Days 21 and 22 Life on the Road

These past two days have been mostly spent in the car.  No natural wonders or monuments to see – we just need to make tracks over long distances.  In the past 48 hours we have passed through five states: Wyoming, Montana, Idaho, Utah, Arizona.  We are ready to move into the Grand Canyon.

We consider the first leg of our journey behind us.  We are approximately one-third of the way through our road trip.  We have traveled 7438 km since leaving Nova Scotia.  We have passed through four time zones and currently are in the Arizona Time Zone (because they do not change for Daylight Savings).  We have been on the road for 3 weeks and have spent $766 in gasoline.  Gas prices in Canada averaged $1.00/ litre.  American gas prices are about $2.75 per gallon (70 cents/ litre).

We have eaten out at a few restaurants and been treated at friends' homes, but mostly we have prepared our own meals at rest stops.  We buy fresh milk, fruit, and yogurt every couple of days.  Sometimes we eat simply, like Peanut Butter and Jam on sourdough bread, bought at a local Farmers’ Market.  Sometimes we prepare more home-cooked meals, like pork chops, carrots, and baked potatoes with all the fixings.   Our most memorable meals have been beans and wieners in Yellowstone Park, and Wisconsin mozzarella with tomato on Melba Toast.  Things just taste better in the fresh air!

Max and Simon have persisted with their school work and the Switched On Schoolhouse curriculum is perfect for their needs.  They work for a few hours each day in the car or at the campground/ hotel/ hostel before we leave.  Each evening Tim checks their work and gets lessons prepared for the next day.  Obviously their structured curriculum is supplemented by impromptu lessons in geography, wildlife, or culture.  Each day Lisa also gives them a journal question related to the previous day’s activities.  For example, “Use your 5 senses to describe the Jewel Cave in South Dakota”.

When school work is done, the boys watched an IMAX movie on the DVD player, or play “Animal Crossing” on their Nintendo DS, or read a book in the Alex Rider series.  But most of the time we chat about our different personalities, our future, and our bodily functions. And so we continue on our Memory Making Tour!