It is said, so often, that every cloud has a silver lining. Well, it turns out the lining of my cloud is Red, White and Blue... with Stars... and Stripes.
It's June 2009 and I have just been made redundant after a little over 12 years service. I leave my former employer with no animosity what-so-ever and am taking the opportunity to take some time out of the employment cycle. A mini Gap Year, if you will.
Yankophile
Admirers of Britian and it's culture are refered to as Anglophiles; for France it's Francophile; for China it's Sinophile. There's no real agreement on an equivalent for fans of America, but I rather like Yankophile... and hence I will brand myself as one.
I generally enjoy American TV more than British; I like Baseball and now play it's close cousin, Softball; I have American friends... and indeed family; the musicians I enjoy most are American and so are my favourite movie stars and directors.
So now, with my redundancy settlement in pocket, I am going on an American Adventure to discover what the USA is really like, hands-on.
The Plan
My planned route starts in New York, where I will join a group of upto 12 other people on an organised trek across the southern states. We'll see Washington DC, Tennessee, Alabama, New Orleans, Texas, Carlsbad Caverns, Arizona, Monument Valley, The Grand Canyon, Zion National Park, Las Vegas and finish up in Los Angeles 21 days later. Most of this will be under canvas with a couple of Hotel stops along the way.
After a brief stop in LA to catch my breath, I'll pick up a hire car and head north, along the West Coast taking in San Fransisco, Portland, Washington state, Seattle and then over the border into Canada to Vancouver.
From Vancouver I'll head east to Montana and Glacier National Park, before turning south-east to Denver to stay with a dear friend whom I've got to know through the wonderful world-wide-web.
From Denver I turn north east to Minneapolis for a look at the city which brought us Prince. There I'll take in some Purple landmarks and aim to see the Minnesota Twins play Baseball in the Hubert H. Humphey Metrodome during this, their last season there.
From Minneapolis I continue east to Chicago where I'll hook up with my Cousin and his wife and enjoy the windy city before skirting the Great Lakes, see Niagara falls, skip back over into Canada once more to visit Toronto then head on to New England and follow the USA's Eastern Seaboard south to New York.
It's quite a trek I have in mind and will stay fully flexible about route and timings. If I like where I find myself maybe I'll stay there a few days longer than expected. Other days I may just drive, drive, drive.
Blogging, Vlogging and Tweeting
Throughout my tour I intend to Blog (here) and have bought a camcorder in order to shoot video plus there will be a slew of Tweets via my Twitter account: @Misty2k
Do please feel free add comments here or at my Facebook.
Peace, 'n' be Wild, y'all.
D
