The Final Post - Shortcuts, Superlatives and Statistics

Well this is it. The Final Post. Time to reflect upon the last month, and get something productive done while I wait for the movers to arrive and haul all my stuff to my new apartment.

SHORTCUTS

IF YOU HAVEN'T READ THE BLOG, YOU WANT A SENSE OF THE TRIP, AND YOU ONLY HAVE FIVE MINUTES OF FREE TIME, this is where you look. Here are a few things you should see if you need the abbreviated version:

- Austin Bartending Videos
- Carolina Watersports Videos
- Beartooth Highway Photo Montage
- Vegas Buffet Photos
- Sturgis, SD Motorcycle Rally Videos
- Atlanta Nightlife Photos
- South Tuscon Mexican Lunch Photos
- Spokane to Washington Photo Montage

SUPERLATIVES

Everyone keeps asking me what my favorites were, so here are the standout spots. Over time, I might add to this list gradually, but here is the first wave:

Favorite City (Extended Visit): Atlanta, GA
Favorite City (One Night Only): Austin, TX
Best Single Meal: Pico De Gallo, South Tuscon, AZ
Largest Meal: The Buffet at the Wynn Casino, Las Vegas, NV
Best Barbecue: Baby Blues, Los Angeles, CA
Best Breakfast: Pocahontas Pancakes, Virginia Beach, VA
Best Salad: Barnaby's, Houston, TX
Best Burger: Ray's Hell Burger, Washington, D.C.
Best Steak: The Prime Rib, Gillette, WY
Best Dinner Party: Kelly's Place in San Fran
Hottest Hot Sauce: Dave's Insanity Sauce, Los Angeles, CA
Best Ice Cream: Tiramasu-Flavored Custard, Kopp's Famous Custard, Milwaukee, WI
Best Cookie: Chunky Chocolate Chip Cookies, Maya Saalouke, San Francisco, CA
Best Beer: Russian River Brewery's Pliny The Elder, Brouwer's, Seattle, WA
Best Brewery: The Lakefront Brewery, Milwaukee, WI
Heaviest Drinker (Pound for Pound): George Kirkland IV, Atlanta, GA - Virginia Beach, VA
Coolest Museum - Seattle Art Museum, Seattle, WA
Coolest Food Festival: The "Bite of Bozeman" Festival, Bozeman, MT
Coolest Streetfair: Portland, OR
Coolest Parent: Dr. George Kirkland III, Chapel Hill, NC
Most Welcoming Jewish Mother: Sharon Schwartz, Chicago, IL
Craziest Traveling Companion: Ryan Kenyon, Atlanta, GA - Virginia Beach, VA
Best Run: Beverly Hills to The Grove, Los Angeles, CA
Nicest Motel: Super 8, Fort Stockton, TX
Best Travel Buddy: Jeff Salomon, San Francisco, CA - Atlanta, GA
Most Welcoming Stranger (Adult): Anne Thorsten, Bozeman, MT
Most Welcoming Stranger (Peer): Elizabeth Varner, New Orleans, LA
Best Concert: The Fresh Espressos, Seattle, WA
Most Beautiful Home (Parents): The Wiezbowskis, San Francisco, CA
Most Beautiful Home (Friends): Christian Colin, Atlanta, GA
Most Activity-Filled Home: The Lees, Virginia Beach, VA
Most Beautiful Drive: Beartooth Highway, Wisconsin and Montana
Most Exhilarating Moment: 60 MPH on a Jetski, Virginia Beach, VA
Prettiest College Campus: The University of Virginia, Charlottesville, VA
Best College Bar: Taylor's, The University of Oregon, Eugene, OR
Coolest Car: Audi A5, Eric Noeth, San Francisco, CA
Best Songs: "On The Wing" by Owl City, "Summer Nights" by Rascal Flatts, "Whatcha Say" by Jason DeRulo, "Summertime" by Kenny Chesney
Heaviest Rain: Sundance, WY
Best Weather: Lake Kerr, NC

STATISTICS

Total Miles Driven: 9,328
Total States Visited: 28
Total Gallons of Gas: 380
Most Expensive Gas: $2.94
Least Expensive Gas: $2.21
Longest Travel Day: 865 Miles on Day 1, New York, NY to Chicago, IL
Highest Speed Limit: 80 MPH, I-10, Texas (Daytime Only)
Number of Speeding Tickets Received: 0
Number of Verbal Warnings Received:1
Fastest Speed Driven: No Comment
Number of Parking Tickets Received: 1
Number of Times Oil Was Changed: 1
Hottest Temperature: 106 Degrees Farenheit, El Paso, TX
Ounces of Sunscreen Used: 38
Instances of Food Poisoning: 1
Loads of Laundry Done: 3
iPods Found at Bottom of Washing Machine: 1
Number of Morning Runs/Swims: 11
Number of Hangovers: 2
Money Won in Vegas: $1,600
Money Won in New Orleans: $275
Number of Nights Spent in Motels: 6
Number of Nights Spent with Friends/Family/Friendly Strangers: 21
Number of Times Credit Card Roulette was Played: 4
Number of Times My Credit Card Was Picked: 0
Minor Injuries: 1
Major Injuries: 0

Thank you for reading the blog. It means a lot to me, and I hope it helped you get through a few of your more excruciating Monday mornings.

Yours truly,

Will Morel
wamorel@gmail.com
www.facebook.com/williammorel
917.699.1340

A Whirlwind Tour of Philly + Triumphant New York Return

So it's the final day of the roadtrip. Wow. I woke up in D.C., drove to Philly, and saw a few folks, then headed up to New York, checked out my new apartment, and went out to Ben's surprise party.

(The Baltimore Harbor Tunnel. I need a picture of something that said "Baltimore", and this is what I got.)

(Once I started seeing signs for I-95, I realized I was close to home.)

(Lincoln Financial Field, or "The Link", home of the Philadelphia Eagles.)

(Broad Street, Philadelphia's version of Broadway, with City Hall front and center.)

(Rittenhouse Square, the closest thing Philly has to Central Park.)

(The Comcast Tower, Philadelphia's tallest building.)

My friend Julie Wertheimer was having lunch right around the corner from where I was headed in Philly, so I picked her up and gave her a lift. She tells me that Philly just isn't the same without me. She didn't actually say that, but it would have been pretty cool if she had.

(Sabrina's Cafe, which is apparently the best brunch spot in Philly that I never knew about.)

(Julie and her sister Sam.)

I then went to meet up with my friend Taylor DiGravina, a PhD student at Penn, whom I know from Order of Omega, the Greek "honor" society at Penn. She showed me her place and then we went on a very, very abbreviated tour of West Philadelphia/University City, where Penn's campus is located. The next 15 or so pictures were snapped in the span of about 20 minutes.

(One of the few people I still know in Philly who doesn't have responsibilities on a Friday afternoon.)

(If you ever visit Jeremy Lerman in Washington, D.C., don't let trust his advice on parking spots.) 

(The Westward view from Taylor's apartment.)

(Memories...)

(Huntsman Hall at The Wharton School - The most unnecessarily awesome $140 million building ever.)

(Pottruck, my gym for 4 years.)

(Hemo's on 38th and Walnut - Best Food Cart in the city. And I am a more-than-qualified observer.)

(Penn's AEPi house - Gamma Chapter.)

(Koch's deli, a legend.)

(Koch's deli, inside.)

(Saad's Halal on 45th Street. The best food that 99% of Penn Students never knew about. I discovered it on one of my runs through West Philly senior year.)

(The Greek Lady and I shared something very special.)

("The Deck" at 4100 Locust St., my home senior year.)

(Allegro's Pizza, adjacent to my old Frat house. Many slices and beers were consumed within this establishment.)

(Penn's freshman quad, my home in 2003.)

(You know, that other school.)

(Drexel's main building is actually a pretty nice piece of architecture.)

(This bus stop ad was "out there" to the point that I had to take a picture.)

Then it was time to head to Aramingo Avenue, the neighborhood of my very good buddy Jay McCarrie, a soon-t0-be third-year law student. Jay took me to his local pub for some fine fare, and we did a lot of catching up. Since this was my very last stop before returning to NYC, it became very surreal.

(My buddy Jay, wearing his stupid Phillies hat. It makes him look fat.)

(The Memphis Taproom, one of Philly's finest spots for a pint and a bite.)

(The bottle list.)

(What's on tap?)

(The last of the roadtrip craft beers - A Brooklyn Brewery Sorachi Ace and a Russian River Brewery Blind Pig.)

(One final installment of wings before I go back.)

(Oyster Sandwich and Hangar Steak.)

Finally it was time to hit the road and cover the final 100 miles back to NYC. They went by quickly, but I was stubborn enough to drive with the top down the entire way, even though there were a few thunderstorms on the journey. Upon returning to the Hertz, I unpacked my belongings and was picked up by my new roommate Sam Benen, who took me to our new place on West 31st.

(The best sign I've seen in a month.)

(A fully-loaded exit.)

(Farewell, sweet prince.)

(The new roommate expresses his joy upon my return.)

(The view on a cloudy day.)

(The new place, barely furnished.)

(The open kitchen gets me very, very excited.)

(Nothing gets the night going like a few glasses of scotch in an empty apartment.)

(The first houseguests.)

Finally, it was time to head out to Ben's surprise birthday party at The Village Pourhouse, an East Village watering hole where sobriety goes to die. I saw a bunch of people I hadn't seen in a while, and it was a great way to return to the good old city.

(A few of the boys.)

(The surprise.)

(The sucker and the mastermind.)

I'll be writing one final post soon. I can't believe I'm back.

D.C. Dinner Party

Whew. It has been quite a night. This is going to be a captions-only post. All you need to know is that we had quite a get-together tonight.

(My victims.)

(Luckiest man alive.)

(This is what happens when you have five wine glasses and six dinner guests.)

(Udon Noodles, Bok Choy and Assorted-Other-Vegetables-That-Seemed-Like-A-Good-Idea-At-The-Time.)

(Soy Sesame Sherry Baked Salmon with Scallions and Ginger.)

(I figured this was a good picture to take while I finished baking the salmon.)

(Dinner is served.)

(Jeremy's pants got tight when he saw the dozen Krispy Kreme donuts Dan brought for dessert.)

(My buddy Rich arrives just in time, as if we needed another bottle of wine. At least this one was good...)

(People talking about stuff.)

(10:30pm update: Five empty bottles visible. Two people visible.)

(11:30pm update: Seven empty bottles visible. Two people visible.)