// November 28th, 2011 // 8 Comments » // America
From passing a hurricane in Florida to rain and hail storms in the Grand Canyon, we hit a lot of bad weather on our US Road Trip. And, Utah was no exception. I ended up hiking in the rain in Bryce Canyon and feeling chilled to the bone. Was it worth it? Well, it’s amazing how much recovering in a hot tub will do wonders for minimizing painful memories :) (more…)
// November 26th, 2011 // 8 Comments » // America
A UNESCO World Heritage Site, Mesa Verde National Park is one of the most interesting parks I’ve visited to date. It is the first national park of its kind, established by Theodore Roosevelt, to ‘preserve the works of man’. Ancestral Puebloans lived in this area approximately 550-1300 AD. There are over 4,000 cliff dwellings and mesa top sites in this park. Incredible. The video shown at the Visitors Center was chock full of interesting information on the life and times of the cliff dwellers. (more…)
// November 16th, 2011 // 5 Comments » // America, Food
OST: The best restaurant in town
Between San Antonio and Austin is a nice drive on Highway 16 that goes through small, historic towns. Our favorite of these towns is the self-proclaimed ‘Cowboy Capital of the World’: Bandera. Even more than the name, I think what excited me most is that they have a restaurant that is known for it’s chicken fried steak. And I certainly couldn’t take Stella on a tour of the south without feeding her properly. (more…)
// November 14th, 2011 // 2 Comments » // America
Just 20 miles west of Winslow, Arizona lies the ‘world’s best preserved meteorite impact site’. On our US road trip, we found that people and places were all too keen to label themselves as the “World’s Best” or “World’s Oldest” or “World Famous”. It’s the marketing ploy that screams tourist trap… and it’s sad that people fall for it. (Okay, okay, we fell for an “As Seen on TV” African village in rural South Carolina. Forgive us.) At the encouragement of my dad, Stella and I stopped at this meteor crater in Arizona. (more…)
// November 12th, 2011 // 6 Comments » // America
It was dark as we drove through the outskirts of town. Stella and I had just finished going through a cheesy haunted house at a carnival in the strip mall parking lot and were on our way to a free campsite in Winslow, Arizona. Recognize the town? No? Maybe you recall the Eagles song “Take It Easy”…… “Well I’m standing on a corner in Winslow Arizona.” (more…)
// November 11th, 2011 // 3 Comments » // America
Driving north from the Grand Canyon, we made a short stop in Page, Arizona. What’s here you ask? This amazing gem called Horseshoe Bend and Lake Powell. Last year, I saw Sherry’s photo of Horseshoe Bend and was stunned by the dramatic emerald waters of the Colorado River, and of course, the horseshoe-shaped bend. (more…)
// November 7th, 2011 // 6 Comments » // America
The background looks fake
Perhaps what I was most looking forward to on this road trip was visiting more of the National Parks out west. A resident of Utah for four years, I saw plenty of parks on the west coast but somehow missed out on the Grand Canyon and the parks in southern Utah. So, it was time to remedy that. About 20 miles outside of the park, we saw the dark clouds rolling in. This can’t be happening. We’ve already had our fair share of camping in the rain, and I really didn’t want to be hiking through mud. (more…)
// November 3rd, 2011 // 5 Comments » // America
I never gave New Mexico much thought before I visited it. For me, New Mexico conjures up ideas of southwest decor, deserts, and small towns… and I knew that fellow travel blogger Abby used to live there. Yes, that about sums it up. And all of those proved to be true. However, in just 48 hours, I also saw another side of New Mexico: the extreme income gap, the old mining towns that make perfect backdrops for old westerns, the art haven of Santa Fe, and the people who work at Los Alamos (re: Manhattan Project and atomic bomb). (more…)
// November 1st, 2011 // 6 Comments » // America, Photo of the Week
It would be a crime to visit Amarillo (and the Big Texan) and not make a stop at the amazing and inspirational Cadillac Ranch. Located just outside the city on I-40, Cadillac Ranch is a cow pasture, home to 10 old Cadillacs colorfully decorated by the public. The cars are in the ground nose-first, at the same angle as the Great Pyramid of Giza. Stella and I had looked for the weird and wacky stops to make on our road trip, and of course this one neared the top of the list.
I’m ashamed to say that we failed to bring spray paint to create our own lovely works of art on these Cadillac canvases. But, this isn’t to say we didn’t have fun! (more…)
// October 31st, 2011 // 1 Comment » // America, Photo of the Week
I was gripping the steering wheel and trying not to yell at every grandma driver on the road. We were running late… for a wedding! I hate being late for so much as a happy hour, so being late for a wedding was nothing but stress. We planned to arrive a half hour early donning our fabulous flapper costumes. (more…)
I love to travel, run, volunteer, and explore this crazy world! If it involves an adventure or a passport, count me in! For more about me, click here.
