Destination America
Posted by: Christian P. Milord | 06/28/2008 7:48 PM
I just returned from a 3800 mile trip around a great section of America that makes up the Northwest and Southwest. If you travel across Southern Cal through Barstow and Needles, it feels like you are on desert planet. The weather gets a tad more comfortable by the time you reach Flagstaff, AZ, which fortunately has some trees.
I then drove on to Gallup, NM, and stopped for the night. Next, I moved forward to the Sandia Park area of New Mexico to visit friends at their ranch. The mountain cave dwellings of the Pueblo Indians are quite amazing to view in New Mexico. Following those sights are the unique Pueblo architectural buildings of Santa Fe.
I drove on up to Pueblo, Colorado, which is a steel town, and stayed the night. From there the scenery improves as you journey to the USAF Academy in Colorado Springs. The mountains and trees are fantastic in this area. The Academy is located in an awesome natural setting, and the layout is excellent. The cadet chapel has an original design of aluminum, glass, and steel, and it has 17 spires pointing straight up into the sky.
My odyssey moved forward to Denver, CO, then Cheyenne, WY, and on up to the Badlands and Black Hills of South Dakota. Mt. Rushmore is awe inspiring in its likeness to four great presidents. The motifs of their presidencies are birth, expansion, development, and preservation.
The craftsmanship of Gutzon Borglum, and hundreds of workers who labored on this monument, (1927-1941) is breathtaking. America is truly the land of dreams and opportunity. From there I went through the old towns of Deadwood, Lead, and on up to Spearfish, SD, where I stayed overnight.
Spearfish is the home of the Passion Play of Christ (death and resurrection) which has been perfomed during the summer by locals and professional actors since 1938. Josef Meier brought this centuries old play to America from Germany in 1932 when it was banned by the Nazi Party. The amphitheater for the play is built into a hill, and you peer down at all the buildings and walkways of the set. There is another hill for the Golgotha crucifixion scenes.
The Meier family toured with the play around North America till 1964, but Spearfish became the permanent home for the play early on. Moreover, Lake Wales, Florida was the winter setting for the play from 1953-1999. Currently, Spearfish is the only location for the play, which runs three times a week. About ten million people have seen the play since the late 1930's.
Then the trip took me back into Wyoming to experience Devils Tower, another natural wonder of the West. It is a beautiful drive through northern Wyoming, on up to Billings and Bozeman, Montana. I then dropped in to visit Mom in Livingston, MT, and stayed two nights. As an independent, she doesn't like McCain, or Obama. The Yellowstone River runs right through the city. This year it is fast moving and swollen from the rains and snowmelt.
About fifty miles to the south of Livingston is the north entrance to Yellowstone National Park. I drove through much of the park and enjoyed the scenery of bears, buffaloes, forests, and "Old Faithful." I exited out the West Gate and continued on to Idaho Falls, Pocatello, Twin Falls, and down into the high desert of Northeast Nevada. I drove to Wells and stayed the night. Then I moved on to Elko, Winnemucca, and on towards Carson City and Tahoe.
The weather was much cooler across this region as you drive to Tahoe. However, this year, the air got smoky due to the California fires, and it was like that all the way to Sacramento, where I spent a night. I stopped in Salinas to visit an aunt, and the next day I drove the 101 back home to Orange County.
It was an exciting and tiring eight days, and I experienced many of the rural and urban landscapes of America. We are so lucky to live in "the greatest country on God's green earth," (Michael Medved). For the most part, gas was less expensive until I got back into California.
Along the way, I interacted with plenty of real down to earth people that were friendly and sincere. Let us hope and pray that these folks, and most Americans will see through Obama's facade by election day. Let us hope that they wisely vote for someone who will strive to protect their liberties, their values, and their country. Despite his imperfections, John McCain will do his best to keep America strong into an optimistic future of the 21st century.
I then drove on to Gallup, NM, and stopped for the night. Next, I moved forward to the Sandia Park area of New Mexico to visit friends at their ranch. The mountain cave dwellings of the Pueblo Indians are quite amazing to view in New Mexico. Following those sights are the unique Pueblo architectural buildings of Santa Fe.
I drove on up to Pueblo, Colorado, which is a steel town, and stayed the night. From there the scenery improves as you journey to the USAF Academy in Colorado Springs. The mountains and trees are fantastic in this area. The Academy is located in an awesome natural setting, and the layout is excellent. The cadet chapel has an original design of aluminum, glass, and steel, and it has 17 spires pointing straight up into the sky.
My odyssey moved forward to Denver, CO, then Cheyenne, WY, and on up to the Badlands and Black Hills of South Dakota. Mt. Rushmore is awe inspiring in its likeness to four great presidents. The motifs of their presidencies are birth, expansion, development, and preservation.
The craftsmanship of Gutzon Borglum, and hundreds of workers who labored on this monument, (1927-1941) is breathtaking. America is truly the land of dreams and opportunity. From there I went through the old towns of Deadwood, Lead, and on up to Spearfish, SD, where I stayed overnight.
Spearfish is the home of the Passion Play of Christ (death and resurrection) which has been perfomed during the summer by locals and professional actors since 1938. Josef Meier brought this centuries old play to America from Germany in 1932 when it was banned by the Nazi Party. The amphitheater for the play is built into a hill, and you peer down at all the buildings and walkways of the set. There is another hill for the Golgotha crucifixion scenes.
The Meier family toured with the play around North America till 1964, but Spearfish became the permanent home for the play early on. Moreover, Lake Wales, Florida was the winter setting for the play from 1953-1999. Currently, Spearfish is the only location for the play, which runs three times a week. About ten million people have seen the play since the late 1930's.
Then the trip took me back into Wyoming to experience Devils Tower, another natural wonder of the West. It is a beautiful drive through northern Wyoming, on up to Billings and Bozeman, Montana. I then dropped in to visit Mom in Livingston, MT, and stayed two nights. As an independent, she doesn't like McCain, or Obama. The Yellowstone River runs right through the city. This year it is fast moving and swollen from the rains and snowmelt.
About fifty miles to the south of Livingston is the north entrance to Yellowstone National Park. I drove through much of the park and enjoyed the scenery of bears, buffaloes, forests, and "Old Faithful." I exited out the West Gate and continued on to Idaho Falls, Pocatello, Twin Falls, and down into the high desert of Northeast Nevada. I drove to Wells and stayed the night. Then I moved on to Elko, Winnemucca, and on towards Carson City and Tahoe.
The weather was much cooler across this region as you drive to Tahoe. However, this year, the air got smoky due to the California fires, and it was like that all the way to Sacramento, where I spent a night. I stopped in Salinas to visit an aunt, and the next day I drove the 101 back home to Orange County.
It was an exciting and tiring eight days, and I experienced many of the rural and urban landscapes of America. We are so lucky to live in "the greatest country on God's green earth," (Michael Medved). For the most part, gas was less expensive until I got back into California.
Along the way, I interacted with plenty of real down to earth people that were friendly and sincere. Let us hope and pray that these folks, and most Americans will see through Obama's facade by election day. Let us hope that they wisely vote for someone who will strive to protect their liberties, their values, and their country. Despite his imperfections, John McCain will do his best to keep America strong into an optimistic future of the 21st century.
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