Some days, you just never know where you’ll end up. Early September 2019 while planning a trip to rendezvous in Toronto for a Lizzo concert with some of the best gals, I was generously offered the opportunity to cruise California’s famous Highway One for a few weeks. A French-speaking friend from Switzerland was about to embark on a road trip with a few of his pals. Altho, he speaks English, his accent is very thick, and his companions didn’t speak any of the national language.
I accepted the offer to accompany them on the trip, as a translator (that French Immersion schooling finally coming in handy). Flights were booked, following so much delicious food in Ontario, Canada, I met up with them in Las Vegas to rent a red Mustang convertible. Stoked to have more chances to fill my Google Guides profile; mostly my goal at this time was to accomplish 1 million photo views. It’s not that easy when you live on a small Honduran island (Utila) in the Caribbean.
What I didn’t know is that these 3 retirees (2 fellas, and a lovely lady) were actually only interested in cruising for cocktails. Their main mission, to find the best Bloody Mary in the good old US of A. From Las Vegas to Los Angeles. We ate and drank 3 times a day. I’m still recovering waist wise.
Martini’s, wine, Bloody Mary’s all fine - then a gin and tonic shaken by a robot in Vegas. Strawberry milkshake on the road. Passing winery after winery, no pubs to be seen. We were still only in the first few days, as we pulled up to Yellow Stone Park at 10 am, Looking for? A Bloody Mary. We asked all around town, but it was still too early in the day, and off high season for tourism.
Driving slowly eyeing anyone around, I see a guy hammering a sagging deck. Sometimes you can just feel who has the information you’re looking for. Tall, aged, bearded, and sharp-eyed; my group was hesitant to stop. But as the big black dog barked at the frightened foreigners, I walked to the side of the deck for full directions to their most wanted Bloody Mary. I wish we could have taken that knowledgeable man with us. Let it be known that for $5, topped with bacon and all the fixings, the Oak Room in Oakhurst California had what would be the best Bloody Mary we found in all our searches. Only contested by the Buena Vista’s original Irish Coffee. I had to remind everyone that we did still have to drive to San Francisco. And potato chips are not a meal.
We did make alive to San Fran, and eventually to Hollywood. My advice if you ever go cruising with French-Swiss folk Drink a lot of water. Plan for days off in between adventures. Bring elastic pants. Be prepared for them to get angry at the waiter if the bottle of wine isn’t presented in an official manner. Yes, even if the wine is on sale for under $40. And skip the Monterey Aquarium, they only have beer.
