A road trip in (mostly) pictures

Dear Internet,

I've wanted to do a road trip across the US for some time now, so moving to St Louis provided a great excuse to do the first half of that trip. I've been lucky to travel internationally a great deal, but haven't seen much of my own country - and most of what I have seen has been on the East Coast. Luckily, my friend Chris (who I met while studying abroad in Germany) was planning on road tripping to Seattle at the same time, so he drove down to DC from Pennsylvania so we could head west together.

We spent last Monday walking around Georgetown and the National Mall with my brother Ben and his friend Josh. It was a fun day, though it had more rain and fewer cupcakes than I would have liked (the line for Georgetown Cupcake was very long). So long, DC!

Josh & Ben and the Washington Monument

The next day, Chris and I took off on the first leg of our trip: Pittsburgh! We stopped in Maryland at the Catoctin Mountain National Park to hike for a little bit (in the rain). We drove the rest of the way through what was probably Hurricane Lee, arriving in time to meet Chris's friend Michelle. Michelle, her boyfriend Nick, and roommate's boyfriend Corey were really nice. We baked zucchini bread and chatted about Pittsburgh (unexpected: it's a city of bridges, you have to cross one to get practically everywhere) and AmeriCorps (Michelle worked with AmeriCorps at a community garden over the summer). After dinner, Nick drove us all up to Mount Washington overlooking the city - what a great view!

Pittsburgh, viewed from Mt Washington. It's not really this orangely sinister-looking, or this blurry.

Chris, Nick, Michelle & I at Mount Washington

Michelle and Nick gave us some great recommendations for things to do and see in the city: a book shop, coffeehouse, CD and record stores, the Andy Warhol Museum, the Mexican War Streets neighborhood (a nice area where all the streets are named after places in Mexico). We walked around most of the city the next day and managed to see most of the places they told us about. What a cool city! Neither Chris nor I had expected much from Pittsburgh (I must admit, the name is a big factor for me - kind of gross), but we found a very relaxed, funky, friendly, interesting city.

Michelle's neighborhood

A city of bridges - yellow ones!

The next morning, left on the next leg of our trip: Tiffin, Ohio to see our friend from studying in Germany, Nadia and her son Tripp.

The drive was really pretty even though it was raining.

Of course I didn't take this picture while I was driving. Why would I do that??

We had a great overnight visit with Nadia, Tripp, and their family, visiting the drive in where Nadia worked as a teenager and reminiscing about friends and experiences in Germany. Then the next day it was onward and westward to... Chicago!

Nadia, baby Tripp, Chris & I. Tripp makes the best faces!

Chris and I arrived in Chicago, and while waiting to meet with Emma (another friend from our time in Germany), we found these lights on the side of a building!

Chris

Me

When we found Emma, the three of us went to a GREAT vegan/vegetarian diner. The waiters were really fun and the food was awesome, as was the pitcher of vodka lemonade (pictured below with some weirdo).

Vodka lemonade: check.

Emma, me, Chris, & our waiter.

Chris & I went dancing that night (Emma didn't come since she had to be up early for her new job the next day), then woke up early and walked almost the entirety of Chicago - at least 10 miles. Let me tell you, it is a pretty great city. We passed through several crafts fairs, a huge farmer's market by the lake, and lots of other cool little places. It was a LONG walk that our feet did not appreciate, but walking is my favorite way to see a city, so it was worth it.

Walking, walking, and more walking.

Nadia's mom had told us about the skyboxes (plexiglass boxes on the side of the building) built into the Willis (formerly Sears) Tower, which intrigued both of us, so we stood in the long lines and paid the exorbitant entrance fees to ascend 103 stories. It was a beautiful day, and the views were great!

Of course the lines were really long for the skyboxes... but here it is:

Aaaahh, I'm falling! Just kidding. Don't worry.

Let's not talk about how dirty my hair is in that picture.

Then we hit the pavement again to do our favorite thing, walk some more. We ran across the Cloud Gate (a big legume shaped mirror... who thinks of this stuff??) in Millenium Park, which had huge crowds around it, including our or five wedding parties and quinceañeras.

We bought some lunch and ate in Grant Park, then walked to the Navy Pier, which was more crowded and carnival-y than I expected.

Towards the evening we left Chicago and drove to Champaign, IL to see my friend from home, Philip, at the University of Illinois. It was a great overnight visit and really nice to recuperate from all the walking we did in Chicago. Champaign/Urbana were neat little towns - Chris and I keep being pleasantly surprised by all the places we visit.

Finally, we drove to St Louis! We met up with our friend James (another Germany buddy), got my stuff moved into the house, and will spend the rest of the week getting acclimated - more on that later!

My new home!

As for the road trip, it reminded me why I like traveling, especially through people. I feel so grateful that between us, Chris and I knew somebody everywhere we went - it made our visits so much better than if we had just done internet research and gone on our own.

That exhilarating feeling of impending adventure is - what shall I say? - empowering. It reminds me of the fact that I'm young, that I can travel, that I have no real responsibility. But settling into a new place; installing furniture and finding a regular coffee shop, that makes me feel like an adult, like I have my life together. As with so many things, I think the magic is in moderation. So after this year of being - for whatever that might mean - a grown-up, I think I may finish this road trip to the West Coast. Who knows?

xoxo Liz

P.S. You can all now officially come "meet me in St Louis."