If we judge by how hard it is to find camping gear, most of America\nhas packed their cars and pitched a tent in a National Park this summer.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
It\u2019s the sort of thing Karl Marx would have approved of, but\nthe National Parks are an American invention. At this time, there are 61 parks\nset aside for people to visit. Protected and preserved, the federal government maintains\nthese parks for tourists. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
These places are really unique. They are unbelievable. In\nfact, most people didn\u2019t believe it.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The traveler\u2019s tall tale is well known. Homer\u2019s Odyssey<\/em>\nhad impossible stories that couldn\u2019t be found in real life- the cyclops and\nsirens threatening the sailors\u2019 lives. Marco Polo claimed to have seen marvels on\nhis trip to China.<\/p>\n\n\n\n And the national parks have to be seen to be believed. Geysers\ncan\u2019t be a real thing! Until you see it. And you see several the same day, like\nI did in Yellowstone. I could not have imagined it until I saw it myself.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Sequoia trees, inconceivably large, were actually used in\nsideshows. They would fell a tree, cut it into pieces and reassemble it at the\nfar end. Except\u2014people still didn\u2019t believe it was real. It was just too\nincredible.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Americans hear about these natural wonders, but not very\nmany people could go. Once trains were built, some visitors could come. But when\nroads and cars caught up, that\u2019s when people could finally make the trip. 50s\nfamilies took to the road to see for themselves.<\/p>\n\n\n\n 1950s and 60s, people drove all over the country. What\nfollowed was a time of big change of uprooting. People saw for themselves.<\/p>\n\n\n\n And now, this year, people are driving over to places they\nremember or have always wanted to see. They are getting away from their homes\nand seeing more of America.<\/p>\n\n\n\n People have been set free, too, to work from home. Americans\ncan contemplate how they might pack up their internet and go somewhere else. <\/p>\n\n\n\n More things are possible than we had assumed. Between the interstate\nhighway and the information highway, there are a lot of choices.<\/p>\n\n\n\n I wonder how America is going to look in ten years.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" If we judge by how hard it is to find camping gear, most of America has packed their cars and pitched a tent in a National Park this summer. It\u2019s the sort of thing Karl Marx would have approved of, … Continue reading