I know this last blog isn't "technically" needed but I didn't want it to just END. It was about a 6 hour drive home, and I was so anxious! We had originally planned to come home on Friday but we were running low on road without going outta the way and we figured one day wouldn't make much of a difference so we came home on Thursday. It felt nice to see our Welcome to Wisconsin sign and a bunch of Wisconsin license plates again!
We stopped in Madison at West Towne Mall to walk around, browse, and I ended up buying some cute pj's. We did that to waste time before our spa appointments at Rejuvenation Spa. BUT it turned out there was a miscommunication so we had to reschedule our massages for Saturday but we each got 20% off (and a couple free bottles of lotion!).
Friday, REST. And Steakfire with Mark & John. And a couple bars and re-united with a couple friends.
Saturday: spa appointments where we each got full body massages! Then Applebees with the WHOLE GANG and LOTS OF LAUGHS. And more bars, drinks, dancing, stories, & laughter (and throwing beach balls at each other on the dancefloor!)
Not ready for reality to hit yet... but the trip was worth everything.
Love Always & Forever,
Stephanie
SotD: All Good Things by Nelly Furtado
Monday, July 18, 2011
Wednesday, July 13, 2011
Day 29: Iowa
We got to Le Mars, Iowa between 1 and 2pm. It's the Ice Cream Capitol of the World! We went to the Blue Bunny Ice Cream Shoppe & Museum (which by the way, they've moved! The address we found online wasn't correct. They moved to a different location downtown in their business district). Sam bought a t-shirt and I got a Neapolitan candle in a milk jar. And then we each got a chocolate dipped waffle cone with Blue Bunny chocolate chip mint ice cream. It hit the spot. ;) We wandered upstairs after a daycare class went up there for a field trip. They were sitting watching a video, which we heard parts of about the main ingredients of ice cream and how it's made. We wandered and visited the displays. There wasn't much. Just some contracts and bills signed by the founders of Blue Bunny. Lots of Blue Bunny memorabilia and old Blue Bunny milk cartons and ice cream gallons.
After we finished our ice cream, we headed towards the Best Western in Fort Dodge. They have a HUGE pool AND A HOT TUB!! We stayed about an hour in each... ;) Then we went to the restaurant attached, Buford's Steak House & Barbeque. They have really great Smoked Chicken Nachos! We also each had a steak dinner...mine with potato salad and corn on the cob and Sam's with corn on the cob and deviled eggs. I ATE SO MUCH I THINK I'M GONNA BURST! We're definitely goin' all out on our last day...
Love Always & Forever,
Stephanie
SotD's: Unchained Melody by the Righteous Brothers
Modern Day Drifter by Dierks Bentley
After we finished our ice cream, we headed towards the Best Western in Fort Dodge. They have a HUGE pool AND A HOT TUB!! We stayed about an hour in each... ;) Then we went to the restaurant attached, Buford's Steak House & Barbeque. They have really great Smoked Chicken Nachos! We also each had a steak dinner...mine with potato salad and corn on the cob and Sam's with corn on the cob and deviled eggs. I ATE SO MUCH I THINK I'M GONNA BURST! We're definitely goin' all out on our last day...
Love Always & Forever,
Stephanie
SotD's: Unchained Melody by the Righteous Brothers
Modern Day Drifter by Dierks Bentley
Tuesday, July 12, 2011
Days 27 & 28: Kansas & Nebraska
We left Denver at about 10:30am. We took Sam's mom to the airport first. And we drove past the stadium of the Denver Broncos and saw a bucking blue bronco statue with red eyes by the airport!
Driving through Kansas...so glad to officially see GREEN again! It was nice to be out of desert and mountain areas. A LOT of fields, A LOT of hay...nothing too interesting to see. We booked a place to stay in Russell, Kansas...and found out it was the birthplace of Senator Bob Dole!!! For dinner, we found a local place called Waudby's Bar & Grill...had famous home-made chips and cheese sauce (which was GREAT!). We also had a couple strawberry margaritas, I had a bacon cheeseburger (one of the best I've had) and Sam had a Santa Fe chicken sandwich which she really liked. I RECOMMEND EATING LOCAL AS OFTEN AS YOU CAN! I've never been disappointed.
Today we left about 11am. Itinerary for the day: Garden of Eden in Lucas Kansas, largest ball of sisal twine in Cawker City, Kansas and the geographic center of the 48 states of the continental U.S. in Lebanon, Kansas. (After passing the town of Waldo! "WE FOUND WALDO!")
Here's some links:
Geographic Center: http://www.kansastravel.org/geographicalcenter.htm
Largest Sisal Twine Ball: http://www.roadsideamerica.com/story/8543
Garden of Eden: http://www.roadsideamerica.com/story/2103
The largest ball of sisal twine was pretty neat. They also have a painted twine trail on the sidewalk and if you walk their historic Wisconsin Street, all the local buildings have interpreted classic paintings in their windows...with the addition of a ball of twine in each one! (By the way, you can buy twine and add to the ball!)
The geographic center of the U.S also has a tiny chapel at it! How bizarre would it be to get married there!?
My favorite place had to be the Garden of Eden. Not only was it magnificent to look at but the stories and the history of it is JUST AMAZING. It was built by Samuel Dinsmoor, as both home and tourist attraction. His home is made of limestone but in a log-cabin style rather than brick. He also has a TON of amazing limestone sculptures, of religious and political importance and interpretation. Adam and Eve greet you at the gate before you enter a trellis walkway. There's also sculptures of the devil, an all-seeing eye, angels, Cain & Abel, the Labor crucified, and sculptures reflecting his views of monopolies and also how he believed everyone had a right to vote (at a time when women and African-Americans were not allowed).
He was a very inventive, creative and eccentric person. His strawberry garden was on a pyramid of limestone because he didn't like to bend down to pick them. He handmade all the sculptures and lots of features of the house. All the doorways in the house are different sizes whether it be length or height and he did that purposely to have everyone tour the whole house. In the corner of his garden, he erected a pyramid mausoleum for him and his wife to be buried when they died. (By the way, did I mention that Mr. Dinsmoor is only 5'2" and married his wife on horseback before "stunts" like that were acceptable?) The county would not allow him to bury his wife in the erected mausoleum when she died so she was buried in the cemetery...he went there, dug her up, and buried her in the mausoleum and covered her casket in concrete so she couldn't be taken away again. (By, the way he is also now buried there in a concrete casket...with practically hermetically sealed glass so that you can actually view his remains...this our tour guide said was because "He still wanted to be able to make money after he died.") OH, and sometime after his 1st wife died he married again at the age of 83...to a 20 year old and had a couple kids!
There are so many more stories and quirks about this guy and this place, and I LOVED every bit of it! If you ever go through Kansas, go to the Garden of Eden and DEFINITELY pay for the tour (all monies go to the preservation of the house and sculptures). It's TOTALLY worth it.
Anyway, after an eventful day, we tried to eat local in Red Cloud, Nebraska. But APPARENTLY they close between 2 and 5 (lunch ends at 2 and dinner doesn't start until 5). We tried 2 different places and they both were like that! So we ended up eating at Subway...these towns are so small!! Brick roads, local places close between lunch and dinner...and if they have a movie theater they only play one movie and ONLY on the weekends! I thought Watertown or Johnson Creek were small...these towns give a WHOLE NEW PERSPECTIVE! Finally made it to the Super 8 in Norfolk, Nebraska. Pizza & cable TV for the night. Tomorrow: Iowa.
Love always & forever,
Stephanie
SotD's: Be As You Are by Kenny Chesney
I Like the Way by Darren Hayes
Driving through Kansas...so glad to officially see GREEN again! It was nice to be out of desert and mountain areas. A LOT of fields, A LOT of hay...nothing too interesting to see. We booked a place to stay in Russell, Kansas...and found out it was the birthplace of Senator Bob Dole!!! For dinner, we found a local place called Waudby's Bar & Grill...had famous home-made chips and cheese sauce (which was GREAT!). We also had a couple strawberry margaritas, I had a bacon cheeseburger (one of the best I've had) and Sam had a Santa Fe chicken sandwich which she really liked. I RECOMMEND EATING LOCAL AS OFTEN AS YOU CAN! I've never been disappointed.
Today we left about 11am. Itinerary for the day: Garden of Eden in Lucas Kansas, largest ball of sisal twine in Cawker City, Kansas and the geographic center of the 48 states of the continental U.S. in Lebanon, Kansas. (After passing the town of Waldo! "WE FOUND WALDO!")
Here's some links:
Geographic Center: http://www.kansastravel.org/geographicalcenter.htm
Largest Sisal Twine Ball: http://www.roadsideamerica.com/story/8543
Garden of Eden: http://www.roadsideamerica.com/story/2103
The largest ball of sisal twine was pretty neat. They also have a painted twine trail on the sidewalk and if you walk their historic Wisconsin Street, all the local buildings have interpreted classic paintings in their windows...with the addition of a ball of twine in each one! (By the way, you can buy twine and add to the ball!)
The geographic center of the U.S also has a tiny chapel at it! How bizarre would it be to get married there!?
My favorite place had to be the Garden of Eden. Not only was it magnificent to look at but the stories and the history of it is JUST AMAZING. It was built by Samuel Dinsmoor, as both home and tourist attraction. His home is made of limestone but in a log-cabin style rather than brick. He also has a TON of amazing limestone sculptures, of religious and political importance and interpretation. Adam and Eve greet you at the gate before you enter a trellis walkway. There's also sculptures of the devil, an all-seeing eye, angels, Cain & Abel, the Labor crucified, and sculptures reflecting his views of monopolies and also how he believed everyone had a right to vote (at a time when women and African-Americans were not allowed).
He was a very inventive, creative and eccentric person. His strawberry garden was on a pyramid of limestone because he didn't like to bend down to pick them. He handmade all the sculptures and lots of features of the house. All the doorways in the house are different sizes whether it be length or height and he did that purposely to have everyone tour the whole house. In the corner of his garden, he erected a pyramid mausoleum for him and his wife to be buried when they died. (By the way, did I mention that Mr. Dinsmoor is only 5'2" and married his wife on horseback before "stunts" like that were acceptable?) The county would not allow him to bury his wife in the erected mausoleum when she died so she was buried in the cemetery...he went there, dug her up, and buried her in the mausoleum and covered her casket in concrete so she couldn't be taken away again. (By, the way he is also now buried there in a concrete casket...with practically hermetically sealed glass so that you can actually view his remains...this our tour guide said was because "He still wanted to be able to make money after he died.") OH, and sometime after his 1st wife died he married again at the age of 83...to a 20 year old and had a couple kids!
There are so many more stories and quirks about this guy and this place, and I LOVED every bit of it! If you ever go through Kansas, go to the Garden of Eden and DEFINITELY pay for the tour (all monies go to the preservation of the house and sculptures). It's TOTALLY worth it.
Anyway, after an eventful day, we tried to eat local in Red Cloud, Nebraska. But APPARENTLY they close between 2 and 5 (lunch ends at 2 and dinner doesn't start until 5). We tried 2 different places and they both were like that! So we ended up eating at Subway...these towns are so small!! Brick roads, local places close between lunch and dinner...and if they have a movie theater they only play one movie and ONLY on the weekends! I thought Watertown or Johnson Creek were small...these towns give a WHOLE NEW PERSPECTIVE! Finally made it to the Super 8 in Norfolk, Nebraska. Pizza & cable TV for the night. Tomorrow: Iowa.
Love always & forever,
Stephanie
SotD's: Be As You Are by Kenny Chesney
I Like the Way by Darren Hayes
Sunday, July 10, 2011
Days 24-26: Denver, CO
Day 24: Long drive thru NM dessert. A lil bit of rain. Tired. Stupid interstate. I feel like we’re on a Highway to Hell (fitting song for the day) Finally to Colorado. Stop at McD’s for lunch. Not sure if the drive from Seattle to Portland is better or worse than the drive from Colorado Springs to Denver. Finally arrive in Denver and meet up at Sam’s brother’s Niels’ place. His roommate Amy is nice and Sam’s mom is here. We go out with the intention of eating at D Note. A pizza joint/ bar with live music. We drink martinis instead and wait forever for breadsticks. After that we stop at an ice cream/candy shop next door (we found bacon flavored toothpaste!) And then finally we go to Jose O’Sheas for more drinks (margaritas) and an unlimited taco bar. Yep, an unlimited taco bar. Niels’ drives home four drunk women.
Day 25: Go out to eat for breakfast at Sunrise Sunset. (Breakfast food is my favorite hangover food.) Then we go back to Niels and Amy’s to go to the pool. We go for a quick dip then lie out in the sun until the clouds come. Shower, rest, then head to Boulder, CO. Shop at a cute downtown area with tons of boutiques and cafes on brick streets. Found an amazing little black dress at Starr’s Clothing Co. Eat at Mountain Sun Pub & Brewery. They have the best nachos in the world.
Day 26: Lazy. Crabby. Lounge around, sit on laptops and talk on my phone and sit in my car away from people for awhile. We go to the park to see Niels play in his kickball league. His team is called Going Commando; they wear camouflage. And their team captain wears a camo kilt. They get rained out (and there’s lots of lightning) so we leave early. More lounging. Finally go out to eat. We go to a hole in the wall called Star Thai. Not a big fan of Thai (or Japanese or Chinese for that matter) but I order some sweet and sour chicken and brown rice. We also have WonTons (or Crab Rangoon) which was deep fried cream cheese in star shapes. Also, of course, had to have egg rolls. For dessert, we have deep fried bananas covered in honey and powdered sugar and I try some Thai Iced Tea (not that different from bubble tea!).
Tomorrow: KANSAS, HERE WE COME.
Love always & Forever,
Stephanie
Song of the day:
Don't Stop Believin' by Journey (still stuck in my head from Tucson)
A Whole New World from Aladdin
Soul Sister by Train
Day 25: Go out to eat for breakfast at Sunrise Sunset. (Breakfast food is my favorite hangover food.) Then we go back to Niels and Amy’s to go to the pool. We go for a quick dip then lie out in the sun until the clouds come. Shower, rest, then head to Boulder, CO. Shop at a cute downtown area with tons of boutiques and cafes on brick streets. Found an amazing little black dress at Starr’s Clothing Co. Eat at Mountain Sun Pub & Brewery. They have the best nachos in the world.
Day 26: Lazy. Crabby. Lounge around, sit on laptops and talk on my phone and sit in my car away from people for awhile. We go to the park to see Niels play in his kickball league. His team is called Going Commando; they wear camouflage. And their team captain wears a camo kilt. They get rained out (and there’s lots of lightning) so we leave early. More lounging. Finally go out to eat. We go to a hole in the wall called Star Thai. Not a big fan of Thai (or Japanese or Chinese for that matter) but I order some sweet and sour chicken and brown rice. We also have WonTons (or Crab Rangoon) which was deep fried cream cheese in star shapes. Also, of course, had to have egg rolls. For dessert, we have deep fried bananas covered in honey and powdered sugar and I try some Thai Iced Tea (not that different from bubble tea!).
Tomorrow: KANSAS, HERE WE COME.
Love always & Forever,
Stephanie
Song of the day:
Don't Stop Believin' by Journey (still stuck in my head from Tucson)
A Whole New World from Aladdin
Soul Sister by Train
Thursday, July 7, 2011
Day 23: Albuquerque, New Mexico
The last night at Dan's, Sam, Dan & I sat outside in rocking chairs until 3am just talking. It was a nice night and good conversation. Of course, we bickered a little, but that's what we always do. We also laughed a lot. I'm so glad we got to relax with him as long as we did. And I'm grateful to Tim, Liz & Vicki (Dan's dad, step-mom, and little sister) for letting us stay there...they're such nice people!
Today we woke up, packed, and hit the road to New Mexico. These are our accumulated thoughts we had while driving:
I hate the desert.
I hate hot weather.
I hate sweating.
Stupid New Mexico.
I can't wait to see things that grow GREEN again!!!
After a lot of the same, dry, hot, dead and sandy scenery we finally hit a town: Hatch, New Mexico. We made a left turn down a street to get to an Interstate and we passed Sparky's Burgers, Barbecue and Espresso. (http://sparkysburgers.com/) We did a U-turn and parked in the lot. The outside had big statues, including a Ronald McDonald and Colonel Sanders chillin' by the front door! They have "World Famous Green Chile Cheeseburger" (which Sam & I both ordered). They have a lot of menu items with green Chile...in fact Sam also got green Chile creamed sweet corn and I ordered pineapple slaw (yea, cole slaw with pineapple!). They were GREAT!! We bought a couple t-shirts before we left.
After that, it was more desert...and finally Albuquerque, NM!! And I will admit...Bugs Bunny sent us. ;)
OH!! And we're staying at Desert Sands Motel which was apparently one of the filming locations for No Country For Old Men!
Love always & Forever,
Stephanie
Oh & here's some songs:
Don't Be Cruel--Elvis Presley
Last Friday Night--Katy Perry
Halfway Gone--Lifehouse
5 O'Clock Somewhere--Alan Jackson & Jimmy Buffet
Am I the Only One--Dierks Bentley
Today we woke up, packed, and hit the road to New Mexico. These are our accumulated thoughts we had while driving:
I hate the desert.
I hate hot weather.
I hate sweating.
Stupid New Mexico.
I can't wait to see things that grow GREEN again!!!
After a lot of the same, dry, hot, dead and sandy scenery we finally hit a town: Hatch, New Mexico. We made a left turn down a street to get to an Interstate and we passed Sparky's Burgers, Barbecue and Espresso. (http://sparkysburgers.com/) We did a U-turn and parked in the lot. The outside had big statues, including a Ronald McDonald and Colonel Sanders chillin' by the front door! They have "World Famous Green Chile Cheeseburger" (which Sam & I both ordered). They have a lot of menu items with green Chile...in fact Sam also got green Chile creamed sweet corn and I ordered pineapple slaw (yea, cole slaw with pineapple!). They were GREAT!! We bought a couple t-shirts before we left.
After that, it was more desert...and finally Albuquerque, NM!! And I will admit...Bugs Bunny sent us. ;)
OH!! And we're staying at Desert Sands Motel which was apparently one of the filming locations for No Country For Old Men!
Love always & Forever,
Stephanie
Oh & here's some songs:
Don't Be Cruel--Elvis Presley
Last Friday Night--Katy Perry
Halfway Gone--Lifehouse
5 O'Clock Somewhere--Alan Jackson & Jimmy Buffet
Am I the Only One--Dierks Bentley
Wednesday, July 6, 2011
Days 21 & 22: Dan's House
The 4th of July was amazing. We went downtown for fireworks. Instead of going to the Convention Center we went further and down some dark side street. Before the fireworks started we walked over to St. Augustine Cathedral (one of the oldest churches in Tucson). Even in the dark the architecture is beautiful.
We walked back and down the dark street. There were already people in the street sitting in lawn chairs. We found a stoop and sat. There was one street lamp and some power lines in the way but we still saw the fireworks pretty nicely. My favorite part of this holiday is how united I feel with the people around me. Either they were quiet with awe or shouting "ooooh's" and "aaaaahhhh's" and "wow's." So here we were...sitting on a stoop of a dark street in the still heat of Tucson, AZ with palm trees close by, people sitting in the street and fireworks in the distance. I never felt more alive and proud.
After that Sam, Dan and I went to the Sky Bar downtown. We didn't see the ceiling open up or anything but they do have an outdoor deck and everything is run by solar panels. Also, they do have screens inside that show constellations and satelittes. The bar had a couple fancy glass chandeliers, a few pool tables, a lot of dance floor, and a couple lounge spots. It was nice. Dan wanted a pitcher of beer so after a long walk, a closed bar, we ended up at Danny's Lounge across the street from Dan's place (2 different dan's ;)). We drank, played pool, ate nachos, flirted with the bartender, and the whole bar sang Don't Stop Believing by Journey when it played.
After we came back, we went for a dip in the pool (and it might have been a bit of skinny dipping after having to jump the fence and shimmy the lock....). It was the perfect 4th.
The next day we woke up late, watched a marathon of a show on TV, I sat outside for awhile after another storm, and then we grabbed the bottles of booze we bought back in Portland and bought some snacks at the gas station and played card games all night (What the Fuck and Apples to Apples).
Today, we went to Wal Mart and bought another cassette adapter for my car so we can listen to our iPods again instead of static-y or Spanish radio stations. We also stopped at a Carls Jr for lunch and drove out to Old Tucson where they film old western movies. Unfortunately, the studio was closed so we couldn't tour it or see much of the buildings but the drive out there was along Gates Pass which curves along a mountain and LOTS OF DESERT so we got some pretty spectacular pictures of the view.
Now we're just relaxing at Dan's, waiting for him to get home from work, and then we're not sure what we're going to do for our last night here. Tomorrow we head to Albuquerque, NM.
Love always & forever,
Stephanie
We walked back and down the dark street. There were already people in the street sitting in lawn chairs. We found a stoop and sat. There was one street lamp and some power lines in the way but we still saw the fireworks pretty nicely. My favorite part of this holiday is how united I feel with the people around me. Either they were quiet with awe or shouting "ooooh's" and "aaaaahhhh's" and "wow's." So here we were...sitting on a stoop of a dark street in the still heat of Tucson, AZ with palm trees close by, people sitting in the street and fireworks in the distance. I never felt more alive and proud.
After that Sam, Dan and I went to the Sky Bar downtown. We didn't see the ceiling open up or anything but they do have an outdoor deck and everything is run by solar panels. Also, they do have screens inside that show constellations and satelittes. The bar had a couple fancy glass chandeliers, a few pool tables, a lot of dance floor, and a couple lounge spots. It was nice. Dan wanted a pitcher of beer so after a long walk, a closed bar, we ended up at Danny's Lounge across the street from Dan's place (2 different dan's ;)). We drank, played pool, ate nachos, flirted with the bartender, and the whole bar sang Don't Stop Believing by Journey when it played.
After we came back, we went for a dip in the pool (and it might have been a bit of skinny dipping after having to jump the fence and shimmy the lock....). It was the perfect 4th.
The next day we woke up late, watched a marathon of a show on TV, I sat outside for awhile after another storm, and then we grabbed the bottles of booze we bought back in Portland and bought some snacks at the gas station and played card games all night (What the Fuck and Apples to Apples).
Today, we went to Wal Mart and bought another cassette adapter for my car so we can listen to our iPods again instead of static-y or Spanish radio stations. We also stopped at a Carls Jr for lunch and drove out to Old Tucson where they film old western movies. Unfortunately, the studio was closed so we couldn't tour it or see much of the buildings but the drive out there was along Gates Pass which curves along a mountain and LOTS OF DESERT so we got some pretty spectacular pictures of the view.
Now we're just relaxing at Dan's, waiting for him to get home from work, and then we're not sure what we're going to do for our last night here. Tomorrow we head to Albuquerque, NM.
Love always & forever,
Stephanie
Monday, July 4, 2011
Days 19 & 20: Tucson AZ & 4th of July
To put just a splash of day 18 in here: We spent more time at the hostel pool. Met 4 Germans and a lot of other friendly people! We intended to go to a show or a casino or to see the lights of "Old Las Vegas" Downtown on Fremont street...but we started at Dino's "Last Neighborhood Bar in Vegas" right next door to the hostel and of course fell in love. It was a karaoke bar (we don't sing) but everyone else that sang was real good and energetic. It was really lively and fun. Silver (Sylvester) couldn't read English but he loves rock music and was convinced to sing Dirty Deeds by AC/DC; he rocked the chorus. He was a lot of fun. Sam beat him at pool. Another guy sang "Under the Sea" from the Little Mermaid. A lot of people laughed and he said "If you don't like the Little Mermaid, Fuck you." It was such a joyously contagious atmosphere that we couldn't leave. Also, we noticed people taped dollar bills with messages to the ceiling above the bar! We asked the bartender why and she said people just started puttin em up there and then handed us a sharpie and some tape. When you go to Vegas stop at Dino's and look above the bar for "WI RULES! We love Vegas! Stephanie & Sam Road Trip 2011" dollar bill on the ceiling. ;)
And the drinks were cheap! At the clubs I paid $10 for a small plastic cup of malibu and pineapple, but at Dino's it was only $4! It was like paying for drinks back home. Also, Albo's pizza next door is also cheap and pretty good. When I have more money, I think I'm going to come back and stay a week at the hostel I recommend it to everyone!
It took some effort to leave...but we headed to Arizona. I drove along Old Route 66!! And we stopped at Road Kill Cafe along the Route in Seligman, AZ. We had huge burgers made from real Buffalo meat. It was really good. We took a lot of other pictures at some really interesting old buildings in Seligman, including one with a bunch of classy manequins by a classic car. ;)
Finally we made it to Tucson, AZ at our friend Dan's. It'll be nice to relax with him for a couple days! Today is the 4th so we went to a local picnic at a park and tonight we're goin' to go see fireworks at "A" Mountain from the Tucson Convention Center. Afterward, we'll probably go to the Sky Bar (it's solar run during the day and opens up to the stars at night!).
Happy 4th of July, everyone.
Love always & Forever,
Stephanie
And the drinks were cheap! At the clubs I paid $10 for a small plastic cup of malibu and pineapple, but at Dino's it was only $4! It was like paying for drinks back home. Also, Albo's pizza next door is also cheap and pretty good. When I have more money, I think I'm going to come back and stay a week at the hostel I recommend it to everyone!
It took some effort to leave...but we headed to Arizona. I drove along Old Route 66!! And we stopped at Road Kill Cafe along the Route in Seligman, AZ. We had huge burgers made from real Buffalo meat. It was really good. We took a lot of other pictures at some really interesting old buildings in Seligman, including one with a bunch of classy manequins by a classic car. ;)
Finally we made it to Tucson, AZ at our friend Dan's. It'll be nice to relax with him for a couple days! Today is the 4th so we went to a local picnic at a park and tonight we're goin' to go see fireworks at "A" Mountain from the Tucson Convention Center. Afterward, we'll probably go to the Sky Bar (it's solar run during the day and opens up to the stars at night!).
Happy 4th of July, everyone.
Love always & Forever,
Stephanie
Saturday, July 2, 2011
Days 17 & 18: LAS VEGAS!!!!!!!
I feel like this should probably be one of my longer entries but I feel like it's going to be short. Though not because it hasn't been amazing. It's SO fricken' amazing that it's hard to decide where to begin or how to write this.
First of all we are staying at Tod's Motor Motel and Hostel. Excuse my language but I FUCKING LOVE THIS PLACE. It's right on the Las Vegas strip. Yes. RIGHT ON THE DAMN STRIP. And for 2 people for 2 nights, it was less than $80!! It's just a couple blocks north of the Stratosphere. It's right next to Albo's Pizza and Dino's "last neighborhood bar in Vegas." If you go south a block across the street from a 7/11 there's a bus stop for the Deuce (and it's only $7 for a 24 hour pass and it makes all sorts of stops down the strip).
I was a little worried about staying in a hostel in a big city like this but I AM IN LOVE. We're in a girls dorm and we only have 2 other room mates and it's actually pretty quiet when we're in the room. The location on the strip is close enough to major attractions, but secluded enough that there's not a lot of drunken partiers walking about and being obnoxious. The people here are SO friendly. On the Deuce we met a guy from Germany (his name is Sebastian) who is also staying at the hostel. The first part of our night was spent walking around and sight-seeing with him. After awhile we split from him so that we could tour some casinos and we stopped at the RockHouse club and Margaritaville. ($10/per drink!!!) Saw a lot of lights, heard a lot of music, danced a bit, and took lots of pictures.
Aside from the strip we've been spending a lot of time at the secure pool at the hostel. And chatting with a lot of different people from all over or who have been all over.
I seriously love this place, and it's going to be so hard to leave.
Love always & Forever,
Stephanie
Song of the day: Every happy song you can think of. I'm in fuckin' Vegas, baby!
First of all we are staying at Tod's Motor Motel and Hostel. Excuse my language but I FUCKING LOVE THIS PLACE. It's right on the Las Vegas strip. Yes. RIGHT ON THE DAMN STRIP. And for 2 people for 2 nights, it was less than $80!! It's just a couple blocks north of the Stratosphere. It's right next to Albo's Pizza and Dino's "last neighborhood bar in Vegas." If you go south a block across the street from a 7/11 there's a bus stop for the Deuce (and it's only $7 for a 24 hour pass and it makes all sorts of stops down the strip).
I was a little worried about staying in a hostel in a big city like this but I AM IN LOVE. We're in a girls dorm and we only have 2 other room mates and it's actually pretty quiet when we're in the room. The location on the strip is close enough to major attractions, but secluded enough that there's not a lot of drunken partiers walking about and being obnoxious. The people here are SO friendly. On the Deuce we met a guy from Germany (his name is Sebastian) who is also staying at the hostel. The first part of our night was spent walking around and sight-seeing with him. After awhile we split from him so that we could tour some casinos and we stopped at the RockHouse club and Margaritaville. ($10/per drink!!!) Saw a lot of lights, heard a lot of music, danced a bit, and took lots of pictures.
Aside from the strip we've been spending a lot of time at the secure pool at the hostel. And chatting with a lot of different people from all over or who have been all over.
I seriously love this place, and it's going to be so hard to leave.
Love always & Forever,
Stephanie
Song of the day: Every happy song you can think of. I'm in fuckin' Vegas, baby!
Thursday, June 30, 2011
Days 15 & 16: Santa Paula, CA
More driving. Endless driving. Coastal scenery. Forests. Traffic. There's a lot of "Santa's" in southern Cali (Santa Paula, Santa Barbara, Santa Monica...etc...we even saw a Santa Claus Lane.). A lot of fields of fruit and vegetables. Part of the highway smelled like broccoli. Part of the highway smelled like garlic. There's a lot of field workers. A lot of towns with Spanish names. A lot of static and Spanish stations on the radio.
We pass a couple interesting towns: Castroville- Artichoke Center of the World
Buellton - Home of Split Pea Soup
When we get to Santa Paula, we stay at the Glen Tavern Inn. (http://www.glentavern.com/) We picked it out ahead of time because it was the cheapest place we could find, and only an hour and half away from Santa Monica. When we walk in there's classical music playing and it's HUGE and GORGEOUS! It's the fanciest place we've stayed at. The guy checking us in is even really friendly (and cute). There's an Italian restaurant Enzo's attached which he said the food is FANTASTIC (we ate there for dinner, and it was expensive but GOOOOOOD).
The lobby of the Inn is full of cushions and couches and lavish and luxurious chairs. The halls are covered with framed old movie posters... The hall with our room only has one room across from us...and when we enter our room, it's HUGE. It has a chandelier and each of us have our own queen-sized bed! THIS WAS THE CHEAPEST PLACE???? There's even a huge fancy sink in the bathroom...marble top and beautiful wood base with attention to details on the side. We even have a huge rustic wooden desk, and our own side tables with our own lamps. And a HUGE FLAT SCREEN TV. Yea...this place would definitely cost more anywhere else! By looking at the website I found out that they actually have murder mystery theater which I can SO SEE since when I saw the lobby I thought of the game Clue...
The next day we get a bit of a late start. Get up a bit late, get ready, get distracted by Comedy Central...and finally head out about 3ish... We drive down Hwy 1 or PCH (Pacific Coast Highway). We drove along the coast and went through Malibu! We drove to Santa Monica...and SAW the Santa Monica Pier...but didn't want to pay $8+ for an hour of parking. There were also a LOT of people. We preferred driving about 55mph along the coast with barely any people and traffic...so we turned around... We got stuck in some rush hour traffic but once we got outside of Malibu it was good again. We found a coastal entrance or beach area just outside Malibu and parked on the road...and went to the beach and got mauled by HUGE WAVES. We laughed every time one of us got knocked down. It was nice because aside from a hippie guy playing a guitar on the stairs, a couple kids jumping over waves while their mom read a book, and a few surfers we had a lot of the beach to ourselves.
Once it got a bit windier and the waves got higher we decided to leave and we drove along the coast as the sunset. :) When we got back to the Inn, I made a nice sandbox on the bathroom floor when I tried taking off my bathing suit and it took a few washes to get all the sand out of my hair...
After our showers, we also noticed our cooler nozzle was open and kinda leaked and flooded the carpet a bit...after using all the towels, it's still kind of wet. I hope it's dry by tomorrow...I don't want to be fined for flooding a room! Hopefully, it'll just remain a funny little secret. ;)
Tomorrow: Las Vegas here we come. :)
Love Always & Forever,
Stephanie
Songs of the day: Moves Like Jagger by Maroon 5 & California Gurls by Katy Perry
We pass a couple interesting towns: Castroville- Artichoke Center of the World
Buellton - Home of Split Pea Soup
When we get to Santa Paula, we stay at the Glen Tavern Inn. (http://www.glentavern.com/) We picked it out ahead of time because it was the cheapest place we could find, and only an hour and half away from Santa Monica. When we walk in there's classical music playing and it's HUGE and GORGEOUS! It's the fanciest place we've stayed at. The guy checking us in is even really friendly (and cute). There's an Italian restaurant Enzo's attached which he said the food is FANTASTIC (we ate there for dinner, and it was expensive but GOOOOOOD).
The lobby of the Inn is full of cushions and couches and lavish and luxurious chairs. The halls are covered with framed old movie posters... The hall with our room only has one room across from us...and when we enter our room, it's HUGE. It has a chandelier and each of us have our own queen-sized bed! THIS WAS THE CHEAPEST PLACE???? There's even a huge fancy sink in the bathroom...marble top and beautiful wood base with attention to details on the side. We even have a huge rustic wooden desk, and our own side tables with our own lamps. And a HUGE FLAT SCREEN TV. Yea...this place would definitely cost more anywhere else! By looking at the website I found out that they actually have murder mystery theater which I can SO SEE since when I saw the lobby I thought of the game Clue...
The next day we get a bit of a late start. Get up a bit late, get ready, get distracted by Comedy Central...and finally head out about 3ish... We drive down Hwy 1 or PCH (Pacific Coast Highway). We drove along the coast and went through Malibu! We drove to Santa Monica...and SAW the Santa Monica Pier...but didn't want to pay $8+ for an hour of parking. There were also a LOT of people. We preferred driving about 55mph along the coast with barely any people and traffic...so we turned around... We got stuck in some rush hour traffic but once we got outside of Malibu it was good again. We found a coastal entrance or beach area just outside Malibu and parked on the road...and went to the beach and got mauled by HUGE WAVES. We laughed every time one of us got knocked down. It was nice because aside from a hippie guy playing a guitar on the stairs, a couple kids jumping over waves while their mom read a book, and a few surfers we had a lot of the beach to ourselves.
Once it got a bit windier and the waves got higher we decided to leave and we drove along the coast as the sunset. :) When we got back to the Inn, I made a nice sandbox on the bathroom floor when I tried taking off my bathing suit and it took a few washes to get all the sand out of my hair...
After our showers, we also noticed our cooler nozzle was open and kinda leaked and flooded the carpet a bit...after using all the towels, it's still kind of wet. I hope it's dry by tomorrow...I don't want to be fined for flooding a room! Hopefully, it'll just remain a funny little secret. ;)
Tomorrow: Las Vegas here we come. :)
Love Always & Forever,
Stephanie
Songs of the day: Moves Like Jagger by Maroon 5 & California Gurls by Katy Perry
Wednesday, June 29, 2011
Day 14: Pigeon Point Lighthouse & Hostel
The main highways we're on are 101 and 1. We stay on 1 for quite awhile because it goes along the coast. It's VERY curvy and I can barely get up to 35mph before the next drastic turn comes up. Northern Cali has A LOT of forests. For awhile I feel like we're in the rainforest: narrow winding road, hardly any other vehicles, and lots of trees, fog and rain.
Every once in awhile we'd get a glimpse of the coast line and seaside cliffs and the tall, bronze, sun-bleached beach grass but then we'd quickly be engulfed in another cove of trees. We pass A LOT of vineyards...gorgeous rolling land, hills of fruit and flowers and other exotic Californian shrubbery.
As we get closer to San Francisco the traffic picks up DRASTICALLY. We go across the Golden Gate Bridge! (Which is more orangey-red rather than golden...but in all fairness, it was also EXTREMELY foggy). Going through San Francisco, we see the classic houses on the hills: all cookie-cutter with garages and standard entry ways, but all different colors. I keep thinking of the opening to Full House.
It was a really long day of driving (and through a lot of fog) but finally we get to Pigeon Point Lighthouse in Pescadero where there’s a hostel to stay at. I’m in love. Gorgeous cliffs full of flowers, shrubbery and moss. Seagulls perched. Waves crashing and receding and crashing some more…. The lighthouse is stunning. It’s old and the Parks Dept recently fully acquired it from the coast guard and are trying to collect money to repair it. It used to be well enough for tours but now they have it fenced in because they have wires holding up crucial parts of the tower. One bad storm or earthquake could take it away. I really hope they fix it. http://www.parks.ca.gov/?page_id=533 This is the only site I found besides the hostel site, but I recommend calling the parks department to see what kind of donations they’re taking. It would be great for them to keep this majestic landmark. I wandered the grounds a lot and got frizzy hair from all the fog and mist. Marveled at the lighthouse (which still emits light at night and through fog) and the ocean. It’s so strange looking that far…to a line where blue meets blue. The sights, the scents…I can’t get enough.
Finally it’s too dark and the grounds are starting to close and they’ll be locking the main entrance to the hostel so we go in. We sit in the common area for a while and listen to a couple speak…German (I think) to each other. There’s a large fish tank with a huge ship on top. Lots of ocean and boat and lighthouse pictures (and a lighthouse nightlight in our bathroom). Sam and I got bunks (I claimed top) in the girl’s dormitory of the Pelican House. We’re the only ones in the room even though there are 3 sets of bunks. I feel like we’re at camp. Light’s out at 11pm. I read F. Scott Fitzgerald’s The Beautiful and Damned. I curiously stare at my Little Mermaid pin from Denmark, and listen to the waves outside grow. I’m suddenly taken by thoughts of seaside mermaids, and lost sea-men looking for the lighthouse on the coast. I think about how we are all light houses and our souls light the way and guide us…
The waves lull me to sleep…
Love Always & Forever,
Stephanie
Song of the Day: Save Me San Francisco by Train
Every once in awhile we'd get a glimpse of the coast line and seaside cliffs and the tall, bronze, sun-bleached beach grass but then we'd quickly be engulfed in another cove of trees. We pass A LOT of vineyards...gorgeous rolling land, hills of fruit and flowers and other exotic Californian shrubbery.
As we get closer to San Francisco the traffic picks up DRASTICALLY. We go across the Golden Gate Bridge! (Which is more orangey-red rather than golden...but in all fairness, it was also EXTREMELY foggy). Going through San Francisco, we see the classic houses on the hills: all cookie-cutter with garages and standard entry ways, but all different colors. I keep thinking of the opening to Full House.
It was a really long day of driving (and through a lot of fog) but finally we get to Pigeon Point Lighthouse in Pescadero where there’s a hostel to stay at. I’m in love. Gorgeous cliffs full of flowers, shrubbery and moss. Seagulls perched. Waves crashing and receding and crashing some more…. The lighthouse is stunning. It’s old and the Parks Dept recently fully acquired it from the coast guard and are trying to collect money to repair it. It used to be well enough for tours but now they have it fenced in because they have wires holding up crucial parts of the tower. One bad storm or earthquake could take it away. I really hope they fix it. http://www.parks.ca.gov/?page_id=533 This is the only site I found besides the hostel site, but I recommend calling the parks department to see what kind of donations they’re taking. It would be great for them to keep this majestic landmark. I wandered the grounds a lot and got frizzy hair from all the fog and mist. Marveled at the lighthouse (which still emits light at night and through fog) and the ocean. It’s so strange looking that far…to a line where blue meets blue. The sights, the scents…I can’t get enough.
Finally it’s too dark and the grounds are starting to close and they’ll be locking the main entrance to the hostel so we go in. We sit in the common area for a while and listen to a couple speak…German (I think) to each other. There’s a large fish tank with a huge ship on top. Lots of ocean and boat and lighthouse pictures (and a lighthouse nightlight in our bathroom). Sam and I got bunks (I claimed top) in the girl’s dormitory of the Pelican House. We’re the only ones in the room even though there are 3 sets of bunks. I feel like we’re at camp. Light’s out at 11pm. I read F. Scott Fitzgerald’s The Beautiful and Damned. I curiously stare at my Little Mermaid pin from Denmark, and listen to the waves outside grow. I’m suddenly taken by thoughts of seaside mermaids, and lost sea-men looking for the lighthouse on the coast. I think about how we are all light houses and our souls light the way and guide us…
The waves lull me to sleep…
Love Always & Forever,
Stephanie
Song of the Day: Save Me San Francisco by Train
Tuesday, June 28, 2011
Day 13: Eureka, CA
We left Julia's between 10 and 11am. We took I-5 South most of the way. Then Hwy 199....and into Cali!! We drove through Redwood National Parks (had to get out and take some pics and touch one...) and then saw the Pacific Coast!! I loved the smell of the air, in the forest and along the ocean. Along some beach there were a lot of weathered birch barks with twisted branches.
One thing I wasn't expecting: A LOT of hitchhikers. (Of course, we didn't pick any up, but it was weird to see).
Finally, we made it to Eureka, California. We're staying at a Travelodge. So far, it's a really cute (and creative) town. They have a historic downtown which we're just outside of. They're known of course for their coastal views but also their Victorian architecture. A couple reasons we picked this place: (1) The name caught our attention on the map. (2) Our camping neighbor, Wally, from Yellowstone National Park recommended it and said it was a really neat place. (3) One of Julia's friends back in Portland is originally from Eureka and also gave high recommendations.
I'm still in a "I can't believe we're in Cali" mind-set. The first song that went through my head when we were cruisin' here was California Love by 2Pac. (Aaaaand it's still stuck in my head....).
Love always and Forever,
Stephanie
One thing I wasn't expecting: A LOT of hitchhikers. (Of course, we didn't pick any up, but it was weird to see).
Finally, we made it to Eureka, California. We're staying at a Travelodge. So far, it's a really cute (and creative) town. They have a historic downtown which we're just outside of. They're known of course for their coastal views but also their Victorian architecture. A couple reasons we picked this place: (1) The name caught our attention on the map. (2) Our camping neighbor, Wally, from Yellowstone National Park recommended it and said it was a really neat place. (3) One of Julia's friends back in Portland is originally from Eureka and also gave high recommendations.
I'm still in a "I can't believe we're in Cali" mind-set. The first song that went through my head when we were cruisin' here was California Love by 2Pac. (Aaaaand it's still stuck in my head....).
Love always and Forever,
Stephanie
Day 12: Julia's Apt
It was a day in. A day of laundry. A day of reading. A day of deep thought, and some conversation. Mostly just lounging around the apartment.
Though there's a reason: mixers the night before. ;)
Always & Forever,
Stephanie
song of the day: Find Out Who Your Friends Are by Tracy Lawrence
Though there's a reason: mixers the night before. ;)
Always & Forever,
Stephanie
song of the day: Find Out Who Your Friends Are by Tracy Lawrence
Sunday, June 26, 2011
Day 11: Downtown Portland
Julia got off of work at about 1:30 and just after 2pm we headed into downtown Portland. It was kinda crazy. They have A TON of one way streets and BUS and TROLLEY ONLY lanes. There were also people walking EVERYWHERE. Finally we found a parking garage. First stop: Powell's Book Store. Julia told us this thing is about as long as a city block. She wasn't exaggerating. When you walk in there's an entire HUGE ROOM devoted to specific genre's. For instance, the Gold Room was for science fiction, fantasy and thrillers. The Blue Room was for poetry and classic literature. And it goes on and on with the Rose Room, the Orange Room, etc. You could literally get lost in this place! I, of course, spent a little time in the gold room and A LOT of my time in the blue room next to Thoreau and Whitman. I got a couple books and some post cards and Sam found one of the books from her must-have reading list and a Portland key chain.
Afterward, we trekked a couple blocks downtown (and past the little Chinatown) to get to Voodoo Doughnuts. http://voodoodoughnut.com/menu.php I Think they were featured on the travel or food channel. But they have the weirdest (and most amazing!) donuts! Check out the website to view some of their menu...it's weird! And it's strictly a Portland thing. We were at their MAIN location which just had a soft reopening. It's grand opening won't be until 4th of July Weekend. I'm just glad we were able to get some of their donuts. Even if we did have to stand in line for about an hour...
After that we headed back to Julia's to relax for a bit and then we were planning on hittin' some clubs. However, after we got all dressed up we couldn't decide who was going to be DD (Designated Driver) and it would've taken us over an hour to get back downtown by bus and wayyy too expensive by cab. So we settled for the next best thing: we went to the nearest liquor store and bought whip creme flavored vodka, mango malibu rum, some juice, and some rootbeer. We came back to Julia's, played some music, and made some mixers. (Btw, whip creme vodka with rootbeer tastes just like a Rootbeer Float!)
Love Always & Forever,
Stephanie
We didn't really have a song of the day BUT I've been listening to Darren Hayes' new single Talk, Talk Talk....constantly....so I'll say that'll be the song for today. :)
Afterward, we trekked a couple blocks downtown (and past the little Chinatown) to get to Voodoo Doughnuts. http://voodoodoughnut.com/menu.php I Think they were featured on the travel or food channel. But they have the weirdest (and most amazing!) donuts! Check out the website to view some of their menu...it's weird! And it's strictly a Portland thing. We were at their MAIN location which just had a soft reopening. It's grand opening won't be until 4th of July Weekend. I'm just glad we were able to get some of their donuts. Even if we did have to stand in line for about an hour...
After that we headed back to Julia's to relax for a bit and then we were planning on hittin' some clubs. However, after we got all dressed up we couldn't decide who was going to be DD (Designated Driver) and it would've taken us over an hour to get back downtown by bus and wayyy too expensive by cab. So we settled for the next best thing: we went to the nearest liquor store and bought whip creme flavored vodka, mango malibu rum, some juice, and some rootbeer. We came back to Julia's, played some music, and made some mixers. (Btw, whip creme vodka with rootbeer tastes just like a Rootbeer Float!)
Love Always & Forever,
Stephanie
We didn't really have a song of the day BUT I've been listening to Darren Hayes' new single Talk, Talk Talk....constantly....so I'll say that'll be the song for today. :)
Friday, June 24, 2011
Day 10: Seattle & Portland
So we Googled. We looked up a good place to eat in Seattle that wasn't too "touristy." And I say we succeeded. It was a place called Pearl's. It was the most adorable cafe EVER and I'm absolutely IN LOVE with it. It wasn't really near any other restaurant or really any other main drag. It was kind of nestled in a residential area. It didn't look like much from the outside but the inside was FULL OF CHARM. Nice antique-y wired chairs with plush cushions at little cafe tables and red and purple sofas. A fire place, some fountains and charm-like lighting fixtures dangling from the ceiling. The menu was written in colorful paints and chalks on a chalk board. Sam & I both ordered a crepe (hers was Hammy Wammy, mine was a DELICIOUS Mango Chicken crepe with spinach and mushrooms--which I normally don't like--but the cheese and the chicken and the mango just blended with it all so well!). We also ordered something called bubble tea. Which I'm still not entirely sure what it is. But it comes in different flavors and you can choose to have tapioca or flavored gummies at the bottom. It's slightly reminiscent of a smoothie...but milkier...and with candy. But not like a shake. It's strange but absolutely wonderful! I almost want to drive back up there for lunch tomorrow.
But I-5 traffic is AWFUL! Today was the day of interstate driving...and IT SUCKED. Going into Seattle wasn't so bad on I-90...but then coming south on I-5 to Portland....we were in BUMPER TO BUMPER rush hour traffic for at LEAST an hour and a half...though it felt longer. After we got through it though, it was actually one of my favorite roads to drive on so far. Still scenic to me and slightly reminiscent of home...
Now we are in Beaverton, which is a part of Portland. We're staying at our friend Julia's for a couple days. We met one of her roommates and a couple of her friends and sat in the living room chatting and catching up. Since we'll be here for a couple days we've planned out a couple spots to hit which I'm quite anxious for (you'll find out later..:P). Today was already made simply by the bubble tea. I can't wait until tomorrow.
Love Always & Forever,
Stephanie
Song of the day: Hello Seattle by Owl City
But I-5 traffic is AWFUL! Today was the day of interstate driving...and IT SUCKED. Going into Seattle wasn't so bad on I-90...but then coming south on I-5 to Portland....we were in BUMPER TO BUMPER rush hour traffic for at LEAST an hour and a half...though it felt longer. After we got through it though, it was actually one of my favorite roads to drive on so far. Still scenic to me and slightly reminiscent of home...
Now we are in Beaverton, which is a part of Portland. We're staying at our friend Julia's for a couple days. We met one of her roommates and a couple of her friends and sat in the living room chatting and catching up. Since we'll be here for a couple days we've planned out a couple spots to hit which I'm quite anxious for (you'll find out later..:P). Today was already made simply by the bubble tea. I can't wait until tomorrow.
Love Always & Forever,
Stephanie
Song of the day: Hello Seattle by Owl City
Thursday, June 23, 2011
Day 9: Yakima, WA
We leave Missoula early. Drive through more mountains on I-90...and drive through northern Idaho. We passed through it pretty quickly. We get to Spokane, WA and stop for lunch at a McDonald's that's also a gas station. The people were friendly but the McDonald's should have been bigger for the amount of business they got. The architecture in Spokane is BEAUTIFUL. McDonald's had a couple pictures hanging up of how a couple of the old streets looked and even from I-90 there are a ton of towering buildings and gorgeous churches and steeples just popping into the sky. So far a lot of Washington landscape seems a lot like Wisconsin's. Spokane reminds us a little of Milwaukee.
We decide to get off I-90 after we've well passed the mountains. We take some back roads and the scenery is hilly and then flat...and then...desert?? It seems like we should be in Nevada or Arizona by the looks of it...and just as we remarked about it, Tumbleweed blew across the road in front of us. We laughed pretty hard and took a picture of the scenery and had people try to guess what state we were in. No one guessed we were in Washington.
We made it to Yakima, WA by 5pm PDT. It's weird being 2 hours behind our "normal" time! We watched Conan while it was sunny. Now we're just chillin' at a Motel 6. Being in a car for so long (even though it's really not doin' much) is still tiring.
Love Always & Forever,
Stephanie
Song of the day: Take a Back Road--Rodney Atkins
We decide to get off I-90 after we've well passed the mountains. We take some back roads and the scenery is hilly and then flat...and then...desert?? It seems like we should be in Nevada or Arizona by the looks of it...and just as we remarked about it, Tumbleweed blew across the road in front of us. We laughed pretty hard and took a picture of the scenery and had people try to guess what state we were in. No one guessed we were in Washington.
We made it to Yakima, WA by 5pm PDT. It's weird being 2 hours behind our "normal" time! We watched Conan while it was sunny. Now we're just chillin' at a Motel 6. Being in a car for so long (even though it's really not doin' much) is still tiring.
Love Always & Forever,
Stephanie
Song of the day: Take a Back Road--Rodney Atkins
Wednesday, June 22, 2011
Days 6-8: Yellowstone National Park & Missoula, MT
We stopped at a gas station in Lovell and get some ice to fill the cooler and buy some hot dogs and head off to Yellowstone National Park via the east entrance. Just a little ways down the highway we see a guy in a cowboy hat riding a horse with mountains in the distance (we are surely in the west!). Drive through more mountains...and through Cody, WY (the Rodeo Capitol of the world, in case ya didn't know. :P ).
When we get to Yellowstone, we plan on going to the Madison campground. Before that though is Old Faithful...so of course we HAVE to stop and see it. We just barely miss it and decide to wait about another hour for it to go off. It was worth it though. Geysers, steaming hot pools... Afterward, we have trouble finding a campsite. Most of em are full, which is strange because the weekend is over! But finally, we find an open spot at Indian Creek Campground. It's a nice distance away from main park traffic and no generators are allowed to be run so it's nice and quiet. (But...we end up driving a short bit up to Montana to get cash at an ATM...they don't accept cards or checks...).
Once we set up camp, we FAIL at starting a fire. We only have big chunks of wood, no kindling, and nothing to cut with...But our neighbors are friendly. Wally, Missy & their 4 year old son Luka from Colorado help us out. They share some of their wood and help us get it going. Luka keeps running up with twigs to burn and offers us "marshmallow sticks." Once the fire gets going, we cook some hot dogs. We sit and chat as it gets darker and Wally comes over and chats with us and shares his Cinnamon Schnapps.
OH, by the way, did I mention we had packed a tent and NO POLES??? Yea...so we end up sleeping in the car. After a nice fire and an AMAZING view of the stars, we go to sleep with the seats reclined and it gets COLDER & COLDER and COOOOLDER throughout the night. I can't believe how cold it gets there at night.
The next day we go to see the Upper and Lower Falls, the Petrified Tree and the Mud Volcano & Sulfur Cauldron. We do a lot of driving around the park and take walks on the trails and viewpoints. We see a lot of wildlife both days: deer, elk, buffalo walking in the middle of the streets! We also see a grizzly bear in the distance just walking through a field! We take lots of pictures. Btw, the second night we SUCCESSFULLY make and keep our own fire! Wally would be proud. ;)
We see a lot of interesting signs and hear some weird ads:
"Caution: Bears are dangerous! Do not approach. Up to $5000 fine."
"Avalanche Area: No stopping for 2 miles."
"Bugs like to eat with you. And eat you. Alive."
"Before meth, I had a brother. Now I have a thief."
After lots of exploring, we head off to Missoula, Montana on I-90 (the same interstate that goes through WI!). We picked it off the map because it sounds like a Western Diva's name. ;) We decide to squat at Ruby's Inn for the night. Back to civilization: TV, Internet, and phone reception again! (And showers!!!!)
Songs of the day:
Uhn Tis Uhn Tis Uhn Tis by Bloodhound Gang
I'm Gonna Be (500 Miles) by the Proclaimers
You're the One that I Want by Olivia Newton John & John Travolta <3
Love Always & Forever,
Stephanie
When we get to Yellowstone, we plan on going to the Madison campground. Before that though is Old Faithful...so of course we HAVE to stop and see it. We just barely miss it and decide to wait about another hour for it to go off. It was worth it though. Geysers, steaming hot pools... Afterward, we have trouble finding a campsite. Most of em are full, which is strange because the weekend is over! But finally, we find an open spot at Indian Creek Campground. It's a nice distance away from main park traffic and no generators are allowed to be run so it's nice and quiet. (But...we end up driving a short bit up to Montana to get cash at an ATM...they don't accept cards or checks...).
Once we set up camp, we FAIL at starting a fire. We only have big chunks of wood, no kindling, and nothing to cut with...But our neighbors are friendly. Wally, Missy & their 4 year old son Luka from Colorado help us out. They share some of their wood and help us get it going. Luka keeps running up with twigs to burn and offers us "marshmallow sticks." Once the fire gets going, we cook some hot dogs. We sit and chat as it gets darker and Wally comes over and chats with us and shares his Cinnamon Schnapps.
OH, by the way, did I mention we had packed a tent and NO POLES??? Yea...so we end up sleeping in the car. After a nice fire and an AMAZING view of the stars, we go to sleep with the seats reclined and it gets COLDER & COLDER and COOOOLDER throughout the night. I can't believe how cold it gets there at night.
The next day we go to see the Upper and Lower Falls, the Petrified Tree and the Mud Volcano & Sulfur Cauldron. We do a lot of driving around the park and take walks on the trails and viewpoints. We see a lot of wildlife both days: deer, elk, buffalo walking in the middle of the streets! We also see a grizzly bear in the distance just walking through a field! We take lots of pictures. Btw, the second night we SUCCESSFULLY make and keep our own fire! Wally would be proud. ;)
We see a lot of interesting signs and hear some weird ads:
"Caution: Bears are dangerous! Do not approach. Up to $5000 fine."
"Avalanche Area: No stopping for 2 miles."
"Bugs like to eat with you. And eat you. Alive."
"Before meth, I had a brother. Now I have a thief."
After lots of exploring, we head off to Missoula, Montana on I-90 (the same interstate that goes through WI!). We picked it off the map because it sounds like a Western Diva's name. ;) We decide to squat at Ruby's Inn for the night. Back to civilization: TV, Internet, and phone reception again! (And showers!!!!)
Songs of the day:
Uhn Tis Uhn Tis Uhn Tis by Bloodhound Gang
I'm Gonna Be (500 Miles) by the Proclaimers
You're the One that I Want by Olivia Newton John & John Travolta <3
Love Always & Forever,
Stephanie
Sunday, June 19, 2011
Days 4 & 5: Lovell, WY
We decide to head to Lovell, WY. It's not too far from Sheridan but it's closer to Yellowstone National Park. The only reason we're not heading to Yellowstone yet is because storms are supposedly raging through right now.
We drive through Big Horn Mountains and Bighorn National Forest. IT'S GORGEOUS. The views are spectacular. The roads are EXTREMELY curvy though. Parts of the road are so high up and there's no railing on the side. It starts off with seeing patches of snow....to just FEET of snow EVERYWHERE around us. Signs warning of Falling Rock and of Avalanche areas. Then when we get to the "descending"....it's a 10% grade. Low gear and CONSTANTLY on the brakes at 20mph in a lot of parts.
It was kind of scary but still really pretty and really cool. We saw it go from summer to spring to winter in less than 30 minutes. Some of the roads are "damaged" but I think the roads are pretty impeccable considering all the snow around and not even dustings on the roads! They must have amazing plow services. The road we're on is also only open seasonally. It's closed in winter. The main annoying thing was our ears popping every few minutes.
We finally make it to Lovell, WY. We stay at the Western Motel. Two nights (to wait out the storms). This is not only the cheapest place we've stayed at so far ($53/night) but also the one with the most character. Each room has it's own entrance from outside. Under each window is a flower box...with fake flowers. The room we have has the patio/picnic area right outside which is covered by a large awning and a white fence all around with fake flower boxes. The owners are an area man and his Filipino wife. They have a restaurant attached called "Cauc-Asian," where they serve American and Filipino/Asian style foods. Our room is quaint but cozy. We have a shower, a closet, and a mini fridge and microwave (even some of the hotels we were at didn't have a microwave). There's pictures of flowers and two pictures of cowboys: both of them are the same picture.
We've pretty much stayed in the hotel both days. Just waiting out the rain and watching movies. It's nice to just stay inside and relax and not worry about driving right away. We planned out some more set destinations (which you'll find out about later). Right now it's more movies....and then heading to Yellowstone tomorrow. I hope the storms will be done.
Song for Saturday 06/18--Mountain Music by Alabama
song for Sunday 06/19-- The Lazy Song by Bruno Mars
Love always & Forever,
Stephanie
We drive through Big Horn Mountains and Bighorn National Forest. IT'S GORGEOUS. The views are spectacular. The roads are EXTREMELY curvy though. Parts of the road are so high up and there's no railing on the side. It starts off with seeing patches of snow....to just FEET of snow EVERYWHERE around us. Signs warning of Falling Rock and of Avalanche areas. Then when we get to the "descending"....it's a 10% grade. Low gear and CONSTANTLY on the brakes at 20mph in a lot of parts.
It was kind of scary but still really pretty and really cool. We saw it go from summer to spring to winter in less than 30 minutes. Some of the roads are "damaged" but I think the roads are pretty impeccable considering all the snow around and not even dustings on the roads! They must have amazing plow services. The road we're on is also only open seasonally. It's closed in winter. The main annoying thing was our ears popping every few minutes.
We finally make it to Lovell, WY. We stay at the Western Motel. Two nights (to wait out the storms). This is not only the cheapest place we've stayed at so far ($53/night) but also the one with the most character. Each room has it's own entrance from outside. Under each window is a flower box...with fake flowers. The room we have has the patio/picnic area right outside which is covered by a large awning and a white fence all around with fake flower boxes. The owners are an area man and his Filipino wife. They have a restaurant attached called "Cauc-Asian," where they serve American and Filipino/Asian style foods. Our room is quaint but cozy. We have a shower, a closet, and a mini fridge and microwave (even some of the hotels we were at didn't have a microwave). There's pictures of flowers and two pictures of cowboys: both of them are the same picture.
We've pretty much stayed in the hotel both days. Just waiting out the rain and watching movies. It's nice to just stay inside and relax and not worry about driving right away. We planned out some more set destinations (which you'll find out about later). Right now it's more movies....and then heading to Yellowstone tomorrow. I hope the storms will be done.
Song for Saturday 06/18--Mountain Music by Alabama
song for Sunday 06/19-- The Lazy Song by Bruno Mars
Love always & Forever,
Stephanie
Day 3: From SD to WY
Near Murdo, SD is a place called "1880 Town." It looks like a western amusement park. You can see it from the interstate. There's also a ghost town; a billboard read: "Gas & Rocks. Next Exit." Around all these towns is apparently where Dances with Wolves was filmed.
The interstate is strange. Lots of billboards sticking out like sore thumbs in endless fields and prairie filled with (more) cattle. The towns we pass are small. No cities, no lights, and exits are rare. Just mile marker after mile marker...at 75 mph.
There's a lot of sky out here. And I wonder if prairie dogs are their state animal. I wonder what Buffalo hot dogs taste like.
We get to the Badlands today!!! We get out and climb a lot of rocks and just explore and take in all the scenery, and fresh air. It's nice to be out of the car for so long and just wander around. I finally get to use my professional DSLR and take some pictures of horses and wildlife. So this is where the buffalo roam! ;)
When we leave the Badlands we stop in Rapid City for lunch. We just type in "park" into the GPS and we found a park called "Dinosaur Park." And...we see why. They have giant dinosaurs. So we take some pictures, eat some lunch and move on.
We drive through Black Hills National Forest. We avoid as much interstate as possible and take a lot of scenic routes. We finally get to Wyoming. We stop at a Best Western in Sheridan for the night. It's difficult to get through because the whole main street is under construction and the hotel is at the other side! Finally, we get there and get comfy.
The best songs we found that fit the whole day were: Friday, I'm in Love by The Cure & Everyday is a Winding Road by Sheryl Crow.
Love Always & Forever,
Stephanie
The interstate is strange. Lots of billboards sticking out like sore thumbs in endless fields and prairie filled with (more) cattle. The towns we pass are small. No cities, no lights, and exits are rare. Just mile marker after mile marker...at 75 mph.
There's a lot of sky out here. And I wonder if prairie dogs are their state animal. I wonder what Buffalo hot dogs taste like.
We get to the Badlands today!!! We get out and climb a lot of rocks and just explore and take in all the scenery, and fresh air. It's nice to be out of the car for so long and just wander around. I finally get to use my professional DSLR and take some pictures of horses and wildlife. So this is where the buffalo roam! ;)
When we leave the Badlands we stop in Rapid City for lunch. We just type in "park" into the GPS and we found a park called "Dinosaur Park." And...we see why. They have giant dinosaurs. So we take some pictures, eat some lunch and move on.
We drive through Black Hills National Forest. We avoid as much interstate as possible and take a lot of scenic routes. We finally get to Wyoming. We stop at a Best Western in Sheridan for the night. It's difficult to get through because the whole main street is under construction and the hotel is at the other side! Finally, we get there and get comfy.
The best songs we found that fit the whole day were: Friday, I'm in Love by The Cure & Everyday is a Winding Road by Sheryl Crow.
Love Always & Forever,
Stephanie
Friday, June 17, 2011
Day 2: South Dakota
So we explored Watertown, SD. It, in fact, has A LOT of the same stuff as Watertown, WI as far as restaurants and stores (and a Watertown High School…). We stopped at Culvers and Wal Mart and we got excited over every sign that said Watertown. Yea…
So we had lunch at a local park. It was in a nice suburban area. We watched kids play baseball and heard a man play trash cans as drums in his garage. We had lunchables and soda, ‘cause we’re just that cool.
Then we found this huge clock tower in the middle of town so we went to check it out. The clock was originally purchased from Dakota Loan and Trust Co in 1887 for $1,000 and was housed at the top of city hall in 1889. But the clock had been sold in 1965 when that city hall was demolished. However, for a South Dakota Centennial Project in 1987, Mayor Herb Jenson searched for the clock and discovered it at Gem College in Quincy Illinois and purchased it (again) for $1,000. The tower we saw it in now was constructed from contributions and pledges of at least $35/person and the total cost was $80,000. Names cover all sides of the clock tower of all the major contributions. I thought it was so funny that they purchased this clock for essentially $2,000 just to keep it as a historical landmark!
Anyway, after exploring Watertown we moved on through SD; here are the road notes:
-Did you know that random country roads in SD have names like 213th Street or 406th Avenue? And…they don’t go in order. In fact, there’s a lot of gaps in the numbers. We can’t figure out why they are numbered this way. Especially out in the middle of nowhere.
-Cows….
-Lots of flat land and straight roads. And quite a bit of flooding (we don’t think it’s marsh land…but maybe we’re wrong?)
-More cows…
-They really want us to adopt a highway.
-Pierre, SD is scenic. Finally lots of hills! Surprise from all the flat farmland for miles.
-Fields of cows…
-Cross Missouri River and enter Mountain Time Zone around 4:50 pm…er..3:50pm
-There’s a liquor store with a drive-thru.
-Re-enter central time zone about 5:00pm CDT. Time zone border isn’t apparently a straight line…
-Holy cows, South Dakota has a lot of angus!
Now, we are in Murdo, SD. At another Best Western. We got here and enjoyed the last bit of sunshine by hitting the outdoor pool here. This town has a population of about 835. It’s SMALL. They’re “business” area (Main Street) looks like an old western saloon with how the shops are all lined up and designed! They are known for this small automobile museum that we passed when we entered. This town must mostly be rural because there seems to literally be 4 roads to this town and the town mostly consists of the intersection where they meet. We went down the only road that has like 3 hotels all by each other. A few feet up the road from the Best Western is some local pizza place and also Buffalo Bar and Restaurant. We went there for dinner. Wanna know why they call it Buffalo? ….Yup…they serve it. After we ate, we had a drink at the bar to wait out the hail and rain (It’s storming again…). I noticed at the bar they have a collection tin to collect money for a dock and fishing pier in the town. We threw some change in. I think the closeness of community out here is heartwarming. In fact, (it being a small town) everyone at Buffalo knew each other, and some kids (younger than 8 maybe) that knew the bartender came in after a baseball game and played at the pool table.
Now we’re just lying in the hotel, watching TV, and listening to the thunder outside. I hope tomorrow is sunny.
Love Always & Forever,
Stephanie
Songs of the day:
Clocks by Coldplay
La Vie Bohem from Rent soundtrack
So we had lunch at a local park. It was in a nice suburban area. We watched kids play baseball and heard a man play trash cans as drums in his garage. We had lunchables and soda, ‘cause we’re just that cool.
Then we found this huge clock tower in the middle of town so we went to check it out. The clock was originally purchased from Dakota Loan and Trust Co in 1887 for $1,000 and was housed at the top of city hall in 1889. But the clock had been sold in 1965 when that city hall was demolished. However, for a South Dakota Centennial Project in 1987, Mayor Herb Jenson searched for the clock and discovered it at Gem College in Quincy Illinois and purchased it (again) for $1,000. The tower we saw it in now was constructed from contributions and pledges of at least $35/person and the total cost was $80,000. Names cover all sides of the clock tower of all the major contributions. I thought it was so funny that they purchased this clock for essentially $2,000 just to keep it as a historical landmark!
Anyway, after exploring Watertown we moved on through SD; here are the road notes:
-Did you know that random country roads in SD have names like 213th Street or 406th Avenue? And…they don’t go in order. In fact, there’s a lot of gaps in the numbers. We can’t figure out why they are numbered this way. Especially out in the middle of nowhere.
-Cows….
-Lots of flat land and straight roads. And quite a bit of flooding (we don’t think it’s marsh land…but maybe we’re wrong?)
-More cows…
-They really want us to adopt a highway.
-Pierre, SD is scenic. Finally lots of hills! Surprise from all the flat farmland for miles.
-Fields of cows…
-Cross Missouri River and enter Mountain Time Zone around 4:50 pm…er..3:50pm
-There’s a liquor store with a drive-thru.
-Re-enter central time zone about 5:00pm CDT. Time zone border isn’t apparently a straight line…
-Holy cows, South Dakota has a lot of angus!
Now, we are in Murdo, SD. At another Best Western. We got here and enjoyed the last bit of sunshine by hitting the outdoor pool here. This town has a population of about 835. It’s SMALL. They’re “business” area (Main Street) looks like an old western saloon with how the shops are all lined up and designed! They are known for this small automobile museum that we passed when we entered. This town must mostly be rural because there seems to literally be 4 roads to this town and the town mostly consists of the intersection where they meet. We went down the only road that has like 3 hotels all by each other. A few feet up the road from the Best Western is some local pizza place and also Buffalo Bar and Restaurant. We went there for dinner. Wanna know why they call it Buffalo? ….Yup…they serve it. After we ate, we had a drink at the bar to wait out the hail and rain (It’s storming again…). I noticed at the bar they have a collection tin to collect money for a dock and fishing pier in the town. We threw some change in. I think the closeness of community out here is heartwarming. In fact, (it being a small town) everyone at Buffalo knew each other, and some kids (younger than 8 maybe) that knew the bartender came in after a baseball game and played at the pool table.
Now we’re just lying in the hotel, watching TV, and listening to the thunder outside. I hope tomorrow is sunny.
Love Always & Forever,
Stephanie
Songs of the day:
Clocks by Coldplay
La Vie Bohem from Rent soundtrack
Wednesday, June 15, 2011
Day 1: WI, MN, SD
This is what we scribbled in the notebook today (along with highlighting our route in at the atlas):
-Half hour head-start (left at 7:30 am instead of 8am)
-Make it to Osseo, WI by 10:30am
-Go to Norske Nook for breakfast and THE BEST PIE ON EARTH
-LOTTTTTTS OF RAIN
-1:30pm Minnesota: MALL OF AMERICA
*shopping, Cinnabons, gawk at amusement park, and FINALLY SUNSHINE!
-Hit the road, pull over @ Speedway to wait out eye of huge storm. Spouts of heavy rain and sunshine.
-Bumfuck Nowhere detour somewhere in the middle of MN
-Sacred Heart's hotel looks like a rundown apartment building, and their museum looks like a church
-WATERTOWN, SOUTH DAKOTA: Ramkota Hotel Best Western."
We'll be exploring more of Watertown, SD tomorrow. So far we like it: it's like being in the twilight zone because it's so similar to Watertown, WI! For now, though, we're gonna relax in our individual queen sized beds and call it a night.
Love Always & Forever,
Stephanie
SONG OF THE DAY: (there's 2 today) Anywhere for You-by Backstreet Boys
Rain is a Good Thing-Luke Bryan
-Half hour head-start (left at 7:30 am instead of 8am)
-Make it to Osseo, WI by 10:30am
-Go to Norske Nook for breakfast and THE BEST PIE ON EARTH
-LOTTTTTTS OF RAIN
-1:30pm Minnesota: MALL OF AMERICA
*shopping, Cinnabons, gawk at amusement park, and FINALLY SUNSHINE!
-Hit the road, pull over @ Speedway to wait out eye of huge storm. Spouts of heavy rain and sunshine.
-Bumfuck Nowhere detour somewhere in the middle of MN
-Sacred Heart's hotel looks like a rundown apartment building, and their museum looks like a church
-WATERTOWN, SOUTH DAKOTA: Ramkota Hotel Best Western."
We'll be exploring more of Watertown, SD tomorrow. So far we like it: it's like being in the twilight zone because it's so similar to Watertown, WI! For now, though, we're gonna relax in our individual queen sized beds and call it a night.
Love Always & Forever,
Stephanie
SONG OF THE DAY: (there's 2 today) Anywhere for You-by Backstreet Boys
Rain is a Good Thing-Luke Bryan
Tuesday, June 14, 2011
The Road Not Taken
Two roads diverged in a yellow wood,
And sorry I could not travel both
And be one traveler, long I stood
And looked down one as far as I could
To where it bent in the undergrowth;
Then took the other, as just as fair,
And having perhaps the better claim
Because it was grassy and wanted wear,
Though as for that the passing there
Had worn them really about the same,
And both that morning equally lay
In leaves no step had trodden black.
Oh, I marked the first for another day!
Yet knowing how way leads on to way
I doubted if I should ever come back.
I shall be telling this with a sigh
Somewhere ages and ages hence:
Two roads diverged in a wood, and I,
I took the one less traveled by,
And that has made all the difference.
by Robert Frost
Busy day of packing and running errands. Exhausted. We leave at 8am. Talk to you tomorrow!
Always & Forever,
Stephanie
Thursday, June 9, 2011
Counting Down...
Hello followers and random page readers, Sam here. Steph will be writing most (if not all) the rest of the blogs since she is the writer/English major between the two of us. Even though I am more so a math major and usually despised having to write essays in com skills and literature classes, I figured I would post at least one of my own on this site.
It’s less than one week until we start the trip. We are both extremely excited to be so close to the leaving date. Most things needed are in check; grocery list made for food to carry in cooler when we don’t want to eat out, list of necessary items to pack that we can’t easily buy elsewhere, estimated budget calculated and (roughly) met, my license renewed, Steph’s car checked and oil changed. This weekend we’re going to have one last hoorah with our friends (and the bartenders at a few of our favorite local bars). Then Tuesday is packing day, and Wednesday we head out bright and early around 7:00 or 8:00am CDT.
Steph and I agree the 15th can’t come soon enough. The past month we have been so eager about the whole event. The two of us cannot stop thinking about the experiences we will have, the people we will meet, and the stories that will be shared by the local towns’ people. There are obviously a few fears as well: running out of money part way through, getting lost/stranded in a creepy back alley neighborhood in one of the few large cities we visit, or even getting mugged (a couple of friends suggested we carry mace and my mom said to use hairspray). That’s when we think positive and say, “It’s just another story to tell.”
So here we all are with about 5 days to go. I am patiently waiting for the day to come, but damn it cannot come quick enough. We are ready for you western America, so bring us what you’ve got.
Yours Truly,
Samantha
It’s less than one week until we start the trip. We are both extremely excited to be so close to the leaving date. Most things needed are in check; grocery list made for food to carry in cooler when we don’t want to eat out, list of necessary items to pack that we can’t easily buy elsewhere, estimated budget calculated and (roughly) met, my license renewed, Steph’s car checked and oil changed. This weekend we’re going to have one last hoorah with our friends (and the bartenders at a few of our favorite local bars). Then Tuesday is packing day, and Wednesday we head out bright and early around 7:00 or 8:00am CDT.
Steph and I agree the 15th can’t come soon enough. The past month we have been so eager about the whole event. The two of us cannot stop thinking about the experiences we will have, the people we will meet, and the stories that will be shared by the local towns’ people. There are obviously a few fears as well: running out of money part way through, getting lost/stranded in a creepy back alley neighborhood in one of the few large cities we visit, or even getting mugged (a couple of friends suggested we carry mace and my mom said to use hairspray). That’s when we think positive and say, “It’s just another story to tell.”
So here we all are with about 5 days to go. I am patiently waiting for the day to come, but damn it cannot come quick enough. We are ready for you western America, so bring us what you’ve got.
Yours Truly,
Samantha
Sunday, May 22, 2011
Saturday, May 7, 2011
Watertown
So, I know our road trip isn't for about another month, but part of the "richness and substance" of this trip is discovering the small, unknown hideaways and treasures of small towns. What better way to start than to share some things about our town?
I've only lived in Watertown since I was 13. My dad moved my brother and I here from Milwaukee before we started high school. Sam is a native; born here, raised here. I met her in 2001-2002 when we moved here.
Some things I love about Watertown:
-Everything is locally named, i.e. Watertown High School, Watertown Daily Times. As you can probably guess there wasn't a lot of that in Milwaukee.
-It doesn't matter where I go in Watertown, it's likely that I'll run into a couple people I know.
-Main Street and Church Street. They're the main roads going through town (also known as Highway 19 and Highway 26 respectively). Main Street has TONS of small local businesses and it's always busy with people.
-The town really promotes local businesses and local activities with Main Street Maxwell Street Days when all the businesses have sidewalk sales. Also, there's summer street dances, Farmer's Markets at Riverside park every Tuesday in the summer, parades for just about every holiday and high school event and Riverfest (our free music festival at Riverside Park which lasts for about 3 days in August). http://watertownriverfest.info/
-Mullens: A local ice cream parlor that has been there for YEARS. They have different ownership now, but have kept the name the whole time. And a lot of the wall decor and memorabilia has stayed the same. It's an old-fashioned diner; they make their own ice cream AND you get a free ice cream cone if it's NEGATIVE 20 Degrees Fahrenheit or below. :) And there's also Glenn's Meat Market. In addition to fresh meat, he has a Brat Haus outside that people can use for charity and non-profit events. You'll know Glenn's when you see it: he has GIANT statues of animals outside, the chicken is the largest but he also has a cow and a pig. http://www.glennsmarket.com/index.html And Tribeca:
http://www.tribecagallerycafe.com/
They are my favorite book store. And they sell real freshly made gelato! Speaking of...I went there yesterday to get some after my friend Kayla and I were doing some planning for her baby shower. And I also ended up getting a couple books and a LOVELY new journal that has pictures of a glittery world globe on the outside and inspirational travel quotes on the headers of some of the pages inside from famous people and poets.
As you can see, we are preparing for our road trip: A large atlas to highlight our route, my professional grade Nikon DSLR, my lovely new journal, and some classic literature. :)
Sam and I spent some time at the park yesterday. Just enjoying the warmer weather, the green starting to bud everywhere, and talk about our trip...
This is why Riverside Park is one of my favorite spots...
Check out: http://www.watertowntourism.com/ Or come visit us! We can show ya' around. :)
Always and Forever,
Stephanie
Monday, May 2, 2011
Get Your Kicks on Route...Hmm, wait, what road are we taking?
So here's our map. Sam and I have already planned expenses, saved (still saving as much as we can), and now have the general route outlined. There's a few planned destinations but otherwise it's wherever the road and our whims take us. So that's why the map is just an outline. We'll hopefully end up in a lot of small towns, on a lot of back roads and acquire quite a bit of adventure and stories to share.
I've known Sam for about 10 years and we had talked about taking a cross-country road trip the summer after we graduated high school. For all the excuses in the book (i.e. no money saved, no vehicle, etc) we never ended up doing it. So now it's five years after high school has ended, and while life has taken us down different paths during that 5 years, we've arrived at the same place. And the place and the timing are perfect. And even though we could easily conjure up some obstacles, instead of using them as reasons not to go, we're coming up with ways to work through them.
It's really going to happen this time.
So, right now, it's a waiting game. Stay tuned. Road trip starts June 15th, 2011 and will end mid-July.
I'm so excited. :)
Always & Forever,
Stephanie
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