Mississippi River: what's nearby, how to get there and when to go · 2026

GIGera Iakuninajakunina.g · Nov 30, 2015Read

Part 3. Minneapolis, etc. We arrived in Minneapolis early in the morning, the city was empty. Of course, it was Sunday! Only rare cars blinded me as they passed, reflecting the sun's rays. After hanging around the station for an hour, I thought it would be nice to walk to the Mississippi. It's interesting, after all! Inspired by the upcoming mini-excursion around the neighborhood, I walked out the station doors. Let me remind you, the city was empty!!! But then, out of nowhere, a group of antisocial elements appeared. Trying to bum cigarettes first, and then money, they predatorily surrounded me. Honestly, it was scary. A man standing nearby walked over, took my hand, and led me back into the station. Thank you, kind soul! At the same time, he asked me quite seriously to wait for my employer inside and not to go out. OK! A couple of hours later, I got hungry anyway, and after shaking the fear out of my pants, I snuck off to a store. When I returned, my name was already being announced throughout the station, and as it turned out, they had been looking for me for half an hour)) They were picking me up, and another guy of Asian appearance. To my timid question "What is your name?" he just as timidly replied "Vasily." Phew, what a relief, I won't be the only Russian speaker)) We drove to our destination for more than three hours, stopping to grab a bite and chat. We arrived... forest... lake... the nearest town (800 people) is 13.5 km away, a bigger town (2,000 people) with a hypermarket is 40 km away... in short, the MIDDLE OF NOWHERE!!! We went into the main building, all the trim was wooden, it smelled of old age, and stuffed animals of various creatures (deer, otters, ducks, fish) were hung on the walls everywhere. My first thoughts were: "What kind of godforsaken backwater did I end up in?!" and "How can I get out of here as fast as possible?!" Then they took us to get settled. The girls, of whom 5 were expected, were assigned a house with three rooms, a living room, and a kitchen. The guys, of whom 4 were expected, got a unit with one room, a living room, and a kitchen. I walked into my temporary shelter; inside, the house was quite dark and had the unusual smell of a strange place. I walked around it, looked things over... lay down on the bed and almost cried. I covered my face with my hands and mentally asked that when I opened my eyes, it would all turn out to be a dream, and I would see the walls of my own room! It didn't work... it didn't work three times! Then I laughed at my own stupidity and went to wash off the road dust. By the time I arrived, two of the guys were already there, and we met them in the evening. In the end, instead of 9 people, only 5 arrived. They became my family for that time... and of course, this house became my home over the summer!

GIGera Iakuninajakunina.g · Nov 30, 2015Read

It's impossible to describe everything, I can only say that I don't regret this summer at all, that I went alone, that I stayed in this wilderness... Before leaving my forest, I edited a short video about our life this summer. If anyone is interested, take a look) Below is the link to the video: vk.com/video74984743_171629860 I posted it on my page with this caption: In a few days, I will leave Lakewoods and Wisconsin as a whole. I don't know if I'll ever return to these parts, but I believe I have every right to summarize my summer in the USA 2015. (And this is far from everything!) For me, it was: 1. Gorging on peanut butter. 2. Driving a motorboat or a boat. 3. "PC, PC, PC!!!" 4. Drinking plenty of California wines. 5. Kayaking on the lake. 6. Climbing a huge pine tree. 7. Saying: "Bulat, you're a deer!" 8. Jokes about raccoons, potatoes, and gays. 9. Riding on the highway in the back of a pickup truck, standing up. 10. Watching a bunch of movies. 11. "Who left the key in the door?! Geeeeeera!!!" 12. Making pizza. 13. John, just our favorite chef John. 14. Russian-English dictionary of synonyms. 15. Falling out of a moving vehicle. 16. Lying on the asphalt at night. 17. "I'm a womaaan, and here is my taaable!!!" 18. Grandma, grandpa, slug, facility manager, glass eye (super-woman), sparrows, the one in charge of the plates. 19. Stealing sweets from a banquet. 20. Walking along the highway in the dark. 21. Teaching a foreigner Russian swear words. 22. Lian's laughter. 23. Roasting marshmallows by the campfire. 24. "Moooom, I've fallen in loooove with him!!!" (I never thought I'd miss this!) 25. Playing golf. 26. Whining in the mornings: "Don't gooo! Let's sleep until lunch!" 27. Throwing an American party with all the proper accessories. 28. Playing tennis. 29. Getting lost in the woods in the dark. 30. Chasing a deer. 31. Watching a beautiful sunset. 32. Oh, those Wisconsin thunderstorms! 33. Singing songs and dancing together right on the doorstep. 34. J:- Where you leave, guys? B:- In Russia!! 35. Seeing an American wedding. 36. Watching a meteor shower while lying on the lawn, chatting about everything and nothing. 37. Fighting with food tongs like swords. 38. Telling a fairy tale in the middle of the night. 39. Getting the nickname "Trouble maker". 40. Watching a rugby game. 41. Wrapping Nastya in all the available laundry. 42. Setting up an open-air cinema. 43. Dragging Nastya by her feet across the carpet. 44. Playing beer pong. 45. A moment of rest. 46. "Where is my Twitter?!" 47. Wine tasting from our favorite bartender Lori. 48. "Fish memory" 49. Spitting into the Mississippi from a bridge. 50. "I want an ice cream!" 51. Telling a guy who's hitting on a girl how old she is, that she has a boyfriend, and how many kids she has (the reaction is worth it!!!). 52. Being puzzled about what they add to the food here, and blaming it for fits of uncontrollable stupid laughter. 53. Sticking my head out of the back window of the car to look at the stars. 54. Collecting 49 quarters with different states. (I had 54 by the time I left) 55. Putting Nastya in the fridge. 56. Pretending you don't understand what is being said to you. 57. And of course, meeting wonderful people with whom you can create and share no less wonderful moments... In conclusion, I would like to say that a year before the trip, I couldn't even imagine that I would end up in the USA. I was very nervous when I first went to the IEC. I had a bunch of problems that I thought would prevent the trip from happening. My English left much to be desired! The girls from the IEC convinced me to stay, thanks to them again!!! I improved my English for the interview. I got into debt at the university... but as it turned out, it's worth it!!! You won't get such experience and emotions anywhere else. And if you think that your chances of finding a job, raising the necessary amount of money, or passing the embassy interview are negligibly small, that's just a silly fear. You

АБАнастасия Безуглаяasti17 · Oct 19, 2010Read

I really didn't want to leave Key West, but all good things come to an end sooner or later. We had 34 hours on a bus ahead of us to get to St. Louis. To be honest, I hadn't planned on visiting this city, but crossing all of America from east to west without stopping would have been simply impossible. We arrived early in the morning and the first thing we did was run to the restroom to wash up. Although "wash up" is a bit of an exaggeration! If you manage to brush your teeth and wash your hair, that's already a blessing. Yes, you heard that right, I said wash my hair. Washing your hair in a sink and then drying it under a hand dryer isn't the most fun activity, but we simply had no choice. However, these are just minor inconveniences. We didn't really like the city much; we made it to the main attraction – the Gateway Arch – a huge arch on the banks of the Mississippi that symbolizes the gateway to the West. We walked around the parks a bit, took photos of the famous Route 66, and got back on the bus. All in all, we spent no more than 6-7 hours in St. Louis.

ККириллstriklend · Nov 4, 2009Read

Most of the photos of the plains have disappeared somewhere. Just like the memories of those 3 days. We were just driving.. After Blue Ridge, the road leads us for a while through the remnants of the Great Smokies, and then rolls out onto the Kentucky plains. To be honest, you only realize this because of the "Welcome to Kentucky" signs and Kentucky license plates. Otherwise, it's just like the Saratov region)) There is one cool place here - the longest cave in the world, Mammoth Cave. We haven't been there ourselves, but after visiting another cave (more on that later) and talking to a guide, we realized it must be very cool. Judging by the photos, it really seems so.. And we are eating at a local KFC (how could it be otherwise)) and driving on. Then Illinois with the unchanging view outside the window and a stupid speed limit on the highways (we, of course, are not driving slower than usual, but it's unpleasant to drive so fast relative to others=)). Ahead is Missouri at the confluence with the Mississippi and St. Louis. Oh, we think, the great river... Right there we find out the minimum requirements in America to be considered one. It turns out that a great river here is considered a river with a width of at most half of the Neva at its mouth into the Gulf of Finland or the Volga at its very source. St. Louis is cool, but the embankment is industrial, and the city itself is dirty, but otherwise it's okay, there's some kind of atmosphere. However, we are in a hurry, so we don't really catch what exactly it is) Then we head onto a straight road leading exactly west. The navigator asks us to turn left in 1000 km, so we turn off the device and continue driving. It's about 5 PM, the sun is getting closer and closer in the sky on the left, until it finally hangs right in front of us at the very edge of the horizon. The car is flooded with gold, people in the back seats are squinting happily. The chase for the star continues for about 45 minutes until it disappears somewhere 50 km further away). Then we drive through night Kansas City (by the way, it's not bad) and sleep again. In the morning we are on the road again. Around us is hilly terrain again, just like the whole way before. Perfectly flat plains start later and last for 5-6 hours. Yeah, the Americans' concept of greatness is definitely lacking) Around us is corn, silos, and other charms of the 60s :) We are waiting for the mountains. We are 30 km from Denver, and they are still not there. Suddenly, we climb another hill - and in front of us is just a wall. Not peaks in the distance. Not hills. Just a wall of mountains about 2 km high. Right there is a mark that we are already 1.5 km above sea level. Not bad. Denver is so-so. Nothing remarkable, except for the absence of Bank of America. It's forbidden here for some reason. So we are left without cash. We sleep and drive to the Rocky Mountains the next day.