Day 66: The Long Road Home
After 66 days on the road, my road trip across America (and back) is completed. I’m back in New York City, home sweet home once upon a time, and it’s a mix of emotions inside of me. It feels really good to be back in NYC, but at the same time, this adventure is all but over, not only the road trip, but my year in America.
There’s not much to say about the day. It was basically like the last leg of the Tour de France, where it’s just a parade to the finish line, with streets lined with cheering people. Okay, maybe it wasn’t quite like that (the cheering people part, especially), but it was pretty much just a day of driving back to New York, non-stop. The only stop I made was in Hershey, Pennsylvania, home of the chocolate maker. Not much to see really, so it was a quick stop.
Took about six hours to drive the 300 miles from Somerset (including the Hershey and other pit stops), and from getting on the I-95 in New Jersey to making it to my Manhattan destination, unloading and parking for the night it took nearly two hours.
I love New York dearly and with a full heart, but I don’t ever want to drive in Manhattan ever again (well I have to, tomorrow). I have no idea how bus and taxi drivers can do this for a living, it was awful. Of course, as usual I managed to arrive right around afternoon rush hour, so it’s certainly not always this bad (and even by NYC standards having lived here for nine months), it was pretty damn bad out there today. But I suppose you don’t think about it all that much when you’re a pedestrian.
Anyone in New York bitching about the Metrocard price going up should be happy they don’t have to drive in this town, it makes even the worst subway commutes seem like a breeze.
But once parked, back on my feet, I couldn’t help but put on a big, broad grin. It’s such a shame I only have a few days before I have to be out of the country (I will consider marriage proposals).
I’m sure there’ll be many more posts with thoughts about all of this in the future, it’s been such a whirlwind adventure that I don’t think I’ve digested much of it, and right now I’m just really, really tired, happy and sad.
