Stop 2 - Springfield, Illinois

Ok. So we leave Chicago on Route 66. We start from the start...

Next is the challenge to drive out of Chicago. Despite roadworks closing off the very road we need we manage to escape its clutches and we're away. We're on Route 66 heading for LA. But a few miles to go yet.
There is so much history on this road. We've decided not to use any GPS systems which are just going to take us on the Interstate system. We want to follow the original Route 66 as closely as possible so we travel through every small community and connurbation that was ever a part of the heritage of this Mother Road. And there is history on every bend. Along the way for example are "giants". These larger than life models were placed along the route in order to.......let me show you a picture to explain..

The first of these that we came across was in Williamston so we stopped for a photo....

  Then we carried on through Braidwood, Braceville, Gardner, Dwight and Odell. These places are full of weird Route 66 history. People's houses are shrines to it. For example we passed one place whose front garden contained a load of petrol pumps that were once used by the garage next door to serve "gas" to route 66 travellers...

We ended up around lunch time in Pontiac. There you find the The Old Cabin Restaurant which dates back as far as the beginning of the road itself. We had to stop there. We had burgers and root beer and left a comment in the book kept for the purpose. It was the first stop we had made that really made us feel a part of the whole Route 66 culture so that was what we wrote in the book. Our waitress was Laura who said things like "Allrighty" which we loved. We had a photo taken with her.

Onwards after lunch through Chenoa, Lexington, Towanda, Normal, Bloomington and Funks Grove until we came to McLean and another "giant"

A quick stretch of the legs before travelling through Atlanta, Lincoln, Williamsville and Shermanbefor arriving at Springfield - our stop for the night.

And what a night! I have just retrurned - 7 pints of Stella later - from a fantastic evening with great new friends. We went out for a walk in the town and came across a bar called "Floyds". Because I happened to be wearing a Pink Floyd sweat shirt we thought the coincidence sufficient to warrant a pint or two. So in we went. A pint of Stella for me, a pint of Strongbow for Pand and a coke and lemonade respectively for the boys - gibbers!
By the end of the evening we were all pals. Turned out that the owner of Floyds was also the owner of the hotel we were staying in! Addresses were swapped etc and I hope they will venture over to us sometime. Great people..

 After we left there we went in a taxi to a steak house they recommended. The recommendation was good and the steak was great. You actually cooked it yourself. Weird! But the most succulent fillet I have EVER tasted. I even took a photo of the place but enough for now. As I type this Pand and the boys are all fast asleep. Im wishing I could swallow another Stella but am resigned to the fact that I really should get to bed. Tomorrow is another long day. We drive to St Louis. We have been given more recommendations about what we should do there. So we are all excited about another day ahead. More about that after our 3rd stop