I suppose I should start with an ode to the New Jersey Turnpike, the Platonic form of all highways in the US, with the quirky names for rest areas (e.g Walt Whitman, Molly Pitcher, and Vince Lombardi Rest Areas), scenic vistas of oil refineries, and Springsteen mythology. There was a highway, not an interstate though, called Route 10 that would be the place I always thought of when I heard the word "Americana". It is one of those strips where there are so many densely packed stores along either side that looking down the road feels like looking at a collage of consumer culture. I vaguely remember my mom and I once trying to make an annotated map of the stores so we would know exactly which jughandle to take.
Route 10 sounds familiar somehow, not in a local way, though. It's not an interstate?
The NJ Turnpike is pretty dismal for the weary traveler. I hate that I agree with so many cheeseball, hack stand-up comics about this, but it is one of the more sad highways I've been on. It's the loooooong stretches between exits.
I don't think I have a favorite highway. I have bridges and stuff that I like, though. For convenience, Route 17 has served me well through the years. For prettiness, the NY State Thruway up by Harriman (yes, on the way to Woodbury Commons) cuts through some charming hills, meadows and woodlands.
to be honest, it takes a lot for a ucla-trained urban planner to actually HAVE a favorite highway. hahah. they're all trying to ride their bikes everywhere. ;)
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I suppose I should start with an ode to the New Jersey Turnpike, the Platonic form of all highways in the US, with the quirky names for rest areas (e.g Walt Whitman, Molly Pitcher, and Vince Lombardi Rest Areas), scenic vistas of oil refineries, and Springsteen mythology.
There was a highway, not an interstate though, called Route 10 that would be the place I always thought of when I heard the word "Americana". It is one of those strips where there are so many densely packed stores along either side that looking down the road feels like looking at a collage of consumer culture. I vaguely remember my mom and I once trying to make an annotated map of the stores so we would know exactly which jughandle to take.
Route 10 sounds familiar somehow, not in a local way, though. It's not an interstate?
The NJ Turnpike is pretty dismal for the weary traveler. I hate that I agree with so many cheeseball, hack stand-up comics about this, but it is one of the more sad highways I've been on. It's the loooooong stretches between exits.
I don't think I have a favorite highway. I have bridges and stuff that I like, though. For convenience, Route 17 has served me well through the years. For prettiness, the NY State Thruway up by Harriman (yes, on the way to Woodbury Commons) cuts through some charming hills, meadows and woodlands.
to be honest, it takes a lot for a ucla-trained urban planner to actually HAVE a favorite highway. hahah. they're all trying to ride their bikes everywhere. ;)
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