The Baseball Geek

You know you are married to the right person when for Mother's Day they surprise you with a trip to Cooperstown, NY (home of the National Baseball Hall of Fame). An even better confirmation is when your sweet husband understands and agrees to let you extend the trip so that you can see Yankee Stadium before it is demolished.

Last week, I took off for 6 days all by myself (how indulgent is that??) and embarked on my dream trip. I know some dream of seeing the Eiffel Tower or the Great Wall, but Cooperstown was my dream and I was going on Induction Weekend which meant Hall of Famers would be everywhere.

I arrived in Albany late Friday night and met up with some of the people that I was "touring" with. I use quotes simply because it meant that we were on the bus together. A majority of the time I was on my own and just needed to be back at the bus by a certain time. I found this to be the best way to travel. I didn't have to listen to a boring tour guide and I could explore as much or as little as I wanted to.

I had built the trip up in my mind so much that it couldn't possibly live up to my expectations. Fortunately it exceeded them. I could never do justice to how beautiful upstate New York is and even moreso how beautiful Cooperstown Village is. I won't get too philosophical here (I'll save it for my journal), but suffice it to say that I felt like I had died and gone to heaven. It could not have been a more perfect weekend. I even got a great surprise when I snuck out the side exit of the museum to find Cal Ripken Jr. doing a radio interview.

I was there for two days and got choked up leaving. I KNOW it isn't the last time I will be there. It a place that I have to go back to. There are some places that instantly feel like home and Cooperstown Village is that place for me.

Monday morning we got on the bus and drove to Boston. In someways Boston feels like a second home to me...especially Fenway Park. It is without a doubt the best ballpark in all of baseball. I can now say that with complete authority because while in Cooperstown they did a little question and answer session with several Hall of Famers and Fenway was the unanimous choice for all ball players.

Fenway was beautiful as always and I was able to do the behind-the-scenes tour and see all of the changes that have been made since 2004. It was a little funny because I think I might have known more than our tour guide. In fact, halfway through the tour people started asking me questions. The highlight for me was that a new bar had opened up in center field of Fenway on the previous Friday. It is called the Bleacher Bar and it literally is in center field of Fenway Park. To sit and eat lunch and look out over that beauty left me speechless.

I walked back to my hotel and changed and then walked back to Fenway to watch a game between the Red Sox and the Angels. The Angels won (of course..and I expect them to all the way through October- they are my World Series pick) but I did get to see one of Manny Ramirez' last games as a Red Sox.

Tuesday morning we boarded the bus and drove back to New York to go see the House that Ruth Built and Steinbrenner remodeled. To be in Yankee Stadium was equally surreal. It seems tragic that it is being torn down. I am a baseball purist and absolutely hate to think about something as iconic as Yankee Stadium no longer existing. Of course, I hate the Yankees and George Steinbrenner, but I still don't think it should be torn down. I got there early which was great. A-Rod hit about 17 balls out of the park, but unfortunately I didn't snag one. Regardless, it was an amazing adventure and something that I will remember forever!