Chapter 6: Florida to the Windy City

On Sunday, at last, they were on their way by Greyhound bus to Orlando in Florida. They would spend most of their time travelling, and spend two nights in the cheapest motels they could find. Shortly after leaving New York, both Sid and Cassie had the same musical thought. The Simon and Garfunkel song 'America' occurred to both of them at the same time, as they were travelling along the New Jersey turnpike. It gave them a peaceful feeling as the girl's name in the song was 'Kathy', which did sound a little like 'Cassie', and the couple in the song were obviously totally in love.

After their three-day marathon bus journey, they finally reached Orlando. Sid had pre-booked two nights in an economy motel, so that they would have some time to follow Adam's advice about finding work.

To say that they 'fell on their feet' would be an understatement. Cassie found waitressing work at a diner associated with a nearby hotel. The proprietors phoned the Alias diner in Manhattan, and got such a positive reference that she was employed immediately. Sid was also found employment as a bell boy in the same hotel. A bonus was that accommodation was provided with the jobs. Provided nothing untoward happened, they were now set up for the Winter months. They were earning enough between them to build up a cash reserve and to have enough over to enjoy the local attractions, such as Disney World and the Universal Studios parks. During their visits to these parks, Cassie discovered that she really loved riding roller coasters. Sid was also able to send enough money home via Western Union to pay his credit card bills.

Another Florida attraction they visited was the Kennedy Space Center at Cape Canaveral. This visit inspired them to try to visit the other NASA sites in Alabama and Texas. As they continued to work in the Orlando hotel, a plan for their route around the country was beginning to form in their minds. Meanwhile, they were having a look round to see what else there was to see and do in Florida. Since they had both found some reasonably secure employment in Orlando, they decided that they would look at the more remote attractions just before leaving for their next destination.

For the next four months, life for the couple was fairly settled. Whenever they had a coincident day or two off, they would visit a local attraction. The most remote of these being the Busch Gardens park at Tampa Bay. Although she had ridden the roller coasters at the Universal Studios parks in Orlando, it was at Busch Gardens at Tampa Bay that Cassie really got a taste for riding the more extreme coasters. She encouraged Sid to include some more theme parks on their journey around the USA. This was a task he enjoyed as he, also, was getting a taste for riding coasters.

One sight they did manage to include during their stay in Orlando, was a rocket launch from the Kennedy Space Center. On this occasion, they tried using their thumbs to get transport to Cocoa Beach, which they were told was one of the best places to watch satellites being sent into orbit.

At the end of their sojourn in Orlando, Cassie decided that they had seen most of the major attractions in Florida, as they were within easy reach of Orlando. Accordingly, they set out for Mobile, Alabama, where they would spend two nights and decide where to go next. They got to Tallahassee relatively easily, and were fortunate enough to find a truck driver willing to take them along the I-10 interstate highway to Mobile. He also gave them some information regarding finding a couple of nights' accommodation in Mobile, and the best way to get to the Battleship USS Alabama preserved there. They spent the rest of the journey in conversation, with the driver telling them about the advantages and disadvantages of making a living driving an eighteen-wheeler along the interstate highways. Cassie also told her story, of how she ran away from the traumatic experience of witnessing her best friend's death and fetched up in New York, and how Sid came to 'rescue' her. Their driver asked them where they were going next. On learning that they were going to the NASA Center in Houston, suggested they make a side trip to Huntsville, where there was a lesser known, but more interesting NASA facility. He also advised them how they could get there. He wished them the best of luck as he dropped them off outside the motel he'd recommended. He mentioned, in parting, that their story was one of the most interesting he'd heard in several years.

That evening, they booked two nights at the motel suggested by their driver and spent a restful night on the outskirts of Mobile, not too far from Battleship Park. They spent most of the next day looking round the USS Alabama museum, which included not only the ship, but several aircraft from World War II and more recent eras. Sid was impressed by the view from the bridge of the Alabama, looking over the top of the two forward triple 16 inch gun turrets. He explained to Cassie that the maximum size of battleships was limited to 35,000 tons by something called the Washington Treaty, and that the Alabama was one of the ships built to comply with that treaty.

"What about the Iowa class ships?" asked Cassie, "Weren't they a lot heavier? Adam mentioned them, as the first one was named after his own state."

"When the Americans got wind that the Japanese and German navies were commissioning larger ships," said Sid, "They too started building 45,000-ton ships. They built five of them. These were not only larger, but were fast enough to keep up with the aircraft carriers. The peace treaty with Japan was signed on the quarter deck of USS Missouri, one of the Iowa class ships."

"Didn't Britain build any battleships?" asked Cassie.

"We did." said Sid, "We built seven ships complying with the treaty. We built one larger ship, the Vanguard, but she wasn't finished till the war was over, and never fired a shot in anger."

Before going back to their motel, they had a McDonald's dinner, something they had managed to avoid, apart from the time Cassie needed cheering up after the visit to the nine-eleven memorial. Following the truck driver's advice, they spent the whole of the next day making their way to Huntsville in the North of the state, finding a cheap bed for the night relatively close to the Marshall Space Center.

As the truck driver had indicated, the NASA facility at Huntsville didn't disappoint. This was the only space center in the country where there is on display, a space shuttle complete with its fuel tank and booster rockets. There was, of course, the almost obligatory Saturn V rocket laying on its side and dominating that part of the site. Another exhibit that fascinated Sid, was the X15 rocket plane, which held many speed and altitude records before the space age really got started. While they were on the bus from the museum to the space center itself, Sid mentioned a film he had on a DVD called 'Space Camp'. A lot of it was filmed at Huntsville. Another item that fascinated Cassie was the huge water tank in which astronauts could practice carrying out 'space walks' in the nearest approach to zero gravity obtainable on the earth's surface.

Their next decision they had to make was where to go next. They could make the long journey back to Mobile, or go somewhere else on their way to Houston. Sid had a look at his map of the USA, and noticed that Memphis in Tennessee was not too far away. If at least one of them could find work there, he thought, it might be worth staying there for a couple of months. Their luck had not deserted them. They managed to use their thumbs, the next day, and reached Memphis in Mid-afternoon. During the journey, their driver asked them what they were doing, and suggested a place in Memphis where they might find some short-term employment.

The hotel they were recommended was part of the same group as the one they had worked at in Orlando. After the manager made a quick phone call to the Orlando hotel, they were both taken on in similar roles to those they had in Florida. For the next two months, Sid and Cassie took in the delights of Memphis. They did of course, visit Graceland, Elvis Presley's house. They also spent a whole day exploring Mud Island, where the B-17 bomber 'Memphis Belle' which had survived many bombing raids over Germany without being shot down.

"This is certainly older technology than what we've been looking at in Huntsville." said Cassie.

"It's hard to believe that it was only 25 years between this bomber and Neil Armstrong setting foot on the moon." said Sid.

"I wonder if mankind will have found out how to travel faster than light in the next two hundred years." mused Sid, "After all, 'Star Trek' was set in the twenty-third century."

"Only if we survive that long." said Cassie, "The way things are going, we might not."

"That's a depressing thought." said Sid, "Anyway, we two won't be around in that century. I doubt if we'll still be alive at the end of this one."

While they were 'working their passage' in Memphis, they started to have thoughts about where to go next. The Winter was now over, so going back up North was an option, rather than continuing their progress towards Houston and the Johnson Space Center. Looking at the map, Cassie noticed that Nashville looked fairly close by and that there was an interstate highway, the I-40 linking the two cities.

"Do you like country music?" asked Cassie, apparently out of the blue.

"Where did that one come from?" asked Sid, surprised, "I love it."

"When we leave here," said Cassie, "We could spend some time in Nashville. It's not too far. Then we could head North, via St. Louis or Cincinnati to Chicago. Houston can wait until the Autumn."

"You're more than a pretty face." said Sid, "That's a brilliant plan. Then we can see what Iowa is like before heading for warmer areas again. You say Adam came from there. Incidentally, how shall we get to Nashville?"

"Since both Memphis and Nashville are on I40," said Cassie, "I think we might be able to hitch a ride there, if that's okay with you."

With another four weeks to go before they set out for their next destination, after Nashville, their plans for the Summer period were, if not exactly set in stone, decided in outline.

And so, that's what they did. They were fortunate in that they were picked up by another friendly truck driver, who was en route from Dallas to Chicago and welcomed some company for the middle part of his journey. He found their story interesting and wished them luck with their plans. He also gave them some advice regarding things to do in Nashville, which happened to be his home city.

It took them a couple of days to find work in Nashville, but eventually, the couple found similar work to what they had been doing in Orlando and Memphis. They were also fortunate in that accommodation was again provided with the job. One thing they did find was that their English accents were an advantage with some potential employers, but a disadvantage with others. In the restaurant, customers were won over by Cassie's delightful personality and fascinated by her accent. Of course, these features did contribute to their supplementary income from tips.

While they were in Nashville, they managed to take in three country music gigs, and managed to spend most of their spare evenings in bars which provided live country and western music. As they came towards the end of their stay in Nashville, they agreed that, at least musically, they would consider this month as the high point of their journey around the USA. As they left Nashville for a brief stay in the region of Cincinnati, they felt quite sad. The journey to Ohio by Greyhound bus was relatively easy, and they found a cheap bed for a couple of nights quite close to the Kings Island theme park.

"Why have we stopped here?" asked Cassie, not being fully aware of the attraction fifteen minutes' walk away from their motel.

"Kings Island." said Sid, "We can enjoy a few roller coasters, including the world's longest wooden one. If you really enjoy this, we could divert to Cedar Point before we go to Chicago."

"That's a thought." said Cassie, "It's a bit of a diversion, but I like the idea of that. Get a bit of excitement while we're on our way to the Windy City."

Sid and Cassie got up early on the next morning. After a satisfying American breakfast, they made their way the mile or so to Kings Island, getting there just as the ticket offices opened. They found out that Kings Island was operated by Cedar Fair, as were several other parks in the USA. Accordingly, they splashed out on platinum passes, which would pay for themselves on their third visit to one of the company's parks.

"What shal we ride first, the Beast or the Vortex?" asked Cassie, looking at the plan of the park as they walked along.

"I think we'll ride the Beast first as we're headed that way." said Sid.

Since they had arrived early, the was no queue for the ride, and they were able to walk straight on to the ride. It being the first ride, they chose the front seats, so they could appreciate the layout of this huge coaster with its three tunnels and two lift hills. Cassie really loved it. This was the first time she had ridden a large wood roller coaster. Before Reuben was born, her parents had taken her to Oakwood Park and she was just about big enough to ride Megafobia. However, the Beast was so much larger, had many exciting features and, fortunately, didn't have the over-fierce braking at the end of the ride, which is a feature of the Welsh ride.

"I'd love to rid that one again!" said Cassie as they came off the ride.

"We'll come back to it later." said Sid, "Then we can ride in the back car, but let's try the Vortex before the queue gets too long."

They headed for the Vortex roller coaster, which at that time was Kings Island's largest Steel coaster. The queue at the time they arrived at the coaster was about twenty minutes, which Sid felt was acceptable. He had heard stories of people queueing for over two hours in the middle of the day at this park. When they reached the front of the queue, they found that there was a line waiting to ride in the front of the train. They chose to go towards the rear and boarded the next train to come in. Cassie enjoyed this one even more with its corkscrew turn and the two loops. They took in a few of the less frequented rides before lunch.

They had a light sit-down lunch in one of the park's many restaurants and walked it off by exploring some of the shops.

"Would you like to have some airtime?" asked Sid.

"What's that?" asked Cassie.

"It's when you go over the top of a hill on a coaster," said Sid, and you feel,as you are lifted off your seat."

"And how do you propose we do that?" asked Cassie.

"We ride in the back car of the train." said Sid, "Let's try it on the Beast."

This time, they had to wait for about half an hour before riding the coaster. After their rear car experience of the Beast, they once again toured the less frequented rides, before heading back to their motel feeling healthily tired and hungry. Fortunately, there was a diner close by, so they could satisfy their hunger with a steak dinner. They felt they deserved it.

They spent the whole of the next day getting to Sandusky, Ohio. The driver who had responded to their thumbs, dropped them off at a hotel which carried the motto: 'If you sleep any closer, you'll wake up on a roller coaster'. That wasn't quite true, as the establishment was about four miles from Cedar Point, which had a hotel on site. A frequent shuttle bus carried visitors along the spit of land to and from the park. They booked in to the hotel for three nights, then checked out transport connections which would take them to Chicago in three days' time. Now Sid and Cassie had planned their next few days, they could relax and enjoy 'The roller coaster capital of the world'. Before enjoying their sleep, they had a relaxing drink in a nearby bar.

Their platinum tickets allowed admission to the park an hour before holders of 'lesser' tickets. Accordingly, they had an early breakfast and took advantage of this facility. The next decision they had to make was difficult, but pleasant. They had to decide what to ride first. They selected two of the steel coasters, Raptor and Millennium Force, and the two wood coasters, Mean Streak and Blue Streak. Sid found a quarter and did a double coin toss. The outcome was that they would ride Millennium Force first.

Immediately after entering the park, they headed directly towards this 300-foot-high steel coaster. They were able to board it immediately, and rode in the front seats. Cassie found the sheer speed of this coaster excited her. She was also impressed by its smoothness. The rest of the first day was spent riding some of the other coasters, and noting which ones could be ridden on their second day. After they had ridden the Gemini racing coaster, Sid persuaded a reluctant Cassie to ride the Power Tower. He joined her on a 240-foot drop. She seemed scared while they were waiting at the top, screamed as they dropped, then immediately after disembarking, re-joined the queue to do it all over again.

Having started their first day with millennium Force, their second day started with the very different experience of riding a large wooden coaster. They found the experience far more intense than the Beast, as the turns were tighter and the hills steeper. This time, when they went to the Power Tower, they rode one of the 'Space Shots'. This gave them twice as much 'freefall' as the giant drop they had experienced the previous day. By the time Sid and Cassie rode the shuttle bus back to the hotel, they had ridden most of the coasters in the park, as well as some of the other thrill rides. Sid noted that there was another Cedar Fair park at Muskegon in Michigan, so that's where they went to next.

After a well-deserved and relaxing night's sleep, they found transport to Muskegon, via Detroit. They spent one night in 'Motown' before finding their way to Muskegon, getting there the middle of the afternoon.

After booking in for two nights at a cheap hotel, Sid and Cassie had a stroll round this smallish town before having a meal, relaxing in a bar and bedding down for the night. The following morning, the couple made their way to 'Michigan's Adventure, which was the local amusement park. They went first to Shivering Timbers, which the park claimed was the best wooden roller coaster of all time. Since they had entered the park early, they only had to queue for about fifteen minutes. They rode in the back car to get the best airtime. They rode the Wolverine Wildcat twice, so they could try both tracks. Since this was a considerably smaller park than Cedar Point, they only needed one day to enjoy the coasters they wanted to ride.

After another relaxing night spent together, they found a driver who was going round the south of Lake Michigan to Chicago

Using the glowing references, they had gleaned in Orlando, Memphis and Nashville, they succeeded in obtaining some short term hotel work not too far from the lakeshore. They enjoyed the Windy City for six weeks.

While they stayed in Chicago, they had fewer days off than in the three previous places they had worked. However, they did manage to visit some of the city's main attractions, such as the Sears Tower, the John Hancock Center, the Navy Pier and the Shedd Aquarium.

While they were in Chicago, Sid and Cassie did manage to spend a couple of days at one more amusement park, but this time they had to pay, as it was a Six Flags park, Great America. They bought a Six Flags ticket, which allowed admission to all the company's parks, as they would be visiting St Louis and two parks in Texas within the next twelve months. Cassie particularly enjoyed the two Wooden coasters, Viper and American Eagle. Since they rode the rear cars on these coasters, they had the maximum amount of airtime.

Towards the end of the month, thoughts turned as to where to go next. Since Cassie had spent a few weeks with Adam, who came from Iowa, she was intrigued as to what the place was like. Accordingly, they decided that their next destination would be Des Moines, the state capital.