We are home now. It is Easter Sunday, and it's just the two of us here, preparing a dinner of chicken tacos, rice, and beans; the Southwest is still with us.
We logged 7600 miles. Would we do it again? You bet, in an instant! We are already making plans to spend at least part of next winter in Arizona. But more importantly, we enjoyed the journey as much as the destination. It was educational, it was interesting, it was enlightening. And it was fun!
We in the Northeast are so very insulated from the rest of the country. We have the advantage of living in an area dense with institutions of higher learning. Politics here tend to be very liberal, and although there are dissenting opinions here and there, overall it is a very homogeneous, left-leaning crowd. It is so easy to forget that we are just a small part of a very large country with diverse culture and opinions. Everyone should have the opportunity to drive at least past Ohio, and preferably past the Mississippi River. And I do mean drive - flying doesn't count, because you miss so much along the way, whether it's a field full of corn or cows grazing or a wind farm or part of the dust bowl sprinkled with shacks that people live in - the road is the way to go to expand your views.
I learned a lot along the way - some big things, and some things that will help me out the next time I play pub trivia. If you look for it, there is always something to learn. We learned about rice growing in Arkansas; the ecology of the Southwest, including the many varieties of cacti; the vast amount of land that is open across the country; the great disparity between rich and poor; and the kindness of people in general.
There was a lot that we disagreed with, and many places we knew we could never live in because of the differences in culture and political views. Despite that, we found friendly people everywhere, and many opportunities to talk about ordinary things that were common to everyone. We spoke with bikers in New Mexico about the weather and the best route to Sedona. We learned that Boston, rather than being seen as part of the "elite Northeast", was a very desirable destination. People were eager to tell us about their trips to Boston, their experiences in Boston, or their desire to get to Boston someday. We are very lucky to live here.
I left on this trip with a number of books on my Kindle, ready to be read. I arrived in Arizona with all except one untouched - there was so much to see along the way that I read very little, afraid to miss things. We were lucky to be driving a new and very comfortable Volvo, and I am fortunate that Bob is not only a very good driver, but enjoys driving. After the first few days, it felt very normal to get up in the morning, hop in the car, and go. Bob had little trouble driving 6 to 8 hours a day, and I had no problem sitting for that time and enjoying the road ahead. There was always something to talk about.
We had several books on CD with us, and I would highly recommend them for anyone traveling any distance. It's good to have a variety of fiction and nonfiction. We listened to a couple of Tony Hillerman's books as we drove through the Indian reservation areas. It was fun comparing the locations in the books to where we had been or were going.
On a more personal note, driving for so many hours and being together, just the two of us, for so long, gave us an opportunity to talk without everyday distractions that we would otherwise have had. There is a wonderful privacy and intimacy in driving.
Our time in Arizona was indeed special, being able to catch up with two college friends and meeting and getting to know the husband of one of them. Being there for a couple of weeks instead of just a day or two was special beyond words, because it gave us so much time to just sit around and relax and chat, rather than always being on the go trying to cram in this or that tourist attraction - although we also did some of that.
As we said in the beginning, we are looking forward to going back next year, so we are looking to rent a house of our own for couple of months in the same area as our friends. This will not only give all of us a little bit more privacy that is needed for that extended period of time, but also will allow us to act as hosts for our friends and family from back east. We are really looking forward to it and hope it all works out.
This ends our saga. I hope you have enjoyed these notes as much as we have enjoyed writing them down for our memory book.
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