Tribute to those who made my trip possible

When I set the trip up, I considered it as a big adventure. I shall travel across the country visiting many unknown places, and when I finally finish the trip, I can look back and claim I have done something like a great expedition. I can boast about how I overcome the difficulties and find a way to finish it.

However as the trip went on, such unrealistic expectation wore down. After all, it was not that difficult at all, as so many people have traveled perhaps the same path before. I was probably one of the millions who have traveled across the country. There are roads to follow and cities to stay at. There are maps and endless information online to refer to. The longer I traveled, the more I realize there were no credits for me to claim for this trip. The credits, in my opinion, belong to those who had great vision, worked hard and suffered tremendously in their times to make my trip possible in the current time.

The Interstate Highway

I lived in LA for three years before the move. Life is so deeply involved with the highway system there so it is easy to fall into the illusion that the highways are always there, ready for us to use. As I drove away from the metropolitan I realized this thought obviously is not true. The Interstate highways cut through the wilderness between the scattered cities in the big country. It brings tremendous convenience to the long distance travelers. As I traveled across the unpopulated area between the cities, I realized that the Interstate Highway is obviously something unnatural and has to be thought up. It must be someone who had great vision to propose and erect such a system. A little search on the Internet shows me the proposal was made by President Eisenhower in the 50s. For whatever reasons they proposed the huge system back then, it is certainly convenient for travelers today.

A sign commemorating the proposal of the Interstate Highway system at a rest area.

It was difficult to establish the interstate highway system in the first place, but of course it also takes great effort to maintain it. Along the way, I saw many people working on various segments of the highway to keep it in good shape. It is not only arduous work, but the potential danger is high. These are truly the unsung heroes who keep the transportation in the nation up and running.

However, even these people are all followers of the great explorers who traveled from the East coast into the wild West one hundred something years ago, and established expedition passages and early settlements that turn into roads and cities through time. It is hard to imagine that 200 years ago most of the cities I traveled were not there. What happened in the west exploration period may not be completely politically correct today, but there is no doubts that their efforts made my trip possible. And I am thankful for that as I really had a great experience following their collective footsteps. Although it was a history long back, but I somehow strangely felt that I was connected to those early explorers on the road. Perhaps, although we live in different time, the driving force behind the trips are somewhat similar, and their stories had encouraged me to take on such a trip.

The emotion reached its peak when I arrived at St. Louis and saw the tall standing Gateway Arch. It marks the starting point of the great expedition led by Lewis and Clark in the early 1800s, the first team to reach the Pacific Coast on the land. I stood there starring at the arch, thinking what it took 200 years ago to set off from here and traveled all the way back to the west coast, without automobile, roads, or even maps. They took a great challenge at that time and emerged successful. That was really, really unimaginable.

The Gateway Arch stimulates my admiration towards the early explorers.

The Welcome Centers

Coming back to the modern era, the Interstate highways really facilitate the travelers. However, although the roads take the center of the stage, the supporting casts are equally important. Along the way, I stopped by many rest areas and so-called "welcome centers" at the state borders. At the beginning, it was for the purpose of collecting hotel coupon booklets. But soon I found such stops unnecessary with the help of the almighty Priceline and Motel6. However, I still made many stops along the way, as these welcome centers are in themselves interesting places to see, and it is a nice place to chat with people too. The information desk staff I met were all nice, and some were also very helpful in providing nice local info. Here are some interesting things I noted along the way.

(The best conversation)
I had a conversation with a senior gentleman, Danny, at a Illinois visitor center (I remember it is close to a beautiful lake visible from the highway). He worked in Chicago for 35 years, and after his retirement, he decided to come back to his birthplace to serve in the visitor center. I appreciated that thought a lot. During the conversation, he was happy about that I enjoyed the view of the lake, and did not hesitate to provide me a load of information about all the vantage points to have good view of the lake. Although I did not have time to visit those places, I felt the conversation alone made me happy about that stop. Some of the staff try hard to make travellers feel at home, and Danny is the best example I had on this trip.

A beautiful lake view at the rest area where Danny works as a volunteer.

...and it has got nice lawn, too. Not bad to retire and work at this place.

I can say this is almost as good as a tour destination in itself.

(The best modern facility)
Florida, as a state for famous tourist destinations, invested a lot in the welcome center, and it was certainly the most luxury one I saw on the road (check out the other post about it here). Georgia was the runner up. The welcome center has interesting displays about the history of interstate highways in Georgia, and some other stuff.

Special designed mat at the welcome center of Georgia.

Some displays about local history and culture.

...and a display board for Interstate system is Georgia.

(The best historical facility)
This definitely goes to the Whitehaven in Kentucky, where they make use of a historical building originally constructed in the 1860s as the welcome center. Of course, it went through significant renovation so nothing much is as old as the listed date. However, the overall appearance of the building still makes a huge difference with any other welcome centers built for that purpose, and it is exactly this difference makes it interesting.

Whitehaven, Kentucky separates itself from all other welcome centers I had been to by using a renovated historical building as the welcome center.

The front side of the building is definitely nice.

Interestingly, within the historical building there is a very modern real-time traffic information system. You can scroll and zoom to check out the traffic status in the state (and in some contiguous states, if I remember it right).

(Other interesting facilities)

Some interesting decorations to the bench in a welcome center of Tennessee.

In Kansas, they show the historical map on the wall of a welcome center....

....with some interesting carving.

This is the most interesting invention in the restroom I have seen for a long time. A fully-automatic hand washer that provides soap, water, and hot air in 3 stages, no human control needed at all. It appears to be a nice idea, but it extends the time a person standing there. Perhaps not so good for a busy restroom.

8/30 - the ending

I waived goodbye with my friends and headed south early in the morning. Before leaving the city, of course, I must visit the home of Atlanta Braves, the great legend in 1990s and 2000s who captured the division title in 14 straight seasons. I drove to the Turner Field and took a few shots. This was the last baseball stadium I visited on the trip.

Turner Field, where the legend of perennial NL East champion is born.

This Olympic five-ring logo sits close to the Turner Field. It was the only sign I saw to remind me the Olympic Games was here in 1996.

I drove with a funny mood this day. I knew that after being on road for so many days, finally I was coming home - A home I had never been, and even didn't know how it looks like. Nonetheless, I was still excited about finally getting there. The drive turned out to be longer than I thought. Although Georgia and Florida are contiguous states, Atlanta is in the northern part of Georgia. I spent most of the morning in Georgia, wondering where the state border is, and finally, I crossed the border in the early afternoon.

Welcome to Florida, the Sunshine State, and the new place I call home in US.

Being a popular tour destination, I could see Florida really makes huge effort to make a nice welcome center at the state border. First impression is important.

Hmmm.... This is really the best setup at the welcome centers I saw on the road.

I put down my "official record" of entering the state on the guest book. A picture for the proof.

As I had south from the state border, I felt I become impatient about driving. I really wished I could warp across space and arrive at the destination immediately. Just a bit longer, just a bit longer, I told myself for like the thirtieth times. With the passing of every sign on the highway, there were new clues that I was closer. And my mood lifted with that.

After so many days, finally I saw the familiar I-10 again, at the other end.

Finally, Gainesville was on the radar.

U of Florida, here I come.

I came off the interstate and set my foot into Gainesville for the first time. I was probably one of the very few international student to arrive here on the surface. I found my apartment complex quickly and my roommate, Sapon, was waiting for me. He helped me to take a few shots that I probably don't want to circulate publicly. But, for the sake of completeness, here they are.

This was the very moment I finished my 3,000-mile cross country trip. I have done it.

The joyful ending should be followed immediately by a salute to Whity. It deserved all of it.

To show I really loved the effort Whity put in to take me all the way here safely, I kissed it....

...and gave it a big hug.

Home, sweet home.... Well, it is just an empty room for now. Definitely need some work. But hell, I don't care now. It is so nice I don't have to hit the road tomorrow.