The Stories Of My Life: U.S.A. Tour: Down Memory Lane

The following is the itinerary for the Trojans' much-anticipated U.S. tour—down memory lane:

We land at the JFK International Airport in the dead of winter or near the end of winter, and preferably on an Emirates' A380. The purpose is to relive the day we landed at JFK on a cold winter night more than 30 years ago and, for the first time, blowing mist through our mouths and noses.
We take a connecting flight to Miami, Florida (the Sunshine State) where we rent an RV or a camper or a caravan, or two, for our drive across the U.S.A.
The first visit is to the University of Miami–Coral Gables where Dato' K got his PhD followed by a quiet glide (lest we wake the crocodiles up) in the Everglades to be at one with nature. Then we go upstate for a romp in the Disney World to bring out the child in each of us, followed by a visit to the Kennedy Space Center for a glimpse of space travel, which is my favorite fantasy—"Space...the final frontier. These are the voyages of the starship Enterprise."
We drive further north to Washington D.C. and visit the Washington Monument, the Lincoln Memorial, the National Air and Space Museum, the U.S. Capitol etc. It's going to be nostalgic for me because I was there in 1981. We should take a ride on the Metro Rail which was very clean unlike the N.Y.C. Subway when I rode it three decades ago. Unfortunately, we won't be able to see the cherry blossom because it's winter.
A U.S. tour won't be complete without a stopover in New York City (the Big Apple) where we visit the Statue of Liberty, the Empire State Building, the Times Square, the American Museum of Natural History etc.
After enjoying the glitter of N.Y.C. we detour north-east to Boston and Cambridge for a quick visit to two of the world's top ten universities i.e. the Harvard University and the MIT—just for inspiration, and also to visit Amin's make-believe alma mater (he! he!).
From Cambridge we drive west on the I-90 for the apex of our U.S. tour—a visit to our beloved alma mater, the Hudson Valley Community College, and Troy, Albany, RPI etc. A visit to 302 2nd Street and the Ilium IV Apartments (the name has changed based upon Google Maps street view) is a must. How about a barbecue at the park/lake where we had it with Dr. Salleh and the others? But then, it's winter! Let's drive around the satellite towns of Schenectady, Watervliet etc. Hopefully there will be tons of snow in New York for us to play throwing snowballs and to build a snowman—winter fun and games that I never experienced 30 years ago.
Then we continue on the I-90 to the Niagara Falls. It was a pity and a regret that I/we didn't visit this wonderful tourist destination when we were so close to it three decades in the past. Maybe a sprint to Toronto from the Niagara Falls for the sake of claiming "I've been to Canada." before heading south.
From the Niagara Falls, it is a short drive to Buffalo for a visit to Azman, Azam, and Sufian's alma mater, the State University of New York.
Next stop is Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania for a visit to the University of Pittsburgh where Dato' K got his Masters, I presume.
From Pittsburgh, we drive west through Columbus and Indianapolis and north again to Chicago, Illinois. A few of us had the opportunity to visit the "Windy City" eons ago. I still remember Raziff's photo with a Chicago police patrol car in the background. (Perhaps another detour from Columbus to the University of Michigan–Ann Arbor (U-M) to which Raziff and I gained admission but we rejected because we thought we could freeze to death in the Michigan winter. By the way, U-M is ranked #2 (after MIT) by U.S. News and World Report for undergraduate mechanical engineering program, and #7 (together with the Carnegie Mellon University and the Cornell University) for best undergraduate engineering programs in 2013. I wonder how my life would have turned out had I enrolled in U-M instead of UMC—or would not have turned out at all!)
Then it is a drive further north to Milwaukee to visit Amin's alma mater, the University of Wisconsin–Milwaukee, and west to Madison for a visit to Dato' K's (again) alma mater, the University of Wisconsin–Madison. All I remember of my first and last visit to Madison was a walk on a frozen lake.
It is then a journey south to St. Louis, Missouri (includes a quick visit to the Gateway Arch) and west along the I-70 to Columbia for a visit, of course, to the University of Missouri–Columbia which is Raziff's, Ghani's, and my alma mater. I would like to see what our rented house at 1209 Paquin St. looks like after several decades since we left it, if it still exists—it still exists in Google Maps street view. Also not to be missed is the Gatehouse Apartments. We should also visit the Islamic Center of Central Missouri. I guess that wraps up the journey down memory lane to our alma maters in the U.S. (From St. Louis or before going to St. Louis, perhaps a detour to what used to be the "Malaysian students' village" of SIU, Carbondale.)
From Columbia we carry on our journey west to Kansas City and then north to Mount Rushmore in South Dakota. I would like to see with my own eyes the four presidents' heads carved into the face of the mountain and snap a few photos.
Next we move on to South Dakota's western neighbor, Wyoming, along the I-90 to appreciate Mother Nature in the world-famous Yellowstone National Park, and to be thankful to God, of course, by immersing ourselves in the beauty of the Old Faithful.
After getting refreshed in Yellowstone National Park, we head north-west on the I-90 to Seattle, Washington for a visit to the Space Needle and, perhaps, for some fresh seafood from the North Pacific Ocean.
Let's take a flight from Seattle to Anchorage, Alaska for a freezing experience and, hopefully, we'll catch a glimpse of another God-given natural wonder, the Aurora Borealis.
Subsequently, we'll take a flight back to Seattle to continue on our road trip south on the I-5 to San Francisco. Taking photos with the Golden Gate Bridge in the background is something not to be missed.
Let's take a detour to the Yosemite National Park for soaking up nature again before we head south to the final destination of our U.S. tour, Los Angeles, where we visit the Universal Studios, and depart LAX on our flight back to Malaysia. (If possible, we'll take a last detour to the Grand Canyon before heading back to L.A.)
Perhaps a stopover in Hawaii...and another in Seoul for a "winter sonata"!