Hammond, Indiana

Tonight I'm writing from Hammond, IN!

We ended the day after about 600 miles- putting our total after the two days at 1300 miles traveled. We finished Nebraska, drove through Iowa and Illinois and made it just over the Indiana border. We got to the hotel around 7pm but we'd hoped to drive until 8pm. The problem came in the fact that we couldn't find any hotels that would allow pets about 60 miles east of here so we had to start calling places a little closer. As soon as I found a place that allowed pets we decided to stop there since I called about 15 hotels between LaPorte, Gary and Michigan City. I found one place that only allowed pets in the smoking rooms so we left that as a last resort but luckily didn't have to stay there.

Even though we aren't using the GPS to actually get home (I love my GPS but even I love having maps to look at) it really comes in handy when we start looking for a place to stay for the night. All I have to do is type in the city we want to stay in and look under lodging for the names of hotels. It gives the phone numbers so I just start calling around asking if they allow pets! If they say yes then I start asking other questions: any vacancies? AAA discount? How far off the highway? etc.

Tonight we're in a Best Western just like we were last night and it is a lot more expensive. We paid a $10 fee for the kitties last night and got a AAA discount bringing the total for the night to somewhere around $80. Here in Hammond they made me pay a refundable pet deposit of $45 (so I'm assuming I'll get that back-they inspect the room upon checkout) on top of a $10 pet fee and a higher rate to begin with bringing the grand total to $144!!!!!!! I asked about a AAA discount and she told me she was already giving me a discount because it's so slow... whatever! No complimentary breakfast either!!!! This place is lame, but at least they allowed kitties so I guess I shouldn't complain.

We hit some crazy rain in the Des Moines area but it didn't last long so we made it through alive! There has been some road work- actually just the set up, not many people actually working since it's Sunday. The terrain is a lot different- lots of farmland, some cities, not as many trucks, a lot more cars... We've been hearing the same songs on the radio, even the oldies the stations play- they're all the same. The two songs which are tied for the most plays at this point: "Hey Soul Sister" and "Use Somebody" although "Hey Soul Sister may have a slight lead. We saw our first Dunkin' Donuts today and tried to stop at the second one we saw since it was across from the gas station where we filled up, but it was closed :(

Speaking of gas we filled up 3 times today. We wanted to clean the windshield of bugs and check the oil first thing this morning so we decided to fill up then even though we didn't really need it so we spent $14.20, then later $24.20 and finally $38.25.

Neve and Belami are still doing so great. I'm so lucky to have such good kitties. I don't even want to think about this trip with cats who fuss the whole time. I can tell Neve is feeling more comfortable on the drive because instead of just laying in the crate looking scared to death she was grooming herself and looked quite comfy today. She is even doing better in the hotel- exploring more and not getting stuck in every little crevice she finds! Belami, as always, is being a clown and LOVING the hotel!

We reached our halfway point around noon today which sure did feel good! Can't wait to be home! I'll blog from a hotel tomorrow night. Keep your fingers crossed that we have an easier time finding a pet friendly hotel tomorrow!!