Saturday, June 8, 2013

Pictures from a drive down South

Last month, I had the chance to drive from Florida back up to Massachusetts. I've never really been to the South — still haven't, but at least now I've gone through it. Here are a few snapshots of what I saw.


I flew from Albany to Orlando, leaving on a grey rainy day. We flew high over the overcast skies, and there is a moment when you pop down and Florida appears. There's the blue ocean, the perfectly flat land, the geometric patterns humans have carved on it. You see in an eyeful that it is a different place.


The first leg of the trip was on Route 301 in north Florida, one of those great old highways that predate the interstates and have a roadside culture that is rapidly fading away. It is hard today to imagine why a road stand that specialized in oranges and orange-related goods would convince someone to stop, but once upon a time this meant something. 


A real fault lines of American culture today, expressed in the arrangement of SEC paraphernalia at a truck stop near St. Mary's, Georgia.


Had never heard of Huddle House before, but there is something delusional and bold about the slogan "Best Food Yet."


The buffet at Duke's Barbecue in Walterboro, SC. It may not look like much, but it's one of my favorite restaurants.


All you can eat pork and fried stuff, with buckets of sweet tea. This is what makes America great.


What else makes America great: Fireworks!


 Wildflowers in North Carolina.


When I lived in Washington, I didn't have a car and lived a fairly happy pedestrian life. Everyone I knew with a car complained about it constantly — especially if they lived in Northern Virginia. Here's just your ordinary midday traffic on the Beltway.

No comments: