By Tues evening next week I am expecting to be redundant. Bad timing, as I go on a cruise for 10 days on Wed evening... Nevertheless, I am seriously considering taking the opportunity to visit the US for a few weeks in June, starting in Chicago at the Blues Festival. So, where to go after that?
I've scanned over the maps, and, working pretty much solely on whether I've heard of a place or not, created some outline itineraries, all heading vaguely south from Chicago and ending up back there. The long route goes like this:
Chicago - Kansas City - Smoky Hills - Salina - Dodge City - Wichita - Oklahoma City - Tulsa - Hot Springs - Little Rock - Lafayette - Baton Rouge - New Orleans - Biloxi - Hattiesburg - Tupelo - Jackson - Mobile - Birmingham - Chattanooga - Great Smoky Mts -
Nashville - Memphis - Lexington - Indianapolis - Chicago
That's around 4600 miles, which will be in the cheapest car I can get, using campsites and cheap motels for overnights and eating from trash cans :-) There are shorter alternatives, which broadly omit extremes (Dodge City, Biloxi etc)
Does anyone with knowledge of the area have any thoughts on the route, any must-sees or must-avoids?
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sounds brilliant
never been ,but the best holidays are always the unplanned ones, pick out a few must dos and fill in the rest as you go.
remember if you try and do everything it becomes a chore,guess where i didnt go while in venice
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What kind of work do you do Smokie ? Only reason I ask is that maybe you could turn your trip into a kind of extended working holiday if you can turn your skills to your advantage. Failing that, it should be possible to get low grade casual work if you want it. Or do you have a hobby for example which you could teach or qualify to teach ?
On a positive note I was made redundant years ago. It was possibly the best thing which could have happened to me in retrospect. Didn't feel like it at the time but of course it wouldn't would it ?
It forced me to re-appraise just about everything. What I wanted and how I wanted to live. Put it this way I've never worked for anyone else since and wouldn't want to now but have equally never had to rely on handouts either. Some years I've done OK, some years really well and others have been tight but you get used to a different way of thinking. Life becomes less predictable but that's sort of part of it in a way. No one owns you any more and that can feel good.
Sorry everyone, this has nothing to do with motoring. Mods feel free to delete. Just wanted to pass on an encouraging word.
Good luck whatever happens and enjoy your roadtrip if it comes off.
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Hi Smokie
Sorry to hear about the redundancy, been there and done that but as Humph says, can be life changing for the better... road trip, eh? If you're starting from Chicago, it just has to be route 66, the mother road, America's main street. If you can, do it in a Mustang convertible as I did. Great fun, travel at your own pace and loads to see and do without breaking the bank.
I'd do it again tomorrow without a doubt.
Good luck, regards, cc
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Can we assume you have never been to the USA? If so, then driving hints and tips have been covered in past threads. Most states have their own "highway code" equivalent available to download online.
Does anyone with knowledge of the area have any thoughts on the route, any must-sees or must-avoids? >>
Not the route you have in mind, but
US Road Trip - open to ideas >>
I can recommend the West [California, Nevada, Arizona, Utah, Colorado] if you like spectacular scenery.
You need 6 months or more, perhaps spread over 6 or more trips of 4 weeks each to do any justice!
eg. start from Chicago on the famous route 66
www.a-ztours.com/route66.htm
www.a-ztours.com/route66revisited.htm
then do in any one of these from LA, SanFran or Las Vegas:
www.a-ztours.com/usawest.htm
www.a-ztours.com/natparkscanyoncountry.htm
Other western USA ideas here:
www.maintour.com/tourusaw.htm
I have done most of the West, including the California's Pacific Coast Highway One:
www.byways.org/explore/byways/12744/
Cheap accommodation: If you want to save on motels/hotels, pick up one of these coupon books at the outlets mentioned:
www.travelcouponguide.com/
www.travelmediadistributors.com/tmd_project/find1....p
Edited by jbif on 25/04/2009 at 00:17
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Thanks all. In no particular order...
I've been with the same computer company for 22 years, being a project manager for the last 8. I'm certainly approaching redundancy with a positive attitude even though they are only paying statutory min and finding work in the next 6 months or so may be tough.
Project management is not the kind of work I could do in the US! I have a three month window before I can sign on here, and my thinking is that losing a month or two won't really prejudice my job hunting chances too much in the current climate.
While I the existence of a Mrs smokie gives me plenty to be grateful for, it does mean that the US opportunity is very much a limited-time once off, and I need to be considerate of how much time (and money) I spend swanning around in the sun while she slaves away earning us a crust, especially as I already had two weeks in Florida in March!! It helps my planning that she has absolutely no desire to visit the US. But she wants me back at some point!!! I think 4 weeks would be the absolute tops, and two or three would be better
Regarding previously visiting the US, I have been to Florida, ostensibly to watch motor racing in March for the last 7 or 8 years. That's been good as I travel with an American so we have been off the beaten track a lot (most of the time for the last three years was spent in Key West, a fantastic place to which very few Brits will venture). Oh, and this year our rental cars were a Dodge Challenger and a Mustang convertible :-) - but these will be over-budget for this trip.
I didn't realise Route 66 was "in the vicinity". Looked at a few sites - wow. That gives me a very hard decision, as I've always had a desire to visit the deep south - I feel I should scratch that itch this time, and look at Route 66 if the opportunity presents itself again, but the jury is still out on that at the moment.
Regarding the West Coast "tours", these are very much on my agenda for some time in the future. Mrs S may be persuaded, once we have time on our hands and if we still have any money (!), to do one tour in the States, and the LA - Vegas - SF area is the one area she has expressed an interest in. So I need to avoid exploring those too deeply, as she won't want to visit places if I've already been there (women, eh?). I've saved your tour links JBIF and thanks for the reminder about the hotel discount books.
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Whatever you do, go to Memphis, have a huge meal at your local Waffle House, then head straight for Graceland! Absolutely a must-see; bring plenty of money for CDs, t-shirts and other tacky Elvis souvenirs. If you were to do Memphis, I'd also recommend Tupelo, Miss.--Elvis' hometown, where you can see the shotgun shack he lived in as a child. Tupelo is about 90 minutes southeast of Memphis, and it's as Southern as you can get (culturally, not geographically). I've done all of the above and loved it.
Edited by Pebble on 26/04/2009 at 00:45
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