This morning we continued up the Hudson valley.

Past historic houses.

Past farms and fields.

Roads conditions varied widely. At least there was no rain.

In late afternoon, we reached Albany, the state capital, nearly deserted at the start of the 3-day Memorial Day weekend. It was time to leave the Hudson River and turn West along the Mohawk. Jeffrey started over a bridge before realizing that he belonged on a bike path on the far side of a waist-high rail. He stopped – and stopped traffic! – while he removed baggage from the trike, put it over the rail, then lifted the trike over the rail and climbed over after it. Disaster averted!

Meet Chloe. She called out to Jeffrey to ask about the trike. She ended up hearing about human rights and people who come to America to escape the bad guys. She put one of our stickers on her shirt, and let her mom, Pat, join her in this photo.

Archie stood by Albany’s Spanish-American War monument. He and Jeffrey talked about human rights campaigns. Archie said when he displays his sign, or a peace sign, most people are indifferent, quite a few are friendly, and a few get nasty. The nasty ones hurt, but they remind him of why it’s important to raise consciousness. Jeffrey admires Archie’s attitude.

Eva drove past Jeffrey on the road, with a honk and a wave. She called out to Jeffrey when he passed the gas station at which she was filling up. Eva talked about her education as a dietician, and how she became a special ed school aide when her son was diagnosed as autistic. She volunteered that her Portuguese family had sheltered Jewish refugees during World War 2. She is very interested in human rights issues of all kinds, and honored Jeffrey by asking him to take a selfie of them both.

We are staying the night with our recumbent trike-riding friends Leslie and Ken in Schenectady. Jeffrey recently met Leslie on a legal education lecture panel in New York City. Or so he thought. Tonight, Leslie realized that they worked together on the Duke debate team in the 1970s, Jeffrey as student, Leslie as coach. When reminded, Jeffrey remembered too!

Chloe, Pat, Archie, Eva, Leslie, Ken . . . so many connections, so much common ground, if only we are open to it. American law calls persons not born or naturalized here, “aliens”. What a foolish term. We don’t know where any of the people we met today was born, and we don’t care. Birthplace has nothing to do with what brought us together and made us new friends.