Day 2: Cleveland, OH to Wisconsin Dells, WI

We woke up around 8:30am to catch the end of a pretty decent if unextraordinary breakfast at the La Quinta. We packed up the car - not the easiest feat - and set out for Indiana, with our new car mezuzah put up (thanks, Teri and Aaron)! This was a new state for both of us, #42 for Abe and #31 for Arielle. We arrived in Fremont, Indiana to visit Abe’s cousins Kenny, Amy, and Xavier at their lake house. They took us out on their boat on Snow Lake, which was beautiful, and we docked at a restaurant called The Waterfront Bistro. Arielle enjoyed a delicious Caesar salad (one of the best she’s had - the dressing was not fishy at all) and fish and chips. Abe’s king salmon fillet with grilled asparagus was excellent. The family time was very nice, and both Abe and Arielle even got to drive the boat. It was drizzling a bit but the ride was comfortable and peaceful despite Arielle’s anxiety about the speed of the boat.

We said goodbye to our cousins and hit the road for our next state, one both of us had been to before, lllinois. Though Abe’s parents were flying out of O’Hare Airport just a few miles away, we made sure to avoid Chicago as much as possible to miss traffic, stopping only for gas and for $1.50 scoops of Baskin Robbins on the 31st of the month in Oak Park. We crossed into Wisconsin, state #43 for Abe and #32 for Arielle, while it was still light out, arriving at Mars Cheese Castle around 8pm. We decided to share two legendary grilled cheese sandwiches, an original with cheddar and mozzarella on marble rye and a far crazier one, the Sweet Salut, with port salut cheese (described as a hybrid of Muenster and Brie), sliced apples, and honey on multigrain. Both were quite appetizing and beyond filling. This place is highly recommended for anyone driving through Wisconsin, provided you don’t have a dairy allergy. We left the cheese to drive the remaining two hours to the Wisconsin Dells, where we were promptly greeted by overwhelming sights of outdoor waterparks from the highway. We pulled into our hotel, the Grand Marquis Waterpark Hotel and Suites, around 10:30pm. Next up: our adventures at the largest waterpark in America.

Approximate number of miles covered: 524