There can be a lot of fun packed into a cross-country trip...you just have to know how to have fun and be prepared for whatever may cross your path. So here is your guide of things to know before crossing the country.
1. Make Sure Your Vehicle is in Proper Working Condition
It may sound like common sense but take it from me: you do NOT want to delay your trip by six hours because you have to wait for a small town mechanic in the middle of Illinois to fix something that could have easily been avoided. But if you do, always remember there are lots of fun little shops in small towns.
2. ALWAYS Have Headphones and a LARGE Music Collection
If you're traveling cross country, which I assume you want to if you're reading this article, then you will appreciate the fact of having alone time once those headphones enter your ears. This allows you to zone out and focus on yourself and not the problems of the other passengers and their lives.
3. Come up with car games before you start
One game that can go on and on and on until the end of time (or until the end of the road) is the ABC Game. Start with the letter A and look around on the signs along the road and try and find a word that starts with that letter. Whoever finishes the alphabet first, wins the game and the knowledge of being able to say the alphabet in order! Good luck on the letter Q, X, and Z...there is usually a truck on the road that is positioned there to help!
4. Do not OVER plan
Go with the flow of the road...and your bladder. Don't plan out where you will stop at rest areas. Your bladder is taking commands from Mother Nature, not you. If you see a sign that reads "Rest Area: 2 Miles" and then the next sign reads "Next Rest Area: 80 Miles," for the sake of your passengers, please stop at the first one. If you can somehow control your bladder, you might want to have that looked at for your own safety.
5. Know how to pack
You may think I'm talking about your clothes and toiletries. But I'm talking about the true essentials...the snack bag and cooler! One of the favorite things to do as a kid was to pull out drinks and snacks for the cooler and snack bag. Get some of your favorite soft drinks in bottles and some of those chocolate bars you like so much and hit the road!
6. Road rage
Depending on where you are traveling to and from, you may have a long ways to go in a car. If you get frustrated early on, the rest of your trip will not be as fun as you might be planning for. Stay calm and think about puppies instead of anger.
7. EXPLORE
There are LOTS of places to stop along the highways and in small towns. If you see a historical sight you are really interested in or a cool outlet mall, stop and go enjoy it! Chances are, you probably won't be back anytime soon.
8. Enjoy the scenery
Don't be caught up in your phone while traveling...ESPECIALLY WHILE DRIVING!!!! Turn on some background music and look around at the rolling hills and the fields of corn and grain. As many scientists will say is accurate, the nature of this beautiful planet is disappearing in front of our very eyes due to our intolerable acts of pollution, so enjoy nature while it lasts.
9. Take an Atlas
I know many of you are completely lost by that word. An atlas is a book of maps that can guide you from Point A to Point B. Your GPS on your phone that you adore and carry with you everywhere probably won't work in the middle of the country without any signal. No matter how many Verizon or T-Mobile commercials say they reach everywhere in the U.S., the signal, however, does not.
10. Fast food is OK for trips
When you're going a long ways in a car, you don't want to get out of the sitting position in your vehicle just to go to another sitting position in a chair or booth in a restaurant. It's better (and faster) to drive through and eat as you continue along on your journey. I promise, easting fast food once or twice won't kill you or send your cholesterol through the atmosphere.
11. Keep track of states
As a 16 year old, I've been in 43 states. The only reason I know that is because of my parents keeping track over the years of all the cross county vacations we took. It is always fun to go back and look at where you've been in your life so take a couple minutes to mark your route on a map for keepsake.
12. HAVE FUN
Not everybody has the opportunity to go across the country for vacation! I promise you will have the time of your life. Your passengers will like you a lot more as well if you just HAVE FUN!!!
All of these may seem like common sense, but when you're running around frantically packing, it is good to have a list. Who knows, you might come home from your trip with a brand new list of your own!
