Okay, so I just got back from a 4,700 mile road trip from Los Angeles to Jacksonville, Florida and back (we covered eight states). My boyfriend and I traveled to Florida to spend the holidays with his parents, who obviously live in Florida. Here are some of my observations that I made about America and her people (well, the ones who live in the southern part of the country):
There are shitty drivers everywhere. Bad driving is not exclusive to one state, city, sex or even race. I’m sorry but as a whole, Americans are bad drivers. And NO ONE makes a complete stop at a Stop sign. Don’t get me started on driving in the rain and snow….
People are still taking road trips. Here I thought the whole family going on a cross country road trip was dead but it isn’t; it is alive and well. Along our drive my boyfriend and I kept track of all the different states we saw on the license plates. I think we saw a good collection of them (Maine, Wisconsin, Tennessee, New York, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Alaska, Colorado, Oregon, Oklahoma, and lots of other Californians). There are still families out there traveling with their luggage on the top of the car, okay, so now the kids can watch DVDs the entire drive instead of keeping themselves busy playing the A, B, C game, or car bingo (I loved that game), or God forbid, reading a book, but the important part is that the kids are still in the car going to new places and seeing new things.
Americans, on a whole, are friendly and helpful.
The country is full of weird billboards alongside our big interstate highways. The one that kept catching my attention is the ad for vasectomy reversal. Who is this billboard for exactly? Is there some man out there, driving the 10 highway that sees this and thinks “oh, that’s right, I need to get my vasectomy reversed. Let me stop the car and write down that 1-800 number.” That billboard was in all 8 states. Oh, and I did see one billboard advertising vasectomies – they only cost a few hundred bucks. Let me know if you need the number....
The people in the southeast like to think that they are religious. As soon as you hit Texas, all you see is churches. The smallest of town, ones that don’t even have a light, have at least 5 or 6 churches and the churches have billboards and signs out on the street inviting you to join them.
Driving a Land Rover is fun and my boyfriend trusts me. Okay, this observation isn’t about Americans, just me. I drove my boyfriend’s Land Rover (his most prized possession) through most of Texas and I discovered that being in those giant vehicles that you can’t see past, is actually really nice. It’s nice to be up high and be able to see everything. And while driving, my boyfriend napped, which surprised me. I guess he felt safe enough to close his eyes with me driving his expensive vehicle – good to know!
New Years is the best when you are with the person you love the most in this world – you don’t need millions of other people. Boyfriend and I spent New Years Eve in a Comfort Inn in Panama City Beach, Florida – just the two of us and it was the best New Years I’ve ever had.
The trip back from Florida we stopped at some great spots in this country, Dirty Dick’s Crab Shack (really good restaurant by the way), The Alamo, which I thought would be bigger, and Billy the Kid’s gravesite, which looks pretty cool covered in snow. We also stayed with my somewhat weird aunt and uncle outside of Roswell, New Mexico (and then later made the trek to the International UFO Museum & Research Center which is really cool – if you have the chance – go). I visited an old friend in Albuquerque who is now on her second husband and has three children – God am I getting old (I have zero husbands and zero children)! Also visited my alma mater, Northern Arizona University in Flagstaff (again, covered in snow). It was fun to see my old stomping grounds but it wasn’t the same – winter break so the campus was deserted – must go again in the spring.
It was nice to get home and sleep in my own bed after two weeks of a variety of different pillows and mattresses. It was nice to not have to get in a car and drive 4 hours to get somewhere. It’s nice to not have to eat out anymore (I’m sure I’ve gained back all the weight I recently lost on Weight Watchers…oh well). I am glad to be home but I miss my boyfriend. After spending every hour with someone for two weeks straight it’s weird to have us go to separate places all day. We had a great time together – traveling with your best friend is one of the most fun things you can do in this world. But it is nice to be home safe and sound…that is until our next road trip.
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