This years summer vacation
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Went into a great antique mall in Ohio somewhere. Didn’t buy anything but I love those old collectibles stores. Spent an hour just browsing.
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New update from Muscatine Iowa on the Mississippi.
First some thoughts on Nebraska vs Iowa.
Western Nebraska was very much like Colorado east of the Rockies, lots of prairie grass, and grazing herds of cattle. Eastern Nebraska was just plain boring and not particularly beautiful.
On the other hand, crossing into Iowa I was struck on how simply beautiful the landscape was. Sure, lots of corn fields but just stunningly green, verdant. Also not flat pancake like Nebraska but rolling hills.
This doesn’t do it justice but really a very relaxing drive. Stayed off the interstate and drove the small country roads through the fields. Also Mennonite country.
Eventually ended up at Iowa border on the Mississippi.
Signs of recent flooding.
Ol’ man river
Huge barge being pushed upstream
Another huge barge just sitting askew I guess waiting to be also moved.
(For those with long memories, barges will now always remind me of an unpleasant exchange about “the barge” with a certain former forumite. )
@bachophile said in This years summer vacation:
Signs of recent flooding.
I see what you did there… Very nice. Your t-shirt is on the way.
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@bachophile I have an odd question. Probably ignorant, too. Yesterday I spent about 45 minutes driving through the rural Minnesota countryside, it was nice. I thought of you for a second... when you travel in the US like this... is there a "relief" that it's safe to drive almost anywhere in this country? For example, if I were to drive in Israel, I feel like my guard would be up the whole time.
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@89th well that’s an interesting question. Because oddly I see things completely reversed.
I need to clear up some misconceptions about safety in Israel.
Where I live, for example, violent crime is almost non exist. I go out and walk the dog anytime of day or night without a thought. If I forget to lock the door and no one is home, I don’t panic. In Tel Aviv, the country’s largest metro area, I have not felt any fear of mugging or violence. Otoh, in the US I am always keenly aware of my surroundings, don’t feel absolutely secure wandering around cities at night, and certainly lock up after myself. During the drive I’ve thought about random shootings being possible, and I really don’t feel as secure here as at home. Now maybe that’s because I’m in non familiar surroundings but nonetheless that’s how I feel.
Now yes, since October 7 the threat of military violence in Israel has increased, although the actual physical fighting in the north and south is not felt in the central part of Israel. And our alert systems are pretty good, that drone attack in Tel Aviv not withstanding. So overall I feel much more secure where I live than here.
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@89th well that’s an interesting question. Because oddly I see things completely reversed.
I need to clear up some misconceptions about safety in Israel.
Where I live, for example, violent crime is almost non exist. I go out and walk the dog anytime of day or night without a thought. If I forget to lock the door and no one is home, I don’t panic. In Tel Aviv, the country’s largest metro area, I have not felt any fear of mugging or violence. Otoh, in the US I am always keenly aware of my surroundings, don’t feel absolutely secure wandering around cities at night, and certainly lock up after myself. During the drive I’ve thought about random shootings being possible, and I really don’t feel as secure here as at home. Now maybe that’s because I’m in non familiar surroundings but nonetheless that’s how I feel.
Now yes, since October 7 the threat of military violence in Israel has increased, although the actual physical fighting in the north and south is not felt in the central part of Israel. And our alert systems are pretty good, that drone attack in Tel Aviv not withstanding. So overall I feel much more secure where I live than here.
@bachophile said in This years summer vacation:
So overall I feel much more secure where I live than here.
What a sad commentary.
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Not such a great pic of rolling Appalachian hills. It was too hazy to get a good shot
Gettysburg was very moving. I was never really aware of the details of the battle but now understanding the Lee took a chance that superior numbers could overcome the Union holding the higher ground (actually just ridges with numerous canon) and sent hordes over an open ground which turned into a killing field,with the canon just turning the invaders into canon fodder. Thousands left dead over the grasses of the plain. Sheer lunacy.
Anyway, spending the evening in Amish Lancaster county. Also quite an interesting part of the country.
The epic ends this weekend with a Sunday evening flight back to Tel Aviv.
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Great trip! Thanks for bring us along!!!
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Not such a great pic of rolling Appalachian hills. It was too hazy to get a good shot
Gettysburg was very moving. I was never really aware of the details of the battle but now understanding the Lee took a chance that superior numbers could overcome the Union holding the higher ground (actually just ridges with numerous canon) and sent hordes over an open ground which turned into a killing field,with the canon just turning the invaders into canon fodder. Thousands left dead over the grasses of the plain. Sheer lunacy.
Anyway, spending the evening in Amish Lancaster county. Also quite an interesting part of the country.
The epic ends this weekend with a Sunday evening flight back to Tel Aviv.
@bachophile said in This years summer vacation:
Not such a great pic of rolling Appalachian hills. It was too hazy to get a good shot
That is where I did most of my flying, along the Blue Ridge from North Carolina to Pennsylvania.
I have a lot of not so great hazy pictures, that is what the hills in western Virginia look like, especially in the summer.
This is from 12/3/2011.
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@bachophile Interesting regarding safety. Certainly there are places (cities at night, random truck stops) that you'll want to be on your guard, but you answered my question well. It's funny the misconceptions one has (or that I have) regarding places like Israel based on the news coverage.
Beautiful pic of the Appalachian hills. Now you know why they're called the "Blue Ridge Mountains" in some places. You're getting a nice full view of the states (more than I've had) by driving coast to coast. Deserts, mountains, cornfields, Amish country, Appalachian mountains (some of the oldest mountains in the world).
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Hahaha yea she was great with it. It was actually nice having time together for hours at a stretch. We talk, we listen to podcasts, she warns me about my driving…and she was always in charge of finding the right place to spend the night. We drove max 6-7 hours a day, divided up for rest stops every two hours or so. Really it was a pleasure.
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Right now at a bed and breakfast in upstate NY for the weekend. Sunday we fly back.
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Last update of this trip
View from an outlook into the Catskills.
New York City
Car return. I set the tripometer in San Francisco Airport. This is the return.
4651.8 miles.
The end.
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Yes it was varied per day and plan. Longest day was 7 hours behind the wheel. Easiest was just 2 or 3. All depended on the plan for the day.
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Yes it was varied per day and plan. Longest day was 7 hours behind the wheel. Easiest was just 2 or 3. All depended on the plan for the day.
@bachophile said in This years summer vacation:
Yes it was varied per day and plan. Longest day was 7 hours behind the wheel. Easiest was just 2 or 3. All depended on the plan for the day.
Cool vacation. Thanks again for the pictures and descriptions.
(I actually like driving distances. Maybe I was a truck driver in a previous life!)
Have a good trip back to your home.
