"My fellow commenters: I thought the whole point of a vacation was to do the things YOU want to do."

"That's exactly what this author did. And what's in so many comments but: 'You drove too fast.' 'You should have stopped more.' 'You obviously didn't see anything.' 'You're inexperienced at driving? How girly.' 'Your trip was too quick and too short.' "If all you wanted to do was drive 700 miles, you could have done it on a boring route.' Sigh. As it so happens, I too am that rare bird known as an inexperienced adult driver (don't even have my license yet, but hope to soon). If that makes me sound girly, my apologies. I am a feminist, but I failed to learn to drive prior to now for pretty much the same reasons as the author (minus the living-in-NYC-metro-area thing). I can relate so well to this story of someone initially approaching a challenging drive with trepidation, then relaxing and gaining confidence along the way, feeling more empowered and enthusiastic as she went, and her initial anxiety transforming into an eager determination to drive the whole trip herself and feel the pride of accomplishment in doing so...."

Says the top-rated comment at NYT article titled "A Rookie’s Road Trip Through Montana, Wyoming and Idaho/A car-averse traveler finds freedom in the driver’s seat, covering 700 miles and three states over three days."

Another comment: "A lot of people are attacking the author for treating the West as an alien spaceland, but I know how she feels. Growing up in the rural West, I felt like a space alien myself when I visited New York City and Washington DC. I didn't know how to deal with the panhandlers and hucksters, the taxis and subways, or the immense symbols of money and power...."

What part of the United States do you view as an alien spaceland?