San Francisco Rails

Cable cars are one of San Francisco's symbols.

The United States are promised land of private cars, and public transport is not always very functional. Some bigger cities, like New York and San Francisco, are an exception to this, with their very good transport systems. The one in and around San Francisco, while functional, is a bit complicated, with several operators and several different rail networks. Thankfully, Clipper card is accepted as payment across network. In addition to modern buses, trams and BART trains, there are early 20th century style transport available.

A cable car arrives at Market Street terminus.

The Cable Cars are probably the most famous way of transport in San Francisco. The car itself is not equipped with an engine at all: the traction is provided by moving steel cables underground, below the track. When leaving a stop, the driver, known as gripman, applies a mechanical switch to grip the cable and get the car moving. When stopping, he releases the grip and applies brakes to stop the car (a more detailed explanation provided by the Cable Car Museum).

Compared to more modern trams and trains, riding the Cable Car is, unsurprisingly, uncomfortable and bumpy. Its is also quite expensive, since the cars, being one of San Francisco's symbols, are very popular among tourists. That said, they are well worth experiencing, if only to observe the gripman's actions. I recommend riding a Cable Car to the Cable Car Museum. It is in a working Cable Car power station, and one can observe the cable-operating equipment at work (see video below),

There are, of course, old Cable Cars in the Cable Car Museum.

The tram line F is a regular San Francisco tram line, with frequent schedules, but it is operated exclusively by vintage equipment, more than 50 years old trams. Most cars are painted in vintage liveries from different cities across the United States, and even Mexico City and Milan. I noticed that one detail was omitted from the cars painted in the colors of Birmingham, Alabama: the markings that separated the compartments for "white" and "colored" people.

Despite their age, the F-line cars are equally comfortable - if not more - as the modern ones. There is no extra cost for riding the vintage trams on the F-line, any regular tickets valid on San Francisco Municipal Transportation Agency (MUNI) buses, trains and trams are good.

This PCC car used on the F-line is painted in a livery used in Los Angeles.

We rode the San Francisco rails in June 2015.

Muir Woods - very, very big trees

In the shadow of Redwoods.

Here I was born, and there I died. It was only a moment to you. You took no notice." - Alfred Hitchcock's Vertigo, 1958.

There is a lot of forest in Finland. Consequently, it may seem surprising that Finnish tourists travel all the way to California and go to see some trees. However, everything is bigger in America, including trees. The highest tree species of the world, California Redwood, and the biggest by volume, Giant Sequoia, grow in California. These are the biggest living creatures of the world, and among the oldest. Oldest living Giant Sequoia is about 3200 years old.

The very tallest trees are elsewhere, but you can see some really big ones in Muir Woods, too.

Yeah, they're tall.

The closest place to San Francisco to see these giant trees is Muir Woods National monument, one of the sites ran by the excellent National Park Service. Even for people who enjoy other things more than the Great Outdoors, Muir Woods is easily accessible: there are good signposted walk routes and information boards.

"When I grow up, I'll become a 100-meter Giant Sequoia".

The only drawback is common to many other U.S. National Parks: the place is a bit too popular. The footpaths get crowded, and the tourist hordes are sometimes unnecessarily loud. In Muir woods there were even signposts asking the visitors to be quiet in order not to disturb wildlife, but unfortunately many - I would say most - visitors ignored them. We visited on a Monday, but the site was very crowded, parking lots full and a lot of cars were parked dangerously by the narrow mountain road. We would advise against visiting on a weekend, if at all practical. Muir Woods is not the only place to see giant trees in California and the U.S. West Coast. Another popular spot is Wavona in Yosemite National Park. Muir woods is, however, one of the few Redwood and Sequoia forests practically accessible by public transport.

The overall ambience in the forest is tranquil, in spite of all the visitors.

Getting to places on public transport is sometimes laborious in the USA. Trip from San Francisco to Muir Woods is not particularly difficult, but it is slow, it may take more than two hours from city center and one should be prepared to wait when changing buses. From central San Francisco, first take a bus over Golden Gate Bridge to Sausalito or Marin City (for example bus number 70), or a ferry to Sausalito. Then take minubus 66 or 66F (only from April to October, timetables here) to Muir Woods. At least one can pay by Clipper Card in all buses and ferries.

If you're lucky you may see a traditional hippie VW bus when waiting for the bus.

Sausalito is a nice place to stop for a meal or ice-cream, there are a lot of options. Prices are on the expensive side but small town ambience is peaceful and relaxed. The sporty ones - not us! - may want to rent a bicycle from San Francisco: the ride to Muir Woods is demanding, long and hilly, but the views are great.

We visited big trees on June 30th 2015

Oakland Museum of California - the best place to spend a Friday Night in the San Francisco Bay area

Dancing is not only permitted, it's encouraged.

Oakland Museum of California, or OMCA, is one of the most pleasant museums I've ever visited (and I've visited quite a few). If you generally like museums, go to OMCA. If you generally do not like museums, go to OMCA still. If you can, go there on a Friday night, when tickets are half-price (free for everyone under 18), there's live music on the courtyard, street food for sale from food carts as well as beer and wine from local small producers, and themed guided tours in the exhibitions. Not surprisingly, there were a lot of people of all ages and the mood was generally very relaxed and good.

Because one always has to have some complaints, I complain about the queues to the food carts.

Even if you are not in Oakland on a Friday night, OMCA is well worth visiting. The permanent historical exhibition is well designed and executed, covering a very wide range of subjects but compact enough to be comprehensible and not overwhelming. I was particularly impressed by the way the exhibition deals with the history and experience of "common people" and their stories. For example the sections dealing with Native American peoples of California and social history of 1960s and 70s were created co-operatively with local residents and communities, showcasing everyday stories of ordinary people in an interesting and engaging way. In addition to the historical exhibition, there are also natural history and temporary themed exhibitions.

In OMCA, the Native Americans tell their own stories.

Local memories from 1960s, many people from Oakland seem to remember it as a dark and violent decade.

Ronald Reagan's poster for the 1968 Republican party presidential candidate race. That time, he lost.

During the Great Depression of late 1920s and early 30s many people from th American Midwest went to California to look for a better life. They often rode overloaded T-model Fords like this one.

Many things are invented in California, for example portable computer.

OMCA isn't afraid of dealing with difficult matters.

We visited OMCA on June 26th 2015, on a Friday night.

The Ocean Road

Soon after we left Paso Robles we caught the first glimpse of the Pacific Ocean.

It is possible to drive from Paso Robles to San Francisco quickly on a boring highway or slowly on a scenic road by the Pacific Ocean. It was an easy choice for us. First we crossed some hills - where we come from they would be called mountains - to reach California State Route 1, which runs along the coast. The Ocean was quite a sight to see, when it finally become visible behind the hilltops. We had seen it already at the start of our trip in San Francisco, but it felt that only now we really saw it for the first time.

They say that across the Ocean, there's a place called Japan. I am not sure if I believe that. I think there is only the Edge of the World, and the waters of the Ocean are forever flowing over it into the abyss.

Of course, we had to stop at the beach as soon as possible to dip our toes in the Pacific. As we had spent most of the preceding two weeks on deserts, it felt almost cold. The weather was windy and the temperature "only" a bit over 20 grades Celsius (about 70 Fahrenheit).

Relaxed Elephant Seals in San Simeon.

They say that everything is bigger in America. The seals certainly are. On a beach near the small town of San Simeon we saw Elephant Seals. A grown-up male can weigh over 2000 kg (almost 4500 pounds). The South American subspecies is even bigger. The Elephant Seals can dive in depth of over 2 km (about 1,25 miles), but the ones we saw at the beach were just relaxing, sometimes throwing sand on themselves.

The landscape was dramatic and spectacular. The vegetation was surprisingly "Nordic" with a lot of coniferous trees: we were approximately on the same latitude as Northern Africa. The most impressive vantage points were very crowded, as were Big Sur's many (expensive!) restaurants - and this was a Tuesday in June, before the American Summer holiday season had really taken off.

One of the many vantage points...

...and another.

Many guidebooks advice to drive the State Route 1 from north to south rather than south to north, because it apparently is difficult and dangerous to turn left and almost all vantage points are on the west (i.e. sea) side of the road. I found this a bit alarmist: we drove from south to north and I never felt there was any problem. However, the road is at times winding, there may be a lot of traffic and it's mostly a two-lane road, unlike most U.S. highways.Obviously it's best to drive carefully, as always, but I really did not find Route 1 particularly difficult or intimidating. One should allow a lot of time for driving and numerous stops for admiring the spectacular views.

If the plan is to drive all the way from San Francisco to Los Angeles or vice versa, we would definitely recommend an overnight stop: actually,  two overnight stops might not be a bad idea. We only drove some 300 km (about 185 miles) from Paso Robles to Santa Cruz, and we missed a number of recommended sights, like the town of Monterey and apparently beautiful 17 mile drive.

In Santa Cruz I went to an amusement park - this was a first time, I think, in ten years or so. Beach Boardwalk was founded already 1907, and the atmosphere is like from before the Second World War. I was lucky to be there on a Tuesday for "retro prices", all the rides were only $1. The payment was by a pre-paid card, and without giving the matter much thought, I put 5 dollars on it. Only after that I realized that there was only one ride I was interested in, a roller coaster known as Giant Dipper from 1924. Well, I had no complaints riding it five times.

Giant Dipper is constructed of wood.

Santa Cruz Beach Boardwalk.

We drove the Pacific Coast road on June 23rd 2015.

Our recipe for a Road Trip

Note: this post is written from the point of view of middle-aged Northern European tourists. Americans and others may find most things discussed here obvious and/or boring.

Our faithful ride, a marvel of Korean engineering, Hyundai Elantra.

Four thousand nine hundred and ninety-six kilometer (three thousand one hundred and four miles). Seven National Parks. Five states. Three canyons. Two weeks. One ocean. Traveling the United States by car can be an unforgettable experience, and many interesting places are impossible or very difficult to reach without a car.

I've been asked some questions about how we arranged our road trip, and I had quite few things to sort out and think about - I was even worried about a few things. Everything went very well after all. So, below a brief account about how we arranged the practicalities of our road trip. Obviously, I do not claim that all our decisions were best possible (or even good), but our recipe produced a very enjoyable road trip.

This post is about a road trip we made in the USA, in the states of California, Nevada, Arizona, Utah and New Mexico in June 2015. One should note that laws and regulations may vary widely between different U.S. states, as may prices of fuel and other things. Of course, the exchange rate between the dollar and euro, or your local currency, will probably fluctuate which has an effect on your projected travel costs. At the time of our trip one euro was worth about 1,1 dollars. About a year earlier the rate was 1,3 - a remarkable difference.

The Car
Rental cars in the USA a very affordable compared to, for example, Finland. We managed to secure our travel dates well in advance, which was fortunate because booking the car months before the actual rental saved a considerable amount of money. We ended up booking our car from Budget, because it was cheapest option available in places that were practical for us. The price of our 2-week rental including unlimited miles was 300,82€. We had also considered renting a campervan from a company like Escape or Jucy, but we came to the conclusion that renting a normal car and staying in cheap motels would probably not work out more expensive and is probable more pleasant for us. That said, the campervans might be great for people with different priorities than us. We actually saw quite a few of them in places like Yosemite and Grand Canyon.

Pros of renting from Budget included that we could return the car in a different location that we rented from without any extra fee, as long as both the rental and return locations were in California. I understand many other companies, but not all, have the same policy. We picked the car up in the small airport of Merced, CA, which we reached conveniently by bus from Yosemite National park. We returned it in San Francisco international airport, as we stayed for a week in San Francisco Bay area after the road trip. Since we were coming to the city from the south, the airport was easier to reach than midtown locations.

Most companies charge a surcharge for under 25-year old drivers and may not allow under 21-year old drivers at all. As we are old, we avoided such troubles. According to a Californian law, the spouse of the signatory of the rental agreement is allowed to drive, provided that he or she has a driving license, and the rental company has no right to collect a surcharge for him or her. This was an advantage to us, and we were not asked to provide any marriage certificate. The surcharges for second (and third, fourth and so on) drivers may be significant.

Of course, different companies offer very different deals, but usually free mileage is included and there seldom are limitations for visiting different U.S. states. Our Budget deal would have allowed us to drive to and in Canada, but Mexico was strictly off-limits. Obviously, one should read the terms and conditions of the rental agreement carefully.

On the Californian desert: good, straight road, easy and comfortable to drive.

The process of picking the car in Merced was straightforward, but took a little bit longer than necessary because the clerk, who, like most Americans, was very friendly and polite, had some problems with Budget's computer systems. This was not a big deal at all. Returning the car in San Francisco was a quick and efficient process. Sometimes an international driving license is recommended for the USA, but our EU-standard licences issued in Finland were adequate for Budget. No police officers or other authorities asked to see our licenses. When picking the car up, a deposit was charged on my credit car, I think it was the same amount as the full price of the rental (i.e. 300,82€). It took some two days after returning the car before the money was returned.

The car we got was a Hyundai Elantra, called "compact" in the U.S. but would be considered a normal-sized small family car in Europe. The transmission was automatic, as it practically always in in the USA. The rental clerk offered us a bigger car (Nissan Murano) for the same price, but we declined since the Elantra was easily big enough for the two of us and probably more fuel-efficient. I've heard that the rental companies often do this. However, we were not offered useless extra insurances, even though I had been warned that it is a common practice. Our rental included compulsory insurances and roadside assistance, and the extra insurances often covers things that are already covered by your travel insurance - never ever set foot in the United States without a travel insurance that covers emergency medical treatment.

I can't come up with any complaints about the car. It was easy to drive, on a highway it ran more than 40 miles per gallon (obviously less on the mountain roads), the seats were comfortable, the sound system more than adequate and air-conditioning powerful, which is very, very important in June driving around Southwest USA.

The Driving
Our route was, mentioning the places where we picked the car up and returned it, and the places we stayed overnight, Merced, CA - Bakersfield, CA - Las Vegas, NV - Jacob Lake, AZ (2 nights) - Bluff, UT - Many Farms, AZ (2 nights) - Grants, NM - Zuni, NM - Needles, CA - Maricopa, CA - Paso Robles, CA (2 nights) - Santa Cruz, CA - San Francisco, CA. There was lots and lots to see along the route, see our other posts about the road trip.

We do not consider ourselves exceptionally talented drivers, and at home we do not have a car at all. Consequently we were a bit worried about driving beforehand. This was completely unnecessary. Driving in the USA is generally easy, very easy. Most of the roads are multiple carriageways, like Finnish motorways. Signage was excellent, better than in Finland, and most roads we drove on were in very good condition, except some more remote roads in Arizona and New Mexico - and even they were not that bad.

A long straight and no other traffic to be seen, but thankfully the views are beautiful and dramatic. Here we are approaching the floor of the Death Valley.

Traffic was low on most roads we traveled. We met congestion only three times: in the beginning of our trip in Central California, in the city of Las Vegas and on our final driving day from Santa Cruz to San Francisco. In heavy traffic and on highways the American drivers seem to be more civilized than the Finnish ones, they even give way in interfaces if necessary - generally speaking: obviously there are a few dimwits everywhere (my warmest regards to the driver of a blue Chevrolet Suburban in Las Vegas, have you ever heard about turn signals or wondered why they are called turn signals?). The general respect for traffic regulations seemed to be on a higher level than in Finland, the complete disregard for speed limits on Californian highways being an exemption.

We only encountered two problematic situations while driving. Returning from Grand Canyon to our cabin in Jacob Lake, self-destructive deer were constantly jumping on the dark road. Our accommodation in Navajo lands, near Chinle, AZ, was very remote and the last stretch of the road was in a very bad condition after heavy rain. We were seriously worried about our little Hyundai's ability to take us to our destination. The 4WD pickups that the locals drive had few problems, though.

For navigation we used my rather basic Android smartphone and free HERE Maps -application. That worked. However, the aforementioned last stretch of road to our accommodation on Navajo Lands was unknown to the application - according to our host, this is the case with all navigation software. Sometimes it took a while before the phone managed to establish a GPS connection, but this was not a big problem.

We highly recommend driving California Route 1 along the Pacific coast. Bixby Bridge pictured here.

Compared to Finland, fuel is very cheap in the U.S., even in the higher end of the very wide price range. The prices differ wildly from state to state and also within states. I didn't collect all our fuel receipts, but the cheapest we paid was $2.69 for a gallon (1 gallon = 3,79 liter) in Zuni Pueblo, New Mexico, whereas the most expensive was $4.59 in San Francisco. I would say that the total fuel costs on our almost 5000 kilometer (3100 mile) trip were no more than 300€ - try that in Europe! Of course, many factors affect your fuel costs - the roads you drive on, the weather, your driving habits and obviously the car you drive. A big SUV could easily burn twice as much fuel as our compact car.

The Accommodation
We mostly stayed on roadside motels, the like of which you have seen on American TV and movies. They provided comfortable accommodation with very few complaints. Most common problem were very noisy air conditioning devices (solution: earplugs). In addition to motels, we stayed in a cabin near Grand Canyon, in a traditional Navajo hogan in rural Arizona and in a historical inn in Zuni Pueblo, New Mexico. These were all pleasant and recommendable experiences and more pleasant than the motels, even if there was nothing wrong with the motels either.

Aqua Breeze Inn, Santa Cruz, California.

An interesting thing about motels is that there seemed to be little, if any, correlation between price and quality. The law of supply and demand seems to work. The most expensive night, almost 100€ for two, was in Santa Cruz, California (a lot of demand, limited supply). The lowest prices we paid, all slightly less than 40€ for two, were in Las Vegas, Nevada (enormous demand, endless supply), in Bakersfield, California and in Needles, California (limited demand, a lot of supply). Most Europeans will find the American habit to advertise accommodation prices (and many other prices) without taxes strange. It is a common practice in the USA and does not imply dishonesty. This means that if the price of a room is listed at $50 you will actually pay some $55-65. The taxes, too, vary from state to state and locality to locality.

Many but not all motel prices included a breakfast of usually questionable quality. All rooms we stayed in were equipped with a coffee maker and/or water cooker and free coffee and tea. Usually there was a refrigerator and a microwave oven, too.

The average nightly accommodation price over 14 nights was about 67€ for two including taxes. Those traveling in groups of more than two can probably get slightly lower prices per person, most motels seemed to have rooms for four or even larger groups. Obviously, the seasonal variation in prices may be considerable, especially in popular holiday destinations like Grand Canyon. Of the motels we stayed in, the one in Bakersfield probably offered best price/quality ratio, as the rooms were newly renovated and the breakfast was adequate. The place in Santa Cruz was considerably more expensive than others of similar quality. There, too, we had no complaints about quality or service, everything worked, even though the furniture, refrigerator and air conditioning dated from the days of Ronald Reagan's presidency.

We booked all our accommodations well beforehand, before we even left Finland. In case of popular destinations, such as Grand Canyon, this is highly recommended. Of course, having everything pre-booked seriously limits flexibility: on the other hand, it provides a certain level of safety. Bookings made on booking.com usually include free cancellation in case of change of plans: however, this is not always the case. In this age of smartphones and tablet computers it would probably be easy to make bookings on the road a day or two in advance, and I'm confident the traditional way, walking to a motel reception and asking for a room, works as well.

The nutrition for body and spirit
One needs to eat on a road trip, too. Finding somewhere to eat shouldn't be a problem, there are numerous roadside eateries with long opening hours almost everywhere. Unfortunately the most common fast food chains do not provide the best quality, or even price/quality ratio. The prices are only a little lower than those in Finland. Living two weeks on, say, Taco Bell and Denny's food will probably result in a considerable weight gain. Of course, self-catering is an option, too: also supermarket price levels are close to Finnish levels, particularly California seems actually more expensive than Finland.

Zion was one of the national parks we visited.

We highly recommend purchasing an annual National Park pass for $80. It provides access to all National Parks, National monuments and other sites administered by the NPS for a year starting the day of purchase. Usually a car and up to three people accompanying the pass owner are admitted, too: this was the case in every national park we visited. Because the greatest places in the USA are mostly National Parks, it definitely is worth buying. If you visit three parks or more, you probably end up saving money.

So, how expensive is it exactly?
We paid:

• for car rental about 301€
• for fuel about 300€
• for accommodation for 14 nights about 938€, if you can travel off-season you can potentially save a lot of money here
• for national parks about 72€

In other words, slightly more than 1600€ for two people in two weeks, or about 115€ a day.

In addition, of course, there are other costs that everyone has to budget for according to their needs and preferences:

• Prices of flights vary greatly, if you can travel off-season you may save lots and lots of money.
• For food you should budget at least as much as for food in Western Europe.
• Entrance fees to places other than National Parks. They are sometimes steep. For example, we paid, not including tips for the guide (unless you have real complaints, do tip the guide, this is, after all, the USA), $48 a person for a guided tour of Antelope Canyon and $23 a person for tour of Acoma "Sky City", not cheap but worth it. 
• As much money as you want to spend on souvenirs, shopping, gambling in Las Vegas or Native Casinos, drinking beer and wine, and whatever you want to spend your money on: the United States in general provides ample opportunities to spend money.

We made our Roadtrip on June 10th to 24th 2015

Deserts and Vineyards

I usually suck at nature photography, so I was happy to capture this hummingbird on my camera on the hills near Paso Robles.

"We were somewhere around Barstow on the edge of the desert when the drugs began to take hold...", begins the gonzo classic Fear and loathing in Las Vegas by Hunter S. Thompson. As we entered California, crossing the Colorado river from Arizona, I thought that someone might have spiked my dinner with hallucinogenics. The outside thermometer of our rental car showed 102 Fahrenheit (39 Celsius) even though it was more than an hour after sunset. As I stopped the car outside our motel in Needles, CA, and opened the door, I realized there was nothing wrong with my senses or the thermometer. The June in Californian desert is hot, even at night.

The other distinctive feature of the desert are the freight trains. They can be seen in New Mexico and Arizona, too. Apparently they mostly transport goods from China onwards from U.S. west coast ports. I didn't manage to take any useful photos of them, but I captured the video below on my phone somewhere between Barstow and Paso Robles. Here, too, I missed the engines, and actually this was one of the shortest trains we saw.

The are two separate traffic history  museums on the old Barstow Railway Station, Western America Railroad Museum and Route 66 Museum. I dare to recommend them to those who generally enjoy such museums. The museums are run by enthusiastic volunteers, with low resources, and it shows at times. Best part is the outdoor area of the railroad museum with mighty diesel engines. I would have enjoyed it more in a less extreme heat.

There is, of course, a Ford model T in the Route 66 museum.

Santa Fe company's FP45 diesel engine from 1967.

It probably is a little stupid to complain about heat on a desert, but the temperatures really were extreme. A malfunction in the car's air conditioning would have been literally life-threatening. It was impossible to spend more than very short period of time outdoors.

On the hills between the desert and the Pacific Ocean in Paso Robles, a wealthy, pleasant American small town straight out of a Hollywood movie. There are a lot of vineyards in and around Paso Robles, like many other places in California. During last two decades or so wine tourism has developed into a big thing around the state. I am not an expert on wine, but the Paso Robles varieties we tasted were good. There are a lot of tasting rooms around town and many vineyards around it are open for visitors. Visiting them provides an excellent opportunity to spend a lot of money in a short time.

There's an actual Wild West saloon in Paso Robles, the Pine Street Saloon in a building that dates from 1857, Naturally, it is haunted.

For a few years now, the state of California has suffered from a drought of historical proportions. The situation is so severe that the governor proclaimed a state of emergency in January 2015. Around Paso Robles it was not hard to believe that the situation was indeed exceptional. Of course, I don't know what the vegetation normally looks like in June, but I would imagine there would be some green instead of brown and gray.

California is one of the world's most productive agricultural lands, and the drought has obviously hit the farmers badly. We saw many roadside signs demanding politicians "do something". I have to say I don't really know what, say, the governor of California could do, perhaps he should perform a rain dance?

We visited the Californian Desert and Paso Robles June 19th to 22nd 2015.

Not the Seven Cities of Gold

There's no such a concentration of ancient pueblo buildings in Zuni as in, for example, Acoma, but there are some traditional Adobe structures..

In late 16th century the Spanish had subdued most of present day Mexico under their power. For some reason, a rumor about Seven Cities of Gold began to spread among them. They were supposed to be found in the North, across a great desert. The first one to look for them was Francisco Vásquez de Coronado, who, however, never found them. Neither did anyone else, even though many have followed him during the centuries.

In New Mexico and Arizona we visited same parts where the Spanish conquistadors centuries earlier spread war, horror and destruction in their search for the Golden Cities. We didn't find any Cities of Gold, but seven places well worth visiting.

1. Inscription Rock Trading & Coffee Co

A recently shorn alpaca outside the cafe.

On our long drive from Acoma to Zuni Pueblo I felt an urgent need to drink coffee. Let's be honest: the coffee served in service stations in Finland is usually not good at all. However, it is far better than the disgusting goo that most roadside cafes in the U.S. torment their customers with. Of course, in big cities very good coffee is available, but now we were pretty close to Nowhere, New Mexico. I was fully prepared ensure my adequate caffeine intake with some disgusting, watery liquid.

Just east of El Morro National Monument (see below) we ran into a very pleasant surprise: a very nice couple serving excellent coffee in a most pleasing environment. In addition, outside the cafe there were two llamas and an alpaca.

2. El Morro National Monument

Steep walls of El Morro.

The summers of New Mexico are hot and dry. Historically, drinking water has been in short supply. A rock known as El Morro shelters the only water spring within miles. It is hardly surprising that passers-by have stopped here to fill their water containers for centuries, perhaps millennia.

In addition, the ancestors of the present-day Zuni built a small town on top of the hill in the 13th century. Archaeological evidence suggests that the settlement was abandoned relatively soon, even before the Spanish conquest. The inhabitants of that town did start a tradition that has continued to our days: making inscriptions in the soft sandstone of El Morro,

Ancient petroglyphs by the ancestral puebloans.

The Spanish embraced this tradition. Their first inscriptions date from early 17th century. The rock wall carries boastful descriptions of "pacification" of the pueblo peoples and other conquests. Some more modest travelers only inscribed their names, the date and the words paso por aqui, "passed by here". When the English-speaking Americans reached New Mexico in 19th century, they continued the tradition of inscriptions. Today, El Morro is a National Monument run by the National Park Service. As always, NPS does an excellent job providing information about the site and keeping the infrastructure in shape.

Boastful Spanish inscriptions.

El Morro spring.

3. Zuni Pueblo
The Zuni are an extraordinary people. Their language seems not to be related to any other language known to mankind, They are known, among other things, for their colorful and intricate ceremonies which combine a thousands of years old understanding of the Universe and the powers influencing it with Roman-Catholic christianity taught to the Zuni by the Spanish.

Earlier the Zuni have inhabited a vast area in several villages and towns. It is possible that the stories about "Cities of Gold" referred to their and other pueblo people's dwellings. After the Pueblo revolt of 1680 and the subsequent return of the Spanish most of the Zuni have lived in Zuni Pueblo, in western New Mexico.

The traditions of the Zuni have been a subject of active ethnographic research, and a number of books have been published on the subject. The Zuni have not always been too happy about it. At least some Zuni people think that some of their ceremonies are not meant to be observed by outsiders. Perhaps this is the reason that the Zuni are exceptionally reserved about photography. All photography within the pueblo is subject to permission, and for example inside the church no photography is allowed at all. However, photography is the only thing the Zuni are reserved about, they are equally as welcoming and friendly as other Americans.

Zuni Pueblo is not an impressive and beautiful place in a similar way as, for example, Acoma Pueblo. Old adobe buildings have disappeared, with the exception of the church (see below). The small but well-run A:shiwi A:wan -museum gets my recommendations. We were told that Zuni Pueblo is one of the best places for shopping for authentic Native American made arts and crafts. However, we didn't do any shopping, due to restrictions imposed by our schedule, budget and the airline luggage weight limits. The fuel prices were lowest we saw on our road trip.

4. Our Lady of Guadalupe Church

The church, built in 1629, was almost in ruins for a long time. It was renovated in 1960s.

I have visited quite a number of different churches. The Roman Catholic mission in Zuni Pueblo, built by the Spanish in 1629, is one of the most peculiar. Its walls are decorated with colorful murals that depict the traditional ceremonies of the Zuni. Reportedly, there were similar paintings already a long time ago, but the original ones were destroyed, when the church was abandoned for years. In 1970 Alex Seowtewa, a Zuni artist, decided to paint new murals. The project took several decades, but now there are murals depicting the Zuni winter solstice ceremonies on the northern wall, and summer solstice ceremonies on the southern wall.

The church can only be visited with a guide. We had the good fortune to get Ken Seowtewa, Alex Seowtewa's son, to present the church for us. He had helped his father in painting the walls, and had a lot of stories to tell and a wealth of information to share about the making of paintings (he even pointed out a Star Trek connection) and symbolism involving them, the history of the church and the culture of the Zuni. As explained by him, Zuni clan system is approximately similar to the one of the Acoma and the Navajo: the clan membership is determined by the mother. Among other things, the clan system has protected the Zuni from inbreeding, quite contrary to the traditions of European royal families which favored marriages among close relatives. Right after explaining this mr. Seowtewa apologized to us, as we were the only Europeans present. We told him there was no need to apologize, as Finland is a republic!

5. Inn at Halona
Most people who travel by car in the USA probably spend several nights at motels. So did we. Most motels are well kept and provide good value for money. However, the motels are also very like each other, there's not much to distinguish between them. We recommend trying different kinds of accommodation every now and then.

In Zuni Pueblo, Inn at Halona provides excellent accommodation. The old building has a special feeling to it, and the place is situated right in the center. The prices are only slightly higher than roadside motels, and include a truly remarkable breakfast. We recommend a local specialty, blue corn pancakes.

6. Petrified Forest National Park

Petrified wood.

A whole trunk of a petrified tree.

Long time ago, before the dinosaurs, a dense forest grew in what now is Eastern Arizona. Due to unique geological events, the trees did not molder after the forest died, but they were petrified and turned into jewel-like colorful stone. Nowadays the forest is aptly named Petrified Forest National Park.

A cactus in bloom.

In addition to weird stone trees there are other things to see in the park. About a thousand years ago the ancestral pueblo people built several small towns in the area. They were, however, abandoned already before the first contact with Europeans, probably because of a drought that destroyed their fields, and the inhabitants moved to more fertile parts. There is little left of their buildings, but there are some paintings made by them to be seen in Puerco Pueblo. One of them is said to indicate the exact moment of summer solstice. We visited the place slightly less than 48 hours too early to see that.

We were told the spiral-like symbol in the center of the picture is illuminated by the sun at the exact moment of summer solstice, and only then..

Puerco Pueblo petroglyphs.

Present-day Petrified Forest is not forest but desert. It is known as "Painted Desert" because of the colorful soil. We've visited quite a few places that felt otherworldly, like they were situated on a different planet than our home. This was one of those places.

Painted desert.

"Drove mys Chevy to the levee, but the levee was dry..." - actually, we drove a Hyundai from Budget car rental.

As Petrified Forest is a U.S. National Park, there of course is a well-equipped informative visitor center with a museum and helpful, knowledgeable park rangers. There's an entrance fee, like most National Parks.

This Studebaker broke down on the historical route 66 before the Second World War and has stood in the middle of the desert ever since.

7. Mi Pueblo
On a U.S. road trip it is very difficult to avoid eating in fast food chains. When in Winlsow, Arizona, we recommend Mi Pueblo, an independent restaurant run by a family of Mexican origin. The food  was very tasty indeed, prices were reasonable and atmosphere cozy. Much nicer than most highway-side industrial fast food joints.

We were looking for Seven Cities of Gold on June 18th-19th 2015