You see, and I say this with as much love as I can muster, the problem is Nebraska. Nebraska decided to put all it's fun biomes and interesting structures in the northwest of the state, and I'd be traveling along I-80 trucking right along the bottom third. Besides one stop towards the beginning, most of the travel would be uninterrupted.
Eventually I mustered the courage to rise from my soft and inviting nest and set off to find a local Omaha coffee shop to start the day. Unfortunately I didn't try hard enough and popped into the first coffee shop I saw with a name I didn't recognize: Scooters. The inside felt so empty and uninviting, and the signage was clearly designed by a faraway corporate office. I should have turned tale then. But alas, I stayed, and when I received my egg sandwich - my sins were punished. The sausage was served cold.
At that point I was quite ready to say goodbye to Omaha and was soon in my car blasting down the highway and preparing for my one-and-only prepared stop. Platte River State Park. I think it was my USA travel book that recommended it, and seeing as it was the only thing I could find on this half of the state I was more than ready to go. The route to get there even took me on some parts of route 66 which felt right for a cross-country road trip.
When I did get to the park I found out it was mostly for camping and river access EXCEPT! For one. giant. tower. Of which I most certainly had to climb.
The views of the river from the top were breathtaking
I stayed up there a while, even getting a call from my parents asking who else I'd been talking to since there had been no service the last 10 miles except at the top of the tower. We agreed to talk later once I'd finished exploring the park to my satisfaction.
After some more light touring and deciding on a playlist for the day, I set off to the tune of Toxic by Britney Spears (thanks Hart for including that in our New Zealand playlist) and called my parents back as I began my long trek through Nebraska.
I spent most of the way switching between music and starting a new audiobook called "We're The Nerds" about the founding of Reddit, a large internet company and the scrappy nature of its founders. The book is incredibly intriguing and just the sort of thing to supplicate mind-numbing hours of this
Finally though, I made it. Colorado came like a breath of fresh air from the first "Masks are required in public" sign I saw by the side of the Highway. I was out of the Midwest.
I treated myself a little in Boulder, paying a little extra for a hotel right in the middle of the Pearl Street Market area and it was a great call. The hotel itself is called "Hotel Boulderado" and is originally from the turn of the 20th century with fixings to match
I also found out the hotel was supposed to be deeply haunted! Although sadly, no ghosts came to visit me during my stay...I checked in, gathered my bearings, and headed back outside to explore. Boulder did not disappoint. I spent much of the night exploring everything from bookshops to candy stores, and got a delicious pork belly rice bowl at a taco place while listening to street performers.
All in all, a perfect end to a long day!
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