building was pretty much empty, but I could imagine the energy that must be there when it's full of students. I liked it very much. Here is a photo of the new and old, Newhouse III in the foreground and Newhouse I in the background:

And here's a shot of one of the interior spaces. The first Constitutional Amendment is prominently displayed throughout the building (both inside and out) and other text and quotes are on walls throughout the building as well. As a school of communications, they are passionate about free speech (as they should be).

My original plan (before I knew there was a game) was to get a Pizza Bagel at Cosmos, but there was a line out the door by the time I got back to Marshall Street:

EVERYONE was wearing Orange. I felt out of place and wish I had thought to bring my bright orange sweatshirt. It would have been fun to be part of the crowd. But I did my job of supporting the local economy and did buy a new Alumni sticker for my car and some other Orange and Blue items. It was not until I got to the Bookstore in Schine student center that I realized they were calling for all fans to wear Orange to the game to create an "Orange Out" in the stands. For this purpose they were selling these t-shirts:

They were out for revenge because they had lost to Georgetown a few weeks ago and obviously wanted to win with home-court advantage. I got to listen to the game as I headed out of town, but didn't get to hear the end. My dad called with the final score: Syracuse won in overtime! The Orange Out must have worked.

Closer to home I was itching to get out of the car again and saw a sign that said "Martin Guitar Factory, Next Exit". So I decided to get off the highway in Nazareth, PA and drive 3 miles to see the Martin Guitar factory. I assumed that it might be open at 2pm on a Saturday, but it wasn't. I got to see the outside of the factory:

And right by the front door they have the Martin logo in the pavement just the way it looks at the top of one of their famous guitars:

This is only about an hour and a half from my house, so I'll have to see if I'm ever able to get back for a factory tour.

I was excited to get home because Sylvie and Miriam were in Princeton! More on that in our next installment...