Day 35

Shoulda' flown. It's easier.

So, curious about last night's dinner?  We are discovering something about the downturn in the US economy. We cannot find the independent restaurants. They are out of business and as a result, there is nothing left anywhere but fast food. At least that is the case on the I5 corridor. We are searching for the Holiday Inn Express hotels and wherever they are, there seem to be no decent places to eat. So the dinner from Hades last night was at a Carl's Junior. Never been before and never will go again. 

As for the Denny's, the 'rellies' were right, they are dependable in that you will get consistent grease, but I must admit, a very fresh garden salad. And AF, I did have the very sandwich you raved about. It was passable, but a one time event for me. Am I just not hungry enough or has the Palm Desert Cheescake Factory spoiled me rotten? 

So tonight we are in Roseburg. We dawdled on the way, and stopped often to walk and enjoy the last of the very balmy weather. It is very mild here and has been all day, even in the mountain passes. I took a lot of photos today but this computer is not downloading them at all. I cannot even look at them except on the camera. 

We went for a walk after we checked into the hotel tonight and I think we headed into the bad part of town. We managed to escape unscathed and because we were searching for a restaurant and everything was closed, we settled for the closest to the Hotel, yes, you guessed it, Denny's. That was an experience. Overly helpful waiter for sure, probably bucking for a big tip. We ordered from the senior menu for two reasons. We were not that hungry and the menu was for 55+. Hey, we more than qualify. The meals came with two sides so we ordered things like coleslaw and tomatoes. Then they gave us a choice of soup or salad. The salad was HUGE and good. Then they brought toast of our choice. Then the meal. There was more food than 10 seniors could have eaten. We are stuffed and left food over. 

But not as much as at noon. We were in Shasta City (not a city at all) and again searching for something other than fast food. We found a quaint log house turned eatery and because there were people in there, we chanced it. Should have ordered the half portion. I got a Beef French Dip that had to weigh a couple of pounds. I ate half and was stuffed. It was the best beef I have had in a long time. The waitresses and staff were very friendly and we even met someone from N. Vancouver. Again, a fantastic salad. California is where it is all grown so there is no excuse not to have a fresh salad. 

The complimentary breakfasts here at the Holiday Inns are really good. A buffet style with hot entrees and plenty of fruit, juices, yogurts, danishes, different types of coffee, etc. Yum! 

Enough about food. We did not turn on the wipers until just past the Siskiyou pass. It poured for a while and then just rained. Starting to feel like home with the grayness and moisture. Not too much traffic, but then it was Sunday. Truck volume was way down, smokey presence way up. No tickets, yet. Haven't seen any jerks on the road in all these thousands of Kilometers. Okay, so I didn't look in the mirror.