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You can lose everything, but nobody will take away what you saw and what you experienced...
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May 11, 2012 04:00 PM I am in the group 4! To Boston...
It is easy to get to the Chicago O'Hare airport from the downtown: Blue line urban trains go there and you will pay 2.25 USD for the ride! Checking in for the AA flight to Boston they wanted me to pay extra 25 USD for my backpack to be checked. They I got a boarding pass with "Group 4" printed on it. What is it? Well. I had a seat at the end of the plane but thez allowed me to board with the last passengers. Why? I did not pay much for my ticket. AA segregate their passengers and those who paid more have priority boarding.
My friends: Eva and Mark were waiting for us in Boston airport. So nice! We went to see Boston Waterfront and tried big American steak in the restaurant. Talking, singing and drinking in the evening. It is so good to have friends!
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May 10, 2012 04:00 PM Chicago, Chicago!
After 15 days of driving around the Great Plains we reached Chicago. A huge 5000-miles loop is now completed. We returned our car.
It was sunny day in Chicago. It was my third time in this metropolis. No much changes in the downtown: The skyscrappers are still imposing. I liked very much new Millenium Park with the modern fountain.
In the evening I met again after 3 years one of the biggest American globetrotters: Kevin Hughes. I saw him for the last time in Magadan - on the Russian Siberian Far East. We went to the 66-floor of Hancock Tower for the glass of wine and the great view. Till the wonderfull sunset we were taking about our travel plans. What a evening!
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May 09, 2012 04:00 PM Wisconsin Dells
Who knows about Wisconsin State? It was on our way from Minnesota to Chicago. The capital of this state - little town of Madison lies between two lakes. Nice place, but except the huge capitol buidding there is not much to see.
But nosth of Madison you will find the interesting place to visit: the rock formations in Wisconsin Dells. The best access is by the river - they offer 2-hours tours aboard little boat for hefty 26 USD pp. The rocks are nice and we had a good weather for the pictures. There are two landings during this boat tour: first gives you the opportunity to visit narrow Witches Canyon. Second will bring you to the huge stone mushroom and other sculptures carved by the nature.
Tomorrow we will drive to Chicago...
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May 08, 2012 04:00 PM On the way to Minnesota...
It was a long day - more then 650 kms to drive. We departed from Bismarck - the capital city of North Dakota early in the morning. The day was cloudy. In Fargo - last town on the Dakota's side of the border we visited "Bonanzaville" - one more place with the houses from Wild West era. Interesting, because the houses are all authentic ones - brought here from the different corners of Dakota.
In Minnesota there was already more sun and much warmer. I like Minnesota with the green pastures, small lakes and fresh green of the spring.
Just after 4 pm we arrived to Minneapolis and immediately drove to the sister city of St Paul to see the famous cathedral. It was still open.
There are many similarities between this huge church and St Peter cathedral in Rome...
It is time to have a rest in our Motel6 - I think I can recommend them to the other travellers. The service was OK in all motels of this chain. And the price if you decide to stay in the room is the same like in the youth hostel...
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May 07, 2012 04:00 PM Sunny day at Mt Rushmore
Rapid City in South Dakota has 42 US presidents! In the downtown they have a bronze president on every corner of Main and St Joseph streets! At many crossings you can see 4 of them - one on every corner. From George Washington to Bill Clinton... Wow!
But people from all over the world came here to be photographed on the corner of Rapid City. They are coming to this remote corner of Dakota to drive another 22 miles to Mt Rushmore monument.
We had surprisely strong sum in the morning when we were driving there. Entry to the monument is free, but you have to pay 11 USD per car to park. Then you can go and see the famous 4 faces of the US presidents carved in the mountain. They are uphill from the grand terrace. It is hard to imagine that every face is 20 m high. There is museum where you can see the history and carving process.
There is also presidential trail. I expected that this trail will take me up - to the faces. No, it will take you only to the bottom of the mountain and the studio of artist... Dissappointing...
But Mt Rushmore is still worth to see!
Some 17 miles away they are carving in the other mountain the statue of Crazy Horse - Indian Chief. Much bigger. Polish-origin sculptor Korczak Ziolkowski projected the monument and started works in 1947. So far only the chief's face is ready... In the afternoon we were driving more then 150 miles to North Dakota. We saw the bisons in the endless grassland and experienced very strong wind. Medora in North Dakota is the western-most point on our route. It is the time to turn back to the southeast...
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May 06, 2012 04:00 PM Balls of ice and cold-war missiles
South Dakota is much colder... In the weather channel I saw I forecast for today: a thunderstorms over our I90 highway going exactly west. After an hour of driving we saw big, blach cloud completly covering the western horizon. I saw drivers parking under the highway bridges. Why? It is illegal!
I understood them 10 minutes later when it was already dark around and the first balls of ice started to knock our roof... Some of them as big as the ping-pong balls!... We escaped to the nearest bridge, but it was already full there... The heave storm took like half an hour. I was only afraid to have the windscreen broken - it survived. But do not ask me how our rented car looks like now...
Well, forget it... In the afternoon we saw picturesque Badlands National Park and the cold-war installation: Minuteman II missile in the underground silo. Underground control room too! Can you imagine: they had 450 of them here - misilles with nuclear heads ready to reach the Moscow Kremlin in just 30 minutes!...
Now they have even better ones - in the other locations...
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May 05, 2012 04:00 PM Sioux Falls
We already passed through the Iowa state and crossed the bridge on Missouri River to Omaha. Omaha is the biggest town in Nebraska. But in my opinion there is not much to see in the city. Almost every tourist goes to the Strategic Air Forces museum located 30 miles out of the town. Paying 12 USD entry fee you can see there two big hangars full of fighters and bombers... Some of them are really huge! Those who bombed Hirosima and the other one who shed bombs on Vietnam. I feel to be the pacifist, but those planes are imposing!
From Omaha we drove north to South Dakota. Big distances! But it is possible because excellent US highways system.
In the late afternoon I finally saw the Sioux Falls in the town of Sioux Falls. Falls are not so high. Now I know - maybe they should call them cascades, because the highest is about 6 m high. But since it is spring, there is a lot of water and Sioux Falls were worth an hour walk. See my gallery for more pictures...
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May 04, 2012 04:00 PM Kansas City. The well-done steak is obligatory!
I am already in the State of Kansas! On the way to Kansas City we made the stopover in Wichita. Reason? They have a Cowtown on the bank of the river!
Cowtown is a replica of the wild west town from 19th century. You see horses on the streets, some staff work in the costumes from the old era... You can visit all houses, public buildings, workshops to see, how it was in the past... (but first you have to pay 8 USD entry fee). It is worth to be here.
Proceeding to Kansas City we paid for for the first time for the highway. Because there was "turnpike" highway on the road. You have to study the route before you go. Maybe it will be cheaper to drive the other way... We paid 2 USD from the border to Wichita plus 6 USD Wichita to Emporia.
Can you imagine that most of the Kansas City is not in the Kansas State, but in the State of Missouri? Funny isn't it? I found this city very difficult to drive - the multi - level highway system is very complicated. Well, Kansas is another cowboy state and they have plenty of cattle here. The well-done steak is obligatory for the evening meal!
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May 03, 2012 04:00 PM Real Sheriff on the way to Oklahoma!
On our way to Oklahoma City we decided to make the short stopover in the border town of Van Buren - on the Arkansas side... They advertise they have interesting "old district" in the town. Yes, they have, and also old train station where you can board excursion train in the season...
We were walking the streets taking pictures. Local sheriff in the uniform stopped the car next to us. -Why you are taking the pictures of the cars and buildings? Dont you think it is stupid question in the democratic country?... After polite explanation we boarded our car and drove fast to Oklahoma.
If in Oklahoma you have to go to the National Cowboy & Western Heritage Museum. Entry cost already 12 USD, but you can spend there hafl a day studying the West from Indians to western movies and rodeo... In the big hall they built a part of the old cowboy town so you can walk house to house in the evening's lights...
I like Oklahoma City...
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May 02, 2012 04:00 PM Did you hear about Arkansas?
In the past this was the country of cotton and slaves... Who knows about Arkansas now? Mr Bill Clinton - they love him here despite his love affairs. In the capital city of the state - Little Rock he has the library named after him and the the front street which goes close to the river...
In the Little Rock I saw the great capitol building. On the northern suburb I also found the old mill, who played the role in the famous "Gone with the wind" movie. Do you remember Scarlet O'Hara? I like this story and I was very happy to spend there few quarters - far from the noisy streets.
Motel6 where I stay offers free wi-fi internet. Tomorrow in Oklahoma I will be probably forced to pay 3 USD to get a password from the reception...
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