Leaving the New Jersey winter

Big Paul Suriano, my 77 year-old father, flew in from Myrtle Beach on December 23^rd in time for the holidays and our adventure across country that was to begin on 12/29/11. 

Christmas Eve, 2011

Destination: San Diego, California. Our first two days on the road, we headed south out of New Jersey towards warmer weather.  Unbeknownst to us, our heat did not work in the motor home, so we drove for 500 miles in a vehicle that was 50 degrees inside. Not fun. My sister, Susan, thought I was absolutely crazy since I was more concerned about Sophie and Phoebe (our beloved kitties) than the humans on board. But once we arrived in North Carolina the temperature increased to 60 degrees and we were all feeling better. Mark was a driving machine and we arrived in Savannah, Georgia, by day two. 

For New Year’s Eve (day) we took a trolley tour through charming, quaint Savannah. All three of us fell in love with this historic city: the architecture, 21 botanical town parks, the waterfront, local artists, oyster shell sidewalks and the array of shops and restaurants. 

Catholic Basilica

Big Paul admiring the Italian marble.

A HUGE shipping vessel from Hong Kong.

My father is keeping a journal of daily activities.

My hubby matched the building ; )

Crazy walkways near the waterfront, linking the market square area.

The city is rich in history, as well as popular culture (the movies Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil and Forrest Gump were filmed there). 

Savannah City Market

Paula Dean's restaurant, "The Lady and Sons."
We opted to eat elsewhere...Big Paul is not a fan.

Dad with Johnny Mercer, a musical genius ("Moon River" among many others).

A wine store's message to potential customers. Love it!

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Scenic view of market square

Great marketing! Is it strange that I would love to have this vehicle?

The oyster shell sidewalks (over 120 years old and no cracks).

SCAD: Savannah College of Arts and Design (great store).

Farewell, Savannah! We will surely visit again, but for now, we are eager to get to Florida.

Trying to get back home...

We were pleasantly surprised to see the abundance of wind turbines
in each state as we drove eastward.

Our mission: make it back to the Jersey Shore by Friday, 8/26, so we would have the weekend to regroup - Mark is eager to swim + surf and for me, the fall semester begins 9/6. After leaving South Dakota, Mark was a driving machine and we made it through Minnesota, Wisconsin (we stopped in Madison - a cool college town/city), Illinois, Iowa and Ohio in record time.

I have wanted to visit the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame Museum, in Cleveland for over a decade, so we stopped for the day and what a day we had! Mark and I are avid museum goers - natural history, contemporary art, fine art, railway, science, hall of fame...you name it, we have probably visited it.

Peace : )

$22.00/each and so worth it.

The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame was by far one of the most memorable museum experiences we have ever had (we spent over three hours on the first floor!). We highly recommend a visit - it's packed with rock star memorabilia and high tech audio/visual exhibits. Highlights included: Elvis, The Beatles, Women in Rock, the Inductees film, and One Hit Wonders.

Imaging Peace guitar (6 foot) by Yoko Ono.

George Harrison is my favorite Beatle.

Elvis bought this Lincoln for his bodyguard and on another day bought 13 Cadillacs and gave them away to family and friends.

The red carpet for the Inductees...

Love, love, love Gwen Stefani. FYI...Moby has a great vegan restaurant in downtown NYC called TeaNY. Super yummy and you may see him there - I have a few times.

From the U2 Zooropa Tour.

It wasn't until we were leaving Cleveland that we realized the potential harm Hurricane Irene was bringing our way. Living on a barrier island, we decided to forgo our plans to go home and instead headed towards Hershey, Pennsylvania. Yes, that's correct...my husband and I have decided to stay safe in the land of chocolate, nuts, and nougat.

More to come...ciao' for now : )

PS: To our fellow east coasters, be smart + be safe.

South Dakota: Mount Rushmore, Crazy Horse, Black Hills, and Badlands

Welcome to South Dakota!

Mount Rushmore is the consummate national monument – paying tribute to 150 years of our nation’s leadership spanning from George Washington, Thomas Jefferson, Abraham Lincoln, and Theodore Roosevelt. The monument reflects the determination and struggle for our great nation’s liberty and freedom, past and present. Unfortunately, today there are many Americans who interpret these principles in term of a distorted self-interest (Glenn Beck, and the folks at Fox “News”).

Homage to Washington, Jefferson, Roosevelt, and Lincoln

90% of Mount Rushmore was crafted with dynamite
(you can see the rubble below the faces).

Pure craftsmanship while dangling 100 feet in the air.

Let's not forget our fellow citizens...we live in a county founded on
opportunity for ALL Americans, not only the top 1%.

A lovely tribute to those who have served. Thank you.

The nightly lighting ceremony is a moving experience.

The Crazy Horse Memorial, honoring North American Indians, namely the legendary Lakota leader, Crazy Horse is the world’s largest sculpture. The original artist and sculptor, Korczak Ziolkowski was invited by Lakota leaders to begin the massive project, in 1947. Today, the site houses the granite carving, as well as a Welcome Center, a Native American Educational and Cultural Center and Museum, a restaurant, gift shops and access to Korczak’s studio. His wife and six of ten children carry on the mission to complete the sculpture (estimated completion is 2035). 

You can get an appreciation of what the final sculpture will look like.

The artist's rendering.

The Mount Rushmore Presidents' heads can fit into the head/hair of Crazy Horse. 

You can see the stratum of where they blast dynamite every 7-10 days.

Hopping on our scooter, we left Crazy Horse and headed for the loop road of the Black Hills. We saw diverse natural landscape from jutting granite pinnacles to grassy plains, to rolling hills, and clusters of forest areas. The temperature was perfect – 80 degrees and no humidity – a great day for seeing the sights that Mother Nature has to offer. 

Welcome to the Black Hills.

One lane. Nerve wracking when vehicles are approaching from the other direction!

Tight squeeze!

Driving through the tunnel is a trippy experience.

The landscape shift dramatically as you drive around.

A wild donkey?!!?

Pretty.

Happy campers on our scooter.

Our ride comes to a close...

Badlands National Park is a curiosity of nature – it looks like a moonscape or a sci-fi movie set. At first glance, it is lifeless and still, but there are wildlife that resides in this vast area of rock and prairie-grass. We saw antelope and prairie dogs, and thankfully, no rattlesnakes. Driving around, the energy is somber and somewhat uninviting, in terms of human habitation. We recommend the site, but it’s definitely a drive-thru visit. 

Love of my life...

Bizarre topography.

This is one of my favorite photos of the area.

Favorite.

Beware of those rattlesnakes...

Seriously...I would LOVE to have a tee-pee as my home office.
I am not kidding. Really, I am not.

Fifteen states (and four Canadian provinces) so far  - heading home to the Jersey Shore, so who knows what's to come.

Stay tuned. Ciao’ for now : )