More of the South and other ruminations

The morning we were in New Orleans (from now on I am calling it NOLA), we had our beignets and I had my chicory coffee at the famous Cafe du Monde. I would spend a lot of money there if I lived in NOLA. We then decided to splurge on a buggy ride that was nice and quite interesting. We passed by the oldest bar in the US, the first pharmacy (where the idea for the song Love Potion No. 9 came from) Brad Pitt and Angelina Jolie's house, dozens of beautiful houses with wraparound balconies (a sign of wealth was whether your balconies could wrap around on all sides), the place where Napolean was supposed to go for the end of his life (where Julianne had more gumbo and I had my mufaletta), and various other places. It was good to get another "taste" of the place so know what to do (and what I have already done) if/when I go back (which I am hoping to do).
The people of NOLA are so interesting - a lot seem to be transplants, but all locals seem to be very proud of the city. I saw many stickers that said "New Orleans: Proud to Swim Home". Living so far away, I didn't really understand why some people would want to stay there after Katrina destroyed their homes (among other things), but now I have a better idea of why they love their city. NOLA's blend of cultures and influences make it a really unique place that is nothing like anywhere else.
We left NOLA for Crestview, FL, where Julianne's aunt lives to say hello and stay for the night. We even were treated to dinner at a Japanese grill restaurant where the chef entertains you at the table.
After Florida, we drove northeast for the first time to Atlanta (through Alabama). We ended up going to a place owned by Gladys Knight and Ron Winans which had the most amazing chicken and other southern food, worth the hour wait. Over dinner we discussed how much of a "taste" of the US we have gotten, both literally and figuratively. We have made a point to at least get the essence of the places we have visited, whether by touring or eating or both. It has given me a good idea of places I want to spend more time in to appreciate them fully (the Northwest, California, Chicago, National Parks, New Orleans, the South).
I have realized that at the end of the trip, I would have stayed in or at least driven through 27 states - I am still amazed. I feel like at this point I should make it my mission to visit all 50 states by the end of my lifetime. If I end up on a political campaign at some point, that goal would be very feasible.
Speaking of traveling, I also realized that I have unknowingly traveled back (more or less) to the roots of my parents this summer - Budapest, Cleveland and Ithaca for my dad, Texas, Chicago, and Florida for my mother. Even though I didn't spend much time in any location (especially my mother's Texas - next time!), I still feel a bit closer to those roots.

Louisiana and the South

As we traveled through California and the South, I couldn't’t help but notice towns with names in Spanish, and how comical some of them sounded when translated. There were towns called Manteca (butter) and Bandera (flag), which, of course, sound nice in Spanish, but can you imagine living in a town called Butter?
Now that we have reached Louisiana, I am amazed at how far we have driven these past few days. From Tuesday morning until this Thursday evening we have gone from south central California to Louisiana, going almost clear across three other states in the process. This hit me as we re-crossed the Mississippi River in Baton Rouge, after crossing it the first time in Minnesota. I think the distance it is more of a reality now because we stopped more often before on our way West.
On our way from Austin, we hit what seemed like a monsoon and I feared that it would follow us all the way to N.O., but fortunately it didn’t. I can’t imagine being in the middle of a hurricane here, since I can see how easily the surrounding landscape could get flooded (and that is without the problems of human-built “protections”). I also cannot imagine what it was like to attempt to leave here before or during Katrina since every way in or out of the city is over a body of water.
The effects of Katrina are still evident here, from the boarded-up and empty buildings to the pictures of the flooded hostel we are staying in. I can't imagine what it was like two years ago, and wish I could remember N.O. when I was here before Katrina. However, it seems to be bouncing back fine, and people even joke about it (we saw t-shirts with slogans like "Make Levees Not War"). Bourbon St. is lively (we personally "investigated" by taking part in the revelry - next time I will go to the bars where the locals go). We also went to a local restaurant and had authentic seafood gumbo that was some of the best I have ever had (for anyone coming here, the place is called Coops on 1109 Decatur St.), complete with an Abita Purple Haze (the local brew). I am hoping to get my muffaleta and chicory coffee with a beignet before I leave.
I have posted a couple more pictures, since I finally have a strong enough internet connection at the hostel in new Orleans.

Texas

After leaving California (so sad to leave the Pacific!) we took off to get back on track with our scheduled stop in Austin, spending the night briefly in El Paso before heading to Austin (I hear the slogan here is "Keep Austin Weird"). Driving through Arizona, New Mexico, and Texas was frankly not that interesting, especially the drive from El Paso to Austin, but not everywhere can be interesting. For most of that ride I caught up on reading the last Harry Potter.
It was weird being so close to the border of Mexico in El Paso....there were a number of cars with Mexican plates and everything was in both Spanish and English. On our way to Austin we had to go through a random border patrol, where the guy on patrol simply asked us if we were American citizens, and with a yes and a nod, we were on our way - is this a bit worrisome for anybody?
We have definitely entered Bible country, where mega churches populate the roadside every mile (or even less). Julianne even commented that for some, you can't really tell them apart from the gas stations and stores from the way they look from the highway. However, Austin seems quite liberal, especially around the U Texas campus. It would be nice to spend more time here, but again, it is somewhere that I can put on my list of places to return to someday.

Hollywood

This afternoon we trekked to Hollywood to see the tourist stuff of L.A. We drove up to town in the Mini and stopped at In and Out burger, the famous California burger chain which makes its food fresh (they actually peel the potatoes for the fries in the store on the day they serve them - what a concept!). It was quite tasty for fast food, actually, and quite an experience.
After parking we walked up Hollywood Ave., and decided to stop at the L. Ron Hubbard Scientology building to see if they had a tour. During this trip we have been experiencing a whole variety of religions and faiths, and thought that it would be interesting and amusing to see what the Scientologists had to say. This is the building that Tom Cruise and other famous Scientologists frequent, but we didn't see any of them, of course. The tour was essentially an overview of L. Ron Hubbard's life and Scientology teachings led by a perky tour guide who subscribed to the religion (and told us that she had sweated out red hair dye from 10 years ago during the detox program - weird and disgusting). Some parts of the religion are actually OK, and I especially liked one of the tenets about respecting other religions. Other parts, however, are quite strange, and the fact that Hubbard created this religion after writing science fiction is slightly unnerving.
After that experience, we headed up Hollywood Blvd, looking at the stars on the walk of fame as we went. The neighborhood is mostly run down and filled with tourist shops, tattoo parlors, and other seedy-looking establishments until you reach Hollywood and Highland. This is where the Kodak theater is (built specifically to hold the Academy Awards) and also an outdoor shopping mall which actually offers a view of the Hollywood sign, albeit a far away one.
We reached Grauman's Chinese Theater and looked around the hand and footprints of the stars amid what seemed hundreds of other tourists and costume-clad street walkers looking to make money from pictures. The theater is also sort of old-looking but it is still moderately kept up for the tourists.
Overall I think I enjoyed northern California better, mostly for the people, but also for the atmosphere that gives off a more laid-back vibe. According to some that live here (including our host, Mike), people in L.A. are here "to be seen" or "to make it" one way or another, whether in the entertainment industry or not. Thus, some people (I am not saying everyone, but the general vibe seems to be this way) have more attitude and believe they are "hot stuff". This was a stark difference from everybody I encountered in northern CA. Speaking of the area, we heard that there was a small earthquake this morning in San Fran, which would have been a bit scary but also an experience.

Santa Monica/Venice Beach

Yesterday I spent most of my time at the beach in both Santa Monica and Venice beach, close to where Julianne's cousin Mike, and his wife Kieu live. The promenade on the Santa Monica beach, which is a pedestrian street, is a really nice part of the area, with nice shops and beautiful people walking around. I initially parked in a spot where I wasn't supposed to, and a nice, older man came up to me and told me that at noon on Wednesday there is no parking (of course I completely didn't realized that it was Wednesday!). He said that I would get a $75 ticket and instead I should park for 75 cents in the parking garage next door. How is that for kindness? So I parked and poked around the promenade, picking up coffee in a boba tea place (they are plentiful around here!) and then going back to the house. Then Kieu and I went to a place called Killer Shrimp - all they make is shrimp is a somewhat spicy but flavorful sauce and serve with some form of carbohydrate (as a side note, the food I have had in CA so far has been delicious, and as somewhat of a "foodie" I find that I talk almost as much about the food as I do about my experiences!). Then we went down to Venice Beach to walk around and people-watch. It was amusing going by the famous 'muscle beach' where there is an outdoor gym and large men (at times in tight clothing, or barely any clothing) hang out.
For dinner we went over to a Thai place and sat outside to enjoy the weather along with our food. It is close to the Venice beach canals, which was originally constructed to look like Venice, Italy. We walked along the canals and stared at the beautiful (but undoubtedly expensive) houses along the water. According to Wikipedia (which may be inaccurate), many famous people have called the neighborhood home, including Jim Morrison from the Doors. Supposedly even Arnold Schwarzenegger even got his start at the Gold's Gym in Venice. In addition, numerous movies were filmed around here, including Because I Said So (around the canals).
Today I am planning on spending my day again on the beach, though sunscreen and a hat will certainly be in order!

Pacific Coast Highway

Today we left San Fran early and drove down the PCH pretty much the whole way. We stopped briefly in Santa Cruz and Carmel (intending to have lunch there, but it was very swanky) and then to Big Sur for burritos. The drive down the middle part of the PCH was breathtaking, and fortunately not as bad as the road out of Yosemite. It is difficult to describe the experience going down the PCH - I felt like I was in the middle of a movie! I had been looking forward to doing that the whole trip, so I was happy we were able to take advantage of the opportunity.
We made it to L.A. without much trouble, though there was still traffic at 7 in the evening.
Not much else to say, except I am stalled on putting up more pictures for the moment. However, I did discover a feature on Picasa that allows you to map your photos, so I have started to do so - you can track our route by the pictures that are up.

San Francisco

Today was another whirlwind tour of San Fran, but instead of taking off in the car, we were in the city the whole day. There is so much to see and do, I will surely have to come back to do the rest. I really like the city and could easily live here (if it weren't so cold, so expensive, and so far from everyone on the East Coast). There is so much diversity here due to the numerous immigrant groups and open-mindedness of many of the residents. It was interesting to take the bus (for one, it was enjoyable not to have to drive in the city and navigate the one way streets and steep hills) to be able to see the city but to see the kinds of people who live here by who gets on and off the bus. For example, most people riding the bus in the Mission were Latino, while those riding around Chinatown were, of course, Asian (and tourists from the Fisherman's Wharf). The steep streets make me think of an entire city of Mission Hills, which also makes me greatly admire the bikers and walkers here (for those of you not familiar with Mission Hill, it is a steep hill in Boston near Northeastern where a lot of students, Julianne and myself included, live - though I lived at the bottom fortunately!). There are also Minis, Prius', and VW (well, any city car, really) aplenty and we have spotted numerous cousins to my Mini today.
This morning we got up early to try to take the first ferry to Alcatraz, only to discover that tickets were sold out until Thursday! A note to future tourists: get your tickets ahead! So, we walked about Fisherman's Wharf, saw the sea lions at Pier 39 (though most had gone for the summer), and went to the Boudin bakery.
Then we went downtown to Alamo Square where the 'painted ladies' Victorian houses were - and what a view! The climb up the hill was worth it. By the way, the opening sequence to Full House, as well as parts of Mrs. Doubtfire were shot here. Then I went to have lunch with my friend Richard in the design district, which seemed to be full of re-purposed warehouses. After that I made my way to the Haight-Ashbury district, famous for the hippie movement. It is still a fun and funky place, still populated by characters of all sorts. We even found the former Grateful Dead residence on Ashbury.
After poking around there, we went back to the fisherman's wharf to the Boudin Bakery for a self-guided tour (ending with free samples!) and a purchase of bread (I ended up getting the chocolate-raisin sourdough after sampling - it was delicious! I was a bit disappointed, though, that they didn't have small loaves of the walnut bread - until next time).
Once we were done with bread fun, we headed to Walnut Creek on the BART to see my Uncle and Aunt who live there, and who I have not seen in a number of years.

For laughs, here is a priceless conversation we had today:
Me: "Let's go to the Pacific after the Haight"
Julianne: "What's that?"
Me: "Ummm the ocean"
Yes, Julianne knows about the Pacific ocean, but there is a neighborhood called Pacific Heights that created some confusion. I couldn't stop laughing after a minute or two.

We didn't get to do too much here, but it is only a reason to come back to San Francisco to really appreciate the city - but this time I am bringing a warmer jacket!

I thought it might be amusing to mention that we have started to refer to the Mini and the Magellan GPS system as people rather than inanimate objects, as in: "You can do it Mini, climb those hills", or "What is my next direction, Magellan, I would really like to know". I suppose that happens when you spend a lot of time in the car and rely on objects such as a car and GPS.

By the way, the picture link should work now, thanks to the suggestion by my friend Eric - thanks!!! I am working on "mapping" my pictures, so you can visually see them on our route.

Lake Tahoe, Yosemite and San Francisco

First a note.... I have been hearing that my pictures are inaccessible. I apologize, especially since I have been trying to be good about posting them. I am not sure what the problem is, so let me know so I can try to fix it. I am using Picasa web albums that works in conjunction with Google, so if you have an account with Google, you can probably sign in that way, if that is the issue.

So now for our day....
The Mini had quite a workout today as it huffed and puffed up and down a couple thousand feet with all of our junk in the back, so I am happy to report that it made it to San Fran and is taking a break in a parking lot until Tuesday. We decided to leave Reno early to take a detour to Lake Tahoe, and Yosemite National Park before we headed to San Fran (since we had the time, and we were close). First we had to drive up Mount Rose to get to Lake Tahoe, a mountain used mostly for skiing but was absolutely beautiful as we drove to the top. We were so high (over 9,000 feet) that it was actually a full 20 degrees cooler when we got out of the car to take pictures.
Once down the mountain we encountered Lake Tahoe, which is an amazingly clear, blue body of water. The surrounding nature even reminded me of the Maine landscape. After saying goodbye to Lake Tahoe we drove over to Yosemite National Park and went up again to about 8,000 feet. The park was beautiful and mountainous, with waterfalls, and even bear crossings. It's difficult to put into words what it was like - you just have to visit and see for yourself.
On the way out of Yosemite, we had to go down a treacherous, windy road on the downhill - one of those roads where, if you sneezed, you go flying off the side. This became a running joke during the day of windy, hilly roads. Needless to say it was not pleasant, but we obviously (and fortunately) made it out alive and intact (including the car, as I mentioned above).
Then it was on to San Fran through central California. We arrived at our hostel in time to make it to the Golden Gate Bridge for sunset, though pictures only had one or the other (the bridge and the sunset together was difficult from where we were at). Nevertheless, it was awe-inspiring, not just the sight itself but for the fact that we have reached the West Coast in a car. I still cannot believe that we are here already after so much anticipation.
So far I love the city and I wish we had more time here. The few people we have encountered have been really nice, such as the bus driver who told us we were going the wrong way, told us where to go and subsequently opened the door for us to get off - I have not seen many bus drivers do that in either Boston or D.C. I am really looking forward to tomorrow, especially since we get to spend a whole day in one place without hopping in the car the next day.

Salt Lake City and Reno

Today proved to be an experience in western America. We started off taking the free tour in Salt Lake City, provided by the LDS (Latter-Day Saint Church, or the Mormons) Church. The couple who drove us were very nice and very proud of the accomplishments of the LDS church (i.e. that they absorbed the cost of maintaining the parking lot next to Temple Square during the Olympics - the wife mentioned it twice). We arrived in Temple Square and went to the visitors center for the 30-minute tour led by the "sisters" who are serving their mission at the Temple. The proselytizing was very subtle, but there - they were on missions, not tour guides. The temple itself was impressive, and I am sad that I missed the Tabernacle Choir, but there was't much else unless I like to ski (and of course we are in the middle of Summer). The Wasatch mountains were amazing - I can't imagine living in a city like that were the mountains are literally right next door.
We were able to pause at the Great Salt Lake to take pictures before we drove through Nevada - also not very interesting. The Mini had quite a time going up and down the mountains and the hills. There isn't much I can say about Reno, except for that it is a unique slice of American life. It is much like Atlantic City without the boardwalk. I don't believe it's a place I appreciate since I don't enjoy gambling, and there isn't much else to do here.
Tomorrow we are probably going to take a detour to Lake Tahoe and Yosemite before heading to San Francisco. We will officially be across the country - amazing!

Wyoming and Utah

So I am sitting at the Salt Lake City KOA campground (yes, there is a "campground" in the city) on my laptop computer and feeling like it defeats the purpose of camping. However, it was well worth the $15 per person, as it not only has free wireless and electrical hookups, but it has a hot tub, pool, a restaurant called Nana's (and yes, there was an actual "Nana" who was nice as could be serving us delicious food), and free shuttles to downtown Salt Lake (the lady at registration said that the "payment" was a half hour tour - I can take some guesses, but we will see for sure what that means tomorrow).
Now every time we stop I marvel at the fact that we are nearly completely acrosss the country, and that this is no longer a dream or something I have been talking about for months, but it is actually happening. I feel like I might wake up tomorrow in my bed in Chevy Chase and will still be anticipating it. I know it will go by quickly so I am trying to savor the moments. By the way, since MD, the car has gone about 3,000 miles - unfathomable for me, and we still have a ways to go. I think by the time we get back, the car would have as many miles as some drive in a whole year!
However, I think the (many, endless) "moments" in Wyoming I could have done without. We left the campground to see Mount Rushmore, finally, and can finally check that off my list of "to do's". I am not sure I would go back to South Dakota, except maybe to the Black Hills area we were just in. Then we drove endlessly through the state two-lane highways until we got to Wyoming. At that point we drove through more endless highways, only this time there was nothing surrounding us but flat nothingness for as far as you could see. The only slight redeeming quality was the few mountains and rock formations on the side of the roads, as well as the fact that you could see rainstorms for miles before you actually entered them. Otherwise we could have easily skipped the state. The only reason I would go back there is for Yellowstone National Park, a place out of our way for this trip.
Utah is completely different, with mountains and bright red rock formations on either side, with curving, winding roads that lead into Salt Lake. The views are amazing. I am looking forward to seeing more when we head to Reno tomorrow.

Minnesota to South Dakota

Yesterday morning Eric took us to Minnehaha Falls (“Laughing Water”) in Minneapolis, which was close to the Mississippi – it was a nice sight in the middle of a city. I think I would like to go back and explore the number of art museums (one of which Eric lived next to) and theaters in the city. We really didn’t have time to take full advantage of the city. We then went over to the Mall of America so that we could say we went there, though the shops were closed since it was too early. The main purpose, though, was to go to Ikea across the street to have their 99 cent breakfast – it seems like be a popular thing to do, maybe for the Mall of America shoppers and walkers.
We drove down Minnesota and then over to I-90 into South Dakota, which spans the entire state in the south. It is an endless road with flat prairie for as far as you can see. There are more signs advertising various “attractions” such as the famous Wall Drug and the Corn Palace, both of which we stopped at. Before we went to Wall Drug, however, we did the Badlands loop which was impressive. We were both thinking that pictures will not really do it justice. It was really strange to see that smack in the middle of the South Dakota prairie. We even saw prairie dogs, though fortunately no snakes.
After finally coming up on Rapid City it was dark and we were ready to be at the campground, but we were able to see Mount Rushmore lit up in the dark - it was smaller than we thought but still awesome in many senses of the word. The stars out here are of course plentiful and was also a welcome sight after the long drive.
This morning was also beautiful, and it was nice to wake up in the middle of nature for once. We are off to see Mount Rushmore in the daytime and perhaps take advantage of the $2.50 all-you-can-eat pancake breakfast at the KOA. Then its another long drive to Salt Lake City, probably through Wyoming (though I never know how Magellan will take us!)

WI and MN

We drove through WI into Minneapolis. We first had a nice tour of the Pleasant Prairie area courtesy of Julianne's Uncle Joe - first to Lake Michigan, then to see the Wolly Mammoth at the museum, then to Julianne's aunt's farm. Certainly a nice slice of the Midwest (we even had pizza with (Wisconsin?) cheese!). The trip is now really starting to feel like a road trip - the drives are getting long, the roads less interesting, the destinations further away from DC.
We arrived in Minneapolis through St. Paul to see my friend Eric (hi! I know you are reading this!) from Page program days. We also had a nice whirlwind tour of downtown Minneapolis in Eric's car, swinging by the lakes, the buildings, the theaters, and the restaurants. We stopped by the famous spoon bridge by Claus Oldenburg and had a photo session.
Tomorrow we are hoping to get an Ikea breakfast and stop at the Mall of America before we head to South Dakota to the KOA Campground.

The Midwest

We got through our longest drive (12 hours) from upstate New York, through Pennsylvania, Ohio, Indiana, Illinois, and finally to Julianne's Uncle and Aunt's house in Pleasant Prairie Wisconsin. The nice things is that the rest of the legs are shorter than yesterday's so it won't be so bad. It was quite a change from NY, green hills to the flat, brown grasslands of the Midwest. We attempted to listen to the audiobook Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil, but the number of characters and numerous distractions proved to make it difficult to follow. We saw a DC Metro car being transported in NY, probably headed south to where I just came from! We also saw people with what looked like surfboards on top of cars, but we decided that they had to be windsurf boards for the many lakes. Another funny sight was the RV/MV Hall of Fame in IN - I wish we could have taken a picture!
I am happy that we gained an hour with the time change since it allows us to catch up a little on our sleep and other things we had to do (like write this blog!). Entering Chicago was amazing because the skyline agains the post-storm sky was a beautiful sight, especially since it meant we only had an hour left of driving. We were successful in taking pictures with Eastie with the skyline in the background (see the link) - thank goodness for digital cameras!
We discovered that, after raving about my cool sneakers and Julianne's headlamp, we forgot our respective items at Pete's house. We are now joking about ending up with an empty Mini at the end of the trip!
We are off to Minneapolis today and then camping in SD tomorrow. Mount Rushmore here we come!

A Tour of Upstate NY

We have made it to our first two stops on the road trip and so far so good. The trip up from MD to CT was successful, and so was the trip from CT to Luzerne, and then to Ithaca. In Luzerne we stayed at the cabin of my friend Rachel, went to the beach, kayaked, and traversed the "village" of Lake George. Then we drove through upstate NY, all green hills and small towns to Ithaca to stay with my brother Pete. He played "tour guide" (we said he could probably earn extra money on the side as a tour guide for the tourists like us) and we did a whirlwind tour of downtown, PSP (including a stop at Gimme! coffee). We then ventured to the Taughannock Falls, to tasty burgers and soft-serve ice cream with Nancy and Daniel. It was a nice beginning to our cross-country trip, especially to be treated so nicely by family and friends!!
Tomorrow is one of the longer stretches of the trip (12 hours) to WI. An adventure for sure!

Bon Voyage

I take off tomorrow for the beginning of the road trip and can't believe it is almost finally here! After so much planning and anticipation, the day has finally arrived. I am just hoping that things go well (mostly with ourselves and my dear Mini), that everything fits into the Cooper, that we have fun, and experience lots of things we have never had the opportunity to do so far. After traveling in Europe, driving around the States might be a bit of a culture shock, but I hope it will help me understand the U.S. a bit more and why we are the way we are. Even if it doesn't, I am sure I will learn a lot on our way! I am also hoping that starting my drive on 7-7-07 will give me some extra luck in making sure things go well. Let's just hope I don't run into massive traffic around New Jersey where the Live Earth concert is being held.....