day 7 - grand canyon to vegas

We woke up really early on Thursday to try and see a Grand Canyon sunrise, especially since the weather had been so poor on Wednesday. We made oatmeal with hot water from the in-room coffee pot, packed up the car, and headed for Yavapai Point. When we got there, it was pitch black, and there was only one other car. Allie said "let's get out and see what we can see!" Having watched one too many episodes of Criminal Minds, I wasn't too enthusiastic about that plan, but also didn't want to stay alone in the car. Unfortunately it was still pretty cloudy, but we did get to see glimmers of a sunrise. It looked like it was shaping up to be a beautiful day in the Canyon, but it was approximately 33 degrees, super windy, and a bit snowy, and we hadn't brought enough clothes to endure those conditions. So we set off for Vegas. 


I think I was most surprised at how amazing the scenery was between the Canyon and the Hoover Dam. Sadly we weren't able to see the Hoover Dam itself, because after September 11, they built a bypass bridge (you can no longer drive over the original). The bypass bridge has a huge concrete barrier blocking ANY view of the dam. If we weren't so excited to get to Vegas (and get OUT of the car), we probably wouldn't taken a detour to see it in person. 


Since we knew my family was waiting in Vegas, we headed in that direction, returning the car at the airport and jumping in my aunt and uncle's rental to be ferried back to the hotel. From then on, it was a whirlwind of amazing meals, gambling lessons from my aunt, and the best people watching I have ever experienced. 


Mom, Dad, Allie and I had never been to Vegas before, but my aunt and uncle live much closer, and go often enough that they were able to serve as great tour guides. Each day, they planned out a little route for us so we could see the inside/outside of many of the casinos on the strip. For someone as noise-sensitive as me, Vegas is an overwhelming place, but I'm still glad we ended the trip there. After I got over my initial aversion to gambling (and stopped wondering out loud "how do real people live in this town??"), I had a good time. We saw and met all sorts of characters, and some of us even had unusual luck on the casino floor. Unfortunately the weather wasn't quite warm enough to take advantage of the many pools at Mandalay Bay, but we managed to entertain ourselves nonetheless. The best part, though, was definitely celebrating my parents' 30th anniversary with an amazing Italian meal at Sirio, followed by the requisite Cirque du Soliel show. Congrats, parents...we loved celebrating with you!


day 7, 8, &9:
-stayed at: Mandalay Bay
-ate at: all sorts of incredible places

She won $500 on a slot machine!

view from our room at night

day 6 - albuquerque to grand canyon

We planned to kick off day six with an early morning wake up call to see the morning glow and mass ascension at Albuquerque’s (apparently) world-famous Balloon Fiesta. Sadly the rain (highly unusual for the city) caused a cancellation of all of the day’s events. So we slept in a bit longer, moped a bit, said our farewells to Allison, and hit the road. We made another good-faith effort to stop at scenic overlooks/sites, but weren’t super successful. We ended up in the Canyon in time to do some hiking before finding a good sunset-viewing spot. 

Unfortunately the bad weather followed us from New Mexico, because it was raining, really windy, and COLD. Even with two pairs of pants, two long sleeve shirts, a light sweatshirt, and a rain jacket on, I was miserable. I can't imagine how the people in shorts were still hanging in there. I invested in a wool hat at a gift shop near our lodge, which might be the best $20 I’ve spent this entire trip. We really gave hiking a college try, even taking a few different buses to the recommended Hopi Point, but ended up calling it a day a bit early on account of the weather.  

day 6:

stayed at: Yavapai Lodge on the South Rim of the Grand Canyon

ate at: McDonald’s in Albuquerque for breakfast (I was crankily hungry), Cracker Barrel in Flagstaff for lunch, and The Bright Angel Lodge Restaurant on the South Rim of the Grand Canyon for dinner

day 5 - amarillo to albuquerque

{Finally back in DC, and back to the snapshots of the road trip}

Tuesday ended up being our short day after our decision to push through to Amarillo on Monday. We “slept in” (maybe 7:30 am by our standards), and took our time watching GMA and eating breakfast. On the way out of town, we stopped at Cadillac Ranch, which is a collection of old Cadillac cars buried in a field off of I-40. It was pretty much as weird/cool as you can imagine. We made it to Albuquerque in time for a late lunch, and ate at a restaurant my friend Allison had recommended. Their pulled pork sandwich really gave Neely’s (from our day in Memphis) a run for its money. After lunch, Allie indulged my atypical urge to get a pedicure, and read while I did that. (We had some time to kill until Allison was off work)

Later, we met up with Allison at her house. Her family was in town, and had volunteered to cook dinner for all of us, so we helped with some light prep work, drank wine, and caught up. It was really nice to stay in a friend’s house and eat home cooked (delicious) food after four days on the road. We played with Allison’s dogs, met her pet turtle, and slept to the sound of rain falling all night long. It was just perfect. 

day 5:

-stayed at: Allison’s house

-ate at: Hampton Inn Amarillo for breakfast, CoolWater Fusion in Albuquerque for lunch, and Allison’s house in Albuquerque for dinner

Couldn't get over the beautiful Texas sky

Cadillac Ranch

One of my favorites

Stopped at a scenic overlook somewhere outside of Amarillo

Best state sign so far

Allison's pet turtle! 

Chester, Allison, & I -- reunited at last!

Viva Las Vegas

Not that anyone is particularly disappointed, but I'm woefully behind on the whole road trip update thing. And that isn't exactly going to change, because we've FINALLY made it to Vegas! We have a killer view of the Strip, and amazing tour guides in the form of my aunt and uncle, who come here from their home town of Denver often. It's pretty much the perfect set up. Vegas is crazy, expensive, overwhelming...definitely one of the weirder places I've ever been. I don't know how real, normal people live in a place like this, but I think I like visiting it. So that's all for now. I'll be back in action after we get back to DC Sunday!

View from our room!

day 4 - clarksville to amarillo

Yesterday we did a little bit of a longer drive, and made it from Clarksville, Arkansas to Amarillo, Texas. We made a concerted effort to do sightseeing early in the drive, but we'd pull off to see some weird store or the like, and we'd find it....CLOSED. So finally we set our sights on the route 66 museum in Elk City, Oklahoma. Luckily it was open, and we wandered around the little mock-historic village. They have a farm museum, route 66 museum, and something else that I'm forgetting (we didn't go in it). When we wandered in to the little soda shop, we came across a few of the people who apparently take care of the restaurant and recruit volunteers who staff the shop in the summer (when it sells soda and ice cream). They chatted our ears off, and took our picture behind the counter. After lunch, we got back in the car to listen to the Amanda Knox chatter on the radio and to drive to Amarillo. 


Last night we had dinner at the Big Texan Steak Ranch, which is at a total tourist trap, but we did it knowing full well what we were getting ourselves in to. They're famous for their 72oz steak challenge. Sadly we weren't up for the challenge, nor was anyone else, but we had much smaller versions. The restaurant was highly entertaining, complete with servers in ridiculous cowboy hats and a roving country band. After dinner, we found the local Dairy Queen to satiate a mini blizzard craving I've been having for hundreds of miles. 


Day 4: Clarksville to Amarillo
-stayed at: Hampton Inn Amarillo East 
-ate at: Hampton Inn Clarksville for breakfast, Subway in Elk City for lunch, and Big Texan Steak Ranch/Dairy Queen in Amarillo for dinner


And finally, just a few pictures for now: 

Oklahoma was full of road work, and short on scenery

Our daily present from Mom's road trip bag

Enjoyed some of it last night!

Outside the soda shop at the Route 66 museum

Oh yeah, this happened. 

We were disappointed in the lackluster "Welcome to Texas" sign

Less disappointed in the Texas scenery than the Texas sign

Touristy dinner!

This also totally happened

The entire meal that comprises the 72oz challenge

Today we head to Albuquerque, and I'm pretty excited because a) I get to see/stay with my good friend and former coworker, Allison, b) it's a short driving day, and c) I think the landscape is really going to change in the four hundred or so miles between here and New Mexico. 

day 3 - nashville to arkansas

Today Allie and I got up at made it from Nashville to Clarksville, Arkansas. We're settled in for the night in a Hampton Inn in Clarksville. It's pretty much just a stop off of I-40, and we had a hard time finding some place to eat that wasn't closed for good, closed on Sunday, or that sold something other than fried food. We finally decided to hit a local Mexican restaurant, but weren't even able to have a margarita with our dinner. From what we can tell, most of Arkansas is dry (the "no more liquor stops for 100 miles" sign near the state line was a pretty good indication). The only things to do here are see a movie or bowl, the front desk attendant told us. Although the cinema here charges a whopping $7 a ticket, we decided we'd rather relax, stretch out, and watch something here in our hotel. 


This morning we had (free!) breakfast at our hotel, and I took the morning driving segment. We got to Memphis around 11:30, and promptly found Graceland. We paid the exorbitant entrance fees (made slightly less insulting thanks to a student discount), and joined dozens of other revelers on a shuttle to the actual house. We walked through the house, and both decided it was very much like the tour of Mt. Vernon (smaller house than we expected, and a regimented tour path), but it was pretty interesting. After Graceland, we drove to Neely's BBQ (started by the Food Network stars), and while I'm partial to my Grandma's pulled pork, it was delicious. 


That's all the more detail I'll subject you to, and in the spirit of yesterday:


day 3: 
-stayed at: Hampton Inn Clarksville
-ate at: Hampton Inn Bellvue for breakfast, Neely's BBQ in Memphis for lunch, and El Parian in Clarksville for dinner


And finally, just a few of the many, many snapshots from today....

Live from Graceland

Graceland!

Trying to retrieve something that was rolling 

around the very back of the trunk

Neely's BBQ

We nearly missed this one looking at the river

Entertaining myself on I-40

Sunset in Arkansas

Tomorrow we go from here to somewhere outside of Oklahoma City! We have NO idea where to stop en route, so if you happen to have done this drive before, give us your suggestions, pretty please!

days 1 & 2

If I weren't completely exhausted, I'd be subjecting you to a lengthy recap of our first two days on the road. But, we've made it to Nashville, and while the city is on Central time, my body is still on Eastern time. I know it's only an hour difference, but it feels like a lot more than that. So, instead, here's a quick overview.


Day 1: DC to NC
-stayed at: my parents' house
-ate at: Subway for dinner on the road (we got a late start) 


Day 2: NC to Nashville
-staying at: Hampton Inn in Bellvue
-ate at: my parents' for breakfast, Books and Breadboard in Asheville for lunch, and Morell's in Nashville for dinner


Here are a few snapshots from along the way. A full on photo barrage will be coming at you probably at the conclusion of the trip.

Kicking off day two

At Books and Breadboard in Asheville

First state sign we've managed to capture

Wandering around Nashville

Preview of our time in Vegas

Beautiful chandelier we found in the Symphony hall in Nashville

Off to bed...more coherent thoughts tomorrow, I hope.