Back Home from Hollywood!

Hello to all from....PHILLY!!

Yup, Emily, Mom, and I flew on Thursday morning from John Wayne Airport to Denver and from Denver to Philadelphia. When we began to fly over the city it was around 8:00 and all the lights were welcoming us home. We couldn't have wished for a better welcome!

But I know you don't want to hear about our plane experience. You want to hear all about Hollywood!!!

Emily, Mom, Brenda and I (Granny didn't want to come) hopped in Mom's rental car Wednesday morning and sped on the freeway to Los Angeles and Hollywood Boulevard. Well, it wasn't a very speedy ride exactly, we were going at more of a snail's pace. But as we got closer to Hollywood itself we were thankful for the slow traffic because we got to see the Hollywood sign! 

When we got to Hollywood, the first thing we did was head towards Madame Tussaud's Wax Museum which took us past the Chinese Theatre.

**This is where my original post ended. The following is a 
continuation of our journey to the best of my memory nearly 10 years later.

In Madame Tussaud's we saw stars we'd never get to otherwise. I took a long cherished picture with Justin Timberlake, Emily took one with Justin Bieber, and Mom took one with a favorite of hers: Forrest Gump and his iconic box of chocolates. But that's not all! We sat in the coveted captain's seat on the Starship Enterprise, we had laughs with Jim Carrey and Robin Williams, we met Betty White (shorter than I thought), Jennifer Aniston, and literally looked up to Thor and his platforms. 

With stars in our eyes we continued down Hollywood Blvd and strolled on the Hollywood Walk of Fame. We walked to the place where the stars begin and took a picture with the first star and saw Elvis Presley's and The Beatle's stars close by. 

Walking back on the other side of the street to take in as many stars as we could, we realized we were hungry. It's lunch time and where do you go in Hollywood for lunch? Just then, we spied the Hard Rock Cafe and knew there was nowhere else to go! We got a table relatively quickly and the atmosphere was, admittedly, rockin'. The lights were dim, a lighted sign read "love all serve all", and famous guitars hung on the walls. We ordered some much needed drinks, onion rings, and nachos. They were wonderful on that hot August day. 

After a little lunch, we headed back to the hotel. We had dinner with Uncle Paul that night and Emily, Mom, and I prepared for our first flight in the morning. 

We had a wonderful time with Granny and Brenda during that trip. Even now we remember those times fondly and those experiences have helped guide us multiple times. Sadly, since then Uncle Paul has passed but we are so thankful for his life and how his need for his sister (Granny) allowed us to take the road trip of a lifetime. 

Kickin' it in Cali!

A big loud HEY! to you all from Westminster, California!!

We had a great big day traveling from Barstow to Westminster and exploring Orange County and the beach.

Early this morning we packed up the car and went over to the IHOP down the street for breakfast. Everyone had a great breakfast and it was a great start to our short travel day. But, on the way towards I-15 we got into a minor accident. No one was hurt, the cars were OK, and we were only delayed an hour while we exchanged information and waited for the authorities to arrive.

When we got back on the road we were all ready to get far away from Barstow! We drove through more beautiful desert and here and there wee began to see more palm trees. We also saw a really cool, old Chevrolet being towed by a bigger van. It looked like it was in relatively good condition and we all hoped that the owner was going to restore it to its former glory or better!

Even though we were only traveling about 120 miles today, it was still rough. There were more turns and divergent roads and confusing signs than we knew what to do with! But in the beautiful rolling hills of California we figured it out and were able to get to the hotel we'll be calling home for the next few days. 

About an hour after we were settled in our room, a little blue car came rolling up and who should it be? None other than Mom!(aka Amy) She had a great flight from Philly to Denver, a three hour layover, and a not so great flight from Denver to the airport in our area in California. We all got caught up and moved her things into our room and began thinking of places to go for dinner and what we were going to do afterwards. We decided we would eat at In-N-Out Burger, watch the sunset at the nearest beach, and do a bit of shopping at Walmart since we were running low on a few items. 



In-N-Out Burger was a great place to eat. It was inexpensive, the burgers are good, and the service was great! 

The ride over to the beach was a bit confusing but we got there in plenty of time to see the sunset and dip our toes in the Pacific Ocean. The beach we went to was spectacular compared to the beaches in New Jersey. It was clean, it wasn't as crowded, and we found free parking! The sunset was very beautiful. It filled the sky with oranges, reds, and yellows we don't get to see reflected off the ocean on the East Coast. 

While we were dipping our feet in the ocean we saw pelicans, which we don't get to see to often at the Jersey beaches. We were even able to see them bomb diving the water to get fish for dinner. It was amazing to see them plunge into the water and see the splash that followed.

After our time at the beach and our excursion to the nearest Walmart, we all collapsed in our beds for a good night's sleep. Tomorrow will be just as eventful and fun-filled as today since we'll be spending most of the day in Hollywood! It will be my, Mom's and Emily's last full day on the trip. We can't wait to see what Hollywood has waiting for us!

Galloping to the stars,

Kim

A Grand Post

Hello!!

We are in Barstow, California and we finally have good WiFi! 

As the title suggests, this will be a grand post and will include our adventures in and around the Grand Canyon over the past three days and our travels to Barstow today.

Grand Canyon Day 1

This was the day we left Holbrook, Arizona and traveled to our hotel in Valle, Arizona. In the morning we passed a "tourist trap" (as Granny calls them) called Geronimo. Granny and Brenda said they were there during a previous trip and said it wasn't worth stopping. We did take some pictures and it looked pretty cool with the teepees and petrified wood. If we weren't on a schedule, I would have loved it if we stopped just so I could see everything for myself.

When we got to Valle and secured our hotel room we went over to the Grand Canyon Airport to see Granny's nephew Ronnie who works for Grand Canyon Helicopters. Before we even left home Emily and Brenda knew they were going to fly in a helicopter. I am afraid of heights so I opted out as soon as I heard about it. When we got in Emily and Brenda were checked in and we met Ronnie and his grandson Cody. They assured them that the ride is safe and much smoother than an airplane and that they would love the view. When Emily and Brenda got in the helicopter I got kind of jealous; It looked like it was really cool! When they came back I started wishing I went with them. Emily and Brenda were both speechless and to get a glimpse of what they experienced I looked at their pictures. After looking through the pictures I could see why they were speechless. 


That night we had dinner with Ronnie, Cody, and Ronnie's wife, Andy. We had a great time eating and talking. We probably stayed in the restaurant for two or three hours! While we were eating Ronnie asked me from across the table if I would like to go on a helicopter ride. I knew that this might be my only chance to try something like this and fear of heights or not, I was gonna try it! I said yes, as long as someone went with me. Emily and Brenda gladly volunteered to come with me. 

After dinner, we said good-bye to our family and went straight to our room and fell asleep. We had a really long, eventful day!

Grand Canyon Day 2

This was the day I got my turn to ride in a helicopter over the Grand Canyon. We woke up, ate breakfast at the hotel and went to the gift shop close to the hotel since we had extra time to kill before our 1:00 flight. There were some really interesting things in the store including Native American pottery and crafts, petrified wood, and other Grand Canyon themed gifts. 

When it was time to go to the Airport for our flight I was really nervous and excited. Brenda and Emily were just excited to be going on again and were telling me during the car ride and our wait in the building that it was amazing and I wouldn't regret it. They were right!

When we walked out to the helicopter, got in and strapped ourselves in I was smiling like I've never smiled before, giddy with excitement. Waiting for take off was excruciatingly long but when Ronnie gave the OK and we finally took to the air I was swept off my feet and the air was taken from my lungs. I never thought I'd ride in a helicopter but this was just amazing. 

The pilot had to turn the helicopter around to get us going in the right direction. After we were going the right way, the pilot flew us over the Kaibab National Forest which is one of the largest in the country at 1.6 million acres and surrounds the Grand Canyon. 

As soon as the forest ends, you are swept into the Canyon itself. An immense chasm stretches before you and it's hard to believe that you're awake and not in some wonderful dream. When I got my first glimpse of the Grand Canyon I was on the verge of tears; never before in my life had I seen anything so compelling and awe-inspiring. 

As we flew over the formations carved by the Colorado River there was a narrator telling us more about this amazing wonder of the world. The narrator shared a quote from President Theodore Roosevelt which I whole-heartedly agree with. He said, 

"In the Grand Canyon, Arizona has a natural wonder which is in kind absolutely unparalleled throughout the rest of the world. I want to ask you to keep this great wonder of nature as it now is...You cannot improve on it. The ages have been at work on it, and man can only mar it."

I can only agree with his statement after seeing the Grand Canyon with my own eyes from the air. The next logical step for us was to see the Canyon on the ground!

But alas, twas not to be. 

After our helicopter ride we were all hungry chicks and went to McDonald's. During lunch we talked and discovered Emily wasn't feeling all that great. We decided that the best thing to do was to get back to the hotel and have a restful evening since all of us were still very tired from traveling and needed to decompress. 

We all had a very peaceful night whether we stayed in the room or relaxed outside after the rainstorm that passed through the area. That was when I was able to post to the blog and tell all of you we were OK!

Grand Canyon Day 3

This was the day we actually saw the Grand Canyon!

We woke up early and ate our breakfast so we could spend as much time as possible at the Canyon. In the car we were all excited and itching to see what Emily, Brenda, and I saw from above. When we finally got in the park and parked at the visitor's center we saw the free movie they had on a continuous loop. It was very informative and got us ready to see the Grand Canyon up close! After the visitor's center, we walked over to the bookstore to check out what they had. There were some great books and postcards, and I saw a brochure for Adopt-a-Lion that I was very interested in. We didn't buy anything yet since we didn't want to carry it with us as we walked around.

We walked over to the bus terminal area and figured out where we wanted to go. We decided we wanted to go to Hermit's Rest and found that we needed to take two buses in order to get there. The first bus ride was relatively short and it wasn't long until we were at our transfer. And the view from the stop was amazing! We really got our first look at the Grand Canyon from this stop. It was beautiful!

When we got on the bus to Hermit's Rest we decided that we wanted to stop at a look out called the Abyss on our way. As we approached the Abyss it started to drizzle. Brenda, Emily and I still wanted to get off but Granny elected to stay on the bus and ride the rest of the way to Hermit's and would meet us there. When we got out at the Abyss it was raining much harder than it was before but the view was stunning! We could see why it was called the Abyss; it dropped straight down and definitely looked like it was bottomless. 

The rain did let up for a while but when the three of us got back on a bus to take us to Hermit's Rest the light drizzle had become a torrential downpour! As soon as we got on the bus we were informed that it was highly recommended that we not get off the bus. When we got to Hermit's Rest we could see Granny from the windows and started to move towards the doors. Again, we were told that it was highly recommended that we stay on the bus as lightning was spotted in the area. But being who we are we insisted that we get off and catch the next bus with Granny. They finally let us off and the next bus wasn't too far behind. We just couldn't leave Granny alone at the Grand Canyon!

On the way back to the visitor's center the rain got harder, we could see lightning, and we could hear loud rumbles of thunder. But the little baby boy sitting with his parents in front of me and Emily wasn't deterred in the least. He was giggling and smiling the whole ride back. We knew he didn't speak English (if he could speak at all), but he could certainly understand the universal language of funny faces! On the ride back we also saw a lot of elk out and about next to the roads. It was shocking how many small herds we saw on the way back. We tried to take pictures of them every time but we were either slow with the draw or the pictures came out blurry. Those elk are elusive animals!

Safely back at the visitor's center, we went back to the bookstore to make the purchases we didn't feel like carrying with us. Granny and Brenda both got some great stuff and I, after thinking about it for a bit, adopted a mountain lion! It was a one time donation and I can go online and see what's up with the ones they tagged. The woman at the counter told me that there were five new cubs born this year. For a bit more information on tagging mountain lion cubs you can click here. Did I mention that I got an adorable plush mountain lion for my donation?

By the time we got in the car it was still raining and all of us were hungry since we hadn't eaten anything since breakfast. On the way back our eyes were peeled for anything that looked good. One of the first things we saw was Yippie-ei-O Steakhouse and we thought that would be one of the best choices since our other options were either too expensive or McDonald's. The food was very good; it was probably the best food we had eaten in a while.

As we were walking towards the car after our meal in the light rain we saw a double rainbow which Emily was very excited about. We took lots of pictures of it since it was a beautiful rainbow that stretched all the way across the sky. 

After our rainbow photo op we piled into the car and went back to our hotel. We were tired from trekking in the rain and standing in the buses but there was one thing we had to do before we could go back to our room: laundry. We asked the woman at the front desk where we could accomplish our task and we were told to go across the street to the Flintstones Bedrock Campground. Long story short: it was not a great experience and we would recommend it as much as a bus driver would recommend getting off the bus during a thunder storm at the Grand Canyon. 

After our laundry was "done" we hightailed it over to our hotel room where we fell asleep as soon as our heads hit the pillow.

Today - To Barstow!

This morning we woke up after a grand night's sleep and packed up the car. It was nice to stay in one place for a while but it was even better to be on the move again. Before leaving we stopped in at the gift shop/convenience store for some souvenirs and shampoo (Emily and I were running dangerously low). Then, instead of having breakfast at the hotel for the third morning in a row, we stopped at a Denny's in Williams. After our meal our ride to Barstow, California was relatively uneventful. But I will say that the clouds in Arizona are absolutely beautiful! Since you are still about 5000-6000 feet above sea level the clouds were so close you can see every minute detail. And with the vivid blue of the sky, vibrant green of the scrub, and the stunning red of the soil it made for the perfect scene. 

We crossed into California around lunch time and drove through the Mojave Desert where rest stops and gas stations are far and few between. When we finally did find something and got out of the car we tried to make it to the building without melting. The temperature was well above 100 degrees. Barstow isn't much better; at 8:00 at night while the sun was going down it was still about 102! 

We traveled about 350 miles today from Valle, Arizona to Barstow California. Emily and I have also counted how many states we have been in: 23 (and that's not just this trip). We are realizing that we are so lucky to be able to travel as much as we do and to see as much as we have seen. 

If you would like to see more pictures from our Grand Canyon adventure, you can go to our new tab titled "Grand Canyon." For more pictures from today's journey, you can go to the tab titled "More Pictures."

Before we head off to bed we wanted to thank everyone who is following us on our gallivanting and praying for us as we travel. We love you all and wish you were here!

Galloping with love to the West Coast

Kim

Grand Canyon Fun

Hello all!

We are at the Grand Canyon having a great time!

We haven't been to the Canyon itself but we did fly over it in a helicopter! Our cousin Ronnie works at one of the companies and he got us a great discount. We loved every minute of the ride. Emily and Brenda loved it so much they went on it the first time without me and when I got jealous they went again with me!
The view was absolutely wonderful. We can't even describe the beauty. All we can say is that you have to see it for yourself. We are convinced that the best way to see the canyon is by air!

This is the first post we could publish for a while since there isn't a great WiFi signal out here. 

But we wanted to let you guys know we were ok. Pictures and video of the helicopter ride and the canyon on the ground is coming soon!

Galloping and looking for WiFi,

Kim

Galloping Past Gallup

Yup! We went the extra mile today (or should I say 90 miles!) and drove on to Holbrook, Arizona. The reason why we went farther than we originally planned is because we decided we wanted to have more time at the Grand Canyon and  we felt that we could add an hour to our drive time without getting too tired. 

We also added some travel time because of some of the stops we made. We stopped at a shop called the Flying C Ranch. We could see it coming a few miles off because of all the signs just like the trading post we stopped at yesterday. As the sign suggests, there was some pretty cool stuff there. We saw some desert themed gifts, pottery, lots of knives (there was even one shaped like a gun!), and some great postcards. After we were all done shopping we treated ourselves with some Dairy Queen ice cream. 

After some shopping we drove through all sorts of things today: rain, construction, rain and construction at the same time, and some really spectacular scenery. The mountains in New Mexico were beautifully colored. It was as if someone had painted them to look like sunsets. Many of the ridges and plateaus seem to pop up out of nowhere.

We also crossed the Continental Divide today. For those of you who aren't sure what that is (like all of us here were), the Continental Divide is a hydrological separation of the nation and it tells the rivers where to go. It is because of the Continental divide that the rivers on the eastern side of the divide all flow into the Atlantic Ocean and all the rivers on the western side flow into the Pacific Ocean. 

After crossing the Continental Divide, we passed through Gallup, New Mexico and then we crossed yet another state line that took us into Arizona. When we got into our hotel for the night we were pooped! We drove around 400 miles total and we had unknowingly crossed into another time zone. We are now in the Pacific Time zone and that's 3 hours behind our home state. It's a good thing our drive tomorrow isn't too long! We'll be headed for the Grand Canyon and will stay there for a few days to explore one the most amazing sights of our country. I can't wait!

Ready to gallop to the Canyon!

Kim 

PS. Yesterday's answer for the joke of the day (how much did Tucumcari?) is:

A WashingTON!

Today's joke is more like the funny thing of the day. Arizona has some crazy laws and we thought we'd share some with you. For example:

Hunting camels is prohibited,

Donkeys cannot sleep in bathtubs,

You cannot play cards in the street with a Native American,

and

In Mohave county there is a decree that declares that anyone caught stealing soap must wash himself with it until it is all used up. 

Id' hate to be caught stealing soap; it's a good thing I brought enough to last for the whole trip!

Trekking to Tucumcari

Greetings from Tucumcari, New Mexico!

We drove a whopping 375 miles (and then some) to get here. It took just about 8 hours to get here with all the stops we made in between. However, the stops we made were all fun!

After we left the hotel we got back onto I-40 and were on our way. Almost as soon as we got on the interstate we began to see signs for the Cherokee Trading Post. We thought it would be fun to stop and see what they had. Stopping was a great idea! We had a good time walking through the store looking at all the Native American themed gifts. We got presents for family, jewelry, stickers, and I got a stuffed bison! 

After our stop at the trading post we drove for a while and decided we wanted to go to the Route 66 Museum. This was a really cool stop too once we found it! We saw a working juke box, classic cars through the decades, and some really great gas pumps. The gift shop was, of course, all things Route 66. Brenda got a really cool t-shirt and I got some red dice to go in my car (when I get one).



During breakfast at the hotel this morning, Brenda mentioned she wanted to see Shamrock, a small town in Texas that became famous for it's Conco Tower appearing in the movie Cars. That was a really awesome stop. We were only going to stop long enough to take some pictures but we found a Dairy Queen and stayed longer than expected. Also going through Texas, we saw the world's largest cross. They aren't lying when they say it's the biggest. You can see it coming miles away and when you finally get to where it is you can hardly believe your eyes! If you want to find out more about the 19 story cross you can click here. 

Something else that was really mind blowing about Texas was that you could see even farther because of the gently rolling hills. It was 
amazing how far you can see. I would have loved to spend some more time there, maybe even take a horse back ride through some of the area. 

We finally reached New Mexico after a long day of driving. But what we didn't realize until we got to our hotel room was that we went through another time change. That's right, we are now in the mountain time zone! While it's only 11pm here, it's 1am at home. I don't think I will ever get tired of that novelty!

Tomorrow we will be headed toward Gallup. That's another 300 miles and we won't even be going into another state! 

Galloping in New Mexico,

Kim

Joke of the Day

Hi! Emily here with the joke of the day while Kim writes the big blog entry for the day's travel.

The answer for yesterday's joke of the day (What state isn't feeling to well?) is:

ILLinois!!

Today's joke is:

How much did Tucumcari?

For the answer, check in tomorrow!

Bye for now!

Emily