Did you run into any trouble on your journey?I lost my camera when I tried to take a picture on a bridge passing through Savannah. There was a sign that said, "Welcome to Georgia" and I set my tripod on the bridge, put the camera on self-timer, then went to stand by my Ruckus. A big truck came zooming by and with my small tripod about this size [uses hands to show about seven inches in height], it fell over the bridge and fell into the Savannah River. I went down to the water and swam in to find the camera, but it was so dirty I couldn't even see my own hands. The first person I met from the forum was in Savannah and I told him that I lost my camera. He posted on the forum about my camera and the people there donated money to get me a new camera, which I still have today. After that happened, I tried to take better pictures and to update more to show my appreciation. Somehow, I met a lot of really good people everyday. I had a flat tire at least 10 times and people would help me, give me food and be so nice. So I took all the pictures I could of everyone I met and of every meal I ate so I could update more. After I got to Texas, people on the forum were starting to invite me to stay with them.
Where did you go from there?I went to California, about three months after I first left for the trip. My visa was over around that time and so I sent a letter to Immigration to extend my stay. I wanted to go North and then head to the Rockies, Chicago and New York. I had a little more money than I expected and remembered I had relatives in Seattle, so I kept going and going. I would meet people and ride together, have lots of drinks together and kept going.
You drove the Ruckus through the Rocky Mountains??Yes! In high elevation, the Ruckus runs bad. Maybe 10-15mph. I was scared of the cars on the road so I drove on the shoulder. I went in late May and there was still snow. I would camp out at night and wake up seven times a night because it was so cold. Even when I was wearing everything I had, it was too cold! It was hard then, but the memories now are beautiful!
Where did you sleep most of the time? Were you staying in hostels or motels?I'm very limited in budget and motels are very expensive here, more so than Korea. In Korea, for $30 I can stay in a pretty good motel. But here, a bad one is over $50! And I didn't want to pay $10 for a campground, so I usually setup camp behind bushes along the road or behind a gas station.
How much food did you have to pack?Well, there's a Wal-Mart almost everywhere, so in the winter I was able to buy a lot of food and carry it with me. I was eating a lot of Spam, ramen and rice. In Korea, Spam is like ham or sausage, so people like it. But here, everyone hates Spam! People were telling me it was gross! I ate a lot of Spam, so on the forum they began to call me Mr. Spam. So after that, I switched to tuna! Along the way, I also met some Korean people and they gave me some Korean food, like kimchi.
How many miles did you log?I rode 18,000 miles, spending about $640 on gas! The Ruckus gets 100 miles per gallon!
What are you plans for the future?Traveling around the world is my dream. But before I can do that, I need to improve my English. I really want to go to Africa, although I'm not sure what mode of transportation I would take.
By Terence Patrick
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