A brief stop on the outskirts of Columbia, SC

 After a grueling nine-and-a-half-hour drive to South Carolina, we awoke to find ourselves on the northside of Columbia, South Carolina. Today’s drive portends another seven-hour trip to northern Florida. An early morning walk yields exercise much needed to clear the mind and mentally prepare for the coming day. The area around the hotel offers little cultural or aesthetic interest, only cheap chain restaurants and soulless business developments. In fact, the surrounding area has the feel of a failed conurbation with empty lots and abandoned buildings. The sidewalks have no destinations; seemingly the only purpose they serve is a convenient place where Canada geese can defecate. I could be anywhere across the United States, same types of buildings, campuses, and plenty of rubbish and debris. Other than the occasional palmetto tree, there is little else to indicate I am in South Carolina. Yet, the open spaces, with trees and wetlands, is a haven for birds – at least temporarily until the next business plan comes along. I watch the brown thrashers, crows, mourning doves, mockingbirds, and Canada geese frolic and begin their day. The goslings are old enough to be almost indistinguishable from their parents. Although I find the area unfulfilling as a traveler, the birds can escape the humans for a while longer.

The geese are happy that it is available 

Where the sidewalk ends