Cross Country-Day 5

Rising early is never a problem–we’re excited for the new day plus we keep getting an extra hour as we cross time zones. We met Patrick for coffee at one of the many fancy coffee shops that remind me more of France than the States.The brothers said goodbye then Patrick headed to work at the jewelry store and we embarked on our final day traveling westward. En route, the mountains were hazy and topped with snow. Going across the Mojave Desert and Death Valley, I expected to feel isolated and far removed but found that the road was pretty much 8 lanes and heavily traveled. There is no mistake when you cross into California. The desert was suddenly accented with green grass, trees and flowers that must be the product of irrigation, and the price of gas jumped from $1.59 to $3.59. After a few short hours, we looked down on smog-covered Los Angeles. Even at 2:00 in the afternoon, the traffic was intense and uncomfortable for me. My excellent travel companion expertly navigated us to our destination and we unloaded the Sportster at her new home. My driving is over for this trip. Give me the open road, desert, mountains, plains, or forests anyday but I’ll leave the city driving to others. Still, I can appreciate the beauty of L.A. The view driving down Santa Monica Boulevard at 5:45 PM reminded me of the cover of “Hotel California.” Check out anytime you like, but you can never leave…

The gentile, country atmosphere in the South and the peaceful, warm feeling of the Southwest have been replaced with an energetic, ambitious sense of people making things happen.

Coast to coast … Atlantic to Pacific. So many beautiful places; so many different styles and different ways to live. All of it, America.