Road trip to the Grand Canyon

After the surreal surroundings of Disneyland we hired a car, crammed all our luggage into it, and headed north and west through the Mohave desert in California and then into Arizona. The country was sparse and rugged, but the presence of so many cars roaring along the freeways through it reduced it's impact a little, unlike Australia where you really do feel as if you're the only people for miles and miles.

We were staying at Williams, a place on old Route 66 and just off the freeway, on Stacey's recommendation, and I'm so glad we did. It's a bit more driving to get to the Canyon, but that meant the drive to and fro LA wasn't as long (still over 400 miles). It was the 4th of July, and as we pulled into Williams we were lucky enough to see the town's Independence Day parade:

Every man and dog for miles around was in it - we had to admit that it put even the Blackwood Easter Carnival to shame. Lots of political electioneering for the local JPs, sheriff, county treasurer and so on, something we'd never see or tolerate in Aust. There was also a car driven by the local representatives of the Tea Party movement, and Silas was impressed by one pickup where a kid not much older than him sat on top with a rifle pointing skywards - he's a good 'ole boy in the making, that one.

Williams was the last town on Route 66 by-passed by freeway - in 1984. I think I read that at least some parts of it were the inspiration for the animated movie Cars, and it really does look like that. Dinner was at an old garage which had been converted to a retro-themed grill/diner. We ordered the family grill platter (as you do) and had to take a photo:

Given that our stay in the US was so brief, and only taking in LA and the Canyon, it was a good, but cheesy, way for us to get a look at a different part of the country/culture.

That's all for now - more on the Canyon tomorrow.

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