America 2015: Day Thirty-Five (3 September 2015)

While the storm clouds gather
Far across the sea
Let us swear allegiance
To a land that's free
Let us all be grateful
For a land so fair
Let us raise our voices
In a solemn prayer

God bless America,
Land that I love.
Stand beside her, and guide her,
Through the night with the light from above.

From the mountains, to the prairies,
To the oceans, white with foam,
God bless America,
My home sweet home.
God bless America,
My home sweet home.

                                                                                                     - Lee Greenwood 

Thursday 3 September

Where has the time gone? It feels like just yesterday that we arrived in Los Angeles (not knowing what sort of hellish red eye special awaited us!) and began the trip that took us to Kansas City, New York City, Chicago, St Louis, Nashville, Memphis, Chattanooga, Knoxville, Bristol, Myrtle Beach, Charleston, Hilton Head, Atlanta and now back to Los Angeles.

Today’s already been a long one, and that’s without taking into account the 14-hour flight back to Sydney. My alarm went off at 4:15am, we were out the door at 5:00am, dropping the car back and getting over to the airport for our first flight in a month.

It was late morning in Los Angeles, and we spent the afternoon out at Santa Monica Pier, eating at Bubba Gump’s and enjoying our last few hours on American soil. Bubba Gump’s does amazing seafood, and their Coronarita, a mini Corona beer dunked in a margarita, is something I haven’t found anywhere else in my travels. It’s becoming a sort of tradition to eat there on the last day of a trip. The food is really good.

 

The Coronarita

 

The weather in Santa Monica was perfect, sunny and warm, making it a difficult thing to leave. I was desperate to join in all the people riding bikes along the miles of beachfront bike paths. They’ve done a really good job out there on the ocean putting in all sorts of parkland facility. The entire area has changed a lot since I’ve been visiting there, and definitely for the better, too. You can see why people pay a small fortune per night to stay in one of the boutique hotels dotted along the edge of the beach.

Here at LAX, it looks like there’ll be at least a minor delay with our flight, due to delays on the aircraft coming in from Washington, D.C. The thirteen-odd hour slog home is never fun, but I must say I’m looking forward to being back in Australia. Home is where the heart is, after all, and being away for any length of time makes me very glad to be an Australian.

It’s been strange taking flights today. The last time we flew before today was August 4 from New York City to Chicago, nearly a month ago. Since then, we’ve covered just under three thousand miles on the road, from as far north as Milwaukee, Wisconsin to as far south as Atlanta, Georgia and the South Carolina coast. Before I shut down, I wanted to get this one last blog in and say a few things:

A giant thanks to everyone who opened their homes and hearts to us. It’s hard to not keep coming back when there are so many amazing people who want to hang out. I’m glad I got to see the girl I think of as my American sister get married – and what an unforgettable ceremony it was.  The week in Chicago was probably my favourite week of all. It was great to catch up with a lot of friends there. Matt and Jaimie get extra special thanks for that.

Kenny Chesney and Jason Aldean were awesome at Arrowhead Stadium on the second night of our trip. Bristol Motor Speedway was deafeningly awesome. Baseball with the Bal’s in New York City made me laugh so hard. The White Sox ball game with the all-you-can-eat dinner beforehand was great, too. All the historical places we visited have quenched my thirst for the time being. All the beaches and pools, waterslides and lazy rivers…I rediscovered how much I like to swim. Man, did I eat some good food. Some ordinary stuff, too, but it was far more good than bad.

 

 

Thanks to everyone who read this blog. Obviously there’s a few of you out there, as my entries here are averaging 45 views per day, which is pretty awesome.

Thankfully, in a little over nine months I’ll be back, and I’m already excited to be at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway for the one hundredth running of the 500-mile race, and back to visit all my friends. You guys are what makes coming here so much fun.

 

 

America, it’s been a blast! Can’t wait to do it again! Until then…