We drove for 10 hours today! Not much else to report! Just kidding, today was great.
Not kidding about the 10 hours part, though. We woke up at Amber’s place at 7:30 and hit the road. Skipped lunch on account of last night’s ridiculous dinner.
Pennsylvania was dang pretty! All was well until we hit the PA/NY border on I-87 and were stuck in traffic for an hour. Why, Waze?! Why!?!
Finally, we arrived in North Salem at my uncle Rob’s house and greeted a good chunk of my family who had come up to enjoy a day of barbeque and swimmin’! I took a dip with my future nephew and we threw pool toys at each other for a bit. An excellent payoff for an otherwise monotonous (but beautiful) day.
Hours driven: 10
Audio:

• Anna’s road trip playlist on Rdio
• A Short History of Nearly Everything

We were all over Chicago on Day 7! We might not have been on the road, but we possibly spent as much time traveling in one form or another.
We started off taking a bus to the Chicago River, where we took the Chicago Architecture boat tour, learning quite a bit about the buildings that line the river. It made us realize we’re possibly learning more about a city we’re visiting than the city we live in (suggestions for San Francisco tours welcome).

Afterward, Lou Malnati’s, a Chicago deep-dish staple, was just up the street. We beat the lunch rush and had some killer personal pies.

The next point of order was a walk to the John Hancock building, where we elevated to the 96th floor and had ourselves some drinks at the Signature Lounge, against a ridiculous view. It helped that it was a beautiful day and we were high enough to make out the curvature of the earth.


A walk along Lake Michigan seemed to suggest that half the city was out on the beach in their swimwear, playing some beach volleyball or throwing a barbeque. It was safe to assume that this would be an all-day affair for most beach-goers, as it would provide a front-row seat for the evening fireworks.

We continued onward into the entirely free Lincoln Park Zoo. Gorillas, chimpanzees, and other smaller assorted monkeys were out and about, as well as a helping of reptilian creatures, and cats of all sizes. Ever seen a sand cat? Ever seen one finish dead mice in two large bites? We can cross that off our list.



Our next stop was Molly’s Cupcakes. Anna had a strawberry one and I got a peanut butter Nutella. We enjoyed them immensely as we enjoyed a game or two of Connect 4.

After a short break in the hotel room (catching up on some of these blog posts), we boarded another bus to Blackbird, where another excellent meal (asparagus and burrata, corned beef tongue, strip loin, roast chicken breast) awaited us.
Had we finished dinner a bit earlier, we probably could have walked even further back to Navy Pier to watch the fireworks, but we grabbed a taxi instead to watch the tail end of the show, and walked back to the hostel, continuously being taken by surprise as a bunch of smaller fireworks shows erupted around us.
Distance traveled: 25,000 steps (according to Anna’s Fitbit)

We checked out of our St. Louis room, said our goodbyes to the Macs and the hosts and the dog, and then attempted to squeeze in as much more St. Louis as was possible.
We were dressed pretty nice that day for our dinner reservations, but that didn’t stop us from climbing up stairs and barreling down slides at the City Museum, which is more of a 10-story play place than a museum. An amazing location, nevertheless, and we were lucky enough to have the run of the place until buses full of appropriately aged kids showed up and ruined a perfectly good thing. For kids. But that’s not the point.



We took another risk on our fancy clothes and got ourselves some barbeque at Bogart’s Smokehouse right when it opened, scoring some excellent brisket, pulled ribs, pork skins and beans.


Off we went toward Chicago. Waze happily rerouted us a few times due to oncoming rush-hour traffic until we found ourselves back on Interstate 80, the freeway that starts around the corner from our house in San Francisco.

It was then that Waze – for our first time ever, mind you – got us into some pretty ridiculous traffic while passing by Grant Park. It couldn’t have known, though, as every opportunity for a right turn was being blocked off exactly before we crossed each intersection, due to the upcoming July 4th festivities.
We finally arrived at the Chicago Getaway Hostel and checked into our private room (shared bathrooms – we don’t need to be THAT fancy).
To get the most out of the city, we decided that we’d try to walk as much as possible. Our first stop was an early dinner at Balena, a wonderful Italian place that served up delicious pasta and seafood.
Our next stop was the Second City, where we saw the Depraved New World revue. It was a series of short pieces, constructed as humorous commentary on modern society/relationships, featuring an ensemble of six performers. The revue was super funny, and was capped off by a set of improv. It was great to visit Second City regardless, as the walls are covered with old photos of famous alumni performing at the program/venue (Bill Murray, Chris Farley, Stephen Colbert, Tina Fey, Amy Poehler, Rachael Dratch, etc.), and the fact that the show was also really entertaining was just icing on the cake.
Hours driven: 5
Spotted along the way: Lots and lots of corn.
Music:

• Fez soundtrack
• Disasterpeace – ‘Level’
• A Short History of Nearly Everything

We got an early start with the usual continental breakfast at our Oklahoma City hotel, and hit the road.
When lunch rolled around, we found ourselves in Springfield, Missouri, a humble town that just so happened to have some excellent cajun food at the Big Easy Grill. Anna had jambalaya, I had a fried shrimp po’boy. What followed was a spirited discussion about fountain drinks and how much Missourians seem to love them.

Finding that we had some time to kill on the road to St. Louis, we decided to go for a little detour along a route that promised some river views, but the route was too far from the river to view it. Harumph. At least we know that Missouri’s countryside is gorgeous.
We arrived at our first Airbnb room in the Soulard neighborhood of St. Louis, and, in addition to the hosts, were greeted by a substantial collection of Macs, and an adorable shih tzu who seemed to be a seasoned champion at staring contests.

With some guidance from our hosts, we walked the Delmar Loop and marveled at its walk of fame, had some unique Mexican-inspired food (like a cheeseburger burrito) at Atomic Cowboy, and had a few drinks along with the best pretzel bites ever down the street at Sanctuaria.
We topped off the night with a bit too much frozen custard at Ted Drewes (so creamy!), and hit the hay.

Hours driven: 8
Audio:

• A Short History of Nearly Everything by Bill Bryson
• Mike Birbiglia: Sleepwalk with Me
• The usual 3-5 Star stuff

Thanks to perks from my company, we got a crazy good deal on our rental car – $600 to drive a shmancy 2014 Ford Focus (31 MPG) across the country. And we will be doing just that, starting tomorrow morning!
Our first stop will be the Bellagio in Las Vegas. I know! And we only have to drive through the Mojave Desert to get there! Fortunately, every car made within the last few decades has air conditioning, so I think we’ll survive. And we’ll survive in style with some mad stylings from David Sedaris. We probably have enough audiobooks to last us three trips across the country (fortunately (?), we’re flying back).
Tonight, we’re saying our goodbyes to the cat, celebrating with some homemade pizza and Biere de Chocolat, and probably getting one or two more rounds of Mario Kart 8 in before we’re cut off. Until next time!

My cousin Carol is getting married this July! To get out there for the event, Anna and I are taking a cross-country road trip from San Francisco to New York. Here’s our plan so far:

1. Leave San Francisco on Saturday, June 28 in the AM and arrive in Las Vegas in the afternoon. Spend that evening and the next day seeing the sights and eating well.
2. Leave Las Vegas on Sunday, June 29 in the PM and arrive at Grand Canyon Village.
3. Check the canyon out the next morning, then head for Santa Fe — a slight detour from Interstate 40, but supposedly nicer to visit than Albuquerque.
4. Leave Santa Fe on Tuesday, July 1 in the AM for Oklahoma City.
5. Leave Oklahoma City on Wednesday, July 2 in the AM for St. Louis.
6. Leave St. Louis on Thursday, July 3 in the AM for Chicago. Spend a little more time there. Eat well.
7. Leave Chicago on Friday, July 4 in the afternoon and arrive in time for fireworks in Pittsburgh.
8. Leave Pittsburgh on Saturday, July 5 in the AM for New York.
9. Spend the week visiting friends and family, and enjoy the wedding on Saturday, the 12th!

A few things worth note, which factored into our planning:

• This itinerary has us driving for about 7 hours on average each day. Not too overwhelming. But we hope the extra number of days on the road doesn’t grate on us.
• This will be a one-way road trip as we’ll be flying back, so we’ll be renting a car (which is a good idea anyway — not sure if our existing car is up for a week of long drives).
• We considered taking Interstate 80 as it begins literally around the corner from us. The concept of staying on a single road from start to finish sounded exciting. We chose the Interstate 40 route, though, because it passes through the most cities. We’re city people and are interested in seeing other ones, and eating well as we go. A trip through Route 66 checking out all the kitsch doesn’t sound too bad, either.
• Cities we were considering but passed up: Flagstaff instead of Grand Canyon Village (might as well spend a bit extra to stay at the attraction), and Albuquerque instead of Santa Fe (less direct, but supposedly more charming).

With that, we have questions for all of you, our friends and family:

• Are there any can’t-miss destinations that we might be, well, missing out on? We’re still open to changing our route around if you convince us.
• We’re not dead-set on staying in Pittsburgh. While an all-in-one sandwich at Primanti Bros. sounds enticing, we’re considering Cleveland instead. Insight on the pros and cons of each is highly encouraged!
• We need suggestions about food! Food to bring along, food off the beaten path, and restaurants to visit at the aforementioned cities.
• On that note, we need suggestions about everything else! Entertainment on and off the road (what to listen to, what to see, what to stop off for), how to prepare for and sustain a trip of this length, and places to stay (specifically in Las Vegas — we’re still weighing whether to stay on the strip or not).

Regardless of what we choose, we plan on using this blog to chronicle our journey! We’ll be sharing our posts, but feel free to subscribe via traditional RSS instead. For our past writings, check our our posts from our 2010 Europe Trip, and about our wedding last year.