2006-01-02T06:36:00.000-08:00

M.O.A.T. (The Mother Of All Tours) 2005

The Gospel According to Donna

For the benefit of anyone reading this who is unfamiliar with our family and friends, the following should give you an idea of the people who feature most in the ensuing pages, if you are made of stout enough stuff to wade your way through it all!
Zoe: our daughter (though I’m pretty sure you all know that)
Ralph and Linda: our very dear friends who live on the most beautiful beach in Southern California and have put up with our visits many times over the years. Ralph and Barrie met when they both worked on the same project for Xerox in Rochester, New York in 1978/79 and Ralph insisted that we spend our honeymoon, based with him, in 1980.
Blitz (Sue): My oldest and closest friend who I have known since we were at school together and who is the other half of ‘Donna & Blitzen’
Ken & Sally and their children Alex & Amy: our very good friends and ex next door neighbours
Barry & Jill: Ralph and Linda’s neighbours
Jeff: another of Ralph and Linda’s neighbours
Vic & Jean: my uncle and aunt
Joan: Barrie’s aunt
Dan & Sheila: American friends who lived in Sarratt for a couple of years
Dottie and her son, Christian: Wife of Dom, another good friend of Barrie and Ralph’s from his days working in Rochester, but who very sadly died the year before our visit.
All other friends are mentioned by name and I hope I haven’t missed out anyone.

INTRODUCTION

In the Autumn of 2004, with Zöe having finished university and back home we planned in earnest for our long dreamed of road tour of the United States. We set to one Sunday morning with me working my way around a huge map with a cocktail stick broken to a length representing 150 miles (a distance we felt that we could comfortably travel each day) and two boxes of map pins, while Barrie sat at the computer checking out local events and sights along the way. We planned to fly to Los Angeles and stay with Ralph and Linda in time to celebrate our Silver Wedding with them and then travel eastbound along Route 66, taking in places we’ve always wanted to visit and people we wanted to see, with overnight stops in obscure places. The rough itinerary was dispatched to Ralph for comments and feasibility. The first blow came when he told us that Route 66 had been swallowed up into a freeway that by-passes most of the places immortalised in the song!
After initially thinking that we might buy a second hand motorhome for the duration and subsequently reading an account of a couple on a similar trip experiencing a “broken pipe from the brown water tank”, I became lukewarm about the idea (to say the least). We switched to the idea of buying a car and staying in motels and I instantly warmed to the prospect of no cooking or cleaning for 5 months. Barrie did considerable poking around on the Internet, however, and discovered that National Car Rental would be prepared to let us hire a car for such an extended time at a good rate. The benefit, of course, was that if it broke down, we could ask the nice man in the nearest branch to give us another, versus unexpected delays, inconvenience and potentially crippling bills if we were to buy a vehicle.
I embarked on a ‘life laundry’ in the weeks leading up to our departure by getting rid of an enormous amount of clutter and emptying one wardrobe and various drawers in our room for use by a friend of Zöe’s who will be staying with her for part of the time.

We described the tour as being our ‘gap year’ and when people asked, “Why five months?” we explained that three would not be long enough for what we hope to accomplish and by extending it to six, we would miss summer at home completely. (Nobody wants to miss an English summer).That seemed logical enough.
We received fantastic hospitality from our friends in the two weeks leading up to departure and the pounds I had carefully shed started to creep back on again! Neil and Jill threw a party for us and Alu and Veena had us round for dinner as did Sarah and Philip. I met up with Farida and Liliane for lunches and we had dinner at The Red Lion with Ken and Sally. We received several bon voyage cards and even some gifts; the Travel Journal (that encouraged me to write all this) from Roger and Dalene, a gadget containing an additional computer memory chip, light and pen from Mike and Heather and a $20 bill to buy drinks with from Freddie. We also had loads of phone calls from Blitz, Hilary, Farida, Rita Musk, Erica, Pat Griffiths, Dalene and Zoe’s friend Katie Moore. (I hope I haven’t missed out anyone). Everyone said how envious they were, which made us feel rather awkward.
Thanks to our being able to take advantage of the commercial rate through a contact in a foreign exchange company, we managed to transfer the lion’s share of our funds to our dollar account at a very favourable rate!! On this basis, I reckoned on travelling fairly light and buying clothes there, but still managed to fill 2 large suitcases and 2 sizeable pieces of hand luggage.
Barrie experienced more than a little bureaucracy when applying for our visas (required because our stay exceeded 90 days) and trying to obtain credit/debit cards, as our account at the Bank of America had not been operational long enough to give us a credit rating. At one stage it looked like we might have to carry huge bundles of cash or travellers’ cheques around with us, which wasn’t very appealing.
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Wednesday, 16th February 2005 - This journal is intended to be written every day; neatly, full of really interesting stuff and, hopefully, with humorous accounts of people and experiences along the way. Dave Barber loaned me a copy of John Steinbeck’s “Travels With Charley”, a peaceful account of his 1962 road trip with an ageing poodle. As a tribute to this, I might call the journal, “Travels With Barrie” (I just hope that Barrie doesn’t suffer the same bladder problems as Charley experienced along the way!). We had decided to be uncharacteristically extravagant and travel “World Traveller Plus” with British Airways. This gave us more comfortable legroom and seats. It was also a ploy suggested by friends who said that smartly dressed, well-behaved and sober people would be selected form here to be upgraded. Strangely, that didn’t happen. I blame Barrie. Our backup was for B. to flash his ‘I’m an independent travel agent’ card (a scheme he had bought into because it promised all kinds of discounts at hotels), but “because the flight is not full, even staff will not be upgraded” was the response he received from the crew. How strange; we thought that would have been the reason if the flight had been full.

Thursday, 17th February - What great timing our flight proved to be. We got up yesterday at normal times, flew in the afternoon, arrived in LA early evening, went to bed around 11.30 local and managed about 5 hours sleep. I didn’t feel disorientated – hooray! Ralph and Barrie went off looking at laptops, after we made a brief visit to the Hermosa Beach branch of Bank of America to activate cards and meet the manager, April, who had been so helpful in setting up our account over the phone. Linda and I ‘did’ South Bay Plaza shopping mall. I found a lovely pink leather wallet and some smart sandals in a sale that will be perfect for the wedding we are going to when we get home. Two twinkled chaps helped us plan our time in Hermosa before the ‘off’, after we ate a very sensible steak and salad dinner at ‘home’.

Friday, 18th February – Zöe rang in the morning to say that the web cam outside a restaurant on The Strand (the promenade to us Brits) where we had planned to put in an appearance later in the day, had been knocked out by the rain! (But it never rains in Southern California!). Boys went to purchase laptop, mobile phone etc., while girls visited Linda’s mum and aunt at their retirement home. We all got stuck into preparations for tomorrow’s barbecue. It was pouring rain for most of the day and we sought sanctuary at Boogaloos’ (a wonderful local restaurant that has live music) for dinner (great blackened chicken salad) and indulged in after dinner ‘tiddlies’ at The Mermaid (a beach bar dating back to the ‘50s, that has never been renovated) courtesy of Freddie’s $20 gift. Linda and I slept through the most almighty thunderstorm!!

Saturday, 19th February - More and more rain stopped play outside for the barbecue, but we had a really nice day indoors with Jill and Barry, Shawn, Ellen (Ralph’s sister) and her sons Mike and Brian + Mike’s girlfriend, Abby. Jill and Barry gave us wonderful goodies – a fleecy travel blanket and a memories box containing a USA Road Trip book that was to prove invaluable.

Sunday, 20th February - Squeezed in a mini shop at Robinsons May somewhere. Bought some Clinique foundation as mine had gone missing between home and The Sleepy Cat Inn (the guest quarters at Ralph and Linda’s) and came away with a complimentary bagful of useful and usable goodies. All went to see “Catechism II” (an hilariously funny inter-active one woman – or should I say nun – show, set in a 1950s school room, with ‘Sister’ teaching her ‘pupils’ about the Catechism) at Hermosa Beach Community Theatre, before cocktails at The Chart House and Cheesecake Factory (2 local restaurants).

Monday, 21st February -Boys met a friend for lunch somewhere while girls had a late start for leisurely shopping. Linda opened a Macy’s account just so I could buy 2 jumpers at less than the sale price of one of them, with all the extra discounts. I was unable to do it myself because of the old lack of credit rating - what a mate! It was President’s Day so everywhere was busy. Ate at home.

Tuesday, 22nd February - Boys went to join us up at AAA (American Automobile Association) and get remaining maps and fantastic guide books (that they hand over to members in limitless numbers), then to buy a jacket for Barrie at Ross Dress For Less. Girls went downtown for lunch and the Arts and Crafts Movement Exhibition at the Art Museum on Wilshire (I found $35 on the floor!). Drove past the Beverley Hilton, where we spent the first night of our honeymoon (aah!). It was “Taco Tuesday” (99cents per taco – so we all ate and drank well on the $35 find) at a restaurant that I don’t think we have never been to before. It bucketed down and there was much thunder and lightning.

Wednesday, 23rd February (Our Silver Wedding day!) - R & L gave us a super cake knife and slice set. Boys to LA Airport Museum and girls to shop in Palos Verdes. Home to primp for the evening. Barrie gave me a beautiful silver necklace and bracelet (and I thought we’d agreed that this trip was our present to each other!) over champagne, before the limo picked us up for dinner at The Manhattan Country Club – mmmm. We all picked on baby deep fried calamari then R & L had pasta dishes, B a wonderful steak and I, lamb cheeks (?!) with all kinds of tasty stuff, followed by a medley of sorbets and tart tatin ‘a la mode’.

Thursday, 24th February - Seemed to spend most of the day shopping, after posing in front of the Good Stuff web cam that had been fixed, in the hope that Zöe would check it out and see us waving self-consciously. Tracked down my outfit for the wedding at Ross For Less (American size 4!!!!!????? – something had definitely gone wrong with the sizing)) and saved a bundle of dosh too. Zoe rang and we all spoke for ages. Early ‘bar’ dinner at Chicago For Ribs. Had ‘Happy Hour drinks and food’ (deep fried onion loaf, battered courgettes and pulled pork roll).
Friday, 25th February - Girls to downtown Science Museum to see “Bodyworlds 2”; an absolutely amazing insight into the human body and all its functions, using cadavers preserved in a plastic resin and displayed in a curiously artistic way. Came home, sat on the patio, drank tea and I started my crosstitch sampler.. The boys went to Naja’s at Redondo with Jeff + lots of other bars on the way home and staggered in late.

Saturday, 26th February - Picked up the car and exercised great restraint by failing to be talked into an upgrade. It would have meant spending an extra $300 that will buy some significant food and drink when we all meet up again and, anyway, we agreed that a ‘midsize’ would be adequate when we did the planning at home. The tour nearly failed at the first hurdle, however, as National would not accept our debit card . Good old Ralph stepped in with his CREDIT card and we left blank cheques for him to pay into his account each month, when the bill comes in.. (Hopefully, Linda will get all the Nordstrom vouchers that Raphh earns with his credit card!!). Linda and I when to a Quilt Show in Torrance – what fantastic work and creative interpretation and so prolific! – some of the exhibitors had 3 or 4 masterpieces on display. Where have I gone wrong with mine that has so far been 13 years in the making??

Sunday, 27th February - All packed up and ready to go to Palm Springs by 9.30. Quick lunch at Chilli’s (my first burger of the trip) then straight to “The Follies” at The Plaza theatre (Linda’s pre-departure treat). What a show – song, dance and speciality acts all performed by old troupers from Las Vegas shows (aged 56-81) in the most amazing costumes. They were a tribute to silicon implants and liposuction, but you have to hand it to these people – they really know how to entertain. Incredibly patriotic finale with an explosion of stars and stripes tick-a-tape from the ceiling and inflated eagles!! Overnight at the Fairfield Inn, Palm Desert with R & L – what a send off. ‘Light ‘ dinner for all at the Everyday Grill and back to our place for continued room party and rerouting of first part of tour to take in some of Route 66 (hooray).

Monday,28th February (Proper Day 1 of MOAT) PALM SPRINGS VIA HWY 10 & ROUTE 90 TO TOPOCK. ROUTE 66 TO KINGMAN - Zoe phoned for an 8 a.m. chat, as planned. Said our farewells to R & L and went in opposite directions on Highway 10. At Topock, Ca.. got on to Route 66 that took us via Oatman (dirty old mining town with crappy souvenir shops and wild donkeys roaming around). Thought it was worse (much) than Tijuana, but between there and Kingman, Az the most dramatic and breathtaking scenery opened up to us. Couldn’t believe all those wide-open spaces. The desert looked amazingly lush and had loads of flowers because of all the recent rain. We’re beginning to wonder when the opportunity for overnight accommodation would present itself, when a very welcome Motel 6 at Kingman popped up.

Tuesday, 1st March KINGMAN ON ROUTE 66 + HIGHWAY 40 TO WILLIAMS AZ - Mohave Museum + Route 66 Museum - graphic photos and reconstructions of vehicles used first by the pioneers to go West and later by those escaping The Depression in the Midwest. In the latter case, some either had to abandon their overheated and broken down vehicles en route or turned back after a few months in California, as they couldn’t make it there either and the locals were very hostile to newcomers. Did both museums in Kingman before another spectacular stretch of Route 66 that wound through mountains and lush desert scenery. Stopped for lunch at The Copper Café. Had been heading for Flagstaff but decided to overnight at Williams and stayed at The Red Garter Bed & Bakery – an old bordello from the 1880s, beautifully converted into a 4 bedroom B&B. We had the old salon at the top of the stairs where the ‘girls’ used to wait and meet the men. It’s difficult to imagine the squalid conditions they must have experienced. John Holst, the owner, was a very nice bloke who had kitted the place out really well (upholstery fringing as dado rail, with rich brocade fabric on the walls below etc). We were the only guests, so John gave us the key and went home for the night, with promises to return in time for breakfast.

Wednesday, 2nd March 551 miles from Hermosa Beach WILLIAMS/FLAGSTAFF AZ.- Wonderful pastries for breakfast at The Red Garter before heading over to the railway station for a wild west shoot-out prior to boarding the Grand Canyon train for a 3 hour journey through ponderosa pine forests. These forests are endangered because of successful lobbying some years ago against the logging industry to save the habitat of the spotted owl. This has led to the death of the logging industry and the improper management of the forests because of its current ‘management by committee’. Consequently, the trees are now succumbing to disease and just being left to rot – pity – and the only source of income in Williams now is tourism. All this info was provided by John at The Red Garter, who reckons that when an area of forest dies it will take around 100 years to rejuvenate. We keep using the word ‘spectacular’ for the scenery in Arizona, but it is an inadequate description for the views from the South Rim of the Grand Canyon. We were up at 7,000 ft. and could see over to the North Rim, some 11 miles away. The weather was perfect; clear, sunny and warm enough to take my jacket off while we were walking along the rim trail. Took some time out to sketch a couple of the ‘paint your own postcards’ that Linda had sent as a Christmas present with the trip in mind, for later embellishment, while B. got hooked on taking loads of pictures of a raven perched on a dead branch – bless him! Found a Ramada Inn in Flagstaff (chosen because it had in-room iron and hairdryer plus a welcome shower cap – had been using ice bucket liners!) for $24.95 + tax, using a coupon from a free-sheet that we picked up somewhere – what a wheeze. Walked a couple of blocks to dine. The Cracker Barrel didn’t sell alcohol so they didn’t get our business. Went next door instead, to the Outback Steakhouse for a shared ‘Blooming Onion’ (the house speciality – a gigantic onion that is cut into sections, but not all the way through, and deep fried, so the whole thing is presented opened up like a flower - nice, fattening, but nice.).

Thursday, 3rd March 580 miles from Hermosa Beach FLAGSTAFF/TUCSON AZ. - B. linked us up to the internet by ‘borrowing’ wireless connection from the Holiday Inn next door, so took full advantage emailing Zoe & Blitz and down-loading photos to Freddie and Jim; even got to chat ‘live’ with Zoe. En route to Tucson, stopped off twice; first at Gila Indian Museum, which is where the West Coast Japanese were interned in camps during WWII and where I found some dangly clip on earrings – hooray – and secondly at an outlet mall at Casa Grande. Our Econolodge Motel (Econolodge by name, econo shower and tatty fittings by nature - like sink sitting loosely in vanity unit and first place with no bathroom fan) was only $36.25 with a magic coupon but was in a seedy area in S. Tucson. We found El Indio’s – a great Mexican restaurant for chips and refried beans with our beers (were still full from breakfast at Denny’s in Flagstaff). The mariachis were just striking up as we left (very timely!).

Friday, 4th March - Drove straight to the Titan Missile Silo south of Tucson (Green Valley). What an experience – never dreamed we would ever come so close to something with such potential for destruction. Bob, the guide, was a retired military man and very good at it. Went on to Pima Air and Space Museum. Mind boggling stuff – one huge area with hangars full of exhibits and beautifully restored military aircraft and another massive acreage with 5,000 old aircraft lined up and in various stages of preservation and dismantling for spare parts. Barrie was so excited and maxed himself out on taking pictures. I just maxed myself out with lack of food and too much boy’s stuff. Had pre-booked ourselves into a Best Western Executive Inn in the north of Tucson for 2 nights, just so we could do the laundry. Recovered after a shower and change of clothes and walked off to La Fuenta Mexican restaurant nearby. V. busy, nice staff and v. civilized mariachi band (food was great too).

Saturday, 5th March - Almost missed breakfast as woke with a start at 09.20! Did all laundry (nice) then ambled off into downtown area in search of ‘twee’ shops. Only found one shop and the areas we passed through looked v. seedy. A small Mexican community outdoor bazaar was nice to wander around though. Took refuge in Poca Casa Café when the rain came and had a couple of drinks. The owner/cook was a very nice Mexican lady who was thrilled by the rain and cooks food from regions all over Mexico (changes her menu twice a day). Staff all v. nice too and the food sounded wonderful so we decided to eat there for late lunch/v. early dinner) after looking round St Augustine Cathedral (beautiful stained glass windows and woven woollen wall hangings) and Tucson Children’s Museum (to escape another cloud burst). The dinner menu was up and running by the time we returned to Poca Casa. We had ‘Drunken Shredded Beef’ and ‘Chicken Breast strips in green mole’ – the green mole was v. like satay sauce flavourwise, but made from pistachios, pumpkin seeds and coriander. Polished it off with shared cheesecake (mmm), coffee and after dinner ‘tiddlies’. Intended to take in a movie but by the time we’d faddled in the room with internet etc. had missed early evening performances. Instead watched ‘The Negotiater’ and ‘The Peacemaker’ in our room until 02.30, then couldn’t sleep as sirens were going outside and helicopters flying overhead – like an extension to the films!

Sunday, 6th March 921 miles from Hermosa Beach TUCSON TO BISBEE (English Mother’s Day) - Opened my card from Zoe and what a treat to speak to her for so long. Packed our bags and headed of for another detour. Should have been in Deming, New Mexico but instead had a fab time in Bisbee, Arizona, thanks to information in the book that Barry and Jill gave us. Checked into Shady Dell, an RV park just outside town, equipped with 1950s trailers, bus, etc. Ours, ‘Del Ray’. looked like a dumpy aluminium hot water bottle – everything I fantasised about travelling around in. It was all decked out with ‘50s fittings (Formica table, Bakelite radio, pineapple table lamp, candlewick bedspread and electric blanket). What a hoot. Also onsite was Dot’s Diner – miniscule – with room for 7 customers at the counter and 3 staff – but authentic ‘50s stuff. Had my first malted vanilla shake of the trip – mmm, heavenly! After lunch there, headed into Old Bisbee, which was full of Victorian era buildings. It was an old copper mining town that flourished from the 18880s until the 1960s. The whole town layout and style of architecture at that altitude was strangely reminiscent of Kathmandu or Kashmir (but pristine clean) and had obviously attracted a similar mature hippy/arty crowd who had settled there. The main economy these days is tourism. We seemed to have the place to ourselves, but they have to make their money between March and June as it gets too hot after that. We drank at the bar that had been the Stock Exchange. It seemed a very strange location for a stock exchange, but apparently Bisbee was once the largest town between the Mississippi and San Francisco! The barman, Sean, was a real sweetie and very pleasant to chat with. Ate two starters each at the Copper Queen Hotel (which was 2 starters each more than we really needed!) What a thoroughly pleasant experience. Back to our metal pod to listen to recordings of radio shows featuring Frank Sinatra and Judy Garland.

Monday, 7th March 1,086 miles from Hermosa Beach BISBEE TO LAS CRUCES - Decided to skip ablutions at Shady Dell, as our ‘en suite’ facilities were somewhat cramped and looked less than reliable, so headed straight for breakfast at Dot’s Diner. I ordered 2 pancakes with fresh blueberries and walnuts. The waitress suggested having only a half portion as most people can’t manage 2 pancakes. I could only manage half of my one! What a waste – it was delicious but so filling. Stopped off for a wander around a trading post at the Continental Divide - the vertical(ish) line through The States, from which rivers flow either west or east. Some of the jewellery was nice and they had deck shoes to die for – thick tan suede, but the softest suede imaginable. Exercised great restraint by holding back from purchasing them. B. found a new friend who worked there. She was a lady who lives in Canada and each winter heads south with her husband in their RV. She gave us lots of ideas for places to visit in the area. When we hit Las Cruces, headed for the Tourist Information Centre for guidance, as we wanted to stay nearer to downtown for once. Checked into the Best Western Inn with 2 discount vouchers from the free sheets we keep collecting, at $44 + tax per night. The full rate is $67 and AAA discount would only have given us $5 off, so we think we did pretty well. Tried walking to the historic plaza but had to give up as there were no ‘sidewalks’ anywhere nearby. When we drove there, realised how far away everything was. Shops and restaurants in the Plaza were closed as it was Monday (good thing we’re here for 2 nights). Found a local bar and got chatting to a chap who reminded us of Barrie Collins. He directed us to ‘Way Out West’ – a restaurant/winery that sells beer from a micro brewery. B. got v. excited, but that all changed when his beer was flat and the waitress was very unhelpful about changing it. Both had a small salad and soup (cream of green chilli and cactus fruit dressings respectively – v. tasty). Went back to Best Western and drank at Eddie’s bar next door.

Tuesday, 8th March - Best night’s sleep yet for both of us. After breakfast, saw a ‘senior’ leaving the restaurant clutching a polystyrene ‘doggy box’. Question: when do the locals find time to eat their leftovers before the next massive meal?? This seems to be the holiday of not finding places – drove to a mall that was a low level South western ‘pueblo’ style double row of shops etc. The only one we could see open was a modern art gallery and gift shop with some beautifully handcrafted jewellery, woven rugs etc. Then we couldn’t find the railway museum. Ended up driving to a ‘proper’ mall and raided JC Penney for a while. Saw ‘Diary of a Mad Black Woman’. I was totally confused – thought the ‘mad’ woman was the comedy character played by a chap, until I realised that ‘mad’ means something different in American and it was actually the used and abused heroine who sought revenge on her unfaithful husband! (For ‘Mad’ read ‘angry’) Too full to eat dinner after sharing a large ‘sub’ at lunchtime so got all dressed up and drank in our room. Later went next door to Eddie’s and had a few while we were serenaded by Jim Corrons singing country & western (v. well) and strumming his gee-tar to the accompaniment of some amazing technology. He was a really nice chap who chatted after his set. He lives in Truth or Consequence – a town that put itself on the map in the early ‘60s by winning a competition run by a tv show of the same name, to ‘Rename Your Town’.

Wednesday, 9th March LAS CRUCES/WHITE SANDS NTL PK/ALAMOGORDO - On the way out of Las Cruces, went in search of an ATM, post office and petrol. The flashing ‘walk’ signs seem to allow as little time on wide roads here as they do at home on our narrow ones. This prompted the question: How much trouble does the average obese person have, not to mention the elderly or infirmed? (I suppose the answer to that is that they don’t ‘pedestrianise’ themselves). Spent some time at the magnificent White Sands National Monument – 275 square miles of white gypsum sand dunes with only yucca and cottonwood trees managing to survive in them. It was absolutely out of this world, just wandering around a trail on foot with a stealth bomber and other military aircraft blasting through the uncannily clear blue sky above our heads. The surrounding area is used as a missile testing site. Checked into a Best Western where a lovely French girl was in charge, with an amazing ‘Franke’-type accent (Franke was a wedding organiser in the film, “Father of the Bride”). Had drinks in a bar next door, where the barmaid recommended Margo’s Mexican restaurant. We sought it out on foot (crazy English people) and had fantastic chips and homemade salsa, guacamole salad and Wednesday’s special combo dish, washed down with a glass each of Burgundy! It was wonderful, and the bill only came to $19.11!!!

Thursday, 10th March 1,657 miles from Hermosa ALAMOGORDO/SPACE MUSEUM/CARLSBAD CAVERNS/CARLSBAD - Left Alamogordo via the Space and Missile Museum that was very well laid out. There was a lift to the fourth level and then you walked down slopes to each floor. Drove on to Carlsbad through surprisingly flat, open land – just the odd building and some dead looking shrubs (the results of missile testing in the area, perhaps?) It was surprising, because the museum was surrounded by mountains and we had climbed to nearly 8,000 ft when we passed through a small place called Cloudcroft. Carlsbad Caverns were absolutely amazing. We just made it at around 3.15 for the final opportunity of the day to walk around The Big Room. It was great as, in parts, we appeared to have the place to ourselves, which meant no jostling or noise. Had intended to return to see other areas of the caves tomorrow but scrapped that idea, on the assumption that it would be much more busy. Headed back to Carlsbad town and found a Quality Inn for $45 + tax (pretty good for such a tourist trap). Happy Hour drinks in the Sports Bar on site. When the barmaid asked where we were headed and we said, “Lubbock”, she said, “WHY?!” Went in search of a Sonic Burger (as suggested by Ellen). She must have meant us to experience the set up rather than the food. It looks like a bus terminus; you park your car next to a menu and microphone, order the food and it is brought out to you – apparently. We didn’t realize this at first, so parked up and strolled into what we assumed was the diner (but turned out to be a tiny area where the waitresses collect the orders for delivery to your car). So, we headed back to our car, feeling rather silly, and discovered that we were parked too close to the menu to be able to read it and place our order. So, we reparked, placed our order, had it delivered by a long-suffering young girl and then I was convinced that we would have to take it away elsewhere to eat. But no, we were expected to tuck into our less than wonderful burgers in situ.

Friday, 11th March 1,657 miles from Hermosa CARLSBAD VIA SEAGRAVES/LUBBOCK TX - Very different views from the road today – big, flat open spaces. ‘Lost’ another hour when we crossed into Texas. Stopped off at Seagraves Loop Museum & Art Center; a really nifty little ‘local’ place, run for the last 14 years by Bernell Thompson. She and her husband, Gene, were very nice and chatty. They couldn’t remember if any Brits had dropped by before. Saw some old quilts, authentic old room settings and lots of local social memorabilia, saying things like, “Loaned by Betty – it belonged to her mother, Jean Roberts”. They had even cleaned up the back yard of the building and set in a few hundred bricks that the locals buy and have engraved with their families’ names or in memory of a loved one. (This would be a nice idea in Sarratt). The area is used by the locals for ‘Ice Cream Days’ each summer – a sort of village fete at which, presumably, huge quantities of ice cream are consumed. Checked into a Rodeway Inn in Lubbock (not recommended by AAA) but good enough at $47.45 a night for a weekend rate, so decided to stay for 2. No laundry, hairdrier or iron, so will have to up the quality of lodging in the next place. The manager, a nice young Indian (of the sub-continent variety) recommended ‘On The Border’ Mexican restaurant for dinner. He was not wrong. The place was buzzing as it was Friday and we had to wait in the bar. They gave us a black plastic device that shook and flashed red lights when our table was ready – wild. Great food – though we thought it was ‘Tex-Mex’ rather than pure Mexican.

Saturday, 12th March - Zoe rang again – whoopee! Walked up to the Buddy Holly memorial statue and ‘Walk of Fame’. A nice guy out with his dog chatted for ages and it turned out that he used to work at the Norman Petty Recording Studios in Clovis, New Mexico, where Buddy Holly recorded lots of his tracks, so he walked us round, explaining who all ‘sons of Lubbock’ were. Went on to The Ranch Heritage Center – loads of old log cabins, room settings from massive ranches (one of them belonging to ETHEL WHATLEY – my maiden name!) + Loads of quilts on display (some used in covered wagons in the early 1900s and a couple made in the 1880s by women who produced one for each of their 14 grandchildren – unbelievable). ‘Did’ the Buddy Holly Museum after that and got in with ‘senior’ rates – cool! Had no idea that Buddy Holly cut all his tracks in only an 18- month period. It was tragic that he died so young (22?). Had been looking forward to catfish for dinner at a place just down the road, but it looked a bit rough and ready. As we didn’t want to drive, ate at the Sheraton Four Points close by. Rather disappointing; no guacamole to have with our chips and salsa, and no beers that B. liked + some gristly meat in my Caesar Salad with Steak Strips (unheard of in America before).
Sunday, 13th March LUBBOCK via SNYDER/SAN ANGELO TX - Second ‘senior; deal within 24 hours! – breakfast at Denny’s. The ladies were so nice there and the manageress asked if she could shake our hands when we left as, “I ain’t never seen anyone from London, England before”. This is the reaction we are getting all over, by being off the beaten track. Made our way to San Angelo. Nothing much to see on the way so got cracking with my crosstitch. Stopped for a stretch at Snyder, obviously a ‘dry’ town as no sign of a bar (not that we needed one at midday, but our sensors are always on the look out). Only two restaurants were open as it was Sunday; one packed with lots of families and ‘seniors’ waiting – the ‘higher end’ spenders, we reckoned – and the other, Dairy Queen, where we had small malted milkshakes and watched the hordes tuck into burgers, fries and half gallon sodas! (It was so strange seeing old ladies demolish their massive cupfuls of Coke, or whatever and then go back to the machine for their free top up). The recommended Mexican restaurant for dinner in San Angelo was closed (despite what the AAA book said), so we settled for “Zentner’s Daughter” and were disgusted by all the deep fried stuff we were served; onion rings visible from space, horrible cold and flabby fries and B’s beef strips (yuk). At least my catfish ‘sandwich’ was edible. Both decided not to eat tomorrow!
Monday, 14th March 2,100 miles from Hermosa SAN ANGELO via Eden/FREDERICKSBURG TX - Well, we didn’t have breakfast or lunch, but when we hit Fredericksburg (fabulous busy, friendly place – German settlement – with nifty shops and a micro brewery) fell upon a shop selling a million and one jams, sauces, dips, pickles etc, etc. and broke our fast by have lots of tasties – oops! Left one happy Barrie in a biergarten to make friends with JR and Steve (a couple of gay guys from Houston) who gave us some travel suggestions and told us of the 26 lane highway that is under construction in Houston (won’t be going there). Went to the brew pub for more nice beer and appetizers only (v. sensible plan). The place has the most amazing bar top made of concrete (laid in situ) and polished with beeswax. We like Fredericksburg so much that be booked in for a second night.
Tuesday, 15th March - B. did the Nimitz/War In The Pacific Museums and I browsed in shops and went to the Pioneer Museum. The most fascinating exhibit was a chain that must have been about a metre long, whittled by a shepherd from a single length of wood. There were some lovely room settings and original quilts in all the houses. Chatted to a ‘craftsperson’ who was using thin strips of woollen cloth and a rug hook to make cushion covers. She spins dog hair, using a very simple spindle made from a piece of dowel with a semi-sphere of wood at one end into which is screwed a cup hook. Met up at the Brewery for a couple of beers (Peacepipe Pale Ale) and shared a portion of “Just Enough” (1 sausage, 4 large cubes of cheese, mustard and a 2-tone brioche type of roll) – that was indeed just enough for the 2 of us! Back to the Brewery once more for ‘dinner’. B. had more “Wings Over Germany” (chicken wings) and I had a small beerdough pizza – all yummy.
Wednesday, 16th March 2,246 miles from Hermosa FREDERICKSBURG/SAN ANTONIO - Relatively short run to San Antonio; what a huge place. Thought we’d have trouble finding accommodation because of ‘Spring Break’ so went for Rodeway Inn on the outskirts of downtown (so price not bad) and because there’s a trolley stop outside avoiding the requirement for driving. It worked. Headed off straightaway and B. made big friends with Robert, the trolley car driver. He was a very informative bloke and dropped us off at the Blue Star Brewery. Had Raspberry Ale and grilled and blackened catfish. Caught another trolley to The Alamo. Interesting stuff. Went for a drink at the Buckhorn Museum bar that was absolutely full of hunting trophy heads – what a shame. Got chatted up by 8 year old Katie from Oklahoma. Can’t imagine Amy or any other 8 year old English girl being so confident with strangers. At one point she asked, “Do y’all have kids?” Walked the River Walk (a subterranean labrynth lined with bars and restaurants) and lost our way a couple of times. It’s very well done and must have taken years to complete.
Thursday, 17th March ST. PATRICK’S DAY - Headed into town on the trolley bus and found a perfect deli for brunch (1 corned beef and 1 pastrami on rye – great!) Attended a ceremony at The Alamo for all the Irishmen killed in the Battle of 1836, hosted by The Harp and Shamrock Society. Went to The Esquire bar (boasting ‘the largest bar in Texas’!) – a very dark and gloomy place - then took to the River Walk for Bluebell ice cream (another recommendation from Ellen) to the strains of the South American pan pipe musicians and, eventually, Callums at The Hyatt Hotel for a couple of drinks with live jazz trio and chats with Sally and Wilson from Corpus Christi – nice people. Caught the trolley to The Blue Star Brewery and, who should be driving, but Robert! He greeted us like old mates, gave us his address and as he let slip that is birthday is on Monday, we can surprise him with a card next year! It was his last run before taking a week’s holiday, so that was all a bit of a coincidence. Had some Irish lager (dyed green!) and catfish again.
Friday, 18th March SAN ANTONIO/HEARNE - Zoe rang – great! Headed off for Austin and tried before we left San Antonio for accommodation at a couple of motels, but they were full. Decided that the combination of BIG city, music festival, weekend rates and the fact that although their Capitol Building is bigger than DC’s, we are seeing the real thing very soon anyway, was bad news so drove straight through and out the other side on I-35. Ended up in The Oak Tree Inn, Hearne, were nothing happens. Dined in Penny’s Diner (only 6 years old but looking every inch an original ‘50s metal diner from outside) where B. had ‘all you can eat catfish’, then retired to watch the World Figure Skating Championships (Pairs Finals).
Saturday, 19th March HEARNE/BRYAN (College Station) - Were aiming for overnight at Huntsville, but set off, paused to have the car washed by some kids who were trying to raise money so that they could have a high school graduation party, then stopped in Bryan for a wander round a couple of shops and liked it so much, that we checked into the Ramada Inn. Negotiated a rate of $53 but ended up in a suite because 2 different rooms they allocated us stank of smoke. The whole place was a bit shabby, but it was good to have so much space. B. wandered off to find an ATM and I went to Ross Dress for Less. Before I even made it there, was in a shoe shop where they announced that for 15 minutes all sale shoes (“except athletics”) would be $7! So I swooped on some fuchsia pink suede and beaded moccasins. Just as we both got back to our suite, there was the most almighty storm that lasted for over 3 hours. Ordered in pizza and nearly drowned the delivery man! and watched some more of the World Championships and all the lightning
Sunday, 20th March BRYAN/HUNTSVILLE - Availed ourselves of continental breakfast before taking to the road. Stopped at Huntsville, about 26 miles further on (so much for our estimated 150 miles a day!) and checked into La Quinta Inn with a $49 coupon. Everything had had a reasonably recent coat of paint, so a soft, Southwestern colour scheme abounded and there were nice pieces of light furniture and knick-knacks. Went straight out sightseeing and to the Sam Houston Memorial Museum (on the university campus) with several of the buildings he lived in rebuilt in the grounds. Interesting stuff. He was the first Governor of Independent Texas and a great champion for the displaced Native American Indians. Also treated his slaves well – he allowed one of them, Joshua, to keep the money he made from his blacksmith ‘business’, so that when he was freed, he was able to educate all his children from his savings and set up home. Eventually found a Mexican restaurant ‘for a beer’, but ended up eating there. V. nice steaks and stuff. The place looked like a hole in the wall but was huge and clean and the staff were all very friendly. Retired to the room and maxed out on the Skating Gala.
Monday, 21st March 2,601 miles from Hermosa HUNTSVILLE via Madisonville/PALESTINE, TX - Zoe rang just as we were considering going to breakfast (good job). By the time we got to Reception, breakfast was ‘over’. Juice and coffee were horrible, so decided to grab some en route to the county fair/rodeo at Madisonville and stopped at a MacDonalds (!). Drove through incredibly heavy rain that stopped as quickly as it had begun. Found the fairground but, needless to say, there was no rodeo on a Monday. Walked around the shed containing prize-winning cattle and pigs – what amazing beasts. Stopped at the Moosehead Café in Crockett Tx. It looked v. small from the outside (like so many places) but opened up into a massive space with loads of tables and all kinds of ‘antiques’ for sale. Spoke with the owner’s mother who said that it used to be a hardware store and her daughter had always dreamed of running such a place. She has only had it for 6 years, but it looks very well established and very well patronized. We shared a Reuben sandwich with wonderful ‘proper’ fries and each had a one-scooper (they always give you 3 anyway!) of ‘hand-dipped’ Bluebell ice cream – mmm. We were served by Nikki, a pretty young girl who have been the local Rodeo Queen in 2003 and hoped her sister would win the title this year. She said that she loved my boots – praise indeed! And also said that she wanted to visit London and meet Prince William. (I told her that she wouldn’t want to get involved with that family).
Tuesday, 22nd March - Our worst breakfast yet – badly cooked, badly served (by a young girl who was nearly asleep on a nearby table while we were eating) and we screwed up by not presenting the voucher first! Eventually found the East Texas History Museum.
Wednesday, 23rd March - 2,740 miles from Hermosa PALESTINE via Rusk & Jaocquin/SHREVEPORT, LA – Left Palestine and stopped for coffee at another nice café/gift/antique shop in Rusk, after seeking advice for my bloodshot eye (caused by the clippings from my fringe-trimming efforts) from the local pharmacist. The pharmacy also sold gifts and office supplies – such an eclectic mix of merchandise everywhere. He sold me some very soothing eye drops. They felt great but were only anti histamine, so not sure how effective they would be. Called into the post office in Jaoquin to mail photo CDs to Zoe for safe keeping. Arrived in Shreveport, Louisiana (a city AND state we didn’t even plan to visit) and checked into the Holiday Inn for 4 whole nights at $73 a night. This is extremely good as it includes the weekend and it is Easter. Later strolled to a couple of nearby casinos (a bit tawdry compared with Vegas) and they would have wanted $85 for Wednesday night and at least $160 for each of the weekend nights!! Ended up having free appetisers at the Holiday Inn restaurant because B has a loyalty card. (tart!) V. excited at the prospect of seeing a one night only ice show on Saturday, featuring 7 Olympic champions (will Zoe ever forgive us?). We definitely had the ha-ha room. Endless freight trains were passing below our window – the rumbling of the trains was not a problem but the intermittent loud ‘toots’ drove us crazy.
Thursday, 24th March - Called in at Visitor Centre near hotel. Drove out to buy tickets for ice show on Saturday at Century Tel Center, Bossier City and on to Barksdale Air Force Base Museum. I stayed in the car and sewed while B. did his thing. Lunch at The USA Cafe (catfish all round, though I only had a Po’Boy – some kind of large bread roll). Really great one-off place full of red white and blue stuff and a nice waitress who is only living there while her son and daughter-in-law are at the Air Force Base. Whey they get posted to Turkey, she will go back to New Hampshire. We discussed the judicial system, hearing too much of the Michael Jackson trial and the Royal Family! Walked up to an art gallery showing original drawings etc. from the new computer generated cartoon film, “Robots”. Fascinating stuff (the main creative force and head of the production company is a local chap). On the way back passed The Noble Savage (a bar that several people had recommended). They were just opening up at 4.30. Don’t know what time we tumbled out, but got chatting to Miles and, latterly, Clifton and his 81 year-old mother-in-law, Bobbie. Shared much drink, chat and laughter and agreed to spend the night at his house tomorrow! He said we didn’t want to spend all those dollars at the Holiday Inn when we could stay at his for free. We couldn’t argue with that. Stopped off at The Tiger for wings and a cup of ‘gumbo’ soup respectively.
Friday, 25th March Good Friday - Having changed rooms at the Holiday Inn because we were so close to the goods trains, arranged to be back at Reception after we checked out so that we could speak with Zoe and Blitz! In the morning took the Red River boat trip past steamboat casinos – that’s how they get round the law, by having the gambling on the water. Then went to the Science Centre and saw an IMAX presentation of a fighter pilot on operations. Clifton rang, as promised, to make arrangements for dinner and overnight. Was great speaking to Zoe and Blitz before we headed off. Felt very apprehensive about Clifton’ wife, Kay’s reaction to having complete strangers to dinner and staying, but she was lovely and accepted us straight away. She cooked a delicious chicken dish with rice and really interesting salad + fruit salad and soured cream. Met the 4 dogs: Bo, Sadie, Jake and Missy.
Saturday, 26th March - Kay had to work, so thought we wouldn’t see her again, but called in at the hairdressing salon where she works for quick ‘Hello’, by which time it had already been decided that we would stay at their house for a second night. Barrie went back to The Noble Savage with Clifton to pick up some wine he had ordered and Mark, the owner promptly handed over tee shirts for us (including one for Zoe!). Clifton and Bobbie guided us on a tour around town that included the azalea gardens at Norton Gallery, Shreveport Auditorium (where Elvis had his first performances) and The Strand Theatre, where Clifton blagged his way in so that we could have a look at the ‘30s decor. Broke for lunch at a tiny Greek restaurant. Did Norton Gallery that had amazing watercolours and bronzes of cowboys and Indians on horseback by Frederick Remington + a current exhibition of gauche paintings by Zelda Fitzgerald (F. Scott Fitzgerald’s wife) – lots of bizarre paper dolls/fairytale characters – interesting, but she was clearly quite disturbed. Kay made a wonderful salad for dinner before we left for “Stars on Ice” – what a show – it just doesn’t get much better. 10 top names including Alexi Yagudin, Sarah Hughes, Todd Eldridge, Steven Cousin etc. and no ‘supporting’ skaters, so it was wonderful to see such quality people all working together. Everyone in the Hair household was in bed when we got back. – except the dogs of course!
Sunday, 27th March Shreveport, La/Hot Springs, Arkansas - Woke to freshly baked cinnamon ‘coffee cake’ for breakfast, with home bottled figs, blueberries and peaches with cream cheese – yummy. Kay and I talked and showed handicrafts and exchanged ideas. Mentioned all the quilts I’d seen and she gave me a beautiful old handkerchief in case I ever do anything with Mum’s handkerchiefs. She said how she had tried to get together a group of friends for ‘Stitch and Bitch’! 86 wagons behind 2 engines kept us waiting at a level crossing as we left Shreveport – it had to be! – The Santa Fe Railway strikes again. Drove to Hot Springs, Arkansas. Nice Clarion Resort for $49.95 with voucher. Tried to take the waters at the municipal baths in the evening, but they were closed for Easter. So, checked in for second night and had drinks and appetisers at Ruby Tuesday’s plus more drinks back at the on-site sports bar. Spoke to Linda who had left voicemails on our mobile + an email because she was so worried about our going off with ‘strangers’. We felt really bad about giving her so much angst, especially as we had been having such a great time.
Monday, 28th March - Coffee at Perkins where Barrie thought the couple who were on the next table were telling the waitress how their daughter was, “racing Chihuahuas” (I could just imagine them running along with bandanas tied round their necks) when it transpired that she was actually ‘raising’ them! (It’s that common language separating us again!). Spent a couple of hours in the hot springs baths. It was wonderful and because they were ‘remodelling’ and only 2 baths were available, they only charged us $7 each. B. weighed me in and, even in a big, wet teeshirt, I was apparently 9st 9lbs (miraculous!). Wandered around town – what a nice place. There were lots of old spa hotels and medical centres. Bought earrings for Sarah’s birthday (opal and silver) and had sandwiches for lunch (had to wait about half an hour for them!). Walked along the trails that were laid out when the town was established as a spa – various degrees of difficulty, so that those who had come to use the springs for medical conditions could tell how well they were progressing. Springs were cascading down the hillside and all over town there were hot fountains. Bought a couple of gallon plastic bottles and filled them from one of the taps round and about. Boy, that water is hot. Called into Applebee’s for a drink. Came back for showers and went out again to the Red Lobster for appetisers. I had combo of bacon wrapped scallops and seafood stuffed mushrooms and B had crispy wraps stuffed with lobster etc. Really good. Back to the Sports Bar for a quickie.
Tuesday, 29th March HOT SPRINGS/MEMPHIS, TN 3,430 miles from Hermosa - B. tells me that we have been away for 40 days and 40 nights! Drove straight to Memphis, stopping only for lunch at a truckers’ place. Felt v. virtuous only having a barbecued pork salad, while B. had his customary catfish dinner. Found a voucher for the ‘introductory’ rate of only $28.95, which was too good to be true. We went for it because they advertised a shuttle bus to downtown and Graceland, but they didn’t have any more rooms at that rate and they need 24 hours’ notice for the shuttle. So – poo to them; it clearly was too good to be true. B found that there was a Sleep Inn (same group as Clarion Resort) overlooking the Mississippi and bridge, with trolley cars stopping outside – perfect. Hopped on a trolley to Beale Street where it all happens. Stopped in a bar that was selling all pints of beer for $2.50 and chatted to Brandon – an arborist, who has already walked the Appelation Trail (2,300 miles that took him 6 months) and was on the first day of another adventure from N. Carolina in his beaten up Beetle that he hopes to sell in San Diego (good luck!). Looked in at BB King’s (which is supposed to be THE place, but reckoned it would be too loud once the music got going. Ended up at ‘The Patio’, where bar and music were outside. A very strange wedding party was going on there (the bridesmaid had a very fetching tattoo on one shoulder!). Two guys played guitar and one was on drums. They were fantastic. At some stage saw an ageing biker in all the gear with everything on his bike, including a black leather box on the pillion with a little dog in it!
Wednesday, 30th March - Great day; managed continental breakfast with strawberry cream cheese just before the 09.00 deadline. Faddled around on the trolley car system so that we could see most of the town and eventually made it to Elvis Presley’s Gracelalnd for the full tour. What we saw of the mansion was surprisingly modest (made up for by the Lockheed Jetstream + a secondhand ex UA 80-seater, 4-engine Corvair, that made Air Force One, used by JFK and LBJ at Pima Airfield, look like the Orient Express. A very large lady drove our bus (see photographic evidence). I don’t think that either of us had ever been particularly moved by Elvis or his music, but we left Graceland with the opinion that he was a ‘Good Ole Boy’ who loved his parents and daughter to bits (we won’t go into his relationship with Priscilla), a prolific recording artist (as illustrated by the hundreds of silver, gold and platinum discs on display) and a very generous benefactor to local charities and individuals in need. went ‘home’ to an email from Zoe, telling us that she had to call out the Fire Brigade!! Apparently, by the time they arrived on the scene the offending log that was shooting sparks out of the chimney had been removed from the fire and taken into the garden. She was in such an emotional state however (and who can blame her) that they let her off the usual £50 call out fee for a false alarm! Took off to Beale Street and The Patio again – fantastic blues group tonight. Fierce storm stopped play after we had shared a combo dish of fried shrimp, wings and ‘gator chips (v. nice) with various sauces. Went into the associate restaurant next door and, when that closed, went into the adjacent bar (where we had started off last night) with a barman who couldn’t give a damn – so we left! Took the trolley back and met Tom, who was relocated to Memphis by General Electric 3 weeks before, with his 2 sisters. Had long chats in the street with them until more rain stopped play but Tom, who liked my denim jacket(!), gave us his email address and wanted to be included in our ‘newsletters’.
Thursday, 31st March MEMPHIS/NASHVILLE - Left Memphis behind and drove straight to Nashville (a very sticky journey). Thought we’d try for Best Western Downtown, but they could only offer one night and it was very expensive – it was a bit of a shock finding ‘no room at the inn. It was awful being there in the thick of everything but B. found a parking meter with 35 minutes left on it and we rushed off to the Visitor Information Centre where a nice lady called Jeanne phoned around and found us a Comfort Inn, out in Opryland, and gave us a voucher for very good rates. Drank and ate at the Santa Fe Steakhouse next door to the motel and met Ray – a truck driver from Manchester, who has been here for 15 years. Had great trouble understanding his accent, although he claimed never to have picked up any local dialects!
Friday, 1st April - Took the bus into town which was very easy, but it was pouring with rain and cold. The sign outside the Visitor Centre that said 80F yesterday was down to 45F!. Found the Hard Rock Café for some souvenir pins that a friend has asked me to buy on her behalf and the Big River Brewing Co. opposite, where I had coffee with a huge shot of Jack Daniels to warm up! Went to a couple of bars with live Country & Western music – The Stage on Broadway and Tootsie’s. How can 3 people come out with all that good stuff (even though it was Country & Western) from one corner of a tiny bar! A really nice chap called Dwayne sat with us. He was a real Anglophile – had spent a year in England in the early ‘50s on a US airbase in East Anglia. He said if we’d been Texas-bound, he would have liked us to stay with him.
Saturday, 2nd April NASHVILLE/LOUISVILLE, KY - Uneventful journey to Louisville to meet up with my long lost cousins, who I hadn’t seen for at least 30 years, with a stop for shared fish and shrimp combo (which was quite enough) at Long John Silvers. It was the night of a crucial college basketball match with the home team (The Cardinals) playing Illinois (No. 1 in the country) and The Whatleys are BIG fans. Drove with Vic (my dad’s youngest brother) and went off to a ‘wing’ restaurant but there was not enough room for the expected 16 of us in the party, so ended up at a pizza place where they could accommodate us. All shared a massive pizza that was wonderful and lots of pitchers of beer. Home for more drinkies and laughs before late bed. Jean told us the story of how, when they first emigrated and were renting an apartment, she was unable to drive and did not have a washing machine. She sent all her sheets and towels (that were always white back in the early ‘60s) to the laundry, but a friend offered to drive her to a launderette with a suitcase full of all her other washing. She was dropped off outside the launderette but was soon back at the car. Her friend asked if the place was shut, to which Jean replied, “No, but it says ‘No Coloureds’ on the door”. Kentucky was one of the states where segregation was still the order of the day on public transport, in schools and obviously in launderettes.
Sunday, 3rd April - Vic cooked us breakfast but poor Jean was feeling terrible after being ill all night. Chaps went off to Hooters to meet a friend, while my cousin, Teresa, took her mother and me on a drive around town. Stayed in for dinner of home cooked shepherds pie, lots of drinks and chats into the night.
Monday, 4th April - Jean took the day off work, but hadn’t really recovered. However she still managed to come around with us to the Ohio Falls Museum (about the ancient beginning, fossils etc. found at the Falls). It was cousin David’s birthday, so EVERYBODY congregated at his beautiful house for lasagne and salad, cake and lots of laughs. Another late night when we got back to Sunny Lane. (I don’t know how Jean and Vic do it – they are both in their 70s and still working)
Tuesday, 5th April - B & I took the bus to downtown, wandered around, shared a grouper sandwich at the BBC (Bluegrass Brewing Co) where the barman recommended a visit to Berea, his hometown, and ambled some more. Fell upon another Hard Rock Café so was able to buy more pins for Nasreen (only hope I’m choosing well). Each managed one hour’s email time at the library and read Zoe’s note that she had damaged her right wrist playing ‘Twister’. That sounds like really bad news. She rang when we got back, which always seems to make things a bit better, but we’re concerned about her wrist and the implications of her being unable to work and cope at home on her own if it is a serious injury. Jean conjured up roast fillet of beef with rice and corn in a jiffy, before B. went off with Vic who was playing darts, and Jean and I met up with Teresa to see ‘The Aviator’ at a cinema that only charges $3.50!
Wednesday, 6th April - Drove out to Churchill Downs Racecourse and Kentucky Derby Museum. Hopeless commentary by the guide, whose equipment was so bad that it either gave out shrill noises or we couldn’t hear a word he was saying. He started every attempt at a sentence with “Also …”. Grabbed a quick lunch at the restaurant on site, before heading off to the Highlands area of Louisville, where there were some nifty little shops. Had wonderful ice creams from Greaters (Bourbon Ball & Peanut Butter Chip respectively); mine was delicious but B. thought that his was not as good as Bluebell. Very calorific either way! Wandered round a ‘bargain basement’ shop called Tuesday Morning while B. had his hair cut – excellent. He was in the chair for 45 minutes while the hairdresser attacked him only with electric clippers, but he managed to keep his mind off the proceedings by entertaining the other customers with his traveller’s tales. Took Vic and Jean to The Olive Garden for dinner – very pleasant.
Thursday, 7th April 3,939 miles from Hermosa LOUISVILLE/LEXINGTON, KY - Took Route 60 from Louisville to Lexington, instead of the freeway. Drove through very pretty countryside with beautifully manicured pastures/horse farms and trees in bud and full blossom. Checked into the Quality Inn, Lexington, and dined on sushi at the Tachibana Japanese restaurant across the way.
Friday, 8th April - Pope John Paul II’s funeral. Felt lousy as had bad stomach upset (must have been last night’s sushi) and wondered if I was going to be able to drag myself off to The Races. Managed it, though quiet and wobbly, but met up with cousin Graham and his friends James Brown and Rob for the first day of the season at Keeneland Racetrack. What a beautiful place. Had a great time (although I was on water all day) and lots of treats from Graham. Called in at Wal-Mart for natural yoghurt and bananas for me and a beef sandwich for B. The treatment for me worked, eventually, and had an early and good night’s rest.
Saturday, 9th April 4,059 miles from Hermosa LEXINGTON/BEREA, KY - Prince Charles married Camilla – postponed from yesterday because of the funeral. Set sail for Berea, “the arts and crafts capital of Kentucky”. There were wall-to-wall local arts, crafts and antiques (nothing made in China – how refreshing). Was feeling a lot better, thank God, so was able to wander. Met a nice chap who makes dulcimers, a couple in their weaving shop and a guy who runs a craft shop and who used to be a deputy sheriff for many years until he was shot. His partner retaliated by shooting and very badly wounding the ‘perp’ in response, and the guy then went ahead and sued them for ‘excessive force’!. (Unsuccessfully thank God!) Berea is a dry town, so there was no hope of any bars. Checked into the Holiday Motel with a coupon for $26.05 + tax! – and that was valid on Saturdays too! We even had our own patch of grass outside the room and garden chairs. While I was sewing outside, a man appeared from nowhere and gave me a single red rose! Bought some lovely juicy grapes and strawberries for next to nothing and were able to store leftovers for breakfast tomorrow in our ‘fridge! Dined for $16 at Mario’s (salad and grilled chicken breast on nice roll for me and half a hickory smoked chicken with onion rings and beans for B – all freshly cooked and very good). Their main turnover was ‘all you can eat pizza’, which all the locals hoovered up with great relish, particular one substantially overweight young man who helped himself to three successive platefuls and then went home clutching a ‘doggie box’ full of stuff. Thank goodness for our own stash of beer and bourbon!
Sunday, 10th April BEREA via Manchester/HAZARD - Spring has definitely arrived in Kentucky; forsythia, trees in blossom, magnolias in full bloom, foliage starting to appear everywhere and beautifully tended tubs and window boxes full of huge headed pansies. Mountains and forests appeared as soon as we left Berea on the back road. Journeyed to Manchester for lunch at Subway. Had great sarnies plus ice cream for around $8. Continued through Daniel Boone National Forest (beautiful and apparently well managed) to Hazard. Decided to stay in Hazard (way off intended route) and fancied the Daniel Boone Motel. Pulled into the car park but it was full of huge lorries and grot and the accommodation block looked like a pre-war block of council flats. Hazard is dry, so we looked for somewhere near the only bar that is open on a Sunday (‘U Bet’ – a very clean, cool place with all the race meetings showing on tv screens and ‘lite’ beers at only $1.50 a bottle!) However, the Hazard Hotel at the top of the same hill looked like an old fashioned hotel in India (Reception, anyway) and I thought the staff looked rough, so we checked into the Super 8 Motel, which was all clean and nice for around $40. Temperature somewhere claimed that it was 87 degrees! Dinner at a fish chain restaurant within walking distance, then back to the room for booze and tv.
Monday, 11th April HAZARD via Pound/WYTHEVILLE VA - Spoke at length with Zoe (+ one of the chickens!). Headed off and stopped for a sandwich lunch at ‘Pixies’ – a little booth on the ‘main’ road through Pound, Virginia, where they shut the serving hatch after taking your order and go away to make it up. We were very moved by the war memorial in this tiny place, to the memory of those who had been killed in World Wars I & II, Korea and Vietnam, as in each case there were groups of the same names (obviously family members), very much like the roll call on Remembrance Sunday at Sarratt Church. Thought we’d stay in Richlands but there was nothing there, so drove on the Bluefield. Spent ages driving around town looking for the Econolodge (the only voucher we had), found the town ‘wanting’ and spotted Econolodge on the way out of town – it was the first building we had passed! Had called into the Information Centre to pick up a map but found coupon books for Wytheville and stayed in a beautiful new Quality Inn for $55 including tax. Had drinks and dinner at Wohlfahrt House Theatre Restaurant, which was very pleasant (especially the coffee with Baileys!) before maxing out on “CSI”, “Law & Order! etc. on TV.
Tuesday, 12th April 4,411 miles from Hermosa WYTHEVILLE via Roanoke/NATURAL BRIDGE, VA - Laundry, plus another chat with Zose. Off to Floyd (a small town of ageing hippies and tie-dye clothing for sale in the gift shops). Stopped for a coffee to warm us up (back into jumper and quilted jacked after several days of sleeveless t-shirts and temperatures in the upper 80s). The waitress delivered the drinks and said, “Do you have any questions for me before I leave you?” As she went, Barrie suggested, “What is Jupiter’s third moon?” It really pushed my button and I sat there shaking and with tears streaming down my face. (It had a similar effect each time I thought of it for several days after the event). Proceeded to Roanoke, via the Blue Mountain Parkway. It was pouring with rain and very overcast, but the views must be spectacular in good weather. Had a very disappointing lunch at Applebee’s in a shopping mall. The waitress, who had to be the worst in America, was a gum-chewing loudmouth. She was so busy transmitting in a loud voice to her colleagues as they walked past behind us that she completely screwed up B’s order and brought 2 pizzas, instead of just mine. Then, when his chicken wings arrived they were boneless and deep fried, when he had specified ‘on the bone’. She didn’t apologise and, when it came to paying, she gave me the bill (because she didn’t charge B. for anything), took the cash from Barrie, then gave the change back to me! So, definitely no tip for her. Drove on to Natural Bridge but, sadly, the Natural Bridge Hotel that looked very grand and welcoming was full. Drove on a bit and checked into the “Relax Inn” with a cheap coupon ($44.34 including tax) and went straight back to see the natural bridge (apparently, one of the natural Seven Wonders of the World, along with the Grand Canyon, Niagara, Yellowstone, etc.) Nearly didn’t bother to visit the reconstruction of an Indian village, because of the pouring rain, but were so glad that we did. We crept inside a wigwam (a twig framed igloo shaped structure covered in bull rushes – they say ‘cattails’) drawn in by a lovely fire. We ended up meeting a real life Indian chief and the guy who made the wigwam and was very knowledgeable about off kinds of stuff. Also met two sweet, elderly Amish ladies in their bonnets, sisters Magdelane and Gertrude from Middefield, Ohio, who were visiting the area with a third sister (who was no longer Armish) and her husband who was driving them all around. When I said that we were planning to visit an Amish Community somewhere along the way, Magdalene gave me her phone number (!) and said that she knows “a girl who would come and prepare a meal for you if you would like to visit Middefield”. We had drinks in the bar of the Natural Bridge Hotel and wished even more that we were staying there. We were surrounded by around 200 young military chaps who were there for a convention. (Zoe’s eyes would have been out on stalks). They were all having a lot of fun but were incredibly polite to us and let us get served before them. Had dinner at a nice little family restaurant next to our motel. The Sirloin ‘specials’ for $10.95 a head were very good. We weren’t at all comfortable in our room. There was a weird, all pervading smell and B. kept his jacket on whilst watching tv (most unusual).
Wednesday, 13th April 4,584 miles from Hermosa NATURAL BRIDGE via Buena Vista/CHARLOTTESVILLE, VA - Couldn’t wait to get out of that smelly motel. It was some kind of cleaning chemical/air freshener that was really pungent and we just couldn’t get it out of our nostrils. Even so, we couldn’t bring ourselves to shower there; the towels looked ‘clean’ but were stained – ooh, yuk! So, I tried to ‘air’ myself outside by turning round and round in the damp car park, but only made myself giddy! Coffee and a Bank of America ATM (at last) in Buena Vista. Some German woman in the tourist information place was quite adamant that ve should not take the Blue Mountain Parkway as ve vould not see anything in the bad weather. Barrie marched from the building seething about how he bloody vell vould drive along it! We saw plenty, including two white tailed deer (though no wild turkeys like the two we saw yesterday) – vhat did she know?! I somehow managed to navigate us right into the Tourist Information Centre in downtown CHARLOTTESVILLE. We decided on the Red Roof Inn for 2 nights. The bad news was that, although they had internet access, they charge $10 for you to patch into it and have managed to put a ‘block’ on being able to log on via a free local call. That apart, we had a huge room on the 9th floor (Room 824) with hairdryer, iron, ironing board and lovely clean towels. So, out we went smelling fragrant, shaved (in B’s case) and with clean hair and a skirt (in my case). One of the reasons for choosing Red Roof (apart from AAA discount on a reasonable ‘downtown’ rate) was because a free trolley bus route to and from the university runs past the door. We took it and wandered around the beautiful Main Street Mall that has nifty shops, restaurants, cinemas and art galleries in the old buildings. Had v. good wings and veggie pannini in a nice place that had been a hardware store originally (common theme – see Moosehead Café in Crockett, 21st March). We didn’t meet any ‘Roberts’ (see trolley car driver in San Antonio) but waved at an oncoming trolley to take us back and the nice man just stopped to let us on (he knew we weren’t locals) and then stopped on two rear wheels to let us off for the Starr Hill Brew Pub, the moment we rang the bell. The beer was extremely good. I had the Mojo lager and B. their Pale Ale. The barman, Neil, was a real smiley sweetie. He didn’t charge for one of my ‘halves’ and then brought us a sampler hot crusty roll with honey butter, made with the yeast from the beer making. It was scrummy. We made a ‘date’ to meet him for drinks and wings at another bar before he starts his shift tomorrow evening.
Thursday, 14th April - Took the trolley car into town for internet access, but the place that Neil had told us about was not open until 11 a.m., so we went back on the trolley to pick up the car and laptop that we discovered we could use in the café where we had breakfast – how convenient. I spilt my coffee all over myself but, thankfully, missed the laptop – phew! B. ‘chatted’ live to Phil Morrin – ain’t technology great? Headed off to Monticello (Thomas Jefferson’s house) and managed to change into another pair of jeans in the car! The house was beautifully proportioned, with space saving narrow staircases in each wing instead of a conventional main one taking up space in the entrance hall; hexagonal shaped rooms and a wonderful skylight – I want one in our dining room and B. thinks it’s a great idea – Yes!! Jefferson was multi-multi talented – a self-taught architect, inventor, land owner, slave owner, experimental gardener, prolific writer of letters, politician, ambassador and President who was responsible for drawing up the Constitution! Good Ole Boy – but I can’t help thinking that he must have been insufferable to live with! He designed the house when he was only 21 and it took 40 years to complete. (So, not a bad builder either!) It is in a beautiful setting on top of a mountain. The redbud and dogwood trees were in bloom and the weather was gorgeous. We learned lots about his slaves on The Plantation section of the tour. Met up with Neil and his friend, Geoff, at The Wild Wings bar and had good chats before he had to leave for work. Not only had he fixed us ‘guest’ tickets for the live music session at the Starr Hill Brewery, but he settled our bar bill at The Wild Wings, without our knowledge – too generous! Had wings and burger after Neil and Geoff left and went back to the Red Roof Inn to do the laundry. Was all ready to go, but there was no washing powder vending machine (poor show) so B. went to track some down at a nearby shop (what a hunter gatherer he is). Saw (and heard) New Monsoon – a true ‘fusion music’ group. They had 3 drummers (tabla, bongo and ordinary) a keyboard player who had hands like a frog and three ‘guitarists’ (Neil thought the bass guitarist “resembled the victim of a shipwreck”!) The other two also played electric banjo, mandolin and didgerydoo! Brilliant stuff – rock/bluegrass with heavy Indian/South American/Australian incluences. Bought their cd so hope we still like them in the cold light of day. Neil’s fiancée, Becca, and her friend Kathy turned up after the group finished. Kathy used to work for Holiday Inn and said that we should always ask for their ’Right Rate’. Also chatted with Mark (the very hippy looking chef, who wants to spend some time in New Zealand with his wife and baby before the baby’s education starts) and Denise, the tiny Canadian barmaid, who is ‘trapped’ in Charlottesville as she has joint custody of her child. Neil has a 9 year old daughter called Zoe!! He and Becca are marrying on June 19th – must ask Zoe to buy a nice card and bring it over. Staggered ‘home’ after 3.30 a.m. and had not been allowed to buy any drinks as we were Neil’s guests and staff don’t have to pay for drinks. What hospitality!.
Friday, 15th April CHARLOTTESVILLE via Sheandoah National Park/MANASSAS, VA - We went back into town, clutching the laptop, for breakfast (scrambled eggs for B and a delicious pear and almond muffin for me) and email catch up time. Zoe was on ‘messenger’ so we both had a ‘chat’. She is off to Blitz’s for dinner tonight with Anna and Christian and on Sunday to Sally’s with Blitz!! Drove through the Shenandoah National Forest along Skyline Drive. The weather was sunny and clear with bright blue skies (beautiful, but quite cold). We saw loads of deer along the way, who were totally unconcerned about the proximity of the car and just carried on munching the grass. Also saw a couple of birds of prey swoop over the car clutching their prey. Stopped for lunch at Front Royal (the northern most end of the park and found a K Mart offering ‘all you can eat fried cod’ - whilst I had a tuna melt and lovely fries. Also found some white leather tennis shoes (in a children’s sale rack) for $3 – well, you can’t go wrong, can you? B. sought help from the nice man in Radio Shack with the mobile phone because he was unable to take it out of ‘mute’ mode, so we had never heard it ring. The nice man replaced the phone and the wheeze was that we gained $5 worth of call time in the process! Checked into the Super 8 Motel at Manassas and decided to check out the local cinema complex where we saw ‘”Sahara”. It was very expensive, but a good action film. I tumbled more or less straight into bed while B. plotted our route to the hotel in DC tomorrow to await Ralph and Linda’s arrival (we are very close by).
Saturday, 16th April MANASSAS/STERLING, VA for one week in Washington DC - Made it to the Homestead Suites by around 11 a.m. as we had stayed so close by AND were able to check in straight away. Completely unloaded the car and B. disappeared to clean and vacuum it, while I set to emptying all bags and baggage, filing up drawers and separating stuff for R & L to take back to Hermosa Beach for us. Ironed everything that needed it and generally ‘nested’. What a treat. We had a great studio suite, complete with breakfast bar and kitchenette plus fridge/freezer, microwave, pots and crocks. GREAT (even though we don’t intend to use anything but the fridge and glasses!). Set off for the airport in plenty of time to meet our chums. Ralph arrived with a carnation behind one ear so that B. would recognise him! Back to ‘our place’ (they were next door) for a room party. Tried to find the local brew pub, but it was miles away in the bowels of an industrial estate. We arrived just as they were closing at 10 p.m. and the bride was leaving from a wedding reception. Managed to prise drinks out of them and returned to Sterling for call-in pizza.
Sunday, 17th April - Everywhere in DC is miles and miles away from anywhere else, but it’s a great place. Drove for miles to park at a subway station, where there was total confusion about the purchase of tickets. Hundreds of people were milling about in the concourse, trying to work out how much fare they had to pay and then doing battle with the complicated ticket machines. Having worked all that out, we then spent what seemed like an hour on the train getting to the Washington Memorial. We walked around and saw the recently finished WWII memorial, Lincoln Memorial and the Vietnam Memorial (extremely moving). Had lunch at Harry’s Bar (great corned beef sarnies) and found the Hard Rock Café for more souvenir pins. Found several chain restaurants in the car park of a mall somewhere near our place and ate Italian for dinner.
Monday, 18th April - Chatted to Zose for ages at 8 a.m., as agreed. Drove into downtown and went to Arlington Cemetery (much more touristy and less reverent that I remember from 30 years ago – shame). Had a nice ‘pulled chicken’ sandwich at the Rhodeway Café/Restaurant, then onward across the Potomac River in a fruitless search for the cherry blossoms (The Cherry Blossom Festival was last weekend so no wonder it was mostly ‘over’). Never mind, we took lots of wrong turns and hours later found the Old Dominion Brewery and had lots of laughs and freebies (including sauerkraut balls and barley wine) with the barman, Eric. Went back to the Homestead Suites for a ‘corridor party’, watching incoming flights to Dulles Airport in the warm evening air. I bet all the other guests hated us.
Tuesday, 19th April - We’ve cracked it! Drove right into downtown area via a toll freeway and found valet parking for $17 (2-12 hours). Much more straightforward, civilized and cheaper with the four of us involved. The boys went to the Air & Space Museum and Linda and I to the Botanic Gardens (wonderful orchid display, ‘treetop’ walkway through a ‘tropical rainforest’ section etc.) Linda and I went on to the Native American Museum and were rather disappointed. The building was very impressive from the outside, but we felt that there was a terrible waste of space inside and over-ambitious curved display cabinets that reflected too much light and had text printed on them which, in some cases, was impossible to read – shame. All met up at Harry’s Bar (part of the Harrington Hotel) for drinks and dinner. Raided Wegmans (a fabulous supermarket that we all remember with fond memories from Rochester) on the way back and I lost my shopping somewhere in between, so R & B gallantly went back and had it replaced. Room party next door.
Wednesday, 20th April - We stuck to the same routine for travel and parking. All went to different sections of the Museum of American History, after calling into the White House Visitor Centre and discovering that you have to apply six months in advance, via your Congressman, for tickets to tour the White House, or queue for days (no doubt) at your embassy if you are a ‘ferner’. We actually learned quite a bit at the Visitor Centre. Linda and I did lots in the American Museum of History. I though the best exhibit was “Preserving The Stars and Stripes”. There was lots of information about the restoration and preservation of an 1814 flag that inspired the national anthem, that was fascinating enough – from how bits were cut out and given as souvenirs to a few people; early attempts at preservation by ladies of the Guild of Needlework in 1912, using an ingenious ‘honeycomb’ stitch attached to the backing, plus the current meticulous programme of cleaning and removing all those honeycomb stitches – but we actually got to see the real thing, protected in a laboratory while work is still in progress. Met up back at Harry’s Bar and ate at The Longhorn Steakhouse – mmm steak strip salad.
Thursday, 21st April - The boys went to the Space and Air Museum at Dulles Airport after dropping us off at the mall. Spent most of the day in Nordstrom’s (a smart, nationwide department store frequently patronised by Linda). Tried on lots of things, including what would have been a fantastic ‘trip’ top – thin, ‘v’ neck silk and cotton jumper with US icon stuff printed all over on a black background, but it was too big. Saw Zöe’s khaki cotton jacket with strings at wrists and waist for $48 in yellow (Z paid £4!) and my (Primark) tiered navy linen skirt (£6) in turquoise for $242!!! So, careful shopping pays off, whichever side of the Atlantic you are. In our brief sortie outside ‘Nordie’s’, found a $1 shop where we had some fun and Payless Shoes, where I bought a pretty cool watch with ‘gold’ and ‘silver’ links for $13.99. Quick drink at Longhorn to meet the chaps, then to the Dominion Brewing Co. for fab dinner. B had crab stuffed grouper (enormous) on a bed of rice plus asparagus, Ralph had chilli spaghetti and Linda and I shared a lovely pesto and tomato pizza and salad.
Friday, 22nd April - Girls went to the Daughters of The Revolution Museum while the chaps went back to the American History Museum. We were the only two on our tour of the period rooms set up by different states, so had maximum time to gawp. The real coup was seeing the special exhibition of their quilts and samplers that were not available to the public when Linda last visited. Sauntered back to the American History Museum (it was very cold and overcast) to see ‘Agriculture’ and ‘Rocks, Minerals and Gemstones’. Wow – they had the Hope Diamond – a huge ‘blue’ diamond surrounded by 30-odd sizeable diamonds on a ‘chain’ of 64 more. (Suddenly, I think I like diamonds after all). Also saw Marie Antoinette’s diamond earrings, Liz Taylor’s extravagant pearl and diamond necklace and several more beautiful pieces. Finished off our stay with a quick whiz round the ‘Orchid Express’ exhibit and saw some hybrids that weren’t even in the Botanic Gardens. Lovely. We had a burst tyre on the way out of town and, miraculously, there was the entrance to a closed road immediately after, so Ralph was able to pull in and he and B. set to and replaced it with the ‘doughnut’ spare. It confirmed what I had always felt – that I would like to have them both on my desert island! Dinner at the Dominion Brewing Co. again. My grouper was measily compared with B’s last night, allthough perfectly adequate. B. had a WHOLE chicken wing pizza – o.m.g.
Saturday, 23rd April - All got up early for packing (R &L) and tyre replacement (R & B), then into town where the girls were dropped off at The Textiles Museum. Saw loads of amazing woven lengths from tiny islands in Indonesia etc. that are worn as skirts or to drape buildings for ceremonial occasions. All are intricately produced and their various patterns have hidden meanings. There were some breathtakingly complicated batiks and, finally, bags and other containers/wrappings from all over the world. (We liked the bags!!) Showed great restraint in the museum shop but would like to have bought all kinds of wonderful stuff. Took R & L to the airport and waved ‘bye ‘bye until Las Vegas. Back to the Homestead Suites for a double dose of laundry. Finished in good time to head to the Old Dominion Brewery (think I’ve finally got the name right) for their tour – led by the boss man, Gerry Bailey, who was such a nice guy and certainly knew his stuff. Beforehand, had chatted with his assistant, who promised all kinds of VIP passes etc to Barrie if he made it to ’The Beer Festival’ again. B. got very excited about a return trip to Denver (scene of the annual Great American Beer Festival that he attended in 2003) but, during the tour, it transpired that the guy had been referring to the beer festival that they hold ‘out back’ every June (oops!). After the tour, we just happened to stand at the bar next to Ralph Jeffords, who makes the wonderful chilli sauce that we sampled at the Brewery and the recipe for which R & L had asked (in fact, he was clutching Linda’s request). We had lots of chats with him. He was a gentle sort and it transpired that he’s always been in I.T., so he and Barrie had plenty to talk about re. ‘the old days’. B. ate steak tenderloins and I had bangers and mash.
Sunday, 24th April 5,363 miles from Hermosa STERLING via Maryland Visitor Centre/LANCASTER, PA - What a wise decision to stay on for an extra night after R & L left. It was great being able to repack everything before setting off on the road again, heading for Lancaster, Pennsylvania. We re-routed a couple of times and called into the Visitor Centre in Maryland, where the chap was really helpful. Ended up going off the freeways and became totally lost more than once (maps just don’t live to reality so often). In a couple of places, saw signs for Amish carriages on the road and actually saw some! Eventually found a Quality Inn for $45 with a coupon and it was very nice. It was a single story motel, built around a huge square patch of grass and trees. Drove down to ‘Outback’ for wings and grilled shrimps (mmm), followed by a chocolate pecan brownie topped with Blue Bell ice cream and chocolate sauce that we shared. Somewhere en route today we saw an advertising board outside a property for “Duff Builders”!
Monday, 25th April - Had a long chat with Zoe before breakfast – we are so lucky to be able to do that. Went off to Amish Country via the AAA office for detailed maps. Found Ed’s Buggy Rides. It was freezing cold and we had half an hour to spare so went off to have a warming coffee and found a long sleeved t-shirt for B and long socks for me in the suitcase in the boot of the car. They helped but we were also given duvets to wrap around us for the open buggy trip – well, how many times are we going to be in Amish country? Trotted around and visited an Amish farm and shop. The owner, who seemed very bold when he asked B. how old he was, looked much older than his 45 years and apparently has 11 children (the average is 7). The Amish have no electricity, plough using horses and mules, and add extensions to their houses in a really haphazard way to distinguish in which parts of the property the different generations live. We drove on to Intercourse for lunch and wanderings around shops. There were lots of amazing hand made quilts and ‘white’ furniture. If I lived in the States, I’d have an unfitted kitchen for next to nothing. ‘Dined’ on peanuts and popcorn.
Tuesday, 26th April LANCASTER via Delaware Water Gap/EAST STROUDSBURG, PA - At breakfast, B. met a lovely guy who had been in the U.K. on D-Day and Howard, an Irish chap who had emigrated to Canada as a child and was en route to some model railway convention with the son of a friend who had died and left the son $100,000 worth of model railway kit. Headed out of Lancaster on freeways, but they were busy and very slow because of road works, so switched back to the minor roads that are much more fun. Howard’s sister lives in Aylesbury (UK) and her son in Hemel Hempstead! Stopped somewhere for lunch at a family restaurant. Began driving north along the Delaware Water Gap and on to East Stroudsburg and checked into the Value Inn. Went straight out again to the local shopping plaza to check out the cinema for later. Got side tracked; B. went for a beer at small Italian café and I found 2 tops and some blue linen trousers in one of the shops. B. got chatting to the waiter, Chris, and found out about their sister restaurant a couple of miles down the road (the Big A Steakhouse) where they have live jazz on Tuesdays. So, after speaking to Joan who we plan to visit in Boston and Zoe, we took off to the ‘Big A’ and enjoyed the most amazing jazz and some wonderful singing from someone who wandered into the bar and who sounded just like Frank Sinatra. Chris introduced us to the guys afterwards; Keyboard player, Jessie Green (son of Herbie Green who played trombone on Louis Armstrong’s “What A Wonderful World” (see Jessie Green.com, PO Box 242 Delaware Gap, PA 18327), the drummer, Bill Godman, who has played with Thelonius Monk, Miles Davis and Jimmy Hendrix (see Phil Wood Quintet on the internet) and the young double bass player who had only been playing for 8 years – all remarkable. We are just so lucky to have been in the right place, at the right time to have heard so much great live music – and this lot were making it up as they went along, discussing the tune, key etc. between numbers. It was a genuine jam session – priceless! (See Mastercard advert)
Wednesday, 27th April 5,698 miles from Hermosa E. STROUDSBURG via Bushkill Falls, Pa. And Newtown Ct./PLAINFIELD, CT - What a dreadful day, weatherwise. The cloud was really low and everywhere was damp and depressing. Stopped a couple of miles down the road to visit Bushkill Fall (second only to Niagara, apparently). What a rip off. They charged $9 each and it was all a bit rickety, with a section closed following rain damage. Not their fault, of course, but it was very un-American not to offer a discount for the inconvenience. Stopped for lunch in Newtown, Connecticut. Drove for longer than usual on scary, busy freeways (not our style at all) in an effort to reach Rhode Island, but we had to give up. Motels in Connecticut and Rhode Island are very expensive compared with other places so far and there was not a single coupon to be had for accommodation in Providence, where we had planned to stay. So, just pulled off the freeway because we had had enough for one day and checked into a very welcome Best Western at $64 + tax and went straight off to find a bar. O’Connor’s was just down the road. Sank several. B. ‘dined’ on French onion soup (“loads of cheese and bread and very little else”) and I had mussels in a thick, creamy, garlicky, cheese soup (starter portion only and I thought it was quite good). Question: Why do Americans put so much cheese in 98pc of their food?? By this time we had decided to try and book ourselves into Joan’s 2 days earlier than planned. (We seem to make a habit of this with accommodating relatives – see arrival in Louisville). Had spoken to Joan the previous evening and she sounded very bright and said that room was all prepared for us – that certainly had not been the intention.
Thursday, 28th April PLAINFIELD via Providence, RI/QUINCY, MA - Unable to get hold of Joan on the phone but decided to some laundry before checking again (the least we can do is arrive in Boston with clean clothes). Travelled to Quincy via Providence, Rhode Island. Parking looked like it was at a premium, so bit the bullet and went for valet parking for 3 hours. Had wanted to track down ‘stuffies’ - a local speciality of clams mixed with bacon, onion and stuffing, piled back into the shells and baked. No one in the city knew what we were talking about in the 2 brew pubs we visited (Union Junction and the Trinity Beer Co.) and we all agreed that it must be something that is only available at the coast. All the young professionals who were lunching looked like really nice, clean cut people, but we noticed how much more aggressive the drivers are in this neck of the woods. We were also amazed to see so many potholes (obviously caused by all the snow up here). Thought such things only appeared at home. WE HAVE NOW TRAVELLED ‘FROM SEA TO SHINING SEA’ (over 6,000 miles from Hermosa Beach). Eventually spoke to Joan and check in upstairs at her house. She prepared lovely meatballs and sausage in ‘my kind’ of tomato sauce, full of mulched up veggies + rice.
Friday, 29th April - Drove around for a bit in Quincy with Joan and stopped at The Hingham Bay Club restaurant for lunch. It reminded me of The Chart House in Redondo Beach, as the first floor overlooks the marina and beyond. Back ‘home’ via a hardware shop to enquire about bug screen replacement. More of last night’s dinner that was even yummier for standing.
Saturday, 30th April - Joan led us to her hairdresser’s so that I could get a well deserved trim, and then returned home as her gardener was at the house and she had had a rough night, so didn’t feel like coming out to play. We went to the JF Kennedy Library, which is actually a mostly audio-visual museum of his life and achievements. We were fortunate in also seeing a biography of Robert Kennedy and had no idea that the two brothers were such a team. Interesting stuff. JFK had lots of good policies that he saw through – anti-segregation; a better deal for the poor; backing the space programme and generally forward looking, rather than harking back to what had gone before – not to mention his charisma! Ate in again (stuffed chicken breasts, jacket potatoes with cheese and petit pois). Also, finally said ‘yes please’ to the yummy cheesecake. Ken rang and caught up with Barrie – great. Apparently the weather at home was really good for Sarratt Fair, so at least Zoe wouldn’t have been working among a host of ‘steaming’ punters! The weather here is damp, dank and dreary.
Sunday, 1st May - We all three took the ferry to Boston. It was a lousy day weather-wise – raining, windy and incredibly low cloud. Despite all this, we had a really smooth crossing, passed lots of tiny islands in the bay. B. pulled off a blinder when we arrived, by chatting up a porter at the Marriott Hotel and borrowing a wheelchair for the afternoon so that Joan could come around with us. Wandered through Quincy Marked (v. much like Covent Garden) and stopped for some excellent cups of clam chowder. The whole place was much busier than I would have thought on a Sunday. Had much better views on the return ferry as the cloud had lifted. Stopped at Roxie’s to pickup some excellent corned beef, seafood salad and rye bread for a ‘snacky’ dinner – mmm, but missed a call from Zoe.
Monday, 2nd May - Picked up some funny grass seed/waste paper mulch and sowed it on Joan’s bare patches in her side garden. Lunched on last night’s leftovers before B and I went for a long walk along The Causeway and stopped at The Clam Box for amazing ice creams. Sat for a while on Joan’s front steps as we were locked out and thought she might be resting. Had dinner at The Hingham Bay Club. B. had moules marinara while Joan and I ordered stuffed, baked scallops.
Tuesday, 3rd May 6,087 miles from Hermosa QUINCY/UTICA,NY - Managed to leave Joan’s before all the tiles fell off ‘our’ bathroom wall, the electricity supply blew up and the plumbing burst. Covered over 200 miles via freeways, just to get the journey to Rochester under our belts with only one overnight stop instead of the two that were planned. Scott Bailey (a colleague of B’s when he worked at Xerox) and family are away for the weekend, so we brought everything forward a day to see them. When we stopped for lunch at Bob’s Big Boy, we realized that we had left B’s nice jacket at Joan’s – oh poo. Checked into the Best Western at Utica so we could do lots of laundry. Caught Zoe ‘live’ online so she was able to ring for big chats. It was great having a decent shower and hair wash. Wandered practically next door to Del Monico’s restaurant where we had ‘appetizer’ portions of Escarole – greens that are v. local to the town – sautéed (wilted) in olive oil, garlic, bacon bits, chunks of hot peppers, breadcrumbs (not many) and parmesan (not much) – delicious and most un-American.
Wednesday, 4th May UTICA/ROCHESTER, NY - Drove straight to Rochester and arrived at Dottie’s lovely house at lunch time. She had prepared delicious sorrel soup that we had with ham and cheese sandwiches on dark rye bread – mmm. Dottie managed to contact Rich Ganesmer ( another member of the team at Xerox that B. worked with back in the late ‘70s) who was able to join us for dinner at The Dinosaur BBQ, where we had to wait about 50 minutes for a table, but it was well worth it. I had spicy chicken with coriander, rice and black beans + salad greens. It was great to see Rich again and he and B. had lots of catching up to do.
Thursday, 5th May - This was a day of babies. Dottie was looking after quiet, 15th month old Owen who was a real sweetie. We oohed and aahed at various departments in Wegmans and walked down memory lane to see 33 Thayer Street, where B. had lived. Had a tasty omelette in Charlie’s Frogpond. The waitress was fresh back from the U. K. and Amsterdam, where she had been taken all over the place by Alan Smith who plays for Manchester United (!), and couldn’t stop broadcasting. Went on to see LeAnn (Ralph’s daughter and her babes). Sarah, who turned 2 in December, is an amazing talker (really amazing) and Anthony (15 months) is an 18 carat smiling sweetie and very solid. Had a tour of their incredible new house with its 10 ft. ceilings, enormous rooms, 2 walk-in wardrobes (each larger than our spare room) and washer and drier upstairs as well as down. Drove back to Pitsford Plaza to meet up with Scott Bailey (with whom B. had dealings in his later years with Xerox) who very kindly drove us out to his place (some 27 miles away). He and his wife, Pat, have 17 acres of land with their house, surrounded by beautiful countryside. James (their 17 year old son) was having enormous fun driving a quad bike through mud! Everyone made us incredibly welcome, of course, and wanted to hear of our exploits. Their daughter Rachel’s boyfriend, Mike, joined us for dinner – chicken, pasta and vegetables – before we had to dash off for the Ascension Day service at their church, followed by coffee and cookies in the basement of the church with lots of other people who were interested in our travels. Back to chez Bailey for ice cream and to meet the young family who are staying with them. There was Rich (who comes from Torrance In California! – not far from Ralph and Linda), his wife, Mimi, her young son (who was convinced that his leg was aching at bed time, because all the adults were talking too much!) and their darling little daughter who, at 10 months, could stand and walk unaided. I am convinced that she is going to be an amazing gymnast. Scott and Pat wanted a minute-by-minute account of the trip and eventually drove us the long way back to our car around midnight.
Friday, 6th May - Dottie had Owen again and also his 4 year old brother, Connor, who was another little sweetie; very quiet and shy, but was humming away to himself as he played. We shot off to explore some shops (more ridiculously cheap paper napkins from Tuesday Morning) and had lunch at Hooters. Sat next to a geologist called Ned, who got chatting and gave us his card so that we could call for advice etc, if ever we are stuck and cannot get in touch with other contacts – how nice of him. Eventually found Artisans Works, an amazing space on a business park, jammed with an eclectic mix of original artworks. We thought that the best pieces were a life size wooden Harley Davidson and giant wooden versions of a roller skate, Polaroid camera, old fashioned telephone, door lock, stapler etc., all by the same artist. There were various rooms – Frank Lloyd Wright dining room and library, a 30-seat cinema, the 1950s room etc. that can be hired out for functions. In the Marilyn Room (lined with wonderful photos of Marilyn Monroe) we met a guy of Dutch extraction called Kuyt of Kuyt Richards, who make wonderful wooden wall clocks. I think the price tag was $2,700, which seemed quite a bargain when compared with the costs of many of the small, obscure paintings and other stuff, as they were not only beautifully crafted and fascinating to look at, but were precision made and functional (not bad, from someone who is not a lover of clocks!). Dottie had suggested the visit as Dom was heavily involved with the Munroe Community College who are associated with this place, and she held his wake there. Dinner at Mr Dominic’s Restaurant at the new Rochester Port seemed very fitting. Christian, drove us, which gave Barrie a bit of a breather, and it was a great, bustling Italian place. I had lobster stuffed ravioli and shared some escarole with B.
Saturday, 7th May - Dom’s brother, Tom, called round before Dottie came with us to The Windmill Farm and Craft Market at Penn Yan (an hour or so drive away). There were some Amish and Mennonite people selling stuff and they all looked very scrubbed and wholesome, particularly the young girls in their heavy cotton dresses. Some of the older girls looked rather incongruous though in bonnets, dresses, aprons, black stockings and then really heavy looking trainers! (would love to have taken a picture of that, but they don’t like being photographed). On the way back we saw a family sowing seeds by hand in their field – the young boy was stretched out on his stomach – what a labour of love and a peaceful existence. Barrie dropped us off at TJMaxx and More – a megastore – and I bought a short, patchwork skirt.
Sunday, 8th May 6,705 miles from Hermosa ROCHESTER via the Ohio Visitor Centre/TWINSBURG, OH - Mother’s Day Take 2. We said our fond farewells to Christian, Ralph (the female dog!), the larger than life cat (whose name I can’t remember) and dear Dottie, who had made our stay so lovely. Stopped at wonderful Wegmans to pick up a 14-inch sub, filled to overflowing with salami, 2 kinds of tasty wafer thin ham. Provolone cheese, jalapeños and salad + huge slices of watermelon for lunch. Had that at a picnic bench thoughtfully provided outside the Ohio Visitor Centre, where we stopped for maps. Drove on until we reached Twinsburg (outside Cleveland), named by twin brothers who married sisters and lived happily ever after, until the twins died within hours of each other. There is now an annual bash there for twins, triplets and quadruplets from all over the world. Faddled around re-establishing welcome links via the Internet, doing laundry etc. and quaffing most of the beers that B. had just bought. Had planned to call in a pizza for dinner but one place wasn’t answering its phone and the other predicted a one and a half hour wait – unacceptable. So, we ran across the road to Mac-Don-alds of all places and ran back clutching a chicken cob salad and milkshake that claimed to be vanilla but had several pieces of strawberry in it for me, and a fairly disgusting burger for B (no surprises there, then). Made it back to the room just in time for “Desperate Housewives”.
Monday, 9th May 7,191 miles from Hermosa TWINSBURG/DAYTON - Zoe rang again – hooray! Nice continental breakfast in Reception at our Super 8 Motel in comfy seats and no one else there, so was able to read the newspaper at leisure. Hit the road via a couple of freeways, but managed a lesser road between Colombus and just north of Dayton and saw more lovely Amish countryside. Stopped at Sunbury (?) for some lunch – fishtail soft rolls and coffee – before pressing on. B. booked Days Inn Motel near the Air Force Base in Dayton via the internet, giving us a big discount ($41 a night) + triple points on the loyalty card – well good for us! Sat in blistering sun outside the door of our room, creating a postcard and drinking beer. Thought we’d walk to Bob Evans next door for dinner but, when I asked a young member of staff if they sold alcohol, she said, “No, I don’t think so!” So, we wandered a little further to Deja Brew Sports Bar and Grille, where we had taco salad (not bad at all) and ‘hot teriyaki wings’ (terrible!) and chatted to John (v. drunk) and his toothless wife, Ginger + a nice trucker chap.
Tuesday, 10th Ma - Zoe rang again – yeh! Breakfast looked yukky (4 measily, small muffins and whitening powder for the coffee) so went to Bob Evans instead for mediocre eggs, bacon and rye bread (but good coffee) before heading off to the U.S. Air Force Museum. Facts: 82 days since Sarratt; 58 days to go until Sarratt; 35 days until Zoe; 7,100 odd miles from Hermosa Beach and in our 18th state. Actually, there were lots of things at the museum that appealed to me, like walking through four presidential planes (U.S. 1). I found the one that took JFK to Dallas and brought back his body particularly poignant. The marines who had been guarding his body insisted that he should not be put into the hold for the return journey, so a section of partition was cut away and 2 pairs of seats removed to accommodate the coffin. The Holocaust exhibit was also very moving (of course). Local people who had experienced it and survived or whose families had been involved, supplied all the exhibits and photographs. I have to say that it was truly amazing to be walking under the F117 (the latest stealth fighter/bomber) and to see a Titan II missile from ground level (as opposed to the bird’s eye view we had at the silo in Arizona. B. witnessed two young boys being told that the restored B-29 that actually dropped the bomb on Nagasaki dropped the bomb on Pearl Harbour. (What hope is there?) she recommended several restaurants for dinner. We chose The Amber Rose because it was the nearest and they serve alcohol. What wonderful food! B. had beef stroganoff (with huge, tender chunks of beef on a bed of spealtze (small bowtie shaped pastas) and I had 2 large pork loin chops (v.v. tender) with an apple deglaze, small potato cakes and fantastic home made sauerkraut – mmm.
Wednesday, 11th May DAYTON/SHIPSHEWANA, IA - Headed off across the state line into Indiana and checked out Shipshewana, another Amish/Mennonite community – what a treat. Arrived at Super 8 Motel with enough time to check out Yoder’s department store just down the road. What a place; bought tea towels for next to nothing, Hush Puppy pale blue leather sandals in the sale for $29.99 and fruit, cheese and crackers for dinner. Caught up with postcards and the journal while doing the laundry and B. got carried away with the computer. Well done, Dan McCarthy, for suggesting this place; we would never have known about it.
Footnote: Since we left the Connecticut/Rhode Island/Massachusetts area, fuel prices have dropped right back from around $2.34 to as low as $1.89 a gallon! Hooray for us, even though the locals still complain.
Thursday, 12th May - Spoke at length with Zoe, who is getting very excited about a possible short holiday to Marbella in a couple of weeks with Suzanne and her friend Gemma. It seems that Gemma’s stepfather owns a restaurant on the beach, with an apartment above, that they can have for FREE. If Gemma’s mother goes too, they can all fly out in the private jet (eek!). Did a tour of the Menno-Hof Amish-Mennonite Visitors Centre with audiovisual presentations about their background. They are Anabaptists (a movement that began in Zurich in 1525 by a group who rebelled against the established church/state set-up, because they believed in adult baptism when people were old enough to make their own commitment). They also sought to restore the church to the purity of its early days. Another branch of Anabaptists that we had never heard of are The Hutterites, who are the oldest of the 3 groups and have always practiced communal living, including common ownership of property. The Amish formed in the late 17th century because they felt that the Mennonites were becoming too much like the world around them and were losing spiritual discipline. They resist modern conveniences, preferring to maintain the ‘old ways’, living and dressing very simply. The Mennonites drive, work in the big wide world and dress like the rest of us. All 3 groups share a desire to follow Christ totally, in every aspect of life, and obey the Sermon on the Mount and the New Testament literally. It was really interesting and we spent hours there including some time talking to two of the guides who had lived in Highgate (UK) 3 of their four and a half years in the UK (it’s that small world again). Somehow I ended up giving the ladies my recipe for bread and butter pudding and they asked if you would eat it for breakfast! (well, only if there is some left over from the night before!). Wandered around lots of the gift shops after some chilli for lunch. It’s so nice to be able to walk everywhere. Went into a fine art shop, where they had lots of prints of watercolours by Gordon Peterson who paints cosy pictures of insides of homes and exteriors of houses, superimposed with ‘ghosted’ people who would have been around in previous generations – very clever. Went to the Blue Gate Restaurant and had ‘Amish Country Sampler’ platter. What a gut buster; 1 chicken portion, beef and ham with a sort of stuffing, green beans, mashed potatoes and gravy – all washed down with water, of course!
Friday, 13th May SHIPSHEWANA /via Kalamazoo/GRAND RAPIDS, MI -Took our time leaving – chatting to people in the breakfast room. Called in at Yoder’s Department Store again for tea towels to use for Blitz’s kitchen seat covers. B. found me and we went to the tackle and horse auctions – what an experience. We couldn’t believe the prices that horses were changing hands for – some under $200! Said our farewells to Shipshewana after browsing around the barn selling cheeses and all kinds of sausage and jerky. It wasn’t long before we crossed the state line into Michigan and called into the AAA office in Kalamazoo. Got lost trying to find it, but a nice lady driving a Fed Ex lorry guided us around the one way system. It seems that today we lost the hour that we gained in Shipshewana (how confusing) and don’t officially switch to Central time until we are the other side of Lake Michigan. Arrived at Dan and Sheila’s house in Grand Rapids around 4 p.m. (I think). What a beautiful place (built in1859), very close to downtown, and they made us so welcome. We walked to a bar called ‘Z’s’, drank beer all night, didn’t eat, went back and carried on drinking and chatting into the night.
Saturday, 14th May - Late start. Dan cooked breakfast then we walked all over town, seeing a lovely old hotel renovated and extended by Dan’s ex-boss who is a great philanthropist to the city. Also saw the Betty Ford Garden that was in a state of total neglect. (How awful – but we couldn’t help giggling). Had lunch at a Polish bar, wandered around more and ended up at Leo’s – a beautiful ‘designer’ bar. Dan and Sheila’s friends, Randy and Laurie were pressed into joining us. They were really nice young couple, but I am sure that we hijacked their quiet night out. All drank too much again, but were all ‘better’ than last night.
Sunday, 15th May GRAND RAPIDS/ROCK FALLS, IL - Dragged ourselves away from Grand Rapids and did over 300 miles driving across Illinois – what a boring state – definitely our least favourite – and trying to avoid Chicago. Eventually found somewhere to stay in Rock Falls (there just wasn’t anywhere on Route 30). The nice lady at Reception in the Super 8 Motel said, “Ah, y’all from the Good ol’ U.S. of England!” – great!! Missed dinner as the kitchen was closed by the time we showed up in Bennigans across the road, but some nice chap behind the bar found us some chips and salsa.
Monday, 16th May 7,850 miles from Hermosa ROCK FALLS via Clinton/CEDAR RAPIDS, IA- -Spoke to Zoe – hooray. She has sorted out her short break to Marbella next week with the girls (though no private jet!). Stopped to get the front wheel aligned as B. wasn’t happy about the way the new tyre was wearing. Took the opportunity to lunch at a ‘Village Inn’ while it was being fixed. Apparently, it wasn’t very bad, but both felt better once it was fixed AND National car rental are gong to reimburse us! Found a really nice, newly refurbished Quality Inn at Cedar Rapids and decided to put down roots for 2 whole nights. Behold, there was the Granite City Brewery right next door. That clinched it! Just had to try out the beer and chatted lots to Doug the barman. Returned later to eat. B. was disappointed to learn that they had run out of buffalo burgers, so had a small ordinary one, while I had an appetiser portion (1lb!) of delicious mussels. Got chatting to Vic, who was sitting next to me at the bar. He’s an engineer for Wal-Mart and endorsed all the places to visit in South Dakota that Dan had suggested.
Tuesday, 17th May - Got chatting to a retired attorney in the breakfast room, who filled us in on lots of stuff re. The House of Representatives v. The Senate and plenty more besides. Decided that a bit of culture wouldn’t go amiss, so went to the History Museum. Went to see “Robots” in the afternoon. Both agreed that we’ll have to see it several more times to look at all the things and effects that are going on, particularly having seen the exhibition in Shreveport. Checked out a few shops and had some fun making key rings with lettered beads. Gave one to the waitress, Ashley. She had taken a 2 month road trip on her own 2 years ago, when she was only 19! She slept in her jeep and picked up a hitchhiker – O.M.G.! She is studying infectious diseases and is joining the Air Force (quite a girl). Got back to the room after dinner at Granite City and had that horrible empty feeling that I’d left my hand bag on the chair (some time earlier). Hurried back, praying. Ashley had found it as soon as we had left and the Manager had put it in the safe. Lucky, or what??
Wednesday, 18th May 7,989 miles from Hermosa CEDAR RAPIDS via Hampton/CHEROKEE, IA - Same attorney as yesterday at breakfast, talking with some old boy who was in charge of breakfast (there was no doubt that he would kick everyone out at 9 a.m. sharp). They were talking about their fondness for poker and how they go to the annual Pokerfest in Milwalkee, where they attend the Poker Mass (now I have heard everything!) Notes: apparently, the ‘must try’ food in Iowa is pork tenderloin, thinly sliced and fried (and then, no doubt, covered in cheese like most other dishes). Have also noticed all over the country how The Beatles are held in such esteem. Someone, somewhere actually said, “Well, you (the Brits) gave us the best music – The Beatles”! and after all that the US has contributed to the popular music scene. Set off west through Iowa and think we stopped for a Subway in Hampton and chatted to a nice fresh faced looking bloke who told us that he had recently bought his 4 bedded house and 7 acres of land with a barn for $105,000 – gee whiz! Drove on to Cherokee and found a Super 8 Motel. Made it across the road for an early Mexican dinner served by identical twins. It was most confusing as one was hearty and we were bantering in ‘Spanglish’ and the other didn’t seem able to speak either English or Spanish!?
Thursday, 19th May CHEROKEE via Le Mars/WAGNER, SD - Fabulous weather! Stopped at Le Mars (just because it looked like a nice, renovated town centre). Spotted a cyber café (the first so far, we think) and called in for coffee and 15 minutes free Internet time. Got chatting to the lady in charge – Belinda Harrison, who was a real sweetie and insisted that we kept our coffee mugs and wants us to keep in touch on our travels via B.’s internet newsletters. She pointed us towards the Blue Bunny Ice Cream Parlour and museum on the way out of town and told us that in addition to Ice Cream Days (a 4-day festival held each June in Le Mars) another town in Iowa – Craig – hosts a ‘Testicle Festival’ where these delicacies from pigs are eaten – only in America!! Mr Chatterbox checked us in at the Super 8 Motel in Wagner, South Dakota – can’t imagine how long the process takes him if a group turns up! Took a walk across the road to what we would call a lake but, having seen a lot of Lake Ontario, the locals probably call it a pond. Took shelter from the sun under a huge construction with lots of picnic benches under it and got chatting to Yvonne and her blind granddaughter – native Americans from Winnebago, Iowa. The granddaughter sings The Blues in a band in which her father plays guitar. Took a stroll around the lake then came back for a swim while the laundry was doing itself. Watched the gripping 2 hour series finale of CSI Las Vegas with Nick being buried alive, then strolled next door to what seemed to be the only restaurant in town – some steak and rib joint with a very rude old bat serving, who looked like she was a member of the Munster family. Decided to leave after one drink and dined on a shared 12 inch sub.
Friday, 20th May WAGNAR via Kadoka/Hill City, SD - Awoke at 5 a.m. with a really bad headache that lasted for a big chunk of the day. Was able to doze a bit on the long journey and only missed a few of the many ginormous fields, some of which had very fine looking cattle in them (the cattle were always beautiful, but many of the fields were arable). Had planned to stay near the Badlands National Park, but there was just nowhere (most towns we drove through boasted a population of maybe 187; one as low as 44!), so we headed up to the Interstate 90 and Kadoka. That only seemed to have 2 unopened motels and a truckers’ restaurant attached to a petrol station where we lunched. We were rescheduling and pouring over maps in the car afterwards when two really nice young chaps (John and Chad) asked if they could help. They steered us away from our plan to stay in Rapid City and told us how beautiful and convenient for all the exploring Hill City is. They always stay in log cabins there for about $20 a night, apparently. I was mildly apprehensive about a log cabin, only because there were 14 inches of snow here a couple of weeks ago and I imagined the place might be a bit ‘unlived in’ (like Gites in France early in the season) but, of course, subsequently realized that they would be used all winter for the skiers and snowboarders, etc. – doh! We struck lucky and checked into a Super 8 run by very helpful Pat and Joe (mother and son) for THREE nights as it is so beautiful here and there is so much to see. Hope the weather will stay good to us too! Everywhere in town is within walking distance and so clean and lovely. Had drinks + wings (B) and white chilli (chicken, white beans and corn in a massive cup, served with cornbread – mmm) at the Rushmore Brewing Company (barmaid: Shirl). The owners, Janet and Brian, who also own a motel, got chatting. They had been welcoming this year’s influx of Eastern European students who will be working for them for 16 weeks – wow – some culture shock I would imagine. Called in for a couple at Bumpin’ Buffalo Bar and chatted with the barman, Grant. Someone paid for our drinks !? We like it here (not only because someone bought us our drinks) but the whole place is so clean and friendly.
Saturday, 21st May - Zoe rang – yes! It’s only 3 weeks until she and Ann take off to Los Angeles!! Went of to The Badlands via Scenic, a genuine one-horse town that the world has forgotten; about half a dozen buildings (some with bullet holes). Only the saloon and general store were open. Ventured into the latter and, although they had some quirky stuff and amazing Indian beaded shoes, it was all crusty and dusty and the owners were sitting in the back eating. V. strange. The Badlands were spectacular and on such a scale that photos did it no justice. Saw hundreds of prairie dogs with their babies, several buffalo and a few Dahl sheep (we think). Took off to the Air Museum at Ellsworth Airbase (Dan’s old base) but, despite AAA saying they closed at 6.00, it was 4.30 and we arrived at 4.31. Decided to take in Mt. Rushmore instead and were very disappointed. We were inclined to agree with the guy who chatted to us when we were pouring over maps in the Super 8 Motel in Wagner, whose opinion was that it is ‘graffiti’. Couldn’t understand why it was ever allowed; it actually looks quite insignificant when all around it is vast, natural beauty. Glad we didn’t bother with the $8 car park fee so with that and the 1880 steam train we decided not to take to Keystone, we saved ourselves $46! Keystone is something else – so commercialized and awful and to think we might have ended up there instead of lovely small, clean, friendly Hill City, where they play jazz over loudspeakers on all the street lights! Another awful place was Wall Drug – a store that has an amazing advertising campaign with freeway boards for many, many miles before the town of Wall. I was expecting a quaint little drug store with lots of interesting goodies for sale. Instead, it was like a mini mall, inside one block length building, selling every kind of souvenir imaginable + some you could never imagine. Now I feel bad about all the things I’ve said about Keystone; Joe tells us that in 1972 it suffered a devastating freak double flood that wiped out 5,000 people in one night. Dined at The Alpine restaurant a couple of doors down, where the choice was 7 or 9oz filet mignon with jacket potato and a quarter of an iceberg lettuce covered in creamy dressing! What a great idea and what delicious steaks ($9.95 for the 7 oz ones) but we did share an apple strudel thingy in layers of the lightest filo pastry (they really max out on desserts, with a whole menu devoted to them). A swift after dinner drink at the Bumpin’ Buffalo and more chats with Grant.
Sunday, 22nd May - An earlier than usual start as there was lots to pack in. Called by the local grocery store to pick up ingredients for a lunch picnic and headed off towards Hot Springs. However, the road ran past Thunder Mountain, where the gigantic Crazy Horse sculpture to all native Americans has been in progress since 1948! The sculptor died in 1972 and never even got to see the face (which was unveiled in 1998). His wife and 7 or his 10 children are continuing the project that is funded only by admission fees to the Visitors Centre and private contributions. It will be many times the size of silly old Mt. Rushmore when completed and be a truly gargantuan sight. The museum etc. were compelling and we got stuck in for hours before continuing our journey. Got talking to an Indian guy who was not only selling the jewellery that he makes but also the books that he has written! My response of “Just outside London” to his question, “Where are you from?” prompted him to tell me that he has visited England several times and always stays with a doctor friend who lives in Finchley, where I went to school! (yet another small world). He flew an F-4 Phantom jet in Vietnam and volunteered to participate in The Sundance – a ceremony of tremendous bravery at which warriors have always offered their suffering to the sky spirits, by attaching themselves by their nipples, via threads, to a cedar pole (the cedar tree is the symbol of life). They lean back and fix their eyes on the sun, following its path across the sky all day and slowly circling the pole. If the warrior stays on his feet all day, he becomes a medicine-man and wins good fortune for his tribe. Headed off to The Mammoth Centre at Hot Springs. Another wow! The whole place has been erected over the massive site where the nearest complete skeleton of a mammoth ever found was discovered, when bulldozing began on a proposed housing complex in 1974. And there it is, all laid out; totally unreal and it’s hard to believe that they are real bones and not a Hollywood replica, and they are not even petrified. ‘Digs’ only take place for one week in July each year, because that’s the only time that the Director is available and they use 13 volunteers. I would love to do that, but was so carried away that I forgot to register my interest on the way out! We then headed north to Custer State Park and en route saw buffalo in the fields, prairie dogs and one or two deer. Imagine our surprise when we drove round a corner and were confronted by 4 large buffalo ambling down the road towards us. We turned tail and headed off back down the road as we didn’t know if they might charge at the car. We needn’t have worried, though, as other cars seemed to get through, so we braved it and had the most fantastic close up shots of them. Later on, an even bigger chap ambled across the road in front of us. What an amazing experience. B. went for a well deserved ‘pint’ while I raced back to shower in time for the series finale of “Desperate Housewives” (how sad!). ‘Dined’ on the remains of lunch – mmm.
Monday, 23rd May 9,026 miles from Hermosa HILL CITY via Spearfish Canyon Highway/SPEARFISH - Said our farewells to Joe and Hill City and headed off to Deadwod. Went through the town of Rochford that was really sweet and boasted a population of 25 on one of their buildings (The General Store that was called The Rochford Mall!). Deadwood was horrible (wall-to-wall casinos in the restored old buildings, and tacky souvenir shops (didn’t really expect anything else). A nice lady in the ice cream parlour was happy to spend time chatting and Kathy in the Information Centre told us all kinds of stuff (I bet the other people who came in after us were a bit miffed). Visited the cemetery where Wild Bill Hickock and Calamity Jane are buried. The inevitable school group were present; why is it that their teachers and the other adults in charge don’t stop them yelling and running wild? It’s bad enough in museums, but you would think that some kind of respect would be instilled in them in a cemetery. Went back on ourselves for a few miles so that we could take the Spearfish Canyon Highway. What beautiful scenery – gigantic pine covered hills (oh, the smell!), crystal clear rivers, lakes and streams + the Bridal Veil Falls and all that wonderful clean, fresh air. Picnicked on the way. Spearfish town looked nice, so we check into a Travelodge – not many miles today, but this is what it’s all about. We’ll catch up on a freeway on some other occasion if we are behind schedule. Went straight out to walk around town as the weather was gorgeous. Found an incredible scrapbooking shop that was packed with stickers so, while I browsed, B. found the nearest bar, which happened to be the Knight’s Cellar (an English ‘pub’, owned and run by David Potter). Wandered around for a bit and had another drink + 2appetisers at a really calm steak place. Dropped into an exotic pet store and chatted to Trevor (aged about 10) who had the cutest little rabbit in a box (Thumper). He said that he often chats to his English janitor, so we taught him to say “Air hair lair” (just like the Queen) when he next sees her and he said, “I won’t go to jail for saying this, will I?”
Tuesday, 24th May SPEARFISH via Devil’s Tower/COLSTRIP, MT - Stopped off in town for more stickers and checked out a second-hand shop that had a set of left-handed golf clubs for $95 with bag. Had much deliberation over whether or not we should get them for Ken but, as we didn’t know what to check and B. was unable to get a signal on the mobile to try asking Ralph, we let them go. Did loads of miles and almost made it to Little Bighorn Battlefield in Montana. However, we first visited Devil’s Tower that took us nearly an hour and a half to walk around the base. It is a volcanic plug – all that remains of a mountain that has been eroded away over millions of years. It stands at over 1,000 ft. high (it figured prominently in “Close Encounters Of The Third Kind”) and there were several parties of people climbing it. They must be ‘out of their frigging minds’. On our walk, we were directed by some passers-by to a spot where there was some snake activity - they thought one was eating another, but we were convinced that it was a single snake sloughing its sheath. However, when an American chap joined us with his very loud, brash and hearty Australian friend, it was decided that there were in fact two in the process of mating! Now you don’t see that every day. There didn’t seem to be any towns en route to Little Bighorn that had motels (according to the AAA book). It was getting quite late when we saw a sign pointing 20 miles off the road to a Super 8 Motel at Colstrip. Sadly they were full and could only offer the ‘Manager’s Suite’ at $88, that we declined. (Thinking back, that is still much cheaper than the £50 a night we used to pay when visiting Zoe in Nottingham, but it seemed really expensive after what we had come to expect.) The receptionist suggested that we try the other motel in town (whose name we immediately forgot) and indicated with a jerk of her head that it was “just down the road”. When we couldn’t find it, I went into the Sheriff’s office to ask. The nice lady there said that she would phone to see if they had a vacancy and put me on to the Manager, who said that they were full but she could offer the use of a flat belonging to the owner of the motel, that had recently been rented out to some guys who were working in town, short term. She said it would be $30 if we wanted it! She was Frann Sommerfield, who left the reception desk and drove ahead of us, across the street to a residential road and took us to a first floor, 3 bedroomed flat with just a bed in it. She said that she would tell the owner that we were cousins visiting from out of town so there would be no charge! On top of that, when we went back with her to pick up towels, she presented us with a $30 voucher for a nearby restaurant and said that we should say we had won it in a draw (that she organized through a ladies’ club) if quizzed by the restaurant staff. She refused to take any money from us until we said that she should buy presents for her great granddaughters. She couldn’t think how we knew that she was a great grandmother, until we pointed to the pictures on the wall around her desk and said that we had notice that her car registration was “GRT GRNDMA”! What a great lady.
Wednesday, 25th May 9,357 miles COLSTRIP VIA Little Bighorn Battlefield/BILLINGS, MT - Went to Fort Union Inn to say our goodbyes to Frann and headed off for Little Bighorn Battlefield. Breakfasted in the Indian run ‘Custer Trading Post’ and had the best one yet; beautifully cooked and hot. The café walls were lined with incredibly expensive Indian handicrafts (like beaded baby carriers for $795 and a suede, fringed traditional shirt with shell and porcupine quill decoration for $975). Found a nice silver double knot ring to put in Zoe’s birthday bag. Neither of us could recall having been on an actual battlefield before and it was very chilling seeing the small headstones denoting where some of the 7th cavalry and Indian warriors had fallen. Found the memorial to the Indian warriors, complete with a list of the names of those who had died, reassuringly symbolic and meaningful, as opposed to the cold stone block for the Cavalry. We decided that had we been Indian, we would have been proud to be called ‘Guts’ but not quite so chuffed with the handle, ‘Plenty Lice’. Of course, this prompted us the next day to suggest ‘Chattering Woman In Morning’ and ‘ Plenty Hair on Face’ for each other. Continued on to Billings, the largest city in the state of Montana. They don’t call this ‘The Big Sky State’ for nothing. The place is so huge and empty that you can see for miles and the cloud formations and weather patterns that you can see developing are truly awesome. We could see three different storms developing, but somehow managed to avoid all of the menacing purply-black bits. In between these were huge areas of beautifully blue sky with the biggest, fluffiest while clouds you could imagine, and so low that it seemed possible to grab hold of them. Checked into a downtown Best Western and sought out the Billings Brewing Company during Happy Hour, when pints of the local stuff and ‘well’ mixes (e.g. ‘house’ vodka & tonic) were $2 a throw. Passed some time in there chatting with Sam, a South African, who has been living in Montana since the early ‘80s and is a fount of knowledge about the place. We had already discovered that our trip is too early in the year for The Road To The Sun to be open, so had plotted a route to take us west into the Rockies and then southeast to enter Yellowstone at its north west entrance, before travelling along Beartooth Scenic Byway to Cooke City, but it seems that this is also closed because of mudslides as a result of the bad weather this year. Stopped into Jakes Steak House and Bar on the way back to check it out.
Thursday, 26th May - Did nothing special today – but, hey, what’s wrong with that? Strolled around town in the morning and walked for miles to find the Visitor Centre that seemed to be in a very strange part of town, close to a women’s prison. Came away with armfuls of brochures and highlighting marks all over a map that the funny lady there had drawn in. She didn’t seem to know what was going on re. road closures and mountain passes, so we’ll probably stick to the route we drew up, off freeways as much as possible and missing out Beartooth Scenic Byway that we know to be closed. Also called into an army and navy surplus store and chatted with a chap called Marty, who had only been working there a couple of days. He is a retired anaesthetist and coroner and is clearly enjoying life. He goes to a kindergarten one day a week and teaches the children things like how to use chopsticks – what fun! Lunch at Billings Brewing Company where B. made friends with the brewer. Back to motel to plan next few days and book some accommodation, as it will be Memorial Day weekend. Got spruced up to go and see ‘Six Demented Women’ (a satirical musical) but they were sold out, so had drinks and appetisers at The Rex Hotel next door – very agreeable. Went back to the brew pub as B. had cards for 2 free pints that the brewer had given him. Met up with Sam again and he and the barman also bought pints for Barrie.
Friday, 27th May 9,490 miles from Hermosa BILLINGS/BOZEMAN MT - Called into the post office before we left town and got talking to an English couple who were on an eight and a half month world tour! They were at school together, went their separate ways and met up 12 years later at a school reunion. They married and by selling her house and keeping his in London, they have financed the trip and are “catching up with the years we missed together” – aah. We started to see snow capped mountains as soon as we hit the freeway and headed straight for Bozeman. There was no room at the Super 8 but they sent us across the road to the Budget Inn. Just as well we checked in early as they were also full by late afternoon. Bozeman is a really nice town; lots of smart shops and good bars. Shared a hot corned beef sandwich (at least 3 inches thick) at Starky’s and the waiter told us to visit Hyalite Falls before leaving town. Wandered around town and went back to the room to organise a laundry run and check on Zoe’s return flight from Spain. The laundry was just off the indoor pool and I felt like I’d taken a sauna by the time it had finished. Zoe rang – how fantastic to speak to her again and know that she was safe. She’d had “the best time ever” and acquired a good tan in only four days. Thought everywhere but burger chains would have finished serving by the time we’d finished talking, but there was a barbecue place nearby. Ordered a combo dish to share, but the catfish was salty, the ribs weren’t cooked enough and I don’t care for wings; so that was very disappointing. The waiter, Lee, was a nice chap though and bought B’s beer and my coffee!
Saturday, 28th May BOZEMAN via Hyalite/HELENA, MT - Called into Wal-Mart for picnic food as we left town. Visited Hyalite Falls on the way out of town that involved a fair distance on a ‘dirt’ road, pitted with ruts. Fortunately, the foot trail up to the Falls was asphalted, which was handy. Pulled off the road to a lake with hundreds of campers and boaters for our picnic. It was good to know that we had pre-booked our room at Days Inn, but we needn’t have worried. Unlike Bozeman, Helena (although the state capital) was practically deserted. Dave, the nice chap on Reception with bright orange hair, was telling us that he plays in a “no drink/no drugs punk rock band” and is organizing a big concert in June. They are hoping to persuade a 100-strong human circus to fly up from Arizona to appear, but may have to settle instead for a group of midget wrestlers from somewhere within the state! Drove around the ghost city and found the Capitol building (a very imposing place) where a wedding had just taken place in the grounds and the party were still milling around for photographs. Eventually found JC Penney in a small mall, but it was 5.45 and they were about to close (on a Saturday!?). There was nothing for it but to head for the Brewhouse, where we sampled some good, ‘local’ and ‘on the premises’ (Lewis & Clark Brewery was located in the basement) pale ale and stout. Had the most delicious megaburgers. Walked to a bar near the motel, but only stayed for one drink as the smoke from the cooking was very unpleasant. It seems there was a get together of Starsky & Hutch Mustangs in town today, so we’ve missed that, although we did see a few of them driving around.
Sunday, 29th May 9,803 miles from Hermosa, HELENA/MISSOULA, MT - After the ‘ghost city’ of Helena, we decided to try our chances at getting accommodation in Missoula instead of the 2 night pre-booked in Lolo. Wise choice – no trouble getting a room at the Mountain Valley Inn. The room was not ready, so we were able to walk 2 deserted blocks to The Rhinosceros Brew Pub that serves 52 U.S. brewed beers on tap and 50 bottles from around the world. Each time you order a bottle, it counts towards the prize of a tee shirt that says “50 ways to love your liver”! Chatted lots to the barman, Will, and one of the owners, Kevin, who was fresh back from a two week trip to Scotland, sampling and buying single malt scotches. The afternoon receptionist at the motel was making batches of cookies in the microwave behind his desk and keeping the cookie jar full for guests! He also said that he now understands how the Indian felt when the white man came and took over their land, because loads of rich, brash New Yorkers and Californians are flocking into Montana to buy up second homes (just like in Sarratt, Wales and Cornwall!). Hung out in the room and watched the uncut version of “MASH”, before dining next door at Knucklehead Barbeque, where I had fantastic, tender brisket and B. had beef ribs. Back to The Rhinoceros, but there was no one to strike up proper chats with. They were all young and in their own groups.
Monday, 30th May
Had a long chat with Zoe again – hooray! It was Memorial Day and yet we had the roads (almost) to ourselves. Went north but couldn’t find an entrance to Nine Piles Wildfowl Sanctuary. Everywhere was lovely anyway so drove on to Flathead Lake. It was huge, turquoise blue and surrounded by the snow capped Rockies – a stupendously beautiful place! The weather was fantastic too (apparently very unusual for Memorial Day weekend). Came back to the National Bison Range (20 mile one way drive around it). Only saw 3 buffalo at a distance, plus a couple of deer but it was just too hot for them to be on the plains. It didn’t matter, as the scenery was breathtaking up at several thousand feet, looking down on to the vast plains that were the bed of the Missoula River that had filled and drained several times when giant glaciers had dammed the valley, filled with water (to a depth of around 1,000 ft) that eventually washed away the glacier and must have wiped out all signs of life on its route to the Pacific. All this, millions of years ago – boggling! After showering, we walked into downtown but couldn’t see anywhere open or that we fancied for dinner, so went back for the car and drove until we found The Broadway Grill that looked nothing from the outside (like lots of places) but was a really nice, quiet bar where we had good sandwiches (visible from space) – corned beef and Salmon BLT respectively. We chatted with Richard, the barman, who gave us 15 pc discount vouchers – how nice – and smiled at the group of girls giving their friend a send off (to live in Hawaii) with an amazing array of shots.
Tuesday, 31st May 10, 137 miles from Hermosa MISSOULA via Stevensville/DILLON, MT - Pigged out on steak and eggs and brisket hash for breakfast that kept us going all day. Stopped for a wander around Stevensville (the oldest town in Montana, established in 1841). Was surprised that there was no publicity around town claiming its fame. There were, however, interesting boards parked along both sides of Main Street, showing extracts from the journals of Lewis and Clark and other members of their expedition. It’s the bicenntenial of their mammoth trek, so there are lots of events and tributes to this amazing feat all over Montana. What courageous people they must have been – especially Sacajaweia, pronounced Sack-a-chew-ia, (Bird Woman) who was apparently only 14 and with her baby in tow when she set off with the expedition (her husband was one of the two interpreters). She, being Indian, had the rapport with the tribes they encountered and must have been an amazing asset. It seems that Lewis and Clark had great respect for the Indians and they in turn traded horses with them for their worn out ones. There was a nice little gift shop in town – as in most places – but who buys this lovely stuff? Also stopped for coffee at Wisdom – a tiny, tiny place and, again, the restaurant was attached to a gallery selling paintings, amazing furniture (made from horseshoes) and cabinets faced with corks and with antler horn handles plus very stylish clothes (like a coat made from patchwork strips of different woollen tweeds). There must be a market for these exclusive items somewhere. The weather was dull and wet at times, but we managed to avoid the really bad storms that we could see all around – 5 at one point! The mountains were with us all day and we saw massive fields containing hundreds of very happy cattle. Arrived in Dillon, as planned, and stopped by at the Visitor Information Centre – a brand new wooden building, serving who? Hit town in the evening but, of the three bars we tried, none had decent beer for B. In the first one, the barmaid, who had a curious ‘fluidity’ about her, knew lots about Lewis and Clark and has a son who is 21 and is a sniper in the US Army. He has been away in Iraq and currently Romania for 14 months. (hope he comes back safely soon). There was an impressive collection of limited edition bottles behind the bar, including some beautifully painted porcelain ones representing the members of the Lewis and Clark expedition. The second place we visited fed us with all the bar snacks that were on offer.
Wednesday, 1st June DILLON VIA Nevada City and Virginia City/W. YELLOWSTONE, WY - Miserable cold, wet weather as we left Dillon. Looked for ghost towns indicated just off the road on the map, but could only find one log cabin. However, stumbled unexpectedly upon Nevada City, where many original wooden buildings from all over had been erected. Only went into the Music Hall. It was huge and full of Wurlitzers, fairground organs and pianolas, most of which took 10 cent or 25 cent coins to spring into action. They were in the most amazing condition. Chatted to a woman who had spent 18 months in England, based in Manchester, back in the ‘60s, on a Christian Mission (?). Drove on to Virginia City. The Main Street was lined with original and renovated wooden buildings. A couple of shops are preserved with original stock, so you can only look in, but the rest are working businesses. Had coffee to warm ourselves up + a maple oat scone (B) and gingerbread cake (me) in a delightful cafe cum gift shop. Drove on to West Yellowstone and checked into Yellowstone Lodge. The room was really nice with a sofa, desk, fridge and microwave. Put on even more layers and ventured out into the sleet in search of a brew pub (just for a change). Sent B. on to the bar while I browsed in a shop selling jackets that I thought B. would like for $19 each, and bought some earrings to put in Zoe’s birthday bag. Had a couple and burgers at The Howling Wolf and on the way back, stopped off at the jacket shop where B bought two, and celebrated with a drink at another bar that was fitted with so much wonderful thick wood. Hurried back and put the heat on in our room. Hope it warms up soon.
Thursday, 2nd June WEST YELLOWSTONE via Yellowstone National Park/CODY, WY - Spoke to Zoe (Yes!!). Drove into Yellowstone and could not believe how many buffalo we saw, including lots of calves and mums – wasn’t prepared for that at all, nor the sheer size and variety of landscape and geo-thermal activity. Spent far too long chatting to a really nice family with two daughters, while we all waited in vain for one of the Norris geysers to burst into life – it usually happens every 4 hours but we all gave up after a 5 hour interval. By then, we didn’t have enough time to get round to Old Faithful and knew we’d have to spend another day there. Other highlights were Artist Point with beautiful colours in the rocks, Canyon that had spectacular Canyon Falls flowing through it and massive Yellowstone Lake. Tried a huge hotel in the park itself but it was far too expensive. They gave us a list of places in Cody, Wyoming, so we phoned ahead and booked the Comfort Inn and, despite the long drive there, it meant that we would be able to go to the rodeo. The drive from the East Entrance of the park to Cody was pure cowboy country – everything we had hoped to see in this part of the States - and it transpired that Theodore Roosevelt had declared it to be ‘the most beautiful 52 miles of road in America’. It was Buffalo Bill Scenic Byway (US14/16). That was yet another part we would otherwise have missed AND we get to see it all over again when we return to Yellowstone tomorrow; how lucky are we? Guests from the Comfort Inn and Holiday Inn next door are invited each evening to the General Store Gift Shop, across the car park, for drinks and nibbles + 10 pc discount on all the merchandise. So, we went, purchased our rodeo tickets and re-met Charlie and Carol, the rock hunters we had seen in the first bar in Dillon on Wednesday evening! How freaky is that?? Had already admired Carol’s necklace made from 3 beautiful sapphires that Charlie had found and, since, then, they had found 5 garnets. Went off to the rodeo wearing maximum layers of warm clothes and gloves plus one of our blankets to sit on on the aluminium seats, but the wind was howling. Wrapped one of B’s polo shirts round my head (I must have looked awful, but it did the job). B. really suffered though and, despite our moving to more sheltered seats, we left half way through the show. The wind was so strong that we were doing 40 mph on the way back to town with B.’s foot off the accelerator! As we passed a motel, a toilet roll came bouncing out on to the road and kept pace with us most of the way back; it was quite surreal. Went to Irma’s Hotel (built by William Cody – Buffalo Bill – and named after his daughter) for drinks and appetisers (B. said that they were the best wings since Fredericksburg). Cody exists because of Buffalo Bill and the hotel boasts a magnificent carved wooden bar with huge mirrors built into it that was a gift from Queen Victoria (apparently it cost $100,000) because she enjoyed his Wild West shows so much (she must have been amused). Got chatting to LD and Kevin (2 cops from Connecticut on a fishing trip) and Bob, who used to own a bank but had sold out to the Bank of the West, although he is still keeping an eye on his original 5 branches until his imminent retirement. He said that we would really like Jackson Hole (our destination for tomorrow night). Apparently all the billionaires settle in Cody and the multimillionaires go to Jackson! Harrison Ford is one of his customers in Jackson (he turns up on his bike wearing funny clothes so that we won’t be recognized!). Someone settled our bill on the quiet; the finger of suspicion points at Bob The Banker. There were a couple of tornados 25 miles north of Cody during the night – no wonder it was so windy.
Friday, 3rd June 10,628 miles from Hermosa CODY/YELLOWSTONE NATIONAL PARK/JACKSON, WY - Had breakfast in the Gift Shop before the long drive back to Yellowstone. Were glad that we had seen the Buffalo Bill Scenic Byway in good weather as it was very dull. Stopped for a while at Buffalo Bill Reservoir and Dam. Construction began in 1904, with hand tools and dynamite only, but it brought water supplies to the area and enabled crops to be grown. Stopped at various places within the Park to see bubbling and steaming areas. Paused at the Old Faithful Geyser sign to take B’s photo and someone behind asked if we’d like him to take one of both of us. Turned to see two ageing bikers in full leathers who were doing their road trip. The big guy had badges on his jacket proclaiming, ‘Harley Davidson, President, N. Georgia Chapter’. It transpired that his mother-in-law is English and he visits her every two years in Whitchurch, Hampshire and drinks at The Harvest Home (just like Barrie and Fred!). Had half an hour to kill before Old Faithful was ’scheduled’ to blow, so wandered into the gift shop and bought “Yellowstone – Like no other place on earth”, a book full of wonderful photographs of the park at different times of the year and David William Peterson, the photographer, was there to sign it. Took our seats in time for the display – it’s amazing how predictable Old Faithful is. Retraced our steps to exit south from Yellowstone. The devastation caused by the 1988 fire that destroyed one million acres is apocalyptic. Apparently, it was started when a park ranger threw a ‘Dear John’ letter from her boyfriend on to a fire. It blew away out of her reach and beyond. I can’t imagine how much wildlife was killed. Went through The Tetons National Park (we have certainly got our money’s worth, and more, from the National Parks Pass that good old Ralph recommended we purchase for $50) and made our way to Jackson. There was much confusion about the motel we had pre-booked. It turned out to be the one furthest from town, but at least they gave us a further 10pc discount for our trouble because they had denied all knowledge of us. Not a wonderful place to stay – clean, but old and tired – certainly not worth the $120 posted rate (and not even the $80-odd we paid). Found the Snake River Brew Pub, where I chatted to Rob, who had spent 10 years backpacking round Europe and Scandinavia, doesn’t work, has sorted himself out financially and is happy with life. B. spoke lots with Albert, one of the owners. Decided not to eat there as they didn’t offer wings but went to ‘N43’, where we had wings and a beef rib sandwich to the accompaniment of a Bluegrass trio.
Saturday, 4th June JACKSON via Afton/MONTPELIER, IO - We didn’t fancy breakfast or a shower at the Elk Refuge Inn, so packed up and took a walk around town. Stopped for coffee at ‘The Million Dollar Cowboy Bar’. What a place – it has silver dollars set into the bar, all the ceiling supports are made of very knobbly wood (it’s actually lodge pole pines that have become infected and grow amazing round masses) and western saddles for bar stools. By chatting to the barman, Jesse Smith, we discovered that he knows Neil and Becca in Charlottesville! He goes back there every year because it was his college town. How small a world is this for goodness sakes?? Came to a grinding halt in a town called Afton when I noticed a Dollar Store and both amused ourselves for a while, finding unbelievable bargains. Stopped for the night at a Super 8 Motel in Montpelier, Idaho. This was a very one-horse town, whose claim to fame is that Butch Cassidy and The Sundance Kid held up the local branch of the Wells Fargo Bank and made off into the hinterland with lots of dollars, hotly pursued by the Sheriff on his bicycle! The Sundance Kid bar next door was not very stranger- friendly and was patronized by large blokes tucking into great piles of fried food, so we opted to eat elsewhere. Sadly, the only 2 other eateries we could find in town were closed but the local supermarket was still open and, thankfully, sold giant portions of wings and salad to go.
Sunday, 5th June 10,974 miles from Hermosa MONTPELIER/SALT LAKE CITY, UT - Drove to Salt Lake City through even more mountains and high altitude lakes. Got totally lost when we arrived because of a combination of wrong directions in the AAA book for finding the Best Western (at $49.95 + tax with a coupon – so good that we decided to stay for 2 nights) and a bizarre system of road numbering. It was beautiful weather, so we ditched the car and set off on foot for Squatters Brew Pub, where we chatted to the barman, Aaron, who is an ‘alpinist’ i.e. a crazy mountain climber. He is off to Europe for a month very soon, climbing the Alps and Dolomites. He was explaining the strange licensing laws imposed by the “Christian Taliban” in this city, whereby beers that are brewed on the premises, but are a higher proof than the City Fathers will allow to be served in the bar, have to be sold to the city and purchased back for sale, with meals, in the restaurant area at the rear of the same room!?!?!?! Aaron came and sat with us for a pint when he finished his shift. In lieu of a tip. He told us to check out Bryce Canyon and Zion National Park en route to Las Vegas. We ate ‘dunch’ there – the inevitable wings and a ‘Love Burger’ for me (the best veggie burger ever). Slobbed in our room when we got back, watching tv and catching up with emails.
Monday, 6th June - Zoe rang – yeah! She was very very excited about our rendezvous in only a week (and so are we) and was full of her surprise ‘birthday’ party on Saturday. It was absolutely peeing down with rain – just when B. had planned to wear shorts, so we were back to winter woollies and waterproofs once more. Both got completely drenched charging around the city. Went to Temple Square and sought sanctuary in The Family History Centre operated by the Church of Latter Day Saints; what a farce! The only computer that worked was the one that Barrie was using. He was unable to find all but a few Smiths (his mum’s maiden name) registered in England, no Eliassons and only 5 Eliassons in Sweden!! Sister Bennett (a very sweet young and completely enlightened young volunteer missionary) wouldn’t let me get on with it. Believe the place to be a capturing ‘front’ for the gullible, just like the ‘Take a Free Personality Test’ offered by the Scientologists at home. The Temple was closed for renovation, so we went to the Conference Centre (the largest amphitheatre in the world). I have to say, that was very impressive, as was the 7,700-odd pipe organ (my dad, who was an organ builder, would have been mesmerized) but the organist who gave the free lunchtime recital obviously had a better opinion of his talent than he displayed. By the time we emerged, the rain had stopped and the sun had come out. Checked out Desert Edge, a brew pub in the shopping mall at the other end of town, for a warming bowl of soup. Left B. there while I wandered in the very faint hope of tracking down a replacement case for Linda’s Mum’s binoculars; the original had given way under the strain. Couldn’t believe my luck; in the third shop I tried, I found one. What’s more, it fitted perfectly. How lucky are we? Went out with a spring in our step for dinner at Red Rock brew pub (I can’t believe that there are so many in SLC, although B. says that the draught beers are not as tasty as elsewhere, because they have to keep the alcohol level down (see reference to Christian Taliban above). B. had wings (how unusual) and I had hot goat’s cheese salad with sliced pear, juicy tomato slices, baby leaves and pesto – yummy. Finished up at Squatters, which was pumping.
Tuesday, 7th June SALT LAKE CITY via Nelphi/TORREY, UT - It was pouring with rain again as we left SLC and they had snow after we had gone! By missing our exit on the freeway, we ended up for a coffee and shared portion of battered shrimps at a wonderful diner in Nelphi called ‘The One Man Band’. It was scrupulously clean and you order from your table by phone. When the order is ready, they announce it on an intercom at the table. You pay on collection, eat, leave and someone clears the table. It does away with all the hassle of the waitress pouncing on you for your order the moment you sit down, coming back to check that all is OK and thrusting the bill under your nose before you’ve finished, as happens everywhere else. We continued on through yet more incredible scenery and headed for Torrey. Checked into a Super 8 (soon to become an Econolodge). What a wonderful place in the middle of Capital Canyon National Park; cowboy sandstone scenery all round plus lovely gift shops (wish I hadn’t panicked about presents early on now). The chap in one shop recommended The Rim Rock Inn Restaurant a couple of miles out of town, where the décor was very hunting lodge/colonial, with massive windows for spectacular panoramic views. We really indulged ourselves with the ‘Special’ Mixed Grill (quail, trout and game sausage) with baked beans (guess who had that?) and blackened trout with pine nuts, wild and white rice, courgettes, red onions and peppers - considering that we had been intending to dine on leftover lunch!!
Wednesday, 8th June 11,414 miles from Hermosa TORREY/BRYCE CANYON - Had yet another long chat with Zoe before heading off towards Bryce Canyon. Lunched on yesterday’s leftovers, overlooking somewhere exquisite. We checked into Bryce View Lodge across from Ruby’s Inn (a very large, busy, commercialized Best Western) and wandered around Ruby’s looking for somewhere good to eat. There was only an overpriced buffet or fast food available, so we bought fruit, yoghurt, chips, salsa and beer and returned to our room to ‘dine’ before going to Inspiration Point in Bryce Canyon to watch the sunset. More mind blowing stuff – this time it was vast areas of sandstone ‘stalagmites’ rising from the canyon floor, while we were at 8,500 ft and could see Navajo Mountain 45 miles away! We sought sanctuary in Bryce Canyon Lodge for a warming coffee. It was a lovely old place with a massive stone fireplace and wonderful wooden rocking chairs. Collected the laptop and sat in Reception at Ruby’s, ‘borrowing’ their wireless internet. Went back to the room for several back to back episodes of “Law & Order – Special Victims Unit”.
Thursday, 9th June BRYCE CANYON via ZION NATIONAL PARK/PRIMM, NV - We couldn’t believe our experiences of different land formations and elevation all in one day. All the time we had 360 degrees of uninterrupted views. There was no breakfast at our motel, so we ate oranges and set off to Bryce Canyon again. We drove to the farthest point and worked our way back to the entrance, seeing sandstone ‘hoodoos’ in amphitheatres, ‘Molly’s Nipple’ (yes, of course there is a picture of B. pointing at it) and Navajo Mountain – this time 75 miles away this time - to name but a few. It was so cold that I wore my padded jacket under my hooded waterproof jacket plus gloves – at 9,000 ft we needed them. We moved on to Zion National Park feeling just a little complacent (seen one national park/canyon, seen them all) but were completely gobsmacked. There were HUGE masses of rock whose formations were like red/brown slate, but so much harder than the sandstone of Bryce Canyon. We travelled through tunnels and on a 12 mile stretch of road from the entrance to the Visitors Centre and it was like driving through an IMAX presentation – you just couldn’t take it all in. It is not possible to drive the scenic route (you have to take a shuttle bus that we weren’t keen on) and our hearts sank when we arrived at the car park for the Visitors’ Centre that was completely heaving with people. So, having been completely blown by what we’d seen, we decided to avoid all the herding with other tourists and just keep driving, and we still kept seeing stuff. We stopped off somewhere nice at 4 pm for a shared chicken wrap and coffee and continued through even more mountains (everything changed character at every turn in the road), through the corner of Arizona and into Nevada (our last ‘new’ state of MOAT). We were queuing up to get a room at the Oasis Casino and Hotel in Mesquite, when a nice marketing lady asked if we’d like their loyalty card which would entitle us to accumulate points and get $1 discount on ‘in house’ food + $10 discount on future room rates. Barrie had the brass neck to ask if we could have the room discount straight away and she fixed it – God bless Mary Alice! So, we had a nice room for $39.95! Cleaned up for dinner – all you can eat buffet for $8.88 minus $1 each with our loyalty cards. Actually, it was cheaper than that because B. found $20 on the floor on the way into the restaurant! We sensibly had soup and salad respectively, followed by gorgeous thick, freshly cut prime rib. A soul/Mowtown group were singing on the casino floor (v.v. good) and we sat with Greg from Boulder, Colorado, a truck driver who is a keen plane enthusiast (so common ground there) and is planning to come to Europe next year. He wants to see the memorial honouring his 19 year old second cousin, who went missing in action when he was a bomber pilot operating out of one of the air force bases in Cambridgeshire. He has done lots of research and also wants to visit the Normandy Beaches.

Friday, 10th June MESQUITE via Henderson/PRIMM, NV - Zoe rang – what a lovely surprise. We’d had no internet link and had relied on a message getting through to her via our mobile. Had coffee and a shared giganta-muffin before heading out from Mesquite. After much changing of mind on where to ‘lurk’ outside of Las Vegas for the next three nights, we headed for Henderson, but spent ages driving around, searching in vain for a cheap motel. We eventually gave up and rang Whiskey Pete’s in Primm. Good Choice; I was able to take the monorail over to the shopping mall while B. played on the poker machine in the bar and had hours of fun on $2! The bargains to be had are astonishing. Bought two sleeveless t-shirts + pyjama trousers for $13! Had thought we would have the prime rib special for $5.95 at Whiskey Pete’s, but all the waitress could offer were seats in the smoking section where, “no one is smoking at the moment”. Very few of the staff at these casino resorts away from Vegas speak reasonable English, so communication is somewhat strained.
Saturday, 11th June - Morning in the reception/casino area was absolute mayhem. Tons of groups had arrived for the weekend and we had to queue up to sort out our booking for night two (no mean feat). All the machines were occupied very early on and some really keen people were playing with their suitcases beside them (keen, or what?). Some poor old lady was being attended to by paramedics and when we walked through Primm Valley Casino, we spotted a man gambling with oxygen cylinders in a trolley beside him!
Sunday, 12th June - We went shopping for B’s trainers and I found a top in Reebok and a nail buffer. We found a deserted bar in the center of the food court and read yesterday’s papers. Went back to the room for massive reorganization of luggage and car. The herds of weekend ravers began their return to California from 2 pm and the moving traffic jam kept going for 4 or 5 hours in a never ending stream. Stayed in Whiskey Pete’s for the evening, playing 25 cent poker but not eating (for once). B. found $4.25 in the reject tray of his machine at the bar. The barmen, Tony (a New Yorker) and Tim were a real double act. We sort of bantered with Jim (who was probably a trucker) and a black guy who was in the army and had apparently been shot at 3 times (now that is unfortunate. Lucky to still be around, but unfortunate).
Monday, 13th June PRIMM/LAS VEGAS!!!!! - We were so excited at meeting up with Zoe, Ann, Ralph and Linda that we couldn’t wait to get going to Vegas. We stopped in Wal-Mart, Henderson, to buy booze and nibbles for our End of MOAT room party and were all ready to go when they turned up. Zoe looked fab. Nice rooms at the Luxor and a party in ours. All wandered off somewhere and had great trouble getting something small to eat in a food court in one of the hotels. Eventually found a little bar place, where the barman kept getting the girls to try out and suggest recipes for cocktails that he had to come up with.
Tuesday, 14th June - What a fantastic birthday Zoe had already been given at home and enjoyed today. We all met outside our rooms first thing, while she opened her cards and bag of little presents. Walked for miles in intense heat (over 100 degrees F) to find the Hard Rock Hotel with B., while the girls went shopping and Ralph and Linda when to meet Barry and Jill at the airport. I was so hot when we got back to The Strip that I veered off and spent hours in the huge, air conditioned shopping mall at Aladdin, not realizing that the girls were there too. Zoe bought TWO pairs of shoes for tonight, but I couldn’t find any. Had ‘champagne’ before we all 8 headed off in taxis to Hugo’s restaurant in the basement of one of the ‘old’ casinos off The Strip; Ralph’s very generous treat for all our birthdays. It was fantastic. Even for America, it was fantastic. The tailormade salad for ‘starters’ was a meal in itself. We then had the diddiest ice cream cones ever, with a cleansing lemon sorbet. Most people followed with steak, but Ann had duck, Zoe bass and I the most fabulous scallops cooked in wonderful orange sauce. The inevitable huge chunk of chocolate cake with candles in it arrived for Zoe. We emerged in time to see a spectacular light show outside the restaurant. We taxied back and all played on our various chosen machines or tables with very limited success.
Wednesday, 15th June - Linda, Zoe, Ann and I set off down The Strip with Barrie and Ralph, until they peeled off for a beer. We then went for lunch at The Belagio; beautiful everything – décor, food etc. etc. and we were mesmerised by the amazing water display in the Conservatory that looked like plastic tubing, creating perfect archways, cutting out, then coming back in perfect spurts. Went on to The Venetian and took a taxi back. Met up with Barry and Jill for the first time today at The Flamingo and then went to Margueritasville. The place was jumping with guys on stilts, and a girl leaping out from a ‘volcano’, down a waterslide and into a giant Marguerita cocktail. Zoe and Ann loved it. We all sat around and tucked into appetizers. Took off to see Wynns, the latest casino that only opened in April. It has a Ferrari and Maserati showroom just of the casino floor (think I prefer the Belagio). Split up because we four wanted to see the water show at Belagio. Zoe’s new shoes were really hurting, as were B’s; my leg felt sciatic and Ann was very tired, so took the bus back to the Luxor. We had a very hearty bus driver who was laughing and joking all the way. Ann retired to bed while we three took to the poker machines at the bar. I did really badly and would have tracked down the machine I did well with twice the day before, but didn’t want to leave B & Z.
Thursday, 16th June LAS VEGAS via PRIMM/HERMOSA BEACH 12,250.9 MILES! - Left quite early and drove in convoy. Stopped at Primm, where the girls wanted to ride the roller coaster, but it didn’t open for another two hours, so they picked up lunch for the journey and headed back to Hermosa. Can’t believe the road trip is all done. How lucky we have been to see so many wonderful things, meet so many good people and to have stayed safe for twelve and a half thousand miles. Well done Barrie for all that driving.
All convened on the front patio of 25 Third Street for drinkies and were joined by Jeff, Kelly (Jeff’s sister) plus Barry and Jill, when they showed up from Vegas. Molly the dog (who belongs to Kelly’s neighbour) turned up and the girls took her for a walk. We all got quite silly and sent out for delicious pizza. It’s really good to know that we don’t have to pack up and move on again in a day or two.
Friday, 17th June - A lovely, sunny day. I was in the midst of unpacking, when B. and the girls whisked me away to the local Farmers Market. We sampled loads of fruit, pumpkin fruit loaf and artichoke dip and came back with cherries, rye bread and artichoke dip. Hung around the house while the girls got in some beach time. At 5 o’clock Barry and Jill took all of us and their young friends Rob and Bree to the Car Meet at Ruby’s in their 1930s and 1948 ‘woodies’. What amazing vehicles. Felt quite important when heads kept turning as we drove along. We all dined at Ruby’s – mostly on burgers – before ambling around all the amazingly restored or customized cars and getting a lift back to gather on the front patio again. The wind got up and into the tarpaulins that were covering Jeff’s house for anti-termite treatment. Lots of the metal pegs were pinging off and leaving the ‘tarps’ to flap around. Poor Jeff should have been back in his house after a maximum of 48 hours, but has now had the treatment on two consecutive days – we hope that, after all this hassle it the treatment has finally worked.
Saturday, 18th June - All girls went to Del Amo (a giant shopping mall) for a while. Linda bought 4 pairs of shoes, I one pair, Zoe a Nine West bag and Ann a pretty pink and gold dress. The boys had gone boozing when we arrived back. Z. and A. went to the beach while Linda and I went to the pea patch (her allotment about 20 minutes drive away). I did some crosstitch while she watered. Then we had to go all the way back to lock up the shed! Z . and A. went to Sharkeez (a local fleshpot) until the early hours.
Sunday, 19th June - Eek! I’ve gone to pieces – clearly having too much fun. I think we probably went shopping today, instead of yesterday but, as I am writing this on Barrie’s birthday (the 22nd), who knows? I do know that we had the delicious albacore tuna that Ralph had caught for dinner.
Monday, 20th June - All went downtown to the Tutankhamen exhibition and all were very disappointed with the staging; the write-ups were too small, badly positioned and badly lit but the artefacts, of course, were truly amazing.
Tuesday, 21st June - The Eliasson party went to glorious downtown Burbank for the NBC Studios tour. We had a fantastic Mexican buffet lunch for $7.99 before endlessly queuing for the recording of the Jay Leno Tonight show. We didn’t know any of his guests, but it was a good experience, apart from the ‘gangland’ rap dance group, Rize. The girls went to Sharkeez and had a marvellous time again.
Wednesday, 22nd June- Barrie’s birthday celebrations had to wait until he took MOAT Cruiser back to National Car Hire. I wished I could find the elusive travellers’ cheques to make his birthday better. I did, I did. Oh, what a relief; we had been carting them around with us in the box file without remembering. The girls were in a bad way after last night. Linda and I went shopping for party food supplies and started getting stuff together. Went with the girls to Mary’s house (she is a friend of Jill’s with some ex-shop stock to sell off at half price!) All came away clutching bargains; Ann, an overnight bag and flip flops, Zoe a gold handbag and wallet and me a silver/rainbow Roxy wallet for Blitz’s daughter, Anna (hope she likes it). Eventually joined by Barry, Jill, Jeff and Kelly on the front patio for wonderful tri tip steak, tikka and plain chicken with Linda’s wonderful home grown salad, followed by ice cream birthday cake and chocolate dipped strawberries – all washed down with nice margueritas.
Thursday, 23rd June - All gals to The Galleria – bought some goldy, beaded flip flops –after splitting up. Met up for lunch at the California Pizza Kitchen. Went back for some beach time and spent lots of it looking for Zoe’s rings that had flown out of the pocket of her skirt as she picked it up. Found all but one. Primped for Boogaloo’s and wore my new brown/black floppy Indian skirt that I found in Save on (or some other drugstore) for $9.99 when Zoe and Linda went to collect their photos. Had great blackened catfish after shared giant prawns in a creamy hot sauce (mmmm delicious).
Friday, 24th June - Ralph went sailing, so was away until the evening.(Marty’s boat came 1st and 4th in their races). Linda dropped me and the girls at Del Amo for their last minute shopping. Went back for some beach and all went to Captain Kidd’s when Ralph returned. Z & A left us for their last night at Sharkeez.
Saturday, 25th June - Have never seen Hermosa so busy. Barrie accosted some old boy with a metal detector on the beach and found Zöe’s missing ring! (Thanks to his taking a reference point of the area yesterday using the volleyball posts and prominent houses on The Strand – clever chap). Did some chores after a wonderful breakfast of Cheese Strata (cheesy bread and butter pudding, minus the dried fruit) plus bacon and watermelon and got in some beach with the girls before two chaps from Sharkeez showed up and I made my excuses and left! B. & I made it to Coldstone’s for ice cream and sat on Pier Plaza eating ice cream and watching the world go by. We passed the girls and their chaps on our way back. Reluctantly took the girls to the airport and waved all the way. Hopes that Ann’s suitcase would make it back as no one saw it once it passed through the mighty security check machine. (Not good). Went back to Third Street and quickly ate a call-in pizza when Ralph arrived back from racing - their boat tying overall second!
Sunday, 26th June - B. checked on the BA website that the girls’ flight had landed safely, but it was still wonderful to speak to Zoe as soon as she arrived home. It must have been really miserable going back to a cold and empty house. We encouraged her to turn tail and head straight for The Boot to catch the ‘church’ crowd and flash her tan. Went to an outdoor art and craft fair in Redondo, where Linda a I bought some strings of pretty purply stone beads. Linda made some delicious turkey burgers with salad, while I cut up some fruit salad with the lovely juicy oranges and crunchy apples that Jeff brought to B. birthday party, and added some watermelon – yummy. No celebrating at Long Beach Yacht Club, because Marty and Crew finished 5th over all.
Monday, 27th June - Poor Linda left at 7 a.m. to present herself to jury service. I wandered up to the Post Office, but as it wasn’t open browsed around Vons. Ralph, Barrie and I went to an early showing of “Mr & Mrs Smith” before having delicious pastrami on rye sarnies at The Richmond Bar and Grill. Did some laundry and eagerly awaited Linda’s return. She had had a really boring time, being called on to a Panel (part of the selection process of getting a jury together), so hadn’t even been able to participate in anything constructive. All tried to come up with more outrageous and silly ideas that she could give to try and render herself unsuitable for jury service. All went for cocktails at Harbor Drive (the new restaurant on the sight of Beachbum Burt’s, Senor Frog’s and The Red Onion) that only opened on Saturday. It was very nice – dark, comfortable bar stools and sofas, modern drop lights over the bar, huge windows, beautifully wave patterned reeded glass and an Irish barman (Sean, of course) who had been a professional footballer at home and had tried out for Watford!, before injuring his knee. Decided not to order food, as I was still full from lunch and really need to watch the intake for the remainder of the trip. Everyone else ordered appetisers that looked and apparently were first class. What a time to decide not to order – but still no regrets and we will go back there.
Tuesday, 28th June - Linda had a later start at Court, but it’s still a drag that she has to go. Went with Ralph to the food market at Wilson Park in Torrance, to seek out the smoked meat man for July 4th supplies, but it looks like he’s on holiday for 3 weeks. Spent hours on the beach reading, propped up against one of the volleyball posts. But had to keep reminding myself that I should take in the beach and ocean as this time next week we will be packing to leave. Joy of joys, when I got back Linda had been dismissed from jury service and was in the mood to celebrate. Set out for dinner at Captain Kidd’s but they had just closed when we got there, so ended up at the Bluewater Grill for yummy appetizers.
Wednesday, 29th June - Zoe is doing well, having returned to her pre-holiday weight (wish I had). Blitz is off to Marie’s for a few days. Linda and I spent hours at The Bead Shop where I got my beads from the craft fair (purple chalcedony) made into a beautiful necklace and bought other bits for earrings and Amy’s Indian charm. Came back and fiddled with our beads, but one of my earring pieces broke and one of the beads was chipped, so we’ll go back tomorrow and sort ourselves out. Dinner at Captain Kidd’s – yum; more wild Alaskan salmon for Linda, shark for me and the meaty fish stew for the boys.
Thursday, 30th June - The boys went to Peterson Motor Museum, while we went shopping and back to The Bead Shop. I managed to change my broken bits and bought a string of beautiful pink tigers eye beads, while Linda had her two rows of purple chalcedony fitted with a clasp and her restrung crystals joined. Went to Linda’s ‘seniors’ exercise class and found it quite hard going – wasn’t prepared for all those sustained exercises and had trouble co-ordinating some of the arm and leg bits! Ate in with food from the local Vietnamese restaurant. I chose badly, assuming that ALL beef in America was tender and fat free. I should have gone for chicken like everyone else. Wanted to finish my earrings, but couldn’t find the bits I’d left behind so they wouldn’t get lost!!
Friday, 1st July - B. & I went for a walk to the ATM, plotting what to leave behind as a gift for Ralph and Linda. Decided on a voucher for dinner at Harbor Drive and B. volunteered to wander up there as no one would get suspicious because he often wanders off alone. Came back via the beach and watched four dolphins playing together about 30 yards offshore – what a wonderful sight. We went all nostalgic about how easily we used to find sand dollars and shells on our early visits, but only managed one shell after looking quite hard (why is that?). Emailed Zoe as we hadn’t heard from her for a couple of days and she rang the Sleepy Cat Inn – hooray! The boys went to Trader Joe’s and we to the Farmers Market and elsewhere for July 4th party stuff. Also picked up an extra suitcase, t-shirts for Zoe and black and brown sleeveless tops for me. Happy Hour drinks and appetizers at Chicago For Ribs.
Saturday, 2nd July - Spoke to Zoe again. Walked up to Sharkeez to take a photo for the girls (it was all decked out with flags). All four took off for Long Beach to visit the Aquarium. There was lots of fascinating stuff, but also lots of people with buggies. It was very difficult for them to manoeuvre in the dark and for everyone else to avoid them! Loved seeing all those delicate jellyfish; some with the finest, longest tendrils imaginable and others that looked like small blue light bulbs darting around. Back in time for Barry Smith’s birthday party with Judy and Dan, John, Jeff and his dad, Jim, plus late, unexpected arrivals Nancy and her husband (she used to rent the Sleepy Cat Inn). 3 year old Genevieve and her parents also turned up for a while but didin’t get chatting to them as I had already gone inside to escape the cold on the patio.
Saturday, 3rd July - Sat reading on the front yard and finished “Going West” by James Houston, while Linda gardened. What a sad ending to the book when Thana died before giving birth and ‘Williyamm’ went crazy and died of a broken heart. It was a true story and one that graphically documented the hardships endured by native Americans and those coming to the New World. It’s a wonder that anyone survived. The Boys went to change the tee shirt that Jeff bought for Barrie and got stuck in Boogaloo’s, listening to some amazing live blues, while Linda and I prepped and decorated the house for the big party day tomorrow. In the meantime, two parties were happening at different houses in Third Street all day and well into the night (one guy was taken away in handcuffs!). I started streamlining packaging around stuff that we are taking back and baulked at the amount of luggage we have! Good news: unearthed the missing pieces for my other earring that I’d hidden safely with Amy’s necklace, so I was a happy bunny once more. Dined in on fabulous corn wrapped tamales that had been made by the mother of a colleague of Ralph’s nephew – phew!
Monday, 4th July – INDEPENDENCE DAY - Slow day, waiting for guests to arrive at 4 p.m., as most preparations had been done. Loads of people were on the beach and Strand. Zoe rang for a quick chat (nice) before she headed off to Monday Club. Celebrations in the neighbourhood were much more low key after all the parties on Friday and yesterday. However, there was Marguerita Wrestling (girls only) on the beach! We walked by as they were preparing, but couldn’t get anywhere near (predictably enough) when the fun began at 3.30. We were joined by Ellen, Shawn and his new lady, Sonya, Barry and Jill. There were loads of wonderful local fireworks, but we were unable to see the mighty display at Redondo Beach, because the marine layer was so low – shame. There were swift police responses here and there and someone was caught having a wee at the back of Barry and Jill’s house, but there was no violence that we saw, thank goodness.
Tuesday, 5th July - Did a ‘massive pack off’ (as Zoe and Ann would say) after a quick sortie with the chaps to track down last minute stuff. We were all looking forward to dinner at Harbor Drive and were not disappointed. Linda and I shared four delicious appetizers (prawns, pumpkin ravioli, beef satay and pancetta wrapped scallops – all utterly delicious). B. had seered alui tuna and Ralph a particular salmon that is only available for two weeks a year; all washed down with delicious Merlot. Had port around the kitchen table when we got back.
Wednesday, 6th July - B. and I walked to a local supermarket (after a last beach call) via the florist’s to order flowers for Linda, to be delivered tomorrow. Finally shoved everything into the luggage and managed some sun in the front yard, while B. spent ages at Jeff’s, discussing patterned key blanks –I can’t believe that we are on our way home now; the road trip seems so far away. It’s time to get back to reality. Who’d have thought that I could have filled this entire journal with words?? These last few pages have ended up looking like Indian ledger art with my ramblings having to be written over the pre-printed pages of ‘International Information’ and ‘Conversion Tables’.
CONCLUSIONS: We have had a fabulous time; have been extremely lucky to have had the time, money, inclination, health and strength to undertake such a journey; not to mention being incredibly lucky to have such good chums as Ralph and Linda, who have put up with us and without whom, this trip would not probably have even got off the ground – plus Zoe and Ann - on and off for so long. They are “so totally” generous with their time, company and home – we are truly blessed to have them as our friends. We were also incredibly lucky to have completed our road trip of 12,500 miles and 29 states without any accidents, unpleasant incidents or health problems.
America is a big, beautiful land. We met so many good and nice people; all seem to value their freedom, that so many of us Brits take for granted, and their patriotism is a joy to behold.
There are far too many extremely overweight people in most places that we visited (with the possible exceptions of Hermosa Beach, Montana and Wyoming).
Everyone seems to eat the most amazing quantities of cheese; often as a filling ‘appetiser’ with cocktails, always inside a sandwich and most often than not in salads.
On the downside, there is tremendous waste in this great place. Food is wasted because portions are generally far too large. Huge gas guzzling cars are used for even the shortest journeys. Apart from being unable to find sand dollars and even a reasonably sized shell on Hermosa Beach, there is a lot more flotsam and jetsam being washed up that I ever recall seeing before.
The AAA did us proud with all their wonderful maps and guide books. We will miss the Santa Fe Railway and its associate companies around the country; the sound of those whistles and long, moaning sirens signalling an approaching level crossing always seemed close to where we were staying and we never tired of counting the extraordinary number of goods wagons that were trailed behind as many as five engines at a time when we saw them snaking their way across open countryside in the middle of nowhere.
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Well, didn’t we have a surprise when we reached the gate to board BA268 to London? The nice man fiddled with his keyboard and said, “Oh, there’s a change of seat number”. (I looked quizzical). “It’s a nice one”, he said, and with that we were directed into Club Class with fully reclining seats, champagne, white linen napkins, proper glasses, metal forks and spoons (but plastic knives). What a terrible indictment on air travel in the 21st century; I appreciate the regrettable need to protect passengers and crew from some madman attacking them with a sharp instrument, but surely very unpleasant injuries could be inflicted by stabbing someone with a fork or smashing a glass and using that as a weapon? ? Anyway, the homeward journey continued and it was all ‘like totally amazing’ – we couldn’t believe our luck. The terrible thing was that we didn’t know who was responsible for the upgrade. Was it Katie’s friend, Blitz’s friend, Sharon, or Zoe’s steward friends from Sarratt??? The most surprising thing of all is that it was able to be fixed on a flight originating somewhere other than Heathrow.
Thursday, 7th July (7/7) - Zoe kept in touch via the mobile from the time we were in the baggage hall, to explain why she and Roger (or so we thought) had been stuck in traffic on the M4 spur road towards the airport for over 3 hours, because of the horrifying tube and bus bombings in London this morning. All vehicles were being stopped before entering the tunnel and passengers were running to catch their planes. The full horror of the events emerged the following day for us, as we weren’t near a tv before then.
Zoe showed up, eventually, waving flags from the window of Ken’s BMW!! To the amusement of the onlookers he produced champagne and glasses from the boot, so we quaffed that all the long way home. We arrived back to a PINK house with BLUE STARS all over it – Ken and Zöe’s idea of a practical joke! (Speculation in some quarters had been that we would be not best pleased), but we just had to laugh – if someone is prepared to go to all that trouble for a practical joke … it needed repainting anyway, so it will look very hearty for our Pig Roast party and will bring forward the ‘proper’ repainting job sooner than planned.
Alex, Amy and Sally burst out from the lounge as I stepped over the threshold – what a lovely surprise – with more champagne and smoked salmon sandwiches. Then Blitz turned up too – wow – but Zoe announced before too long that we were expected at The Boot for a party and were running very late. do, off we trotted and had even more fun with our lots of good chums (but I did keep thinking about those hapless victims and their grieving friends and families).
HERE ENDETH THE JOURNAL OF MOAT.

Donna and Barrie's Tour of the US