It’s summer, and it’s the best time of the year for cross-country trekking. Every day, we send songs of love all over the United States, Canada and often, the UK (of course, we take requests from ANYWHERE on this earth and have even sent a song to Australia!). Naturally, I’ve been thinking about what a Songs of Love road trip would look like. There are so many towns put on the map with a Song of Love, and if you love exploring as much as I do, I think you would enjoy checking them out too! Let’s imagine what we would need for a month on the road and explore a sampling of possible stops! We can’t forget our playlist – a long LONG playlist, as we would cover thousands of miles with the route I’m imagining, which starts from our office on the east coast, crossing the northern part of the country and eventually up to Alberta Canada to the town of Red Deer, from which we’ll make our way down into the Pacific Northwest, where we’ll probably need a break before driving all the way back across the country. So, go ahead and use the facilities one last time, and we’ll be off!

Taking off from our Forest Hills office, after 6 hours and roughly $30 in tolls, we will arrive at our first stop: beautiful Lancaster, Pennsylvania, aka PA Dutch Country, and home to Song of Love recipient, Ryder. Driving through Lancaster, we’ll pass sprawling fields and many horse-drawn buggies (we could even take a ride in one – or maybe Ryder will take us for a spin on an ATV, his favorite). Fresh produce stands are abundant, just like the dinner options at The Shady Maple Smorgasbord, which we Simply. Cannot. Miss. There is no way we’ll still be hungry, but we should swing by Lancaster Central Market for a snack for the road. It’s the oldest farmers’ market in the country, home to some vendors for generations. With our tummies quite full, we will be on our way to check out Cuyahoga Falls, Ohio to find Jackson and his PJ masks!

If we get bored soon after leaving Lancaster, we can easily play the Counting Cows car game – bovines scatter the land as we cross the whole state of Pennsylvania and head into Ohio. Not far over the border in Ohio, the turnpike will take us through Lordstown, where we would catch a glimpse of the latest Chevy Cruze up high on display at the GM Production Complex. Soon enough, we will reach the town of Cuyahoga Falls, finding the once flammable Cuyahoga River, now cleaned up for all to enjoy. Our friend Jackson not only loves Garfield, Skittles and puppies, but he also loves the park. So, we might find him, as well as the falls for which the town was named, if we take a stroll through Gorge Metro Park, one of the many trail systems in Northeast Ohio. We could go kayaking on the river, but chances are we’ll catch a show at the Blossom Music Center – we are Songs of Love, after all! Perhaps we’ll even put on a Songs of Love Experience, engaging an entire audience to record a Song of Love for another local child. After a busy visit, we’ll be on our way to the next stop.

Not too long ago, we sent a Song of Love to Faith in Minot, North Dakota. The song probably took several days to arrive via snail mail, and it’s going to take us a good 19 hours to get there from Ohio! I see many many rounds of the Alphabet game in our future (A my name is Alice, my husbands name is Art, we live in Albuquerque, and we sell Apples! Now B, your turn!). I had never heard of Minot, but it sure has a lot to offer, and I’m sure Faith will show us some of her awesome DIY projects and take us horseback riding. Minot is a recently revamped city (following some devastating floods in 2011) and home to all things Nordic! The Scandinavian Heritage Park is not the only tribute to Minot’s heritage, as its Annual Norsk Hostfest includes tastes of entertainment, food, clothing and art from Sweden, Norway, Iceland, Finland, and Denmark! Culturally satisfied, we’ll depart from Minot, sticking to the cooler latitudes and heading to Alberta.

North Dakota may share a border with Canada, but we have about 12 hours of driving to reach Red Deer in Alberta. Red Deer recently landed not only a new hit Song of Love for Julian, but also a spot on on Expedia’s list of North America’s “Most Breathtaking Places.” Julian certainly lives to the fullest in this glorious Canadian town, camping, tobogganing and playing soccer. We will be ecstatic over the fresh air and scenery, as the skies just don’t come that blue in greater New York City. We won’t be too far from Banff National Park, with the gorgeous Lake Louise. So, with some recent camping advice from our local friend, we can probably take a couple of hikes and spend the night before making our way back into the U.S. where we have much more ground to cover.

At this point, I think we’ll be feeling like the energizer bunny, so taking a break to relax in Seattle is not a bad idea. Stay tuned for another edition of Songs of Love on the Road!

We hope you enjoyed today’s Songs of Love vibes! Not only can we imagine a road trip to visit our songs of love recipients, but we have always envisioned Songs of Love “On The Road” – with groupies and everything. We’d go from city to city helping one local child after another with a Song of Love boosted by the power of an audience at concert events. So, if you’re coordinating any performances, keep Songs of Love in Mind as your opening act! Songs of Love Experience is sure to thrill and move not only the audience, but your headliners as well. Visit our team building page to learn more about how you can take Songs of Love on the road!!