I have done it. I have successfully completed a true rite of passage. I have driven across the country of the United States of America.
A couple of weeks ago, I took on the romanticized, yet ever arduous journey of traveling cross country. You read about it in "coming of age" books and movies, but you can't really understand what it is really like until you do it yourself.
I'd like to share my story with all of you of how I made it from Los Angeles, California, to Richmond, Virginia in six days.
My journey started on a cloudy Monday morning. First, stop, Vegas! I've been to Las Vegas, Nevada before, but my driving buddy hadn't, and so of course we had to stop there. The lights, the casinos, the food, the shows . . . Vegas is definitely a sight to see. Here is a photo of the hotel we stayed at, Paris.
The hotel was beautiful. Outside, was a replica of the Eiffel Tower. Inside, the casino was decorated like the streets of Paris, complete with bistros and cafes. It was amazing.
The next day we set out for the Grand Canyon in beautiful Arizona. Along the way we drove across the Hoover Dam. The dam was huge and quite spectacular. At the time it was built it was a huge achievement in technology. The dam was made to control the large and very active Colorado River. The lake the dam created is called Lake Mead, and is the main source of water for much of the western United States.
The Grand Canyon is one of the natural wonders of the world, and it is not hard to understand why. If you have not had the chance to see this beautiful part of the country, I highly recommend taking a trip to see it. Words cannot describe its beauty and size. It is amazing to believe that the river at the bottom carved the whole thing. We did not have time to hike all the way down to the bottom, but we did get to catch a beautiful sunset.
The next two days were pretty much spent driving. We drove through New Mexico, Texas, Oklahoma, Arkansas, and into Tennessee. Due to a lack in time, we didn't get to stop at many places during those two days, but the drive sure was fantastic. Check out these snow-capped mountains, and this amazing teepee.
Our first stop in Tennessee was Memphis. In Memphis, the place to see is Elvis's home . . . Graceland! It was quite a sight to see. The house is just amazing, and on a very pleasant lot of land. The inside was interestingly decorated, with a jungle themed living room, and fabric-lined pool room. The back yard was huge with horses and plenty of space to ride go-carts, which apparently Elvis loved to do. Of course there were displays of all of Elvis's achievements, but the most moving part of the home was the Meditation Garden, where Elvis is buried, along with his parents, grandmother and an honorary grave for his brother.
We also visited Nashville, Tennessee, the mecca for country music! Being a huge country music fan, I had to visit the Country Music Hall of Fame. I was in awe of the unique history of country music. Its origins range from jazz, blues, rock, and folk. There were exhibits featuring the very first musicians, up to your current favorites such as Faith Hill. I was surprised to see there weren't as many people as I suspected who were actual inductees of the Hall. Garth Brooks is still waiting . . .
After spending a night at my family's house in Morristown, Tennessee, we began our final leg of the trip into Virginia. It was only a six hour drive on the last day, but after five days of driving, it felt like we had been driving forever! Here's a snapshot of the Blue Ridge Mountains.
Overall, I have to say that taking this drive was one of the most incredible experiences of my life. Driving across the country allows you to truly understand how vast and amazing our country really is. It also puts into perspective of how lucky we are. We live in a land of freedom, with thousands of miles where we can have families, jobs, practice religions, and live our lives in whatever manner we please. I met some really interesting people and would take the trip again, using a different route, in a second.
If you are thinking about planning a driving trip across the country, or even just to another state, remember you MUST plan ahead. I spent a long time making hotel reservations in advance, getting maps and directions, making sure I had confirmations for all of the places we were visiting, budgeting out money for gas and food, and of course I had my car serviced completely before leaving.
I'm glad I got to share this amazing experience with all of you. My hope is that one day you will be lucky enough to experience something like this in your own life.
God Bless the USA,
AMae
