Route 66: Greetings from Farmersville, IL

It's day two down Route 66, and everything is going great.

I'm in Farmersville, this tiny little farming village about midway through the state. It's not actually ON the route, but I pulled off for lunch (bologne and crackers) and for a quiet place to sit. Boy, I found it.

Last night I made it to Chicago by about 4:00, walked around town for about an hour, taking pictures, and then had a Chicago-style pizza for dinner. The route has been very easy to follow, at least here in Illinois. There are these helpful brown "Historic Route 66" signs that have helped point the way. I stayed in a little berg called Dwight, at the Classic Inn (can't beat $30/night), got up and ate at the Family Route 66 Diner, and hit the road.

Illinois is pretty boring - I'll be honest. It's flat, and there are fields and farms everywhere. I have managed to stop at the interesting points, like in Funks Groove for some maple "sirup" (where Debbie informed me that more Germans take this trip than Ameicans) and in Atlanta where there's this giant Paul Bunyon holding a hot dog.

I took I-55 south for a bit, just to speed things along. Next stop is Springfield, then St. Louis (which I hope to reach before dinner) and then through Missouri. It's a little bit slower going than I had planned, but jumping on the interstate was a smart idea. I made up some time going my more comfortable 80 mph.

I've figured that by taking this trip I won't really get to know America. There's far too much involved. I can only hope to see it, and with that I'm doing pretty well. It's a balls-out dash to the coast, and I'll stop and visit what I can. But I can't take my time, I'm learning that.

Now I'm going to ask the nice, quiet librarian if this Michigander can use her bathroom, then I hit the road again.