summercomfort (![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png)
summercomfort) wrote2009-02-19 08:59 pm
summercomfort) wrote2009-02-19 08:59 pm
Road Trip reflections
So in the summer of 2008 I spent 1 month roadtripping around the US with Joanne. We were joined about halfway through with her boyfriend, hereafter known as Snoring Bear.
What follows are some reflections about the experience of road-tripping and about the actual places we visited.
Road Trip
- Is expensive! Gas per day: $40. Food: $30-50/person. Living: $60/room.
- I started appreciating reliability over "local flavor" after the suck that was the Texas Inn. Day's Inn was pretty reliable, and had a real breakfast (versus some that just gave you a powdered doughnut). Pilot gas stations had the best selection of stock -- everything from trucker's time tables to 15 different kinds of drinks.
- Due to the size of the country, you spend more time in the car or crash pad than in any given place. So choose car/crash pad wisely.
- With the daily drive being 6-12 hours, there was a lot of time to kill in the car. Car activities were very required. I wish we had alternatives to listening to Country or listening to audiobooks. Next time I do this, I want to have simple role-playing in the car. Or other conversation starters.
- 3 people made it more fun, but also more expensive since Joanne and Snoring Bear needed their own room, and the cost difference was not offset by thirding the gas. So better in 2 or 4, I suppose.
- You develop a love-hate relationship with the GPS system. (Only really useful in cities).
- Driving on the interstates meant that there would be signs telling you where there's food and gas. However, driving on interstate also means that you encounter the same variety of generic stuffs. Interstate highway is almost a state unto itself.
- Camping is fun and cheap, once you get the food issue figured out. (We made lots of yummy food by camp fire/stove). Also: don't buy the expensive sleeping pads when you can buy an air mattress for much cheaper.
- I ended up doing most of the drive. Mostly because I wouldn't stay awake otherwise. Driving is pretty chill, though. Except for 3-6pm when the desire to sleep is strong.
- A bucket hat is invaluable in blocking out sun/rain!
- We missed a lot of stuff by sleeping in late. I was pretty frustrated by this, actually. I'd be up by 9am, but we wouldn't head out until 11am. We'd drive the most of the day, and by the time we got to the destination, it'd be 6pm or later, and a lot of things were closed. If I were to do the road trip again, I'd be the schedule Nazi.
- We also missed a lot of stuff by forgetting which days were Mondays (museums closed), or which days were weekends (rodeo days).
- Crossing time zones is disorienting! Especially when heading East, wherein you *lose* hours.
America
- Is very big and empty in the middle. The "Wild West" flavor stretches from Montana to the Dakotas and south to Texas and Arizona. It's like 1/3rd Wild West!
- Cities have different vibes and personalities. I think I like that the most of all. How the city is laid out, what people do for entertainment, etc.
- Movies are also everywhere and helps homogenize us
- The land is beautiful and yet so much of it is useless (I'm talking to you, New Mexico)
- Having an "in" in a city feels so much better -- you don't feel like a tourist, and you don't feel so disoriented. New Orleans and Seattle felt better because it was the second visit. Savannah made more sense after listening to "Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil" in the car. Nashville felt better after sitting in a bar for a while and listening to country music.
- I wish I stopped more in small towns, but those don't have an "in". They end up just being a bunch of houses and a gas station to me.
- I love museums. Local museums. The worst kind of museum to visit would be an old school art museum because they always end up being the same thing -- impressionist, post-modern, etc. But history museums are cool. We found a Iraq war memorial in Marseilles (mar-SELLs), Illinois. The various walks in New Orleans. The Country Music Hall of Fame in Nashville.
- We saw lots of battlefields cause it was a road trip with Joanne. What was cool was that after visiting the Grand Canyon where we learned all about John Wesley Powell rafting down the Colorado river and braving the rapids with one arm, a week later we found ourselves at Shiloh, where he appeared in the museum as one of the war-wounded. (This is where he lost his arm.) Man, history is awesome!
What follows are some reflections about the experience of road-tripping and about the actual places we visited.
Road Trip
- Is expensive! Gas per day: $40. Food: $30-50/person. Living: $60/room.
- I started appreciating reliability over "local flavor" after the suck that was the Texas Inn. Day's Inn was pretty reliable, and had a real breakfast (versus some that just gave you a powdered doughnut). Pilot gas stations had the best selection of stock -- everything from trucker's time tables to 15 different kinds of drinks.
- Due to the size of the country, you spend more time in the car or crash pad than in any given place. So choose car/crash pad wisely.
- With the daily drive being 6-12 hours, there was a lot of time to kill in the car. Car activities were very required. I wish we had alternatives to listening to Country or listening to audiobooks. Next time I do this, I want to have simple role-playing in the car. Or other conversation starters.
- 3 people made it more fun, but also more expensive since Joanne and Snoring Bear needed their own room, and the cost difference was not offset by thirding the gas. So better in 2 or 4, I suppose.
- You develop a love-hate relationship with the GPS system. (Only really useful in cities).
- Driving on the interstates meant that there would be signs telling you where there's food and gas. However, driving on interstate also means that you encounter the same variety of generic stuffs. Interstate highway is almost a state unto itself.
- Camping is fun and cheap, once you get the food issue figured out. (We made lots of yummy food by camp fire/stove). Also: don't buy the expensive sleeping pads when you can buy an air mattress for much cheaper.
- I ended up doing most of the drive. Mostly because I wouldn't stay awake otherwise. Driving is pretty chill, though. Except for 3-6pm when the desire to sleep is strong.
- A bucket hat is invaluable in blocking out sun/rain!
- We missed a lot of stuff by sleeping in late. I was pretty frustrated by this, actually. I'd be up by 9am, but we wouldn't head out until 11am. We'd drive the most of the day, and by the time we got to the destination, it'd be 6pm or later, and a lot of things were closed. If I were to do the road trip again, I'd be the schedule Nazi.
- We also missed a lot of stuff by forgetting which days were Mondays (museums closed), or which days were weekends (rodeo days).
- Crossing time zones is disorienting! Especially when heading East, wherein you *lose* hours.
America
- Is very big and empty in the middle. The "Wild West" flavor stretches from Montana to the Dakotas and south to Texas and Arizona. It's like 1/3rd Wild West!
- Cities have different vibes and personalities. I think I like that the most of all. How the city is laid out, what people do for entertainment, etc.
- Movies are also everywhere and helps homogenize us
- The land is beautiful and yet so much of it is useless (I'm talking to you, New Mexico)
- Having an "in" in a city feels so much better -- you don't feel like a tourist, and you don't feel so disoriented. New Orleans and Seattle felt better because it was the second visit. Savannah made more sense after listening to "Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil" in the car. Nashville felt better after sitting in a bar for a while and listening to country music.
- I wish I stopped more in small towns, but those don't have an "in". They end up just being a bunch of houses and a gas station to me.
- I love museums. Local museums. The worst kind of museum to visit would be an old school art museum because they always end up being the same thing -- impressionist, post-modern, etc. But history museums are cool. We found a Iraq war memorial in Marseilles (mar-SELLs), Illinois. The various walks in New Orleans. The Country Music Hall of Fame in Nashville.
- We saw lots of battlefields cause it was a road trip with Joanne. What was cool was that after visiting the Grand Canyon where we learned all about John Wesley Powell rafting down the Colorado river and braving the rapids with one arm, a week later we found ourselves at Shiloh, where he appeared in the museum as one of the war-wounded. (This is where he lost his arm.) Man, history is awesome!
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