Orange Park, FL (USA)

[Checkmate Hail and Farewell at Harry's Seafood Bar & Grill in Orange Park (started at 1900)]

Moving Trip - Day 4

Spent most of the morning making calls to Jacksonville to make sure we had a place to stay (long term...) while we look for a new home. [Called sponsor (?), Tracy.] I drove over to the DMV to see about renewing our license plates. Visited with Andy and June one more time (so they could see Kiska) and then got on I-10 (1015L). Stopped for fuel and a Subway lunch in Madison, Florida (1430L). Pressed on, despite exhaustion and impending house search... Made it to Jacksonville by 1630L and quickly found a kennel for Kiska. Checked into the Lodge soon after and crashed - hard! We made it, though...

Moving Trip - Day 3

The time zones are getting to us... Left hotel at 0950L this morning, back on I-10. Cleared the Houston traffic just fine (in the daytime, fortunately). Stopped for gas in San Jacinto (or Baytown), Texas (1230L). We got a carwash there, but got back on the road soon after. Next stop was in Baton Rouge (1655L). Nicky and Kiska are getting tired of driving, I think... Fortunately, we didn't see much traffic in Louisiana, Mississippi or Alabama, which made the drive easier. Crossed into Florida before 2100L (yaaaaay!) and got gas in Pensacola (2120L). Drove to Milton and got a room there at the Thrift Motel (2200L). We left Kiska there (luckily, he didn't damage anything...). It was late, but we still had a nice visit with June and Andy. It really does look like we'll make it to Jacksonville tomorrow...

Moving Trip - Day 2

Left the hotel at 0930L. Got breakfast quickly with a gas fillup and got on the road. We made it through El Paso by 1100L. Kiska was in good spirits - he has been having fun riding with Nicky. We had a good trip on I-10 (very little traffic). Stopped for gas again in Van Horn (1330L). In new time zone, continued on I-10 and made it to Ozona, Texas, before we had to stop again (1800L). Nicky didn't have any trouble driving until we drove through San Antonio (in the dark!). I actually thought we would get separated, but she recovered just at the last minute... Immediately after we cleared I-35 (Converse, Texas), I signaled for her to stop for gas and so she could relax (2215L). After a short break, we continued on I-10. Honestly, I had wanted to make it a lot farther today, but after the unsettling driving conditions we finished the day at a hotel in Luling, Texas, the Luling Inn (around 2300L). Still, we drove over 700 miles today...

Moving Trip - Day 1

I have to be at my new job in Jacksonville as soon as possible, so we departed San Diego today, shooting for a three day crossing of the country. Nicky and I are driving in different cars - and Nicky has Kiska. After filling the tanks (1000L), we left our little home in Kensington (sad...) and got on I-8. No problems through the Imperial Valley - stopped for gas again in Winterhaven, California, near the border of Arizona (1300L). Right after we drove through Yuma, I noticed that they have raised the speed limit to 75! That makes for a faster trip... Stopped to give Kiska a break from the car (1500L). Next stop (for gas) was in Benson, Arizona (1843L). We had dinner there, too. A little while later, a truck driver started to harass us. He seemed like he was trying to run Nicky off the road! We stopped (1930L) and phoned his company to report him - but they didn't believe that AZ speed limit is 75 MPH. Stopped for the night in Deming, NM (on the outskirts of El Paso, TX). Found a "pet friendly" place, the Budget (or Plainsman) Motel (2300L). Best part, we drove a hell of a long way today! We'll try to make it to Louisiana tomorrow...

Hollywood, CA (USA)

Got up early. [Kathy was busy this morning, so] Nicky and I drove to nearby La Brea (on Wilshire Boulevard). I'd been to the tar pits there as a kid (1977 and 1979) but Nicky never had. Toured the George C. Page Museum - interesting displays of the many animals that were trapped in the tar. [Had lunch at Burger King]. Met up with Kathy a little later and we drove around Hollywood (Nicky wanted to see some of the sights from "Pretty Woman"...). Kathy even showed us a back road in the hills where we were able to take a great picture of the Hollywood sign (a highlight, for sure...). Said goodbye (1730L) to Kathy (sad...) and drove back towards San Diego [via I-10 to I-15 (?)]. Gas fillup in Temecula (1900) and back home a few hours later. I'm glad we were able to see everyone again...

Simi Valley, CA (USA)

We'll be leaving California soon, so we wanted to visit with our relatives one more time. Left San Diego at 0800L - drove on I-805 to I-5. Switched to CA-118 and used it all the way to Simi Valley (it is called the Ronald Reagan Freeway by that point...). We met Aunt Nelle and Uncle Terry at the Reagan Presidential Library (1045L) and took a tour. It was a very interesting place - lots of great exhibits. I've always admired President Reagan, so I really enjoyed the experience. We had lunch at Chilis with Aunt Nelle & Uncle Terry. I showed them some old photos that I had of the family - Aunt Nelle seemed really happy. We had a great visit and were sad to say goodbye to them. After the meal, we drove back towards Los Angeles via CA-118 (west) to CA-23 (south) and took Malibu Canyon Road to CA-1 (Pacific Coast Highway). We enjoyed the ambiance of Malibu and took our time. Found a place called "Coogie's Beach Cafe"... I made a wrong turn near the airport - but we eventually made it to Kathy's (Rossmore). We went to dinner with Mary and Leo, Kevin and Kathy at Shanghai Reds in Marina Del Rey - it was good. Back to Kathy's (late) - (Hancock Park ?) - spent the night...