Kunagi oli mõte sõita läbi kõik USA osariigid nii, et teha igas vähemalt üks peatus. Mul on olemas kaks erinevat optimaalse marsruudi varianti, millest üks keskendub suurlinnadele ja teine (ajaloolistele) vaatamisväärsustele ja/või rahvusparkidele. See on täiesti tehtav aga suht planeerimise alguses tegin plaanid ümber idaranniku ja 10 osariigi kasuks. Nagu ikka, eelnes reisile (nüüd juba 12 aastat😁) tavapärane reisiplaneerija töö: sihtkohtade valik, ESTA (kas mõni hmm.. pahade kavatsustega inimene päriselt tunnistab seda), auto bronn, majutused, info otsimine. ESTA kinnituse saime paari hetkega ja siis võis juba konkreetsemalt tegutsema hakata.
Teekonda alustasime 11.juulil kl 11:45 Tallinnast Helsingisse ja edasi New Yorki *New York, concrete jungle where dreams are made of..* suunas. Lennud sinna läksid plaanipäraselt. Helsingis veidi pikem ootamine, kuid juba varsti olime suurema lennuki pardal. Aaa. Lendasime Finnairiga. Ja kuigi ma istekohti juurde ei osta, siis mul oli kogunenud nii palju punkte, et kasutasin neid ja panin vanemad kahekesi akna alla ja enda nende taha. Sain kõrvale magaja. Sest kes ikka lennu ajal tualetti tahab külastada. Õhtuöök oli nagu lendude õhtusöögid ikka. Söödav aga niisama ei sööks. Filmid. Natuke tukkumist. Mis see 8 tundi ära ei ole. 
JFK lennujaamas läbisime probleemideta (kui mitte arvestada korraks valesse järjekorda minekut) turvakontrolli, saime pagasi ning suundusime rongile, mis viib rendifirmadeni. Väga mugav. Auto ikka Avisest ja kuna mul on Preferred konto, siis vaatad ekraanilt oma nime, otsid ettenähtud platsi ja alustad teekonda. Auto platsile jõudes arvasin alguses, et leidsime vale koha; kellegi auto oli meie kohale jäetud. Aga ei, broneerides ma ei kujutanud kuidagi ette, et saan nii suure autoga ringi kimada. Kaheks nädalaks oli meie kasutuses Jeep Grand Cherokee pistikhübriid (tangid bensiiniga - must otsik, ugh; või elektriga).
Ma ei ole enne nii suure sõiduki roolis olnud. Mõõtmed ja see värk. Aga sain igal pool hakkama. Parkimiskohale tagurdamine on jätkuvalt kergem kui nina ees lähenemine. Istme pidin ka kõrgemale tõstma 😁 Aga siis ei olnudki rohkem viivitamist, telefoni hoidja klaasile, telefonis majutuse koordinaadid ja teekond Njuuuuuu jooki Manhattani linnaosa suunas võis alata. Sest kus mujal veel ööbida, kui mitte Manhattanil?
Ma ei olnud hotellilt saanud adekvaatset vastust, kuidas nende valet parkimist kasutada. Mapsis olin uurinud tänavavaadet ja peatusime hotelli ette mingile peatumisribale (mitte piisavalt kaugele nagu selgus, seega sõitsin korralikult ukse ette). Check-in´ga probleeme polnud.
Tuba oli timm. Jaapaniga võrreldes nagu lennujaam. Kaks suurt voodit ja kööginurk. Vaade oli meh aga kes vaate pärast hotelli läheb 😉
Logisin vanemad netti ja esimene reisipäev oligi õhtusse.. uuesti õhtusse jõudnud.
As usual, I took the part of the travel planner (now 12 years but definitely more than 12 trips 😁), selected the destinations, applied for ESTA (does any hmm.. person with bad intentions really admit this), booked our car and accommodations, and searched for information. We got the ESTA approval and could start planning with more confidence. A while ago, I had an idea to drive through all the states of the United States, making at least one stop in each. I have two possible optimal routes, one focusing on major cities and the other on (historical) landmarks and/or national parks. It is doable, but we opted for the 10 states instead.
Our journey began on July 11 at 11:45 from Tallinn Airport towards Helsinki and on to New York *New York, concrete jungle where dreams are made of..*. The flights went smoothly. A slightly longer wait in Helsinki, but soon enough we boarded the Boeing that flew us to our destination. As usual, we flew with Finnair. Although I don't usually buy extra seats, I had enough points to assure us of window seats. My parents sitting together and I behind them. The man sitting next to me fell asleep as soon as the plane took off. Who wants to use the loo during a flight anyway. Dinner was just like usual flight dinners. Edible, however, would not choose that elsewhere. A film or two. Nodding off for a while. 8 hours passed in no time.
Arriving at JFK airport, we went through security without any problems (apart from getting in the wrong line for a sec), got our luggage and headed to the AirTrain to the rental companies. Very convenient. I have used Avis since 2014 and having a Preferred account means you can look up your name on the screen, find the spot and start your journey. When we arrived at our designated car location, at first, I thought that I was lost. Or that someone's car was left at our spot. When I made the booking, I had no idea that I would be able to drive around in such a big car. For two weeks, we drove a Jeep Grand Cherokee plug-in hybrid (petrol-black, ugh; or electric plug).
I have never been behind the wheel of such a large vehicle before. Backing into a parking spot is still easier than approaching from the front. I also had to raise my seat higher😁 But then there was no more delay, I attached the phone holder, confirmed the hotel's coordinates and the journey towards Njuuuuuu jooook, Manhattan could begin. Because where else to spend the night in NY if not in Manhattan?
For the next two nights, we stayed at the Residence Inn New York Manhattan/Times Square, somewhere on a high floor, but not the highest. The lift moved like a rocket. We realised in the following that this was an exception, as other lifts almost crawled between floors.I hadn't previously received an adequate response from the hotel on how to use their valet parking. I had studied the street view on Maps and we stopped in front of the hotel at a lane which turned out to be correct. There were no problems with check-in.
The room was spacious. Like an airport compared to Japan. Two large beds and a kitchenette. The view was meh, but who goes to a hotel for the view 😉
I connected my paretns' devices to the internet and the first day had come to an end. Again.
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