Colorado Cops

We arrived in Denver after camping the previous night in a national park. We had a quick walk around the city before deciding we were going to see a movie that night, while sampling some of the local legalised agriculture.

After the movie we were both relatively tied and decided to have an early night in the van. The movie car lot was reasonably large and empty, so we saw no harm in sleeping there for the night. Often in America if a lot is not available for boondocking it is well signed, this place was not.

At around 11 pm we saw a LED torch light shining through the front windscreen. I got up to see what the commotion was about, as I stepped out to be in sight of the passenger window I found two Policeman with their pistols aimed at me. Naturally in an attempt to not be shot, I put my hands up and opened the door. To my shock the leading cop said, "you scared the shit out of me", to which I responded the same.

He asked how many people there were in the van and if we were intending on sleeping here for the night .To which I explained our situation and also mentioned we were from Australia. The attitude of the conversation changed significantly from this point, he lower his weapon and exclaimed that he has always wanted to go to Australia. After chatting lightly for a couple of minutes, they asked to see out passports. Once our I.D. was verified, he explained that in the part of Denver we were parked in, was in fact Sheridan city, in this small 2 square mile area it was actually illegal to boondock, due to a much higher crime rate. We apologised and said we are happy to move, to which they responded that they were the only city police on duty in the area that night and we could stay.

They continued to ask about the trip; where we had been and where we were planning to go next. Even making sure we had not missed certain hot spots.

We shook hands and parted ways, our only regret being we didn't get a picture of a fake arrest.

Highs and lows

Having spent a lot of time in the city on the journey down to Texas we were in need of some outdoor relaxation. 

We headed down to the boarder of Mexico, where Big Bend National Park was located. The Park has many hikes, camping options and canyons. It also is the home to mountain lions and black bears (which we unfortunately didn't see).

By the time we reached the Park there were no vacant campsites. You can make reservations at state and national parks. For state parks the norm is two days in advance and national parks is four days. This requires planning, which we could not manage. We decided to do a hike and much to my disgust, Mark chose the highest peak.

Having completed our sweaty 16km hike. We headed to the Study Butte RV Park which was located just outside of Big Bend. Arriving to a mixture of locals and travellers enjoying a couple of cold cans, so we were naturally obligated to join. Even comparing sprinter vans with an older couple, eventually concluding that their factory build was slightly superior to our Boston build.

The next day we decided to find a change of scenery and headed North West, to New Mexico. Over the 516 Miles (830 km) we drove we saw a change in scenery and a dramatic drop in temperature. The previous day being 28 Degrees Celsius to our night in Santa Fe (New Mexico) being a low of negative one.

Guns and BBQ

Our first stop in Texas was Texarkana. There was presumably some dispute when naming this town, as the state line between Texas and Arkansas goes directly down the middle. We concluded that there was no leeway given by either side, resulting in the name being a mash of each state.

We were aiming for Dallas as our first major stop in Texas. When pulling into the city we noticed that there was a gun show on at the same time, so we naturally went in for a look. This was like nothing we had ever experienced in Australia, there were multiple people armed with their newly purchased firearms. Some choose to sling the firearms around their necks, others had holsters mounted on their person and some just had them shoved down their pants. All looking too prepared for a shootout. After a couple of discussions with some concerned Americans about Australia's gun restrictions and a reenactment of a Crocodile Dundee scene, we left.

The main thing we wanted to try in Texas was Texan style BBQ. The meat is slow cooked over a wood smoker often for upwards of 5 hours before serving. All products are served fresh daily. When entering the quantities of meat are ordered in pounds and then you order sides; coleslaw, beans, potato salad, green beans or fries. Depending on the actual place, your food may be dished up in front of you or it will taking to your table. Due to the food already being cooked there is a very small wait time and these venues cater for a lot of people.

For the week we spent in Texas we ate predominantly BBQ, ranging from our first stop in Texarkana, Fort Worth, Dallas and Lockhart. All of which was delicious.

State Park Camping

Over the next couple of days we made our way down south. We stopped predominantly in state parks, which have facilities such as showers and toilets, which are always a major advantage. This was a lot more relaxing than boondocking in Walmart car parks, as we would be able to have a fire and enjoy the nature (although often still hearing highway).

We would be 'dry camping' which meant that we didn't require hookups such as power or water, at the campsite itself. In our normally disorganised nature, we were not able to book on the state websites as they required a booking 24 hours in advance. Instead we would arrive and check the numbered campsites for any indication of reservation or current campers. Upon finding a free spot we would fill out the self pay envelop and pay the appropriate amount. For dry camping it was generally $14 US for the night, with an additional charge of $5 per person.

This is where we found that American camping was not like our previous experience in Australia. It was very uncommon for others to camp without hookups or erect a tent. The most common method was with a fully set up RV, housing the same comforts as a small home. Often packed so close to other "campers" that it created a small town.

In true capitalist nature this would end up being quite expensive for the families, probably falling just short of $50 a night. However, these are generally not the only costs. As you are not allowed collect firewood in the park, they would always have it for sale for a premium price. In one place we stopped you even had to pay extra to swim in the lake beside the park.

Lucky we were on the free side of the fence.

Although I am happy to point out the negatives, we always managed to "find" enough wood to build a fire and enjoy the environment.

Bloody Chicago

Over the next couple of days we made our way north to Chicago. Our major stops being Nashville (Tennessee) and Indianapolis (Indiana).

On arriving in Nashville we found that there was a college basketball tournament on. Making the city alive with human activity. After a lively night out touring many of the multi floored bars and venturing to the country music hall of fame the next morning, we went to Indianapolis.

Indianapolis was a very industrial looking city, with a factory almost in the heart. Here we went to the Supercross in Lucas Oil stadium. Which we saw more Monster Energy merchandise then you would hope to in a lifetime, but still had a very enjoyable night.

We booked into a hostel when we arrived in Chicago and then walked to get a much anticipated Chicago Style deep dish pizza. We ordered a medium size, as per the recommendation on the menu saying it would feed two to three people. What came out was monstrously of cheese, a biscuit like base, pepperoni and more cheese. This dish alone could be cause of Americas obesity. Upon finishing two pieces each we retired to the hostel praying to not suffer a heart attack.

The next day we went further into the city to see the famous Cloud Gate artist piece. Which has naturally been 'bastardised' by tourism and is known as the bean. After, we luckily secured the last spots on a Chicago crime tour which covered the lives and notorious activity of characters such as; Al Capone and John Dillinger. 

That night we headed downstairs to an Irish bar for a well deserved drink. We got talking to a local couple that recommended a range of activities of the following day and helped plot some of the remaining trip.

The next day we went on an architectural tour. This meant that we would take a boat up and down the river and also head out into the Michigan lake. This was a fantastic experience. Easily best way to see and understand the city's history; ranging from the fire, to the construction of the first skyscraper and the modern day architectural feats.

That night we saw an act called the Blue Man Group, originating in New York City, the act runs most night all year round. As they dictate in their TV advertisement, the act is fantastic to see, yet hard to explain. It comprises of three men painted/ clothed head to toe in blue. They would often beat drums and interact with the audience. Only ever stopping the show to shame members of the audience that arrived late. Which concluded a great show and a great couple of days in Chicago.

The Trek West to New Orleans

We headed west, as our next major stop was to be New Orleans.

Not wanting to rush too much we stopped in at various places on the way. Two of which were college towns; Athens (Georgia) and Auburn (Alabama). Perfectly lining these up with the weekend and also terribly with spring break. We toured the Auburn University grounds with a friend from Australia. Which houses an NFL stadium that rivals our professional facilities in Australia, seating over 87,000.

After departing from Auburn we headed down the coast to New Orleans. New Orleans was a strange place, kind of a mixture between Europe and America. One local even described it is as "a little third world, but it has its charm". Much like other large cities in America, there were countless homeless people and rubbish in the streets. The most lively area of the city easily being the French quarter, which has countless bars and food options, remaining active all day and night.

Bourbon street, New Orleans

One major advantage with New Orleans that we often found difficult in other cities, was there was a significant amount of free parking a short walk from the city. We stayed in a hostel, to socialise but being able to park closely is always helpful. We chose the front of a construction site, to blend in with our plumber van. We were greeted one morning by a curious construction worker, who wondered if we were indeed plumbers. After hearing the story, he concluded that we had found a perfect spot to park.

After a couple of fun days, we headed north again.

Brushing up on history

After leaving Philly we needed to brush up on some of our American history. When initially driving through Pennsylvania we stopped at the visitor centre. We received an overload of information but were highly recommended a visit to Gettysburg. So we plotted this into our trip.

Gettysburg staged one of the biggest and some say the most crucial battle of the civil war and of course the famous 'Gettysburg Address' by Abraham Lincoln. We settled in for an introductory DVD, narrated by Morgan Freeman (which was never going to be bad). The introduction then leads you to the Gettysburg cyclorama, which is a large painting of the battlefield, first popular in the 1800's. The painting itself weighs 12.5 ton.

One small section of the 360° cyclorama

We had a walk and read through the museum. Once we were informed and overwhelmed, we set off on the driving tour to see some of the famous battlefields. The whole experience took over four hours but it was well worth it. 

finishing the day with civil war inspired burgers and settling in for another cosy night in Walmart, once again reaching negative ten Celsius.

Having risen pretty early the next morning we made our way to Washington DC, stopping briefly at Cunningham State Park for a small morning hike.

For those who are unaware, Washington DC is absurdly expensive, so we decided to park outside the state, in Maryland. Thankfully there is a very effective metro, that will take you into the heart (for a fee of course). We spent the afternoon, walking around and observing Washington's must see attractions. Including but not limited to; the Washington monument, the white house, the Abraham Lincoln memorial and the Thomas Jefferson memorial. I say observed as we had reached our holiday reading quota the day before.

The next day we were back into the reading, visiting the Smithsonian Space and science museum and the Native American museum. Before promptly leaving Washington having become sick of the hustle and bustle of the city.

Initially we felt uneducated not understanding some of the history prior to the trip. However we soon learned that American's know very little Australian history or even cities, which put our mind at ease at a number of occasions.

Having seen a number cultural and historical highs, we needed to see some current lows so we headed to the strippers in a small town, Greensboro (North Carolina).

Boondocking part one

Boondocking is basically the act of camping without amenities. There are many different terms including; independently parking and dry camping. This can be illegal or legal, depending on where you actually park.

There are a number of sites that put up information about areas where you can boondock without the possibility of being towed. One of these locations was Walmart. By what we found is you are able to boondock in the car park unless the car park was also servicing other shopfronts.

One major advantage we had from other travellers was that we had a plumbing logo on the side of the van from the previous owners. This we described as our 'perfect disguise'. Plumbers are known for working around the clock and if we were to be towed a variety of shops would have to contacted to confirm that we were not working. Even when looking in the windscreen, as long as the curtains were drawn, there would be no sign of a living quarters. Allowing us to push some already blurry lines.

The first night we stayed in a Walmart Supercenter car park, just outside of Philadelphia. This particular night snow fall was predicted and subsequently fell. We slept cold but well, only really disturbed by the snowplow clearing for the following morning.

Mattresses and bedding

Having completed the beds and over stayed our welcome in Boston, the boys were once again off.

We headed towards Philadelphia, which we had decided would be our next major stop. Prior to leaving Boston we had tried to purchase mattresses but were unsuccessful. Due to a slight restriction in height, the mattresses preferably needed to be around 4 inches thick. Having a brief look online we found a store, Mattress Firm, that had exactly what we needed.

We called a number of their locations on our drive to check that they had what we needed in stock. Eventually contacting a store that fulfilled our needs. We managed to get both queen mattresses and two pillows for US$280. The inquisitive manager and assistant even requested to see the van, to further understand how our trip was going to play out.

We reached Philly late that afternoon, just in time to sample a Philly cheese steak and make our way to Walmart (our soon to be favourite pit stop). Walmart has everything the heart desires; from firearms to cheese in a can.

Having already discovered it was going to be a negative ten degrees Celsius night, we knew we needed some warm bedding. Now, we can only presume that all American houses have internal heat, because their bedding does not allow for extreme temperatures. So we had to go for the 'quantity over quality' approach.

We often lost each other to a variety of Walmart attractions. Mark was often found in the gaming section enthralled in a game of Mario cart. Whereas I would just be lost in the magnitude of the store.
Nevertheless, we eventually got what we needed and headed back for our first van night.

The Boston van Build

Over the next couple of days we worked our way through Pennsylvania and the state of New York, to make our way to Boston Massachusetts. As we had not yet started to build the beds, we stayed in relatively cheap accommodation ranging from US$50 to $70.

We were lucky enough to have a friend in Boston with a large enough house and yard to park the van. Complete with a variety of tools that we would require for the coming days, this saved us a substantial cost.

There were a variety of small challenges that we needed to overcome. Seeing as America is stuck in their ways, the imperial system is still in use. The impractical nature is evident by the way most other countries use the metric system and in fact most medical practitioners in America use it for greater accuracy. Having found a tape measure in the house, we set out measuring and logging what we believed we would needed.

Now having grown up with the internet, we believed anything you wanted to do had been done previously and if that was the case, someone had filmed it. Which meant our best friend in this restoration was YouTube. We had found some videos that were predominantly helpful for designing the outer supports which would be secured to the inside of the van, eventually holding the bed frames.

Having a rough idea of what we needed, we now needed to know what was available. So we headed to Home Depot. Home Depot is very much the Bunnings of America and has a large range of wooden products. We purchased US$110 worth of timber, screws and nails, before heading back to the house to start the build.

 Much of the first day was filled with measuring, designing, purchasing building materials and starting to remove an aluminium partition left by the previous owners. This poorly constructed partition took a number of hours to dislodge because we had to drill out the welds. However once removed this allowed us to access the sleeping compartment from the front seats.

To secure the structure to the inside of the van we used self tapping screws. In many of the videos we watched ply wood would often line the walls of the van, this is much more aesthetically pleasing. However, we would only own the van for three months, making this an unnecessary expense and timely process.

The second day was much more productive. We started by installing the main horizontal supports for the bed slats, these were screwed to the timber outer supports we installed the previous day. 

Once those were in place we nailed five slats on each bed spanning across the full width of the van, we made these slats out of thicker timber to eliminate any chance of a top bunk collapse which would almost certainly result in serious injury.

We were then offered plywood off some tables in old carriage houses on the property; so we set to work removing, cutting and installing these into the van.

Lastly we installed curtains and carpet to allow for some privacy and comfort for our new life on the road.

In high spirits after what we considered a successful day, the build was complete. 

Purchasing a Van

Whenever looking for a van we had been advised previously from an Australian that it is much easier to acquire one from a car yard or dealer because they can organise 45 day temporary registration plates. So there our search began, mostly looking online and occasionally ringing up to inquire about vehicles of interest. When we eventually found one that seemed to fit our requirements, we had to pay a US$500 deposit. Which secured a 7 day hold on the vehicle until we were able to have a look in-person. Now, placing a deposit always carries a certain amount of risk, if the vehicle turned out to be inadequate, this money was not refundable in our case. Therefore it is important to do your due diligence regarding the reputation of the dealer; google searches and online ratings is a good place to start.

The van we had found was located in Akron, Ohio. We searched for flights and a charter to the town from Cleveland.
On first observations there appeared to be quite a low socioeconomic population, however the real estate along side a train track has never attracted the most desirable residents (so the first opinion didn't last long).

We approached the dealer first thing the following day.

When first looking at any vehicle it is important to check for leaks, visible damage and service history. These may provide slight bargaining leverage, if it wasn't as advertised. In our case, the van had several cosmetic issues including some surface rust, however these weren't major issues and were acknowledged in the listing. Surface rust is common on cars in the northern parts of the USA due to the salt laid on the road to prevent ice build up.

For our requirements we were mainly looking for a van that had the capability to install bunk beds and still have an area for general purpose.

When speaking to the dealer he initially said that we needed a social security number to purchase the van or an identification number that could be applied for at the Internal Revenue Service (IRS).
To acquire a social security number as a  traveller you must apply for a VISA. To travel under a VISA you must attend interviews in your country of residence and provide reasoning . As we were already in the US, this was no longer a probable option.

We went to the IRS branch in Akron, to find what specific number we needed for the acquisition of the van. We were informed we needed file for an Individual Taxpayer Identification Number (ITIN), which would take 6 to 8 weeks to be processed. At this stage we thought purchasing a van as foreign unprepared travellers, was not possible.

The next morning we rang the dealer to inform him that we would have to forfeit the deposit as we could not get an ITIN in an appropriate time period. In true used car salesman fashion, he said on the date of the transfer we can own the car without having the number present and when the details are processed he can add it into the sale paperwork. We are still unsure of the legalities of transaction, however the Siberian salesman was certain that we still legally owned the vehicle.

The next complication was insurance. In America you must have insurance for any vehicle. We choose to go with GEICO (a large service provider), from advice received previously. When applying you will be asked to provide a previous driving history from your country/state of residence. In our case, as residents of Queensland, Australia, this can only be obtained by physically going into the Department of Transport or by post. Which is again greatly difficult without being in Australia currently. So unfortunately, we had to opt for a more expensive policy that indicated we had no previous driving experience.

In recap, if we were to ever do this again, we would obtain a proper travelling VISA instead of an ESTA, as well as getting driving history before leaving. This may seem unnecessary seeing as we are only travelling for three months but it will save a lot of heartache if there was an accident or we had a salesman that wasn't happy to sell the van without the documentation.
Luckily for us, it had worked out this time.

American Airlines

For any frequent flyers (such as ourselves) most are aware of the one world benefits. However the lounges provided for American Airline patrons are much nicer and extensively catered, than those of partner airlines. If you are lucky enough to venture in, make sure you do so on an empty stomach.

Upon boarding it is really good to see that military and service personnel are permitted to board after business class and before other passages. This is inline with the country's patriotic nature, showing how very respectful and appreciative they are as a society.

As most are aware in the event of any mechanical failure in high altitudes, body positioning and oxygen masks are going to do little to save you, nevertheless safe information is mandatory. On American Airlines the safety information is very detailed. In Australia this section might go for 30 seconds, whereas here it goes into extensive detail, even describing precisely how to remove the life jacket from the plastic packaging. It is clear to see, common sense has completely evaded the modern American society.

However one big positive, is the American pilots are still about to land the plane with the passenger windows covered. Which is a testimony to their skill.

Further education is still required for both Australians and Americans, when exiting in an orderly fashion. The perception still seems to be, whoever gets up first, exits first. Unfortunately for these overly keen individuals, this has never paid off. I can only presume their misguided logic assures them that persistence will prevail.

Landing in LA

We landed in LA on the 14th of February 2019, more popularly known as Valentine's Day, for us this day meant it was a Thursday. We caught a very convenient bus that dropped us off a short way from the hostel. We had booked in for three nights, hoping to determining our next move before leaving. Our hostel was situated right in the heart of Hollywood. It was full with aspiring actors, comedians and artists.

Later in the trip, an elderly gentleman described LA as the 'fruits and nuts bowl' of America. This description was entirely accurate, to observe some very interesting characters all one had to do was take a short walk down Hollywood Boulevard or jump on the LA metro.
Our first trip on the metro, found us face to face with an obese woman who appeared to have aggressively devoured a bag of chips which resulted in crumbs spread to the adjacent chairs, before promptly passing out. To our shock, she managed to regain consciousness before departing at her stop. On another trip we entered a cart with a disheveled looking man and a smell that could only be caused by human feces. However horrible the smell was, it was impossible to not laugh at the faces of the people that entered after us. Who would enter as most people do with blank unwavering faces, to then screw them up with dismay while glancing around frantically to find the cause. The brave stuck it out, some dashed to different carts when the train came to a holt and we believed some would have left to seek alternative transport. We soon found out from a local that the metro was not a preferred method of transportation, our experience reflected similarly.
While walking Hollywood Boulevard you get offered many "Hollywood star tours", which all claim to take you to the Hollywood sign and through Beverly Hills to sight homes allegedly owned by famous actors. I say allegedly, because it is very difficult to clarify the authenticity of these claims. We shopped around and found one for US$35 however it difficult to know if the value is justified. In saying that it, it was fantastic to see the contrast between the often tattered Hollywood and the glamorous Beverly Hills.

Although LA has many great tourist attractions including Venice beach, Santa Monica pier and Universal studios; we would not recommend LA being your soul destination in the US. While this reflection may seem negative we did thoroughly enjoy our time in LA.

Research

In any factual write up it is important to set the scene.
Having both decided we deserved a quarter life crisis, we booked return tickets to Los Angeles from Brisbane Australia, 8 months prior to departing. We gave ourselves 87 days in the 'land of the free', given that any trip over 90 days required a visa. Now, three days is not a lot of leeway but given that deportation is the punishment for overstaying your welcome, we figured we would get home one way or another.

Before any holiday the advise we got was, "make sure you do your research, to get the optimum experience out of the time." Being the disorganised 25 year olds we are, we immediately neglected this information. The only verbal plans we made were that we intended on buying a van, building two separate sleeping areas and driving.

There were only two items that were imperative to land in the US; a passport and an ESTA. Both relatively easy to acquire without prior criminal conviction.

For those that have not been committed to read the body of this post, the synopsis is, we did you no research and made no plans.