Well we are now back in the UK and settling back into Weybridge life. Since we got back it has not stopped raining and it must be the wettest official drought in history. Hose pipe bans and the Water Authorities asking us to be more careful with water. Turn off the tap when cleaning your teeth etc., whilst they lose vast amounts though broken pipes. What a place. The Government has fallen down very badly and Tony Blair and his mates are in an absolute mess what with ‘two shags Prescot' the deputy PM for those not aware, and the Home Office has lost the plot completely. Ah well. I think I will stop reading the papers. Back to the American trip.
The People
We met some of the most interesting and friendly people you could hope to meet. We received lots of helpful advise on places to visit, routes to take and restaurants to try. The only rude person we met was the Mexican controlling the hire cars leaving Las Vegas Airport. I think he must have got out of the wrong side of the bed/border that morning, but he was the only person who was rude.
The Scenery
Absolutely brilliant. Our favourite place was Zion Park however Yosemite was marvellous whilst the granddaddy of them all, The Grand Canyon was amazing. We visited many US states and the different types of scenery was always pleasing. The road through Death Valley National park and also US route 50 ( the loneliest road in America- they even write books about it) was magnificent. Some of the old historic towns were extremely interesting and in some cases quaint. You could just picture the horses tied up at the side of the road whilst the master tries a few glasses of hooch and chats up the locals. I believe we may have seen more of the USA than many Americans who live there which considering the size of the Country this is not surprising, we could only touch the surface in our 50 odd days. We did meet a guy who was seeing the USA and would spend three years in his RV doing it, makes our attempt quite pityfull
Anyway it was absolutely, well worth the visit. If you can drive yourself, which is also easy, you can see far more and even when you get lost you will always see something new.
The Roads and driving
The roads were in most cases quite excellent. Considering that a number of roads we went on receive harsh treatment from snow tyres and chains they were in a pretty good state of repair. The surface of the roads we can only dream about in the UK. Many of the roads we went on were through and over high mountains, sometimes covered in snow and you felt that an attempt had been made to make the views from the road as scenic as possible for car passengers. Full marks.
With regard to driving we found most people to be very courteous and they always stopped at pedestrian crossings unlike this country where they start hooting if you don't hurry!! We only read of one person being shot in a road rage incident whilst we were in Scottsdale, not bad really. We saw more active police and many cars stopped for speeding and we noticed far more speed restrictions and signs than this country.
The really good bits
Undoubtedly the best National Park for us was Zion National Park and of course not forgetting the Grand Canyon which was extremely impressive. We had a great time with our friends John and Denise in Nashville and the evening at The Bluebird Cafe was really memorable.
The wide open spaces and looking left for 40/50 miles and the same to right and then almost seeing the earths curvature in front was truly memorable. We shall certainly return.
The not so good bits
The amount of poverty was surprising. I have been visiting the USA since the mid 1970’s, usually only the main cities but have never experienced what we saw on this trip. Why this is I don’t know, I guess it's a combination of many factors from Local and Country Government, the lack of education, the feeling of not being wanted. I don't know but it’s too much for a country with everything to be this way. When you see the way the Government is wasting money you do worry about the civilised world.
The Food
The price of food was generally much cheaper in the US than UK. We tried many of the food chains from Applebees and Cracker Barrel, Subway and The Olive Garden and of course the odd Burger King. The food quality was great and in many cases the quantity was far too much for a Brit to attempt. We would occasionally share a starter or otherwise it was all to much. You cannot eat out all the time and so we occasionally resorted to buying microwavable foods or just had a salad in our hotel room. The only bad food we had was at a so called Japanese Restaurant in Ashville, North Carolina. Any decent Japanese person going there would commit Hari Kari if they knew this was representing Japanese food in America.
The wine we tasted, mostly Californian was also good, we also tried some imports from Chile and Argentina, also very good but the wine from the Biltmore Estate in North Carolina you can forget. It was also extremely pricey. A Pakistani Riesling is better.
Hotels
We tried most of the Chains from Hilton to Marriott and Country Inns to Holiday Inn and most were very good and not too expensive. We did not pay more than USD 85.00 per night, the exception was our stay at the 5 Star Hilton in Scottsdale and one extra night at the Jackson Homewood Suites. We were also able to use some of my American Express points which I transferred to Hilton and this saved quite some money. Most of the Hotels offered a free continental breakfast. Many had ‘gravy and biscuits’ a particularly nasty start to the day so I went for the corn flakes and yoghurt alternative. We also took our little electric kettle to make morning tea as to make tea in the coffee machines was not good, the tea ended up tasting of coffee, not good really.
Words
You have a great day Good Morning
How you folks doing Good Morning
How is the food for you guys Is the food all right Sir
Did you drive from England to here No comment
Was Diana really pregnant? No comment
Gas Petrol
Trunk Boot
Hood Bonnet
Napkin Don't ask
Next Steps
Well that's it for the time being. We plan to visit France soon for an extended camping trip in the Lot Valley and Auverne region and you will be able to read all about that. In the meantime if you need any help or information about any of the areas we have visited please do not hesitate to ask as we would assist with great pleasure and enthusiasm
As a certain Mr Schwarstanegger says- I'll be back
