We started the trip by flying from Washington, DC to Wichita, Kansas.  I had never been in Wichita or southern Kansas before this trip.  Our hotel was in the Old Town area of Wichita.  It appears that the city leaders are attempting to redevelop an older area of the city as well as the riverfront area (a different location).  We drove around parts of the city and saw some empty shopping malls and some worn out areas of the city.  We didn't see much in the way of new economic activity.

The next day we drove from Wichita to Oklahoma City with a side trip to Pawhuska, Oklahoma, home of the Pioneer Woman of Food Network fame.  After we left the Wichita metro area we drive for miles through farm and ranch country on state roads, not the interstate highway, as we approached the Oklahoma state line.  I was surprised to see many oil wells in operation in Kansas. In northern Oklahoma, we saw miles and miles of ranchland with thousands of head of cattle grazing.  As my wife looked into the distance she spotted a massive wind turbine energy farm.  We ended up driving right through the middle of the wind farm, surrounded by cattle ranches with oil wells pumping away.  Whoever owns this land has multiple sources of income. 

We visited the Pioneer Woman's new Mercantile store in a redeveloped building in Pawhuska.  There was a massive line for those wanting to have lunch at the Deli.  I think there were more people in the line than in the rest of the "downtown" area combined.  After visiting the Mercantile we walked around the town.  There is a multistory building being redeveloped across the street from the Mercantile.  Some of the buildings in the town looked ok, some looked worn out, some were trashed.  As we were walking back to our car we walked by a former store front.  The roof, back walls and windows were gone.  What used to be the store floor was a paved parking lot.  My wife looked down at the tiles just inside what was once the store entrance.  It reminded us of our international trips to ancient sites.  Embedded in the tile were the letters JC Penny.  At some point in the past this building had been a small-town JC Penny store.  It has faded into history.

We drove to Oklahoma City where we spent Easter weekend.  We saw more ranch lands, oil fields and manufacturing sites during the rest of our time in Oklahoma.  Oklahoma City is a significant city with a diverse economy.  However, about 20-30 miles to the west oil fields are being developed.  Oklahoma is a major oil and gas state.

We left Oklahoma and began the intensive part of our road trip.  During our drive to Dallas on I-35 we saw how extensive Dallas, Ft. Worth and the suburbs are.  Dallas is, by itself, the ninth largest city in the United States by population.  The metro area is the fourth largest.  I-35 is being expanded for many tens of miles at a cost that must be in the $billions.  We saw more fast food outlets on the highway than ever before.  This was a constant theme for the rest of our trip - fast food locations were everywhere we drove.  Due to heavy rain, we had limited tourist time in Dallas.  We visited Dealey Plaza, the site of the assassination of President John F. Kennedy.  It was the first time I had been to Dealey Plaza.  My article on the JFK assassination is on this web site.  The one major impression I had during the visit is how compact the area is.  The School Book Depository, the grassy knoll, the freeway, and adjacent buildings are very close together.  My wife and I also drove by Parkland Memorial Hospital during our visit.

Our next destination was Austin, Texas with a side trip to Fort Hood and Killeen.  I spent three months of my life living in the Fort Hood area in the summer of 1964.  This was my first visit to the area in 53 years. It looks quite different but some things look just the same.  I had heard and read a lot about the development of Austin during the past decade or so.  Austin is now the eleventh largest city in the United States by population with the thirty-first largest metro population.  There is no doubt that Austin and its suburbs is a major metropolitan area now.  I was stunned by the number and size of the high-end hotels in the downtown area.  Our friends took us to the State Capital area and a tour of the University of Texas at Austin.  It is easy to understand why Austin is attractive to the many businesses and people that are relocating there.

Our next stop was San Antonio.  San Antonio is the seventh largest city by population in the United States with the twenty-fourth largest metro population.  We visited the Alamo.  It is a great museum.  The story of its role in the creation of the Republic of Texas is explained very well.  The politics of the time involving Spain, Mexico, US citizens and immigrants, the evolving Republic of Texas and eventually the US are explained.  I never fully understood how the debate over Mexico's government structure after its independence from Spain played such a significant role in causing the conflict that resulted in the creation of the Republic of Texas.  States' rights versus centralized government control was the issue.  Centralized government control from Mexico City lost.  We also walked around town looking at the historical sites and walked a portion of the River Walk, a truly outstanding redevelopment of the area adjacent to the San Antonio River in downtown. 

The next day was the longest driving day of the road trip.  We drove on I-10 from San Antonio through Houston to the Beaumont/Orange, Texas area.  Lots of trucks, lots of ranches and many miles of very few people until we reached the Houston suburbs.  We didn't stop in the city of Houston but we observed a lot during our drive through a good portion of the city.  Houston is massive.  It is the fourth largest city in the US by population.  Houston has the fifth largest metro population.  It is spread out over a very large area.  As we drove into the Beaumont/Orange area the extensive oil and gas energy industry in the area began to reveal itself.

The next day we drove from Beaumont/Orange to Natchez, Mississippi via Lake Charles and Alexandria, Louisiana.  Most of the trip was on state roads.  We saw miles of what we think were rice fields and small towns between Lake Charles and Alexandria.  There was more agriculture and lots of water between Alexandria and Vidalia.  We crossed the Natchez-Vidalia Bridge and entered Natchez, Mississippi.  Natchez was one of the wealthiest cities in the US in 1860 with an economy built on cotton, slaves and river traffic.  The plantation owners lived in Natchez on the bluffs overlooking the river.  Many of the historical houses still exist and are a tourist attraction for the city.  We walked and drove around the city to see as many of the historical areas as possible.  One of the most important areas of the city isn't in downtown Natchez.  It is a couple of miles inland.  The Forks of the Road Slave Market in Natchez has a difficult history.  It is located literally at the fork of two roads and the panels at the site explain how the slave market was developed and operated.  While we were there a black family with a black guide was touring the site.  I can't imagine how they felt when they heard and read the story of the slave trading in Natchez.  If you are ever in the Natchez area I suggest you visit this site.  It is a stark contrast to the beautiful homes on the cliffs above the river.

Our next stop was Baton Rouge, Louisiana.  We visited friends that live in a historical residential area in downtown Baton Rouge adjacent to the state capital.  Downtown Baton Rouge is being redeveloped nicely along the Mississippi River.  The petrochemical industry is very visible, a major factor in the local economy. 

After leaving Baton Rouge we headed for the Mississippi Gulf Coast.  We stopped at a tourist information area on the way and learned something new.  Have you ever heard of the Republic of West Florida?  Today this area is part of eastern Louisiana.  Back in 1810 it was controlled by Spain but populated by immigrants from the US.  The people declared their independence after a revolt against the Spanish.  The area was annexed by the US and became part of Louisiana.  I must have missed this event in history class a few decades ago.

After reaching the Gulf of Mexico we made brief visits to Biloxi and Gulfport.  We drove along the Gulf of Mexico for miles.  This area was heavily damaged by Hurricane Katrina in 2005.  All the debris is gone.  But there a very large number of "For Sale" signs on coastal property.  There are many driveways from the coastal road that end in vacant lots that are for sale.  We saw a few new homes and commercial buildings, but there is a long way to go before a meaningful percentage of the property for sale is translated into meaningful economic activity.

Our road trip concluded in New Orleans.  I have been in New Orleans twice in the past on business but those visits were decades ago and included very little sightseeing.  On this visit we focused our attention on the French Quarter, the Riverfront, the Business District and the Garden District.  New Orleans was founded by the French in 1718 but the area was controlled by the Spanish from 1763 to 1802.  In 1803, the French reacquired New Orleans and Napoleon immediately sold Louisiana to the United States in the Louisiana Purchase of 1803.  Most of the surviving buildings from the 18^th century in the French Quarter are from the Spanish period of control.  Bourbon Street was as crazy as ever.  The redevelopment of the Riverfront is terrific with multiple retail complexes available to tourists.  As we walked through the business district and French Quarter we were very surprised by the large number of hotels.  It seemed like every block in the French Quarter had a historical building that has been redeveloped as a hotel.  New Orleans dependence on tourism and the convention business is clearly evident by the sheer number of hotel rooms in the primary tourist and convention area.

I could go on and on about New Orleans and the other stops on our road trip.  Kansas, Oklahoma, Texas, Mississippi and Louisiana aren't the Boston to Washington, DC east coast corridor.  They don't include the major technology centers of the US West Coast.  It is all about oil and gas, petrochemicals, ranching, farming, manufacturing and more.  The big cities include all the services needed to make large cities operate. These areas have their own history.  They include millions of people that have chosen a very different life style from many of us.  Those on the coasts need to remember, not everyone in the rest of the country is like us.  Should we be attempting to force them to live and think like we do?

TPM