Life Moves Too Fast

Road trip!

The World is a book, and those who do not travel read only a page. - St. Augustine

Even today that is one of my favorite quotes about travel. As I went on in a post earlier this month, to deny yourself the opportunity to visit and take in culture, history or simple endulgence is doing yourself a disservice. And traveling by car on a long-distance road trip is far and away one of the best ways to quench that need to ‘get away’. Many friends would call me the ‘road trip king’, for my many attempts to outdue myself during the younger years. Some people read, some watch television or listen to the radio, I drive to relax. And with the summer season upon us, let it be road trip season.

At least once a year I must quench my desire to hit the open road and drive. Ever since receiving my license, I have enjoyed the simple pleasure of being behind the wheel on the interstate. Visions of the 1960s family vacations, piled in the station wagon, surely come to your mind. But nontheless, any trip that involves travel by car counts here. I was raised in a home that considered travel the cornerstone of our family. I would say our trips by car and plane were equally divided, 50/50, but I have fond memories of riding in the backseat to Grandma’s in Alabama. My mom would gasp, but I clearly remember sitting on my dads lap at seven years old on our trip from St Louis to California. In my own driving years, a buddy and I once left high school and drove to Chicago on a Friday evening. Our parents would never have approved of this stunt, and therefore we only had enough time to eat dinner at the Hard Rock Cafe before driving back. We just wanted to take the car out on a nice spring day.

Memorial Day has typically ushered in road trip season. I am curious to see how gas prices affect peoples’ choices to travel this summer. I would say that current prices will need to double before I put this tradition on the shelf myself. I am craving to plan where we can go this year. Here are some memorable trips of the past few years:

In 2004 the newly-wed wife and I left St Louis on a Wednesday evening on a week long trip through the American Southwest. Our itinerary tried to get us to the Grand Canyon by sundown, Thursday, and despite needing a nap at a Super 8 in Oklahoma, we made it just in time to see the canyon at dusk. We spent the next few days making our way home slowly through the Navajo nation, Monument Valley and southern Utah and Colorado. Colleen even stood in four states at once.

In 2005 I piled into the front of my brothers SUV and we drove all the way to Seattle from St Louis in 3 days. This trip was memorable to me for being able to see the vast wildnerness of states like Wyoming and Montana. You cannot truly appreciate Montana’s motto Big Sky Country until you drive across it. I claimed Devils Tower for my own on that trip.

In 2006 we drove to Montréal, Québec. I got to take my wife to see Niagara Falls and she got her first taste of converting speed and distance to the metric system. I never knew how truly beautiful Montréal was.

In 2007 we regrettably made most of our trips by air and I regret this very much. To reconnect with the road, one weekend we simply woke up and decided to take a trip. We had no plans and no destination, but ended up later that day in Hot Springs, Arkansas. Never knew Arkansas had so many gems. This was probably one of my favorite trips to date, we had a lot of fun.

So where do we go this year? The quest is quickly pointing to getting us to the final states we have left to visit. I have but three: North Dakota, Alaska and Oregon. Obviously the states that have little convenience by road from our home. The wife - she has yet to visit Minnesota or Wisconsin. An idea has been thrown around to drive to the Northwoods for some hiking and camping. But secretely I’d love to take another week off and drive west. We will just have to see what tickles our fancy.

Some road-trip fun facts:

• The first recorded road trip was attested in stele in the court of Ramses II. He was said to “come down on the Medeans in his chariot after driving allnight from Memphis.” Road trips were important throughout antiquity. Alexander’s march into India was described the historian Nearchus. During the Roman Republic it was not uncommon for young patrician men to gather together to tour the Roman world. Jung even identified the Road trip as persistent element of human culture.
  Although the modern road trip can trace its roots to post-WWII America, road tripping in general began long before The Great War.

• The first successful transcontinental trip by automobile took place in 1903, and was piloted by H. Nelson Jackson, Sewall Crocker, and a canine by the name of Bud. The trip was completed using a 1903 Winton Touring Car, dubbed “Vermont” by Jackson. The trip took a total of 63 days between San Francisco and New York, and cost US$8,000. The total cost included items such as food, gasoline, lodging, tires, parts, other supplies, and the cost of the Winton.

    Tags: Road Trip, Roadtrip, Travel

Is traveling First Class still worth it?

I upgraded to first class yesterday on both legs to and from Dallas and it begs the question, does anyone pay full fare for First these days? Like myself, I am sure most that sit ‘up front’ upgrade using points or cash when the seats are released. What strikes me enough to warrant a topic on this is how this luxury has changed over the last few years. From my point of view, domestically, paying full fare in first leaves much to be desired.

My first leg was on a Super 80 aircraft. What makes you scratch your head first is your seat itself. While offering a better pitch and wider seat, you are forced to use the same tray-table-that-folds-from-your-armrest contraption that still, decades later, is an invention that should never have been made. Secondly, no PTVs. Thankfully this flight is short, but American uses the same equipment for even longer legs such as St Louis to Seattle or Dallas to New York. Would you truly pay full fare First and not get in-flight entertainment? Lastly, we were served absolutely no food. Nothing. My orange juice was served in a real glass, which is a treat, but that was it folks. Again, for a 75 minute flight, few could get hungry enough to enjoy a formal meal, but the principle here still is, this is First.

I upgraded on the flight home, which had a late 9:30 departure, on a 757. Same story, no PTV and no food. Though this time I simply slept.

I remember as a kid flying in First to Europe. Aboard a huge TWA 747 for Frankfurt, I tried caviar for the first time. You paid for the pleasure of being waited on hand and foot. The standard was prime service and an impressive menu. Nowadays, the service still exists, but only on long haul flights using larger aircraft. The simple principle of First Class service has changed, nevertheless.

What airlines and aircraft still operate domestic First Class service? Share your experiences in the comments.

On travel

Be it a simple trip to Grandmas, or a jaunt across the world, your travels live on in your memories and pictures for years to come. Life moves too fast, so do not wait for ‘that perfect time’ to travel and see the world and its many amazing sites.

On May 1st, one of my own childhood memories will no longer be experienced by future generations. Venice bans pigeon feeding in St. Mark’s Square. If you have ever been to Venice, Italy, you will recall St Mark’s Square. The main gathering point and piazza in this floating city, St. Marks Square, or Piazza San Marco, received a nickname from my brother upon our second visit in 1999 - Pigeon Square. A lucrative business was selling corn seed to tourists who would in turn feed the seed to thousands of pigeons by now trained in this pavlovian relationship. Only specific vendors had this license and it has been a century-old tradition to buy the seed and lure the pigeons to your hand for a photo opp.

However, this 90-year old business ended earlier this month in an effort to clean up the city and decrease the negative impacts of thousands of these birds. I agree with this decision in principle, however at the same time reflect on how traditions disappear each and every day and that you must enjoy them before they are gone. Make sure you catch yourself the next time you say you will ‘wait until next year’, or ‘do it when you are retired’. You never know when a tradition, or even a complete town or attraction, will disappear and you miss an opportunity for a lifelong memory.

See the world!

Welcome to Life Moves Too Fast

Life Moves Too Fast launched on 1 May 2008 as the blog of Don Krutewicz. Enjoy a quick introduction into the goals behind LMTF.