We have spent the last 2 days doing some pretty serious driving. Last night we stayed at a Forrest Service Campground near Mono Lake on the Cal/Nev border. Tonight we are in Alturas, Cal.

Since we are ending our year long adventure, we are talking about our conclusions from our travels. I am going to start reporting these things for the record. It will probably take several posting to get it all down.

Here goes:

favorite large city - Definitely Chicago. Beautiful architecture, great lake views, seems prosperous, very vital and has parks and open spaces. Surrounding areas are nice.

worst large city - Detroit. Some attempt to save historic area, but does not appear to be enough $ to do it. Part of downtown area is OK, but surrounding areas for several miles in each direction are awful (abandoned buildings, horrible housing, scary neighborhoods). There are some nice suburbs well outside the town.

favorite medium size town - Charleston, S. Carolina. Great historic area. Also great outside historic area. Surrounding areas are also nice. Seems very prosperous. Has had the same mayor for over 30 years. Stability seems to have been a plus.

most surprising small town - Quincy, Ill. Absolutely incredible architecture throughout the town. Even the small houses are beautiful and interesting.

Thats all for now!