Joy and Austin: Pikes Peak or Bust?

[Coconut Flan]

1 minute ago, singsingsing said:

My mother and I once crossed the Ambassador Bridge and entered the U.S. by accident. She thought the road kept going. I kept telling her we were going onto the bridge, and she kept being like, "No, we can turn around up here!" And then... we were on the bridge.

I went to Mexico unintentionally once in a similar manner. 

[melon]

I went to Europe with my aunt,uncle,cousins and grandmother,the summer I turned 16.We landed in Amsterdam,and went on a canal tour and to other places in Amsterdam.We stopped at a bakery,there was a young girl behind the counter..she knew right away we were American.In Germany,we toured a few castles,there was an area to order food..the waiter comes over....5 Cokes?Americans.He knew right away,too.

[ItsMeY'all]

If only Nexus could cut down the lines of a million cars waiting to in to the US...    I really do wonder if I'm just always picking horrible crossing points because it seems like others never have as long of a wait and a similar experience. We enjoy heading over towards Toronto or Niagra several times a year and always run into this crap. My parents have never been to either place and were hoping to head over in conjunction with a visit to us later this year...Good way to make an otherwise really long drive shorter for my dad who has health problems. I've been worried that the custom's wait doubling the length of the trip home might be too hard on dad.  Guess I should do some digging and find a faster/friendlier reentry point. My in-laws travel all the time and love Nexus but still manage to get the third degree in some countries.I know some countries quietly admit to various forms of profiling (I think Switzerland is one...could be why my Nordic looking husband and I got through so fast) but have to admit "penis profiling" is a new one for me BUT I love it and it will from this point forward be my new term of choice! 

Are Cuban cigars now considered okay in the US? 

Wish I was in Switzerland right now.  Loved it and hope the newlyweds enjoy it. Wonder what they would do if they accidentally bit into a liqueur filled chocolate or realized there was alcohol in their fondue?

[front hugs > duggs]

A few times in my life I have driven in both directions NYC from/to Miami. Most recently I went from south to north with a four hour hotel stop in South Carolina. In total, about 28 hours with those first 8 hours just in Florida, and all on the same road (95). 

Not nearly as pretty as LA to Seattle, but we did that over about two weeks since we had the time to do so. 

[MadeItOut]

10 hours ago, bal maiden said:

, but I think it's often hard for Europeans to appreciate the scale and diversity of the USA in terms of climate, landscape etc. Plus, of course, you can in theory drive to most of the USA, whereas to go to Europe or Asia etc you have to fly. 

You're definitely right. When I lived in UK I was commuting 4.5hrs for work, now if I need to go to the capital it's 1.5hrs and people think we're nuts to go "so far".

I can't even imagine what it's like to drive all day and not even be in a new region. It has to be cool though, to have so many different terrains and stuff all in one country.

9 hours ago, subsaharanafrica said:

 

As for the last point, I once figured out that Texas has something like 10,000 more square kilometers than the U.K. and Austria combined. It's also 50,000 sq km larger than France. 

Wow. That officially broke my brain (in the cool way). - we were in France for Mr MIO's Mum's funeral and his niece told me how far in land we were and that was the furthest I've ever been from the sea in my whole life. My brain can't even start to process that much bigger.

8 hours ago, mpheels said:

This is great explanation of US reasons for (not) traveling abroad. To add more perspective, I wonder how many EU citizens have only traveled abroad within the EU? Travel within the EU is somewhat analogous to travel within the US. 

Eurostar from London to Paris is comparable to Amtrak from Washington DC to Philadelphia, both in terms of travel time and cost. For the European, that's technically visiting another country. For the American, it means cross through several states within the same country.

That's a really great point. Thinking about it, I'm not sure I've ever gone outside of Europe (I can never remember if Malta counts). ...so are Europe and the US kinda comparable sizes? (Geography fascinates me but I am just so crap at it).

[MadeItOut]

6 hours ago, VelociRapture said:

 I still passionately hate that woman. And I'm really loathe to admit it, but it did negatively color my view of Parisians a bit.

(Sorry guys! Your city is beautiful and the food is to die for! I'd love to return one day and have my negative experience completely erased. Not happening anytime soon because we're hoping to buy a bigger place in he next few years and we have a small baby who wouldn't be able to fully appreciate the beauty that is France yet.

Mr MIO's half French, half Italian, but he was born in Paris. He says FWIW he's really sorry about that woman who most definitely represent most Parisians and says he and most people he knows would always help a kid in trouble.

[SapphireSlytherin]

47 minutes ago, ItsMeY'all said:

Are Cuban cigars now considered okay in the US? 

Yep! My dad is sitting on the front porch smoking one right now; we brought it to him from our last trip to the U.K.  

[MadeItOut]

5 hours ago, OyToTheVey said:

 Some states like Cali and Texas it'd take all day just to drive from one end to another. And if there's traffic that's a 2 day trip. 

 

You guys would laugh so hard if you were here - the single biggest culture shock (apart from the two degrees of separation thing, which really sucks), was the coffee docks every 20-30mins or so for 'long distance' driving.

[louisa05]

5 hours ago, bal maiden said:

Thanks  honestly, it took me (European) living in the US for me to really 'get' how big the country is, even though my American spouse would explain it to me. When we moved from San Diego to Silicon Valley, my European friends all thought, based on looking at the map of CA, that we were moving an hour or so away, and were pretty shocked when we explained it's a 10 hour drive! 10 hours pretty much gets you to the other end of the U.K., traffic permitting. The Netherlands is about 3 hours end to end...

Exactly. Google tells me that it is 2 hours 15 minutes from London to Paris via the Eurostar. If I leave home and head west, 2 hours and 15 minutes doesn't even get me halfway across my own state. The size of the U.S is definitely one of the reasons people don't travel abroad as much. It is expensive and time consuming to leave the country if you live smack in the middle of the continental U.S. 

Plus as someone else alluded to, there is a lot of geographical diversity here. The Rocky Mountains are a day's drive for us, here in the central part of the country. As are the Badlands. Some of the best whitewater rafting in the country is in our own state. We have coastlines on two oceans. We have warm weather destinations for the dead of winter. And that's just a few options. It is easy and more cost effective for most people to find vacation destinations domestically than abroad. 

I would also say that lack of paid vacation time is a factor for many people, too. As I mentioned when talking about honeymoons, my husband doesn't really have a lot of vacation and the option to use it all at once is not viable. That is not actually uncommon. I visited the UK 15 years ago. For the cost of the airfare even then, I wouldn't go for just 5 days. But that is about the length of vacation we can manage due to his company's policy. If we went to Europe, we'd end up having two to travel and three days there. Or we'd be there on unpaid leave and we can't afford that. 

[SapphireSlytherin]

My in-laws (well, the ones we see the most) are 40 miles outside of London. They never go to the city because it's "too far." My 16-year-old nephew just went to London for the first time in his life, last month. 

Our friend has a cottage that he let us use a couple of years ago during a family celebration. It's about 10 miles from my in-laws' town. They were horrified we were staying so far away. 

And here in the USA, Mr. Slytherin and I frequently drive 1,000+ miles in a day. For example, from the Jersey Shore to Kansas City. Fun times in the right car.

[MadeItOut]

1 hour ago, VelociRapture said:

 

I also jokingly said thirty years of marriage should be Ireland and/or Germany because that's where my families are from. 

Plus you guys can have our spare room and save a bit.

[SapphireSlytherin]

4 minutes ago, louisa05 said:

I wouldn't go for just 5 days.

Why not? We do this about four times a year. Find a cheap airfare, go! You'll end up with two full days and one 3/4 day "on the ground" in whatever city you choose. It's an awesome long weekend trip to London or Paris or Rome or Berlin....

[louisa05]

2 minutes ago, SapphireSlytherin said:

Why not? We do this about four times a year. Find a cheap airfare, go! You'll end up with two full days and one 3/4 day "on the ground" in whatever city you choose. It's an awesome long weekend trip to London or Paris or Rome or Berlin....

 It must be lovely to have the cash to fly to Europe four times a year. We don't have it. I would like to go back someday, but saving for just the airfare will be a major undertaking and I'm damn well going to have more than 2 3/4 days to enjoy it. "Cheap" flights to Paris from our nearest airport in 2-3 months, at this moment, are running MORE than our entire vacation budget last year for ONE ticket. And there is no vacation budget this year as we are planning to buy a house instead. 

[MayMay1123]

My daughter and I did a road trip a few years ago from philly to the Ohio/Kentucky border for a wedding. 10 1/2 hours, straight through...never again! Next month we'll be going up to the Pocono region (near lake Wallenpaupack) and that will take about 2 1/2 hours. PA is big, y'all! 

[louisa05]

2 minutes ago, MayMay1123 said:

My daughter and I did a road trip a few years ago from philly to the Ohio/Kentucky border for a wedding. 10 1/2 hours, straight through...never again! Next month we'll be going up to the Pocono region (near lake Wallenpaupack) and that will take about 2 1/2 hours. PA is big, y'all! 

Internet tells me it is 283 miles east to west--Nebraska is 462. 

The USA is just big, people.

[SapphireSlytherin]

7 minutes ago, louisa05 said:

 It must be lovely to have the cash to fly to Europe four times a year. We don't have it. I would like to go back someday, but saving for just the airfare will be a major undertaking and I'm damn well going to have more than 2 3/4 days to enjoy it. "Cheap" flights to Paris from our nearest airport in 2-3 months, at this moment, are running MORE than our entire vacation budget last year for ONE ticket. And there is no vacation budget this year as we are planning to buy a house instead. 

When I say cheap, I mean cheap. Less than $450 round trip. And going for a shorter time costs less (fewer meals, lower lodging costs if you need a hotel, etc.). 

I realize I'm probably a lot older than you are, and we don't have kids at home. Therefore, we are likely to have a bit more freedom with our vacation money. Just keep the idea in mind later on, when you're empty-nesters. 

And!

Sign up at scottscheapflights.com.  It's a service that emails you (free!) for super fare sales/mistake fares. You never know...

[candygirl200413]

18 minutes ago, MayMay1123 said:

My daughter and I did a road trip a few years ago from philly to the Ohio/Kentucky border for a wedding. 10 1/2 hours, straight through...never again! Next month we'll be going up to the Pocono region (near lake Wallenpaupack) and that will take about 2 1/2 hours. PA is big, y'all! 

I'm doing this same drive this upcoming weekend for a back to back wedding (we're flying to the second one thank God) but basically you're telling me to knock myself out for this car ride and add time because my dad doesn't like to speed

[MayMay1123]

3 minutes ago, candygirl200413 said:

I'm doing this same drive this upcoming weekend for a back to back wedding (we're flying to the second one thank God) but basically you're telling me to knock myself out for this car ride and add time because my dad doesn't like to speed

I did 80 mph most of the time, until we were almost taken out by a semi on the way home. So yeah, you'll be taking a longer time LOL a big chug of benedryl should work nicely 

[MadeItOut]

There's something very appealing about a place with more than two degrees of separation. Sometimes I think it would be cool to visit the US and Canada especially, but then I do daft things like trying to go out and about around here with my assistance dog and that makes me think that if jerks on this scale are too much to handle, I'd never manage. ...plus I'm told that my occasional end of day 'screw you ableist bastard' type response could easily get me shot in the states.

[Kangaroo]

I completely understand the feeling of driving for a day and still being in the same state. No matter how far I drive though, k can never leave the country...or the continent!!! 

Australia can be a mixed bag in terms of flight costs to other countries. South East Asia is pretty close by, so there is usually a good deal available. I got $179 ($130 USD) flights to Singapore once! 8 hours of absolute basics, but Singapore is an excellent starting point to get anywhere in the world. Getting to China is pretty cheap now too.

Europe and US flights seem to fluctuate with the seasons. I've seen some good deals like $1000 USD to the UK or $600 USD to the USA, both return and include bags etc. Canada still seems to be comparatively expensive.

The major issue travelling from here is the distance. From Sydney, Europe is usually a minimum of 24 hours, the west coast of the US is over 13 hours.

Don't even get me started on Central South America. There's so many places I'd like to visit. Mexico City is anywhere from 20 to 30 hours and Lima is minimum of 22, but the most common results is over 50 hours!!!

 

In conclusion, one day when I'm rich in time and money, I'll visit these far away places. In the near future, Asia and the South Pacific will continue to call my name!

[MadeItOut]

Someone really needs to hurry up and invent spontaneous site-to-site transport. How cool would that be? Every time poor buzzard was sacrificing on the televisual altar to spare the rest of us, we could take turns to host and everyone bring a bottle...

[Karma]

7 hours ago, OyToTheVey said:

This is my ultimate goal in life. But it's so expensive. Plus I'm paranoid so I'd only go on the highest recommended one because it's a safari lol

Most amazing experience of my life was going on safari in 2013.  We stayed on a private reserve and had a driver and tracker to take our family of 4 plus one other couple out on safari for 3 hours in the early morning and late afternoon for 3 days.  The animals weren't bothered by our presence, and we watched elephants wrestling, lions gnawing on a zebra leg, a leopard in a tree with its kill, hippos in a waterhole etc etc.  At breakfast one morning a monkey jumped on the table and took food off our plate.  it was incredible.  But a once in a lifetime experience as it was extremely expensive.  PM me and I'll tell you which place.

[ItsMeY'all]

Reminds me of when work associates were visiting from Switzerland and Germany. We were living in DFW (Texas). At dinner on Thursday night several of our visitors were all excited to drive down and see The Alamo over the weekend. The following Monday night I asked how their excursion went and found out they didn't end up going because it was "Way too far! Over 400km/250 miles away!" Here I'd told them it wasn't a bad drive being only about 3.5 hours not realizing how far this was to them. They were all raised in cities, many of them London. We are all country folks.

[BlessaYourHeart]

I love the idea of being in the US and driving as far as you can and just seeing where you end up! 

Its a dream of mine to do Route 66 and other half wants to drive through as many states as he can in a summer.

right not its all dreams but I hope some day it will be reality! 

In Northern Ireland I'm no more than 2 hours away from everywhere in the country . I find a 4 hour drive to Dublin annoying 

[allthegoodnamesrgone]

3 hours ago, nst said:

choose Italy always and get the roof done another day 

LOL! We would have but providing Trump doesn't tank the whole economy by this time next year we are going to sell the house and move out of state so no other time like the present. Plus I dream European vacation is England, Scotland, Ireland France & Spain in that order Italy is number 6 on my list.