I just got back from a short trip to California. With the passing of my Grandfather we had some stuff to finish up, one of which involved his RV which is registered in CA and required an in person visit to the DMV.
Yay! A trip to California just to visit the DMV. Sounds like fun, right? Well, my Mom decided a side trip to Disneyland for just us two was in order, like old times when we would visit my Grandpa in Ventura and do a day trip to the Disney parks. All those early mornings getting back to Ventura around 3:00 am. Ah man.
Which DMV would be the best to visit? I was assigned research duty, as it's something I actually enjoy, and found Needles CA to be the best bet. The town where Snoopy's brother Spike lives. That's the only reason I even know about Needles, good ol' Spike. This DMV had good ratings compared to Barstow and other locations I looked up. And the ratings and reviews held up as this DMV was such an easy visit, with a portion of the time my Mom and I being the only ones there along with the employees.
From previous trips through the desert I knew Route 66 ran through Barstow, but I didn't know there's a strip of it in Needles. One of my bucket list items is to drive down as much of Route 66 that remains from Chicago to Santa Monica. The whole notion just feels so romantic. Unfortunately much of it is destroyed or changed.
My Great-Grandparents and Grandparents traveled down 66 in its heyday. My Grandma was telling me that she remembers going down Route 66 when she was a kid on a trip from Riverside CA to Iowa and back, in the 1940's I believe. Which means that little strip of Route 66 in Needles that I got out to walk on was traveled on by my family long ago. It was a really cool feeling trying to imagine what they may have been thinking and seeing.
To get back home we traveled down route 95 to Las Vegas, and parts of it reminded me what it must have been like traveling down Route 66 way back when. Single lane roads. Trains going this way and that, and even stopping for a train. Desert mountains on either side.
When we went through Searchlight Nevada the time of day was somewhere between dusk and twilight, the lights of the city advertising gambling, saloons, restaurants, and whatnot's. It felt like a step in time. As we approached Las Vegas I put on classic Frank Sinatra, completing the affect of the evening.
Such a pleasant little trip.
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