I was up early today and hit the road at 09h00 to make the 300 mile journey west to Holbrook, AZ.
I am going to be honest here. I don’t know if it was my lack confidence after yesterday’s events, or the fact that New Mexico did not fill me with joy, or perhaps I was becoming a little disillusioned with the Mother road. I decided to boycott New Mexico, Mexican food, Native American Indians and red brick scenery in parts. There are only so many historical Indian sites I can take (no offense to Indians here. I am well aware of their struggle and all), but I don’t really want to keeping seeing the way they lived, how they cooked etc. Once is enough. Another reason I boycotted the New Mexico part of Route 66 was as it just felt as though I was in Mexico – that’s not why I am here. I am here for AMERICANA and it’s lacking up these parts.
I stayed on the I-40 West for most of the day today. The driving was fantastic, with plenty of climbs and falls – making you feel like you would just fall off the edge of the road – until you saw it again once at the top. Red earth scenery amazed me in parts. I then started getting bored of it all and just wanted a change.
My one stop today (apart from a lunch stop in Gallup and very brief photo stops elsewhere) was the Petrified Forest National Park. It was pretty cool to see trees that have turned into stone through 200 million years of just laying there. There are thousands of examples of it and is truly amazing to see. The Painted Desert was also nice to see. I am wondering whether I should make the effort to go and see the Grand Canyon or not. I mean, it will likely be the same kind of thing I have seen already – right?!
I arrived in Holbrook for around 16h30 (having gained another hour – now -8 hours from UK). It is a nice small town and I am staying in a Wigwam – a great experience for $59. However, I am getting a little frustrated with small towns now. You often have to drive to get dinner, which means you cannot have more than one drink. There are barely any people around. Those that are around are not as friendly as in my first week of travels (well, I was spoilt I guess). I am starting to question the rest of my trip – whether I should stay true to the Mother road, or whether I should take a few days off to just have some fun without having to worry about the drive. I have not lost interest in the road itself, but I guess the stops I was making in the first week were interesting and current (like 1920’s and onwards). The ones I am making now I just cannot relate to.
Today I shunned the Mother road’s Mexican side and traveled 300 miles of mostly interstate to Holbrook. I am now 1,840 miles into my trip.
Tomorrow I will likely succumb to the Mother’s temptation and travel from Holbrook to Williams. I might then go down to visit my cousins one day earlier tomorrow night – we will see how it goes. Best of all is that I have options. I am looking forward to spending some time with Puja and Ashu though - oh and Maria and Jodie - and of course excited about Chot joining me for the last leg of my trip into Cali.
Signing off for now.
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