Driving solo sucks. Like, really sucks. I mean...I can drive by myself from Salinas to Santa Barbara without a problem, but today, I drove from Salinas, CA to Eugene, OR. With the two breaks I had, it took nine hours and forty five minutes to get here. That's a whole lotta quite time to myself and it SUCKED. Given, I got to talk to Eric for the first part of the drive..so that was nice because we caught up on everything that's going on in Belgium verses *here*. Lots of "I love you" and "Miss you" before I really had to super focus on the traffic (yes, I was driving hands free so I wouldn't get pulled over!). Every few hours, my Dad checked in on me to make sure I wasn't dead...so I suppose that's having some human interaction during my drive, lol.
Here's some examples of how UN-stimulating the scenery was for me:
Hey, look! A building! Although, it was on the verge of falling down...but still, it shows that there was some form of life out there at some point:
More dead landscape..
I ended up taking a break near Shasta Lake because I reaaaally needed to stretch my legs. One MAJOR con about driving solo: I can't take pictures of the scenery like I want to! The lake looked SO pretty when I was going through the mountain passes, but by the time I was able to legally pull over..I was only able to get this shot. This lake is massive and all I got was this little wedge of it, lol
As I plugged along, there were more and more trees which I totally love! It's safe to say that when Eric officially retires, I REALLY want to live in either Oregon or Washington because of all the greenery. While driving through the endless sea of dry landscape earlier in the day, it really made me miss Belgium...mainly a healthy, green, and lush looking countryside.
Have you ever been to the Black Bear Diner? No? In that case, you're totally missing out. There's actually one in Salinas, but from what my Dad has told me..the quality of food at that particular location has gone down hill (sadness!), so, I was stoked when I saw one right off the I-5! Their avocado chicken club sandwich is DELICIOUS!
Several more hours of driving and I ended up at my hotel, which is a "Super 8". I'll be honest, I was expecting it to be a junker because it's only $50 a night. MAN, I was wrong! I got a huge king sized bed, the bed itself is soft, free internet, a mini fridge AND a microwave! Seriously, that's awesome!
Yes, I'm watching Jersey Shore... don't judge me!
So ya, there ya go! That's my day in a nutshell! I'll be heading out in the morning to finish making my way up to see my cousin since she had her baby boy today. Aiden (her baby) was born weighing 9lbs 4 oz and was 21 inches long! BIG baby! I can't wait to meet him!! Then from there, I'll be heading up to Fort Lewis to harass SuzAnne..woot!
On that note, time to hit the hay. Night night!
3 comments:
Super 8 Albany: Stayed there for a volleyball tourney. Good stay, inexpensive, clean, convenient location, awesome continental breakfast, complete with bacon, eggs, sausage, hotcakes, cereal, fruits, juices, and yogurts. Rating: ***
Super 8 Corvallis: Homeless Haven. We stayed for a volleyball tourney in a room on the 3rd floor...where down the hall someone's shopping cart was parked outside their door. Later, at the vending machines next to the laundry room, we were greeted by a wild-eyed drifter who, thanks to random donations, had rented a room for the night, just so he could use the laundry facility...apparently a very common occurence there. Not a good environment for teenage girls. Slightly more expensive than Albany, inconvenient location in a college town, with a cheap, minimalist "continental breakfast" of bananas, yogurt, juice, cereal, and Costco wrapped danishes. Rating: A bench at the Greyhound Bus Terminal would've been better.
On road trips like yours, we go cheap with Motel 6, like the one in Yreka or Weed. Nothing fancy, but good pit stops in the middle of the night. Besides, they always leave the light on for ya.
Oh how I love your bloggies! Do you have a state side cellie? Email me the number, now I feel so guilty I totally coulda chatted with yas!!! I'm glad that you made it safe and now I'm hungry thanks to your sammy pic....grrrr
If you get bored on your way back down south, you can always stop in Chico ;-)
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