The first stop will be in Dayton, Ohio. Here, I've made hotel arrangements already...it's about 8 hours of driving from Toronto, but keep in mind that crossing the border will likely take more than an hour considering wait times and the fact that I'm applying for a TN visa. Luckily it appears that the package that I was sent by my boss seems very thorough and it looks like they've helped others do the same thing before. Considering some timeouts for lunch, washroom breaks and dinner, it should be a pretty full day on the road.
I'll continue driving southwest until I hit my second stop of St. Louis, Missouri, followed by my third stop in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, before arriving in Lubbock, Texas on the final day. I have my music all burned onto CDs (as mp3s), have some maps and most importantly a GPS. I have medical insurance, a number to call in case my car breaks down and a phone that I won't use unless absolutely necessary.
I'm not sure it's hit me how different things will be down south. I get asked this a lot, but I don't blame people because a) we live in Canada and b) I had the exact same question...where IS Lubbock? First of all, Lubbock is pronounced Lub-ick, similar to "stomach"...it's in the Northwest area of Texas, called the "Hub City", has a population of about 275 000 people, but is not population dense, so it probably feels like a smaller city than it is. However, it's still a full 6-hour drive from Dallas/Fort Worth and maybe a 5-6 hour drive to Albuquerque, New Mexico...but you don't want to spent much time trying to keep on going more West towards San Diego, California because that'd probably take a dozen hours. There is a lot of cotton farms down in Lubbock and is generally pretty arid. The coldest it gets in the winter on average is a low of -4 degrees Celcius and a high of 11 degrees Celcius...so snow is actually a rare occurrence and doesn't stay on the ground long, if at all. Lubbock is the birthplace of Buddy Holly and a whole slew of country singers I don't though I have heard of the band the Dixie Chicks, of which Natalie Maines is from Lubbock. Apparently college football is huge there...I'll be working at the Health Sciences Center at Texas Tech University (their Medical School there) and the Texas Tech football team is called the Red Raiders...I'm not a big fan of football, but I'm sure I'll check them out when I'm there. I also plan on driving to Dallas if possible to see a Stars-Leafs game if possible! Hmm...not too sure what else to say about Lubbock other than it'll take some getting used to, but hopefully it'll be a fun experience. For more on Lubbock, see: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lubbock,_Texas
I hear the portion sizes down there are huge...I imagine lots of BBQ, steak, fried food and Mexican food...they better have good beer! Some of my friends say I may turn into a cowboy - that all I need is a cowboy hat, a big belt buckle and boots with spurs on it - I say unlikely! Keep dreaming! Maybe if it were Hallowe'en! A friend also mentioned she couldn't get the song with the phrase "save a horse, ride a cowboy" out of her mind...well, I'll pretend to be a cowboy for a night if I get to choose she who would like to save a horse, lol...and no, I don't think I'll be developing some big Southern drawl accent...and yes, I'll only be able to have dim sum when I come back to Toronto...sad, but I think I may live. Hey, they have an Olive Garden there...I'll just join their frequent customer program...haha.
Anyway, hopefully more from me when I'm on the big road down south...this will be the biggest road trip I've ever taken! Time to saddle up!
