21 days left.
From now on this blog will be in English, seeing as we have a few non Swedish friends who might be interested in reading about our upcoming adventures in America!
Our days are literally packed with preparation. Today we took the cats to the vet to have their annual shot of vaccine, a month or two early so that we didn't miss it whilst away. I've been on the phone to various leccy, gas and phone companies to sort out electronic bills. That didn't work out so well though, but my lovely mum who's already in charge of the cats and the plants promised she'd check for bills so we don't arrive home to find out belongings being carried out by Mr Taxman!
We've also made a more detailed travelling plan, which I thought I'd share with you all! Of course there'll be lots of little things to see on the way, both planned and unexpected, but here are some of the highlights we'll try to definitely fit in (click on the map for a full-size image):
1. New York. Self-explanatory. We have a return ticket for N.Y. and plan to spend a few days there at the start of the trip, and possibly chilling there for the last few days before we go home as well.
2. Washington DC. Gotta see the capital! We plan on spending July 4th here.
3. Orlando. We're in Florida for a couple of days to see the Kennedy Space Centre and Disney World!
4. New Orleans. One of those places I've always wanted to go. I hope it lives up to my high expectations of mysterious jazz bars and humid, adventure-filled nights!
5. Houston.6. San Antonio. Apparently very idyllic and scenic. We originally planned to go over Dallas, but changed our minds after reading about S.A. in the guide book.
7. El Paso. We just need to get that Kill Bill / No Country for Old Men feeling, so we're going to El Paso. We're also planning on crossing the border into Mexico (on foot - we're NOT bringing the car. And yes, we've checked with the visa rules, we'll be let back in :)).
8. Grand Canyon national park.
9. Las Vegas - crazy city and cheap luxuruy hotels. It'd be madness not to go.
10. Los Angeles. Spending a couple of days in L.A. to see Universal Studios, the Hollywood sign and other touristy things.
11. San Fransisco. The route between L.A. and S.F. is said to be one of the most breathtaking stretches of road in the country. As for S.F. itself, I really want to see those steep hills and characteristic houses.
12. Redwood forest. After Kim said we'd be a couple of damn fools to miss out on this, we added it to our route even if it's a little detour.
13. Yellowstone national park.
14. Mt Rushmore. You know, the big faces in the side of the mountain.
15. Chicago. Home to so much great music, this city has got to be cool.
16. Niagara Falls.17. Toronto (Candada). Hopefully we'll be allowed to take the car into Canada.
18. Ottawa. The captial of Canada.
19. Montreal. I hear this is a super cool place.
20. The Ben & Jerry's factory in Vermont! Yum yum!
The green dotted lines are there because we're not sure what road we'll be taking to Yellowstone. On one hand it would be cool to see Salt Lake City (the southern route) and the mormons, but we might be very tired of the desert after so much driving through it. If we feel that it's too hot/boring we'll take the northern route.
So! You people who have been to America before: what kind of recommendations do you have for us? What can we really not miss? Bearing in mind it's more or less within this route. All suggestions and tips are most welcome!
