Chicago, NE,SD,CA, AZ, TX, MS, DE, PA 1999-2000

San Francisco, CA
November 30, 1999

It's hard to believe that we've been on the road for less than a month since
we've been doing so much.

We followed I-80 west most of the way. We detoured into Chicago and checked
out the Lincoln Park Zoo. It was much smaller that Marlon Perkins led me to
believe after all those years watching Wild Kingdom, but with no admission charge, you can't beat the price. The Museum of Science and Industry, however, was worth the trip. While there we saw an exhibit of foods and nutrients. We learned that the terms 'portion' and 'miniscule'
are interchangeable when it comes to food preparation.

Sarah at Carhenge in Nebraska

In Nebraska we turned north to US 20 which goes through small towns as it
parallels I-80. We learned the down-side of off season travel. The crowds
are gone, but some attractions are closed. Ashfall, a fossil site and one
of our main destinations, had closed for the season the previous month.
However, at some attractions which are open all year, we were alone. Some
campgrounds that we stayed at did not charge for off season use. Many of
the towns along US-20 offer free short term camping at no charge all year
and provide electricity as well as water. We did get to our other major
destination: Carhenge, a full scale replica of Stonehenge made of vintage
automobiles.

Allen biking in the Badlands, South Dakota

The weather being 20 degrees above normal enticed us north to the Badlands
of South Dakota and Mount Rushmore. There are new
facilities at Mt. Rushmore which opened this year. One of the major
attractions there is a three story parking lot of concrete slabs which takes
away much of the grandeur of the approach to the memorial. They also charge
$8.00 to park. The small no charge lot holds only about 50 cars and is 150
steps down hill from the viewing area. At this time of year, we had a great
selection of parking slots [more about slots when we get to Reno]. Parking
fees are not covered by the Golden Eagle card. During the summer I can
imagine that the chances of getting a free parking slot are slim to none.
The parking is a concession. It is part of the McMemorial trend in the
National Park System to save money.

Sarah in the Badlands

Mount Rushmore, South Dakota

Popping back to western Nebraska, we spent several days at Ft. Robinson. We
had several meals at the 1909 enlisted men's mess which served buffalo
steaks and burgers. A half-pound burger costs $2.50. The great bargain is
available because Ft. Robinson raises the buffalo herd which provides steaks
and burgers to the entire Nebraska State park system. They cut out the
middle man and don't keep the profit; a refreshing idea in restaurants
today. We also visited Toadstool Park. An off-the-beaten-path park
which we wandered by ourselves. We could have stayed the night at no
charge, but stayed in Ft. Robinson for the action.

At Ft. Robinson we stayed at the no cost primitive area which is adjacent to
the forest. We would have stayed longer, but the deer hunting season
started at dawn. We scooted down the mountain just before sunrise to avoid
stray bullets, had breakfast in the enlisted men's mess {for deer season
they start serving breakfast at 4:00a.m.] and headed for Wyoming.

In southcentral Wyoming we wandered around on Bureau of Land Management
[BLM} dirt roads for most of a day seeing no tourists and only two or three
work trucks. We saw the largest sand dune area outside of the Sahara and an
igneous tower similar to Devil's Tower [Close Encounters of the Third Kind]
but smaller, called Boar's Tusk.

In western Wyoming we stayed at Fossil Butte, on of the newest national
sites. We stayed a few yards outside of the park boundary in an undeveloped
area that is BLM land: No neighbors, no facilities, no fee. We had prepared
ourselves for a temperature of 6 degrees {the previous night's temperature
at the visitor's center] by dressing in sweatsuits and pulling out all of
the blankets [I don't like to run the furnace while we're asleep]. The
temperature did not drop below 40. When we got down to the visitor's center
at 8a.m., it felt much colder. We checked our thermometers and found the
valley to be 25. The thermometer in the visitor's center showed that it had
dropped to 12 that night. It is unusual for the mountain to be so much
warmer that the valley; go figure.

We didn't do much in Utah except get new license plates for the van. I
discovered the front plate missing. We don't know if it was lost or stolen.
NYS motor vehicles said that I should report the loss to the Utah police
and get new plates as soon as I got back to NY since NY requires two plates.
After I reported the plates lost/stolen, the Utah police told me I had to
get new plates right away since my plate was now listed as stolen and we
would be stopped by the police as driving a stolen vehicle. Another
opportunity to get shot after we had just avoided deer hunting season in
Nebraska. We now have Utah plates. It was less expensive that staying in
Salt Lake City without being able to drive the van while we had new plates
expre$$ mailed to us.

We left I-80 in Salt Lake City to take US-50, 'The Loneliest Highway in
America,' along the Pony Express route to Reno. The road traverses the
'Great Basin' desert. It has a lot of driving, few towns, and expensive
gasoline [at least we thought it was expensive until we got to San
Francisco].

Reno, The Biggest Little City in the World, even with the expansions of the
past decade, is not Las Vegas. But, once it is down to you and the dealer,
it doesn't matter what the casino looks like or how inexpensive the meals
and Wayne Newton sings there, too.

We stayed in Reno an extra day because a snow storm [in Salt Lake City a
pray-in for snow was held at on of the snow-bare ski resorts a few days
earlier] had made the passes dangerous. We know what happened to the Donner
party on the road out of Reno a while back, so we decided to have the
Hilton's buffet instead.

Hope you had a good Thanksgiving,

Regards to all,

Allen & Sarah

San Francisco, CA
December 4, 1999

Hi!

After the snow storm we left Reno and went to Lake Tahoe via Carson City. We
visited the Carson City Mint which is now the State Museum of Nevada. For a state
which boasts having the smallest state Capitol, the museum (not one of our
affiliates) was larger than it first appeared and had up-to-date exhibits of the
geology, flora, and fauna of Nevada in current and fossil form.

The view of Lake Tahoe surrounded with mountains covered with newly fallen snow
was great. We saw several wedding ceremonies taking place at the scenic overlook
along the highway, so others must think likewise about the scenery. Lake Tahoe
is the third deepest lake in the U.S. It is so deep that it does not freeze.
Before leaving the Nevada side of the lake, we took the opportunity to leave
behind some of our winnings from Reno at the Tahoe casinos.

We followed the Pony Express trail to Sacramento where we took a guided tour of
California's state Capitol. It was impressive and in good condition for a
building that was built in 1860. The reason for the good condition of the
building was most likely the fact that about a dozen years ago the building was
completely gutted and rebuilt to the original specifications (except for the front
door) and furnished with period accoutrements.

In the adjacent building which holds the offices which no longer fit in the Capitol (only the state legislature still carries on business in the capitol), there is a glass-fronted display
cabinet in the wall for each of California's numerous counties. Each county has
decorated its cabinet with items to attract tourism. We've never seen such a thing before.

The remainder of the day was spent wandering around 'Old Sacramento,' the
refurbished historic waterfront (the Sacramento River) district with its quaint
shops and affiliated science museum...and the statue of the Pony Express rider.
It was interesting to see deciduous trees in their fall foliage (this late in the
year) along with palm trees.

Then on to San Francisco where we spent nearly two weeks.

We've were busy in San Francisco. With trolleys, electric buses, diesel buses and
cable cars, there are a lot of large vehicles to dodge as I up and down shift the
van on hills of 20% grade more or less. [Mostly less, but Sarah still clutches the
seat as we go down hill towards the water.] It is a good thing that it doesn't
snow here or San Francisco Bay would be full of cars; but it would be a thrill of
a ride down.

Fisherman's Wharf, Ghirardelli Square, Haight-Ashbury, the Presidio, Pacific
Heights, the National Maritime Historic Site with its Clipper ships etc, and
numerous restaurants have filled our days; the S.F. Zoo, botanic garden, and the science museums, of course (membership has its privileges.)

We were impressed with the California Academy of Sciences
and spent an entire day there. In addition to the
usual natural history museum stuff, there is a full aquarium (we watched the
penguins being fed) and a room of great exhibits devoted to California wildlife.
The 'Life Through Time' section not only has modern displays of current and
extinct organisms, but and interactive computer visit into each life-form group.
They use divisions based on a system newly developed by the University of California.

We went to Berkeley to see the Judah Magnus Museum which claims (in Fodor's and
tourist booklets) to have the third largest collection of Jewish cultural and
ceremonial items in the U.S. Unfortunately, the items are for research and not on
display for the public. The trip to Berkeley was not wasted, however, because the
day we went was also 'Open Studio Day.' We picked up a map and visited many local
artists and artisans (who provided snacks for visitors) and even purchased a few things.

The Palace of Fine Arts is the only building still remaining from the 1915
Panama-Pacific Exposition. It no longer houses paintings. (Whew!) Instead, this
building, with the internal appearance of a chain of empty aircraft hangers, houses
the Exploratorium which bills itself as the 'best
science museum in the world.' With bare walls, temporary partitions, and
electric wires taped to the floor; this place is devoid of the ambience of every modern
science museum. But, with more hands-on devices, displays, and gadgets (650+) than
any place that we have ever seen, they may very well be right. We certainly had
fun for the four hour we spent there, and learned a few things as well.

The following day we went to Oakland and Berkeley. We were disappointed with the
Lawrence Hall of Science at UC-Berkeley. Even if we
hadn't been to the exploratorium the day before, we would have found the displays
scant and simplistic. The only really good exhibit [an energy exhibit 'The Atoms
Family' using old film monsters] was one that we had already seen at a museum last
year on the east coast.

Also in Oakland we visited Jack London Square on the east side of San Francisco
Bay. Rededicated this year, the refurbishing of this multi-block area in now yet
complete. Paving bricks are still being laid and Jack London's dirt-roofed cabin
is still on a trailer. It is only a part of London's cabin. The other part is on
display on its original site in the Yukon. We saw that part about a dozen years
ago. Now we've seen the whole thing.

We're staying at Daniel's house which keeps our lodging costs low and helps defray
the high costs of meals and gasoline. {Actually, I haven't paid S.F. gas prices.
We gassed up in Sausalito on our trip to Muir Woods.]

San Francisco seems to have hung on to the Gold Rush mentality of the 19th
Century. Restaurants, gas stations, landlords, and supermarkets charge prices
that are higher than warranted by a metropolitan location. Rather than gold
driving up the prices, today it is silicon; the results are the same.

Some examples of the costs of basic necessities: $1.69, $1.79, $1.89/gal. for
self-service gasoline; median home price $349K; $4.00/gal for milk; and almost
$2.00/tube for anchovy paste.

Sarah cooked Thanksgiving dinner for us, Dan and some friends. Now, after eating
leftovers for a while, Sarah bought a clearance turkey and we're starting again.

Now we're off toward southern California (Do you know the way to San Jose?)

Regards to all,

Allen & Sarah

Chula Vista, CA
Dec. 23, 1999

Hi!

We've had a fun time traveling along the Pacific coast from San Francisco
to Tijuana, Mex. The weather has been sunny and warm for almost all of the
past three weeks.

Some of the wildlife viewing highlights include seeing sea otters in
Monterey Bay, elephant seals basking on the beach along the Pacific Coast
Highway, and monarch butterflies hanging from the trees in clusters in
several protected locations.

Sarah Watches Some Elephant Seals

Between SF and LA we toured and tasted our way through some wineries,
including the one owned by Fess Parker {his symbol is the 'coonskin cap of
his Davy Crockett & Daniel Boone days}. In the same area we visited the San Simeon, the
home [castle] of publishing magnate William Randolph Hearst and Solvang, a Danish village organized at the turn of the century to maintain Danish culture in America.


In L.A. we did the Walk of Fame and Mann's Chinese Theatre's famous
footprints. We got to see the taping of Jay Leno last Friday.

The L.A Zoo was pleasant and beautifully landscaped.
Most of coastal California has a Mediterranean climate similar to that
found in an area of Chile, two areas in Australia, an area of South Africa,
and, of course, the region surrounding the Mediterranean Sea. The wet
winters [but not this year] and dry summers allow this area to many exotic
plants.

Also in L.A. we visited the Getty Museum of Art. A
new and architecturally spectacular set of buildings on a mountain top
overlooking the city giving great vistas.
The Skirball Museum displays the Jewish
experience from antiquity to modern America.

On the way to Mexico, we visited San Diego's Birch Aquarium, part of Scripp's Oceanographic Institute andld Town San Diego State Historic Park.

It was interesting to see the change in the displays of Old Town San Diego
and some of the missions that we visited on the way south and in the state
capitol concerning the role of the Spanish missions in California. Instead
of only lauding the missions for bringing European culture and agriculture
to the native Americans, many displays were critical of the role of the
missions. The primary role of the missions, it was stated, was to become
self-sufficient communities which would produce food and supplies for the
military. It was said that the native American were de facto slaves since
they were not allowed to leave the missions. There were some revolts in
New Spain in which the Native Americans were able to expel the Spanish for
a period of time. Among the 10% of native Americans who survived the
European diseases, many used induced abortions and other methods to prevent
the subjugation of their children. This negative image of the Europeans in
the New World has become more widespread since the welling-up of hostile
feelings at the time of the 1992 500th anniversary celebration of Columbus'
trip.

Allen tries the 'long board' at San Diego's beach

We crossed the border into Tijuana, Mex . We did
the obligatory shopping, bargained a lot, bought some.

Now we are off to the southern California desert to sit out the change in
the calendar. Therefore, this may be our last opportunity to use a
computer until the next year, decade, century, etc. [assuming computers are
still working when we get back to civilization] so: Best wishes for a
healthy and happy holiday season!

Regards,

Allen & Sarah

Joshua trees offer little shade

Borrego Springs, CA
Feb. 29, 2000

We returned to LAX the first week in February, redeemed the van from
storage, and went into the desert to complete the second phase of the
mourning process for loss of my father. We've spend a lot of time walking
and reading in both the Mojave and Colorado deserts [Where we are
currently].

The weather has been warm and mostly sunny. There has been some rain, but
not much. The area is currently experiencing a multi-year drought.

There are hot springs in the area and we took the opportunity to use them
to ease our muscles, mostly unused during January while back in NY, from
the long desert hikes.

We've done no biking or scuba diving since returning to California. There
is not too much diving available in the desert, although there is a place
in west Texas that we have been to on several previous trips. As far as
biking is concerned, I enjoy dodging rocks and bouncing over roots, and the
occasional spill is a small price for the adventure, but I draw the line at
dodging cactus. Once bitten, twice shy is very appropriate for me here.

We plan to be home by early April.

OBJ

March 4, 2000

Howdy, Pardner!

We are now on the Island of Las Vegas in the Mojave desert. Actually, with
all of the construction of new homes and communities surrounding the
downtown and 'The Strip,' the island has developed an extensive barrier
reef.

We were here last in 1994. Since then several of the older casinos have
been demolished and replaced. Also, The Strip has extended southward with
evermore elaborate theme casino complexes. The nearly seven weeks [not in
a row] that we spent at Walt Disney World [primarily EPCOT with its
international pavilions] was a prelude to this.

I have saved a lot of money by coming here; I no longer have to take Sarah
to Europe. 'The Paris' is complete with an Arc de Triomphe and a 550'
Eiffel Tower (just over half size) which straddles the casino; in 'The
Venice,' one can wander along the canal (complete with gondolas), traverse
piazzas, and wander through the shops. There is too much to include in
this letter, but as an additional example: at the NY,NY Casino one can
walk across the Brooklyn Bridge, see the Statue of Liberty being celebrated
by water-squirting fireboats, and wander through NYC's picturesque
neighborhoods and 'local' shops. The detail is complete to the 'steaming'
manhole covers.

The weather has been good and the food is still comparatively inexpensive.
Las Vegas is now second only to NYC in fine dining and many casinos
advertise their chefs as well as their headline performers. We went to an
all-U-can eat BBQ beef ribs place. It was the second best in the world
(everyone else is tied for first), but the price was almost right. This
was NOT one of the featured chefs.

On the way to LV from California, we visited the actual London Bridge in
Lake Havasu City, AZ. It was transported to AZ in pieces in 1968 and
reconstructed in the desert. A canal from Lake Havasu was dug to recreate
the Thames River. An 'English' village of shoppes has been built around the
bridge, which is now part of the highway system in Lake Havasu City.
Almost nothing was there before the London Bridge, so almost the entire
city is less that 30 years old. Much of it is being built as I am writing.
At $2.5 million, it was a good investment for the real estate developer
who had the brilliant idea of putting an unwanted bridge in an area where
he had land to sell.

We plan to be home in early April and stay for several weeks.

TEDDY BEAR CHOLLA


In spite of its name, the Teddy Bear Cholla is neither soft nor cuddly.
What appears to be fuzz are stiff, sharp barbed spines. I had a close
encounter of the painful kind with one of these a few years ago and had to
have about a dozen and a half spines removed from my hand with a pliers. Ouch!



Las Vegas, NV

We didn't go to shows, but there was plenty
to do here. Visiting a theme hotel/casino is better than visiting a
pavilion at EPCOT in Walt Disney World. One can get the flavor of the
country or city being portrayed by wandering indoor 'streets,' browsing
the shops, seeing people in regional and/or period costumes and tasting the
regional foods. The regional costumes were interesting. At the Paris, for
example, the security personnel were dressed as gendarmes, many other
employes have either that French worker's outfit with striped shirts and
berets or peasant outfits. The numerous cocktail waitresses wandering the
casino floor were dressed as Dragoons [as if Dragoons where women who wore
skimpy bathing suits under their tailed coats rather than baggy pants.]

We've been doing well at the tables. The buffet tables, that is.

Reasons that LV is better for us than EPCOT
1. There is no admission charge to the hotel/casinos
2. The hotels are larger and therefore have more to see and do
3. The food is both better and less expensive [It is a loss leader to
bring in players]
4. Lodging is less expensive
5. One has the opportunity to leave with more money than one had upon
entering.

There is too much to describe. Casinos vary from quiet opulence to
outrageous glitz. Therefore, we have included [at the bottom of this
letter] the web sites of some of the more interesting of the places that we
visited so that you can take a virtual visit.

We still plan to be home by early April. We plan to leave Las Vegas on
Sunday and head toward Tucson, AZ. We'll keep you informed.

http://www.nynyhotelcasino.com
htp://www.paris-lv.com
http://www.tropicanalv.com
http://www.caesars.com
http://www.luxor.com
http://www.mandalaybay.com
http://www.excalibur-casino.com
http://www.treasureisland.com
http://www.circuscircus.com
http://www.venetian.com
http://www.mgmgrand.com
http://www.bellagiolasvegas.com
http://flamingolv.com

Regards,
Allen & Sarah

Abiline, Texas
March 23, 2000

Howdy!



Allen biking through Saguaro National Park, Arizona.



We took I-10 out of Phoenix and visited Saguaro National Park east of
Tucson. We had the opportunity to bike on the Cactus Forest Trail. One of
the few opportunities to off-road bike in the desert. The trail was
bordered [and encroached upon] by many plants with spines or thorns. A
spill would have been painful, but we came through with nary a scratch.
Actually, I got gouged on the calf by my rock-honed metal pedal. I bought a
set of plastic pedals at K-Mart and will replace the sharpened ones.

We detoured to the town of Bisbee in south eastern Arizona and camped on the
lip of the Lavender Pit, Arizona's largest open pit mine. We wandered the
tortuous mountain streets and shops of this rejuvenated mining town.
Starving artists moved to Bisbee over the past two decade for the low cost
housing.

Along I-10 we spent two days in El Paso where we visited the Mexican City of
Juarez and watched the beating of the 'Hamen~ata' [a Hamen -figure pinata]
at El Paso's Temple Mt. Sinai as part of their Purim festivities. Beating a
candy-filled pinata is an activity for children in the southwest as part of
many celebrations.


Allen in San Solomon Spring, Texas

Continuing east along I-10 we stayed at Balmorhea State Park in Texas. This
park claims the world's largest spring-fed pool which is open for swimming
and scuba. We rented scuba tanks and did some diving. We spent about an
hour under water. Diving here was more interesting that we would have
expected in the west Texas desert. We were surrounded by swarms of small
fish and saw many large catfish and several large soft-shell turtles.



Sarah in San Solomon Spring, Texas


The area is in the midst of an eight year drought. We were told that there
has been no rain there in the past two years. All of the area's springs have
dried except this one which produces over a million gallons per hour.
Driving from Balmorhea to Pecos (to meet up with I-20) we saw that even the
cactus were shriveled and dying.

We plan to be in Dallas by tomorrow.

We still plan to be home in early April.

Regards,

Allen & Sarah

Forest, MS
March 27, 2000

Hi, Y'all,

About the drought mentioned in the previous letter: A year's worth of rain
[8 inches] fell in one night along I-20 from Pecos to Abilene. We were in
Balmorhea south of the rain, but caught the high winds. It happened during
the night, so the van just rocked from side to side. The following day we
did a lot of driving with a great tail wind; we got good gas mileage.
Because of the high winds, driving north from Balmorhea to Pecos to get from
I-10 to I-20, I had to keep the steering wheel of the van at 90 degrees in
order to stay straight on the road.

We saw over-flowing rivers, flooded fields, and had to back-track on one
occasion because a road was impassible due to flooding.

In Dallas, we visited the Dallas Botanic Garden. It was mobbed because this
was the third week end of their spectacular bulb and spring flower show.
It's the best that we've seen in our visits to botanic gardens around the
U.S. There were over 180,000 bulbs and 75,000 annuals.

We visited (and joined) the Abilene [TX] Zoo and also visited the zoo in
Jackson, MS. The Abilene Zoo is small, but modern. The Jackson Zoo is in
the midst of renovating their exhibits which were state-of-the-art when
designed in the 1950s.

In Vicksburg, MS we toured the Vicksburg National Military Park and
visited Harrah's river boat casino. We had stayed the previous night at the
Horseshoe Casino in Bossier City, LA [across the river from Shreveport].
The camping there is free. It was one of the few occasions that we have
camped and left with more money that we had when we arrived.

We've been doing the antique route through the south. I saved a lot of
money yesterday; the stores were closed. Actually, to me an antique store
is like a museum where I can touch the exhibits.

We hope to be in Birmingham, AL by tonight or tomorrow. There is a zoo,
botanic garden, and museum there for us.

We still expect to be home during the first week of April.

Regards,

Allen & Sarah

April 5, 2000

We got home last night and started digging through the accumulated mail.
Most thing were in good order, but we did have to spend a bit of time on the
telephone today straightening out incorrect statements, etc. At least we
could do this from the comfort of our home and not standing at a pay phone.

We visited the small zoos in Jackson, MS and Birmingham, AL. Being spring,
we were able to see some recently born animals. We also saw the spring
flower displays in Birmingham's botanic garden and in Longwood Garden in
PA's Brandywine Valley. Longwood Garden was designed and built by Pierre
duPont and was made available as a public park. [This demonstrates something
that we have found to be true in many parts of the country: Whether you're
rich or poor, it is good to have money.] The outdoor display was not as
elaborate as the botanic garden in Dallas, but the conservatory [built in
1922] is elaborate and well tended. Many displays there are changed
seasonally. We get no discount here for our botanic garden membership, but
Tuesday [the day we were there] is the 1/3 off day. There were few people
in the garden that day, so the stroll was more pleasant.

Also in the Brandywine Valley is the Hagley Museum, the home and gun powder
factory of E.I. duPont [Pierre's grandfather]. E.I. left France in 1800 and
started his factory in Delaware along the banks of the Brandywine River [for
the water power] in 1803. For the tour of the mansion and for most of the
presentations at this museum, there were just the two of us and the
presenter.

There are advantages to visiting places during the off season. Because
staffers are not bothered by lots of ignorant questions from the masses and
dealing with large numbers of people, we get the chance to engage in real
discussions. On one occasion, the tour guide at a fossil-site museum
whispered to us "Don't go away" and announced to the group "This concludes
the tour." He then took us through the rest of the museum and into the back
room where the work was done.

Regards,

Allen & Sarah