Thirty years ago, I traveled the U.S. in an RV with my parents. I was still in college at the time. We visited some of the same places, and what strikes me most this time around is how many more people there are everywhere. At the air force museum, there was a LandSat 5 exhibit which showed satellite photos of Las Vegas. The first was taken in 1970 or so, and the second 20 years later. The city had doubled in size. In 2000, it had doubled from 1990, and by 2006 it looked twice as large as in 2000. In other words, it was doubling in size in half the time for each period. Scary thought. What will the world be like by the year 2050??
The first time I saw Mt. Rushmore, it was very much like a national park. Facilities were basic. There was a small parking lot and a small viewing area. This time, there were two multi-story parking garages, a large cement walk-way with each of the flags of the fifty states, and an amphitheater that sat at least 400 people. All this operated by a concessionary. I didn't feel the same connection to the mountain this time. All that cement is more like an antiseptic barrier.
I suppose it has to be done, in order to protect the mountain from so many people and at the same time make it accessible to as many people as possible. Sad though. I am amazed at how much the world has changed in my lifetime.
