by Anthony Megna

Created on: August 06, 2008   Last Updated: December 27, 2010

Motivation and patience will determine how to survive your cross-country trip. Who wants to see our beautiful country? If one is not motivated to drive this country's roads, don't do it. It is a big, big country. There are a lot of interesting places and sights to see. But if you are half-hearted about it, don't do it. It can be hell on the driver and passengers. This is very, very important. Road rage can be a result if someone is forced to go on a long car trip. The price of gas today is no bargain either.

My wife and I have done this trip a couple of times. Right after we got married we moved from Boston to Las Vegas. We were excited and everything we saw left an impression on us. It was a pleasure and it was a lot of fun. Even driving through a McDonald's in a different city was exciting. Watching people in different towns and their customs and manners was very interesting.

It is fascinating to view our wonderful road system, but we can tell our infrastructure needs work. A lot of work. It can be scary to cross some bridges that look rusted out. Dodging potholes in the Chicago area was no mean feat either. But when you hit the west, you know, after Nebraska, you almost expect Clint Eastwood or John Wayne to come riding over the mesa. Also, the sky just opens up. I have always loved the western horizon. There is something about the western sky that allows me to breathe better. It is just so massive! I always feel crunched in, in the East. Driving out west is like lifting a heavy veil off of your entire body. Watching those miles slip away faster and faster while driving on big wide roads helps keep one's sanity. The speed limit is higher, 75 in some places, and it is just a joy to open it up a bit. It helps to have a CD player because there can be problems tuning some radio stations in, unless you have satellite radio or something.

Counting down the miles to your next destination is fun. Planning on where you are going to spend the night starts in the afternoon, and driving until dusk is about our limit. Obviously, it helps to plan before your trip to know roughly where you want to stay, and it can help save money as well. We never made reservations however, because we just weren't that specific. We kind of played it by ear, and that was half of the fun.

The joy is the trip. Traveling is most of the fun. In fact, when we reached our destination, even though it was "Vegas" baby, we had a bit of a letdown. That's normal as everyone gets white-line fever being on the road. You just want to get up in the morning and drive and drive and drive........

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