Nebraska...

there were lots of corn fields in Iowa and Nebraska--not much in terms of scenery, which reminded me of Windows desktop screen savers with it's green fields and blue skies.

i stopped in North Platte, NE for a break and some good steak lunch...gotta have beef here, right? it also happened to be the home of Buffalo Bill.

Iowa...

driving through Iowa, there were these amazing giant wind turbines that were everywhere. it was a cool sight to see....however, it's not recommendable to take photos while driving 80mph...

Java House

just for you, Liz...stopped in Iowa City for great cup o joe.

windy city...

as i walked around Chicago, i noticed that it was not very bike-friendly like Philly, but it was quite pedestrian friendly....every road construction area that hindered people walking on the sidewalk has these barricades that sectioned off part of the street so people can walk in safety, and not having to cross the street to the other side like Philly...not only that, it was also handicap friendly...EVERY one of those sectioned off places i saw had a ramp! pretty amazing.


Monica and i walked from the West Loop to Grant Park to do the Taste of Chicago, which is this annual festival that food/restaurant vendors from the city sample their food...you buy tickets ($8 for 12 tickets), and each booth have tasting portions for about 4 tickets
each....there were also free concerts in the evening...i saw the Counting Crows, with an opening band, Augustana. it was a hot day, but with good food and free music, it was a good day.

chicago...

so the plan was to stop off around Pittsburgh, PA for the night, after i didn't have the sleep i wanted to the night before the trip. however, i felt good/alert throughout the ride, and made good time even though i left around 11am....and decided to shoot for Toledo, OH, where i would sleep for the night before driving to Chicago.

the tiredness never came as i drove, and it helped that i was going west and the sun didn't set until i reached Indiana around 9:30p...by then i thought it was only a few more hours to Chicago. got here to Chicago at 11:30p after my inexperience with the GPS directives looped me around the city more than it should (while i love the technology, i still love my maps).

meeting my friend, Monica this afternoon to explore a bit. and possibly heading out tomorrow or first thing Monday morning for the open roads again.

still driving...

getting into Ohio.

...and i'm off...

the cross-country mobile all packed to go...

get your kicks on route 66...

in less than a week, i'll be driving cross-country; i've agreed to transport my friend's car from Philly to San Fran. driving cross-country is something that i've wanted to do for a while, and when the opportunity presented itself, i had to take it....even though, i realize, a week is really too short to get a full experience of the vastness of America. never the less, i will try to take in as much as i can.

the plan (which is non-existent right now, since i've only recently agreed to do it) is to take the northern route...not sure which places to hit yet (will take suggestions), especially since my geography beyond the east and west coast is a bit sketchy....what do you mean, there are places to visit in the Midwest?!? this also forms my current trip plan: Chicago-?-?-?-Portland-drive down coast to San Fran. all this will likely change once i start doing some research...

sweet home Alabama

we had a packing party (what's a party without champagne?), and said goodbye to our good friends, Loren & Jon, as they move down to Alabama. i'll miss their company, and yes, even their psycho cat, Maggie....who, in spite of being mean and hissing at everyone ALL the time, had a unique talent of skating on CDs across the floor that i found endearing.