27th Day - 09 March 2022

A day in the Grand Canyon cannot be topped. That's why it's best not to even try. However, a good breakfast is not to be underestimated. Pancakes, bacon, and eggs keep you full for most of the day. It wouldn't be for me every morning. Beatrix continues towards the Grand Canyon today - I drive in the direction she came from yesterday. Funny. I envy her a bit for the things she will see in the next few days. Although I have already seen them. But the first impression is simply phenomenal. And there is so much to see here.

After my detour to Utah, I am back on Route 66 today. Sometimes I drive on the interstate, if the original route allows it. In this part of the country, the highway is also very picturesque. My first destination is Williams, just half an hour from Flagstaff. The whole town is overflowing with Route 66 memorabilia. The season hasn't started here either, many shops are still closed. But taking photos of the decorative signs is enough. I don't want to buy anything anyway.

Ash Fork, the next town, is not worth it though, as the name suggests. Seligman, on the other hand, is wonderful again. It's interesting how differently the towns along the route have developed. In Seligman, I notice a restaurant, Westside Lilo's Café, with German and American food. That makes me curious and I go inside. It's quite quaint, with German license plates hanging on the wall and even an ashtray on the table.

The menu includes a few German dishes, including schnitzel and bratwurst with sauerkraut. But since I'm still relatively full from breakfast, I decide to have something sweet. The Black Forest cake is too heavy for me, so I ask for the strawberry cake, which is listed on the menu with exactly that name. When the piece arrives, I realize that the strawberries are still frozen. The color leaves something to be desired as well, but the sponge cake is very good. I wonder a little, but maybe they like frozen strawberries here.

After the server passes by my table again, I ask her if it's normal for the strawberries to be frozen, because in Germany it wouldn't be like that. She is totally surprised and says "of course not". The refrigerator must be set too low. She immediately offers me a replacement, but I'm not hungry anymore. So I politely decline. It's not that bad. It was a bit unusual, but it still tasted good. Although I would prefer fresh strawberries.

When I want to pay, an older man at the cash register calls me over. It's common here to pay at the cash register and not with the server. But in this case, he apparently wanted to speak to me personally. He starts the conversation with "How are you?" in German. I reply "Good". He says that I must have had a problem with the cake. I tell him that it wasn't that bad, and that the sponge cake was really good. But he doesn't want any money from me anyway. He tells me that he is American and came here in 1961 from Wiesbaden. With his German wife Lilo. And then they opened this café.

After chatting a bit about what I'm doing here, he mentions that he misses German beer. I reply that there is German beer here. He shakes his head. No, it's not the same. And he asks me to bring some next time. I say okay and ask for his name. "Patrick. And you?" "Wolfgang." "Oh. Cool name." I laugh and say that I hear that often. He then says that it really is a cool name. That would be a real reason to emigrate here, I think. Then I thank him again for the cake, say goodbye, and continue driving. When I sit in the car, I realize that I didn't even ask if Lilo is still alive. After all, he must be well over 80. I hope so.

I am now driving 1000 meters lower than in Flagstaff. And the snow is completely gone. Instead, there is heat and the Arizona Desert. Just before my destination Kingman, I visit a mountain state park. And the snow is back again. It's fascinating how quickly it changes here. I arrive relatively early at my hotel. I catch up on my report from yesterday, as I didn't feel like writing it. and immediately continue with today's. Only two more days and I'll be back in San Diego. I have already driven over 5000 km. And I don't mind at all. Except that this beautiful journey will soon come to an end. I