Highways are ribbons of civilization, and cars are cocoons of comfort.
A few days ago I was looking at photos of the Bonneville Salt Flats, an extraordinarily desolate place in Utah. Nothing grows in the salt flats, and the place is so flat and bare that you can see the curvature of the Earth. Imagine being in the middle of this place all alone--it would be a scary experience.
Experiencing the salt flats from a highway is an entirely different experience. The highway strips a lot of the isolation from the location and adds a lot of safety--you know you're never too far from help. Riding in a car puts you in a cocoon of comfort: there's heat, air conditioning, cushy seats, music coming from your stereo, perhaps even a wireless telephone signal. Compare the above photo with this one, taken by Wikipedia user Deloreanman14:
The experience of a place, entirely transformed by two asphalt ribbons and the machines we ride inside when we cruise them.
posted at: 08:26 | path: / | permanent link to this entry
