My taste in music suggests that I don’t suffer from such a thing as what is referred to as FOMO – the Fear of Missing Out, but I will make reference to a song whose lyrics I found to perhaps epitomize the attitude to traveling typically held by the average American. Perhaps there are indeed some legitimate reasons for this, but for someone like me it’s rather disturbing to have to live with the knowledge that the typical American doesn’t have a passport, which means that for the typical American the United States is the world!
The song I’m talking about is one which was done by Frank Sinatra with Paul Anka, entitled “My Way.” He speaks of having “traveled each and every highway,” which is fair enough, except what would have been more impressive is having taken his travels across the borders and having traveled each and every airway instead…
Nevertheless, one can definitely start small, albeit starting small in a big way, by traveling locally. What better terrace to follow than that of the iconic Route 66? If you’re going to be doing the iconic Route 66, make sure to do it right…
Drive yourself or with a group of fellow travelers
Basically the idea is for you to have total freedom of movement when you follow this iconic pathway. The ideal scenario would be that which has you driving yourself, perhaps with a friend or two, or just taking something like an RV with a group of close buddies so that you can decide when and where to stop.
Give yourself ample time, such as perhaps planning for the whole trip to play out over a full week, at the very least.
Pre-plan a few stops along the way
True to the spirit of what it means to be American, there’ll be plenty of vacancies at another motel should the one you might have wanted to stop over at for the night be filled to capacity. The vastness of the country really comes into perspective when you’re driving up or down the iconic Route 66 and there are stops and activities along the way in abundance, but it’s good to pre-plan a few of them, just so that you can avoid the disappointment of arriving when there’s no action going on.
Plan an ultimate destination which you’re headed to
There should be an ultimate destination which makes your Route 66 road trip, whether it’s one of the terminal points in Chicago or California, or if it’s one of the many interesting stops to enjoy along the way.
Get into the spirit of the history of the route
The best way to explore the Mother Road would be in a classic American Muscle Car, such as a convertible Ford Mustang, just so that you can get into the true spirit of the history of the route.
Pack in some camping gear
You never know what might happen on what is sure to be an adventure, so be sure to be prepared with some camping gear. It might be required out of necessity or out of desire.
