Yes, though I've seen it many times on maps, from the air, and on the ground, I still imagine going directly east from Silicon Valley, across the US, through Vi

Yes, though I've seen it many times on maps, from the air, and on the ground, I still imagine going directly east from Silicon Valley, across the US, through Virginia, and across the Atlantic ought to end up close to London or Paris. No. That path will take you to northern Tunisia in North Africa.