7/6/14

As the clock continues to move forward and the sun continues to set the night before my senior year, I think it's appropriate to reflect on my summer. Summer 2014 truly has been the best summer I've ever had. Though this trip has been planned out for about a year, I never thought it would actually happen. I've always loved traveling but never thought I would travel through 33 states and Canada. It truly has been an unforgettable journey and though I would change some things, I would never change the experience. I've seen some of the most beautiful things that our country has to offer and I'll never be able to thank/show my dad enough appreciation for this summer. I did and saw things I had only dreamed of and there is nothing more fulfilling than being able to say that I did what I did. I don't know how many 17 year olds can say that they have traveled through the country (and Canada!) and it's a nice feeling to say that I have. Nothing I say or do will never equate to how grateful I am that my dad took me on this trip. This is something I will never forget and will always cherish. I'm so happy I was able to do all of this with someone who means more to me than he will ever know. Thank you so much dad, I love you!

We left Florida at about 10 in the morning and got to North Carolina early in the evening. This part of the drive was the easiest and we were kind of beginning to plan on being home by the next night. So we got up at a decent time and started our way to Cape Cod, MA. The second day of the drive was pretty brutal, there is nothing worse than Washington DC and New Jersey traffic. Surprisingly NYC wasn't that bad, but DC and NJ were horrible, I think it took us about 2 or 3 hours to get through DC to NJ. I don't think we're gonna be going through that area for a while (ever again). We ended up getting home to the Cape at around 9 or 10 and I had never been that excited to go over the good ol' Sagamore bridge.

After our way to Florida from Texas, we stayed in Florida for about three weeks. The first few days were days for us to recuperate from the previous long days of travel. Some of my family from Kansas came down and spent a week with us and though it was hectic, it was really nice to see some family. Then I spent a weekend with my sister which was nice. I don't always get to see either of my sisters so when I can get the time to see them, I'll take it. Other than that, my dad and I just hung out and started getting some stuff ready for the trip home to Massachusetts.

Day 20 was another day in Victoria, TX with my uncle. My dad, uncle, cousin and I went around Victoria and went to a few museums and historical sites. We didn't realize that Victoria was so historic before now. It was a relaxing day, we didn't do much but it was nice to just wind down a little bit. Day 21 we spent again in Texas. My aunt suggested that we do something fun instead of sitting in the house all day. So we ventured an hour an a half down to Port Aransas where we spent the day. That was a really cool area but I wish it wasn't so busy. I've always wanted to go parasailing but it has never seemed to work out and Port Aransas was no different. We got there and we had gotten a reservation for 6 pm, but they had warned us that winds pick up in the afternoon and that cancellations happen. Which is exactly what happened. I was a little disappointed, simply because I've tried 3 times now to go parasailing. Port Aransas is so nice though, we spent a lot of time driving around more than exploring because it was just so busy and everywhere we went as full. It was such a cool little area and hopefully I can go back, just this time lot earlier so we can actually do more things. My stay in Texas was nice as always, I love seeing my uncle, cousin and aunt. While we were there, we watched a lot of movies; Heaven is For Real, Robocop and Non-Stop. All were great movies and all were movies I had wanted to see. Day 22 was an all day travel day from Texas to Florida. We did the "leave at 2 am" thing and got to Florida at 8:45 pm. Not much happened that day so I don't really have much to say!

Day 19: We left the hotel at a decent time and headed to Victoria, TX to stay with my uncle. On the way to Victoria, we went to Lockhart, TX and stopped at Black’s BBQ. It was pretty much a self serve BBQ place which was different. You choose your sides first, then go up to the meat butcher and he has pork ribs, beef ribs, brisket, turkey and sausage. My dad and I shared the meat and we got a lb. of the baby back pork ribs, one beef rib (which my dad called a dinosaur bone because it was gigantic), a sausage and a few slices of brisket. I personally liked Oklahoma Joe’s better, but this place was still really good. We ate enough food to keep us full for days. We eventually got to my uncles house and it’s was really nice to see him, my aunt and my cousin. We ended up just hanging out the rest of the night but it was nice to just hang out with good people for a while.

We left LA pretty early to get a good start to Hoover dam. Depending on time, we would stop at the Grand Canyon because it was only a few hours away from the dam. I’ve been to Hoover dam before but every time it’s incredible. It’s such a massive and important piece of architecture to the west that it’s just really neat to be able to go to it and learn about it. It’s so unreal and crazy to me how people built such a successful dam with the developing technology that they had; the work was so tedious and dangerous that it just intrigues me so much how people could do this. The Hoover dam is so vital to the west and it’s always so cool to see something like that and learn something new every time. From there, I’m pretty sure we stopped somewhere for lunch and then drove a few more hours to the Grand Canyon. I don’t really know what I was expecting from visiting the canyon, but I know I wasn’t expecting to fall in love with such a beautiful piece of the earth so quickly. We got to the South Rim and walked toward some points and overlooks (I wish I remember exactly which ones we went to. I still have the map from it, I’m just not going to the car to get it). I don’t think I’ve ever seen anything more beautiful/serene/astonishing than the Grand Canyon. You look over the edge (where we were there were fences) and just look straight, left, right and down for miles on end. You can see the erosion lines and different layers of rock and you could easily spend weeks at the campsites exploring the trails and hiking. I wish there was fewer people there so it could have been quieter, but that’s just me being selfish. As we were walking from one point to another, there were some people off of the sidewalk and down on a little cliff edge. I wanted to go all the way out where they were, but I stupidly wore sandals out there and only walked down to a little place that didn’t jut as far out (it was quieter there!). After “hiking” back up to the sidewalk, we continued to another point and then eventually left the first area we went to. As we were driving east, we decided to stop at desert point (I think that’s what it’s called) as the sun was beginning to set. As we pulled in, we saw two huge elk eating right by the road. If I opened the car door, I could have hit one, that’s how close they were to the road. This desert point was really cool because they had a tower there that you could climb all the way to the top of. It was really amazing being at the Grand Canyon. I plan on going back and spending a lot longer than 2 hours there. I’m so beyond grateful that I was able to go and see, in my opinion, the most beautiful stretch of almost 300 miles of land in our country (possibly the world). I didn’t want to leave! I’m already looking forward to going back and spending more time there, I’ve never fell in love with anything so quickly in my life and I’m so in love with the untouched, naturally changing landscapes that Earth has to offer. The Grand Canyon has 100% been my favorite part of the entire trip and I highly, highly, highly recommend anyone to stop there if you’re ever in the state of Arizona.

Days 14 and 15: California (pt. 2) Day 14 (California day 3): After seeing the beaches on the west coast, we were stuck choosing between the San Diego Zoo or Universal or Disneyland. Eventually, we decided on the zoo (obviously) because the theme parks were really expensive. We got to SD at a pretty bad time, there was a parade and all the street parking was taken and it's not like the zoo parking was any better since the parking lot is just about as big as the zoo itself. The zoo was a lot of fun and very impressive, it was massive. We were there for a good 6-7 hours and we still didn't see everything (we saw most of it though). I've never been to a zoo where they have bus tours, but the San Diego zoo had a lot of bus tours, and they showed you about 70% of the park. The pandas were probably the best part and it's clear that the zoo made the panda exhibit with a lot of care and high expectations (we waited a good 30 minutes in a line to see the pandas). The San Diego zoo is really incredible, it even impressed my dad who doesn't care for zoos and is someone who is really hard to impress! Though it was 2 hours away from us and kind of pricey, I had a lot of fun and it was really cool to go down to SD because it was one of the places I've always wanted to go. Day 15 (day 4 of California): This day was actually pretty boring. I did laundry and packed mine and my nephews bags as we all prepared to leave the next morning. I really didn't do much, except in the evening, my dad, nephew, sister and I went out to dinner together at an Italian place by my sisters house. The food was good and my dad enjoyed his seafood which is always a plus. It was nice to have some family time with my dad, sister and nephew. ❤️

Day 2 of California (day 13): the night before we had decided that we wanted to go to the beach, so early in the morning, my dad brought us to Venice beach and we spent a few hours there. The pacific beaches are so nice, I love it so much. The water was only the slightest bit cold but nothing compared to Massachusetts waters, the water was so clear and blue and the waves were huge. So after spending some time there, we came home and got ready to go to a beach in Malibu for my nephews pre-school graduation pictures. I finally got to drive (I didn’t drive) down the pacific coast highway and it was perfect. We went to El Matador beach in Malibu and I was so stoked. It was beautiful and it really made being in California a lot more real. The rocky cliffs and the waves crashing against the jagged rocks was so serene. We tried staying for the sunset but we couldn’t see it anymore from where we were and we couldn’t see it from the top either. On the way home, the sky was painted with beautiful pinks and blues and the clouds were streaked across the sky in a light gray. California is so beautiful and I’m so incredibly happy to be here.

We woke up at 2 am and left Seattle and began the 18 hour drive to LA. depending on how my dad felt, staying somewhere along the way was a possibility (though going all the way through was better bc stopping was pointless). Not much happened bc how much CAN happen when you're in a car for 18 hrs? We got to LA at about 830 and just hung out with my sister for a little while. Today my cousins and I are gonna explore the city and tomorrow were going to Malibu. 😎❤️

Days 9 and 10: Seattle We got to Seattle kind of late in the afternoon and headed straight toward Pike Place Market. It was insane. I thought Seattle was so pretty the second we got off the exit. My dad has been talking about Jack's Fish Spot the entire trip, so we went to the market to find it and the market itself was crazy. A lot of the roads going to/leaving the market were really steep and it scared me a little (my car is standard). We had to drive around a little while and drive a couple blocks before we could find parking. My dad and nephew went to Jack's Fish Spot and my cousins and I walked around trying to find something. By the time we finally found something (subway) it was time for us to meet with my dad again, so we ate pretty quickly. After lunch, we all went to the infamous space needle. It would have been cool the get the all day pass so we could go back up at night, but we had to get my oil changed and had an appt. at 445. The space needle had such a beautiful view of the city, I wish we could have stayed longer. After we spent some time there, we had to leave and we got a hotel about 10 miles out of the city. We have been in Seattle for 2 days and on the second day, we went back in the city to see more. We did one of those touristy duck boat tours and went to a museum. I like the duck boat tours bc it's an easy and fun way to see the city. We went to the Pacific Science Center museum and it was really good. They had 5 different exhibits (I don't remember each of them) but there was a butterfly habitat, a dinosaur park, mechanics part, and a part about the body. They had some awesome IMAX theaters and a laser show (we didn't do them) that looked really cool. All in all, Seattle has treated us very well. The city is beautiful (there's A LOT of traffic) and there is so much to do here. The traffic and commotion make me crazy but I would definitely love to come back!

We stared out maybe 15 miles from the state line between South Dakota and Wyoming, so we woke up and I drove. Today was a long day, who knew that Montana was so big? We drove about 800 miles today from South Dakota to Idaho, where we are staying tonight. We wanted to get a lot of driving done today so we would have less driving to Seattle tomorrow. I took a few pictures on my iPod and gopro but am too lazy right now to get them off. It's okay anyway, we didn't see much. A lot of the drive reminded me of Colorado, it's so beautiful up here. The rolling hills in Wyoming, the greenery and rivers in Montana and Idaho: priceless. I don't have much to say about today because not much has happened. Tomorrow I'll write more and have pictures because tomorrow, we are going to Seattle and going to the space needle! I'm excited for Seattle and all of Washington. I'm too tired now to blabber on about the pretty views that I'm excited to see. Now after a long day if being in the car, I'm going to sleep.

The first two pictures are pictures that my cousins and I were recreating from a few years back. We once took the same exact pictures on rolled up hay in Kansas and given the opportunity to recreate it, we took it. We were heading toward Mt. Rushmore when we decided to take a detour and go through the badlands loop. In many ways, the badlands remind me very much of Big Bend National Park. On the other hand, in some ways the badlands looked fake. It looked as if they were painted or dragged on to a blue sky. It was absolutely incredible to see and I so badly wanted to stay there all day. I would just sit down on top of mountain (they had small ones) and just take everything in. It was so beautiful there and once again, Mother Nature engulfed me with her beauty. We made sandwiches at a little picnic area in the badlands and it was nice to have a good lunch in such a beautiful place. So as we continued up to Mt. Rushmore, we passed through Rapid City which was right before Mt. Rushmore. As we were passing through the town, I felt like a little kid. They had zoos, shops, restaurants, a 7D theater (no clue what 7D is!?!?) and a zip line and I wanted to go to every one. We continued up the mountain and each time we got the slightest view of the sculpture on top of the mountain we would crane our necks to get a better view (as if we wouldn’t get an even better view as we got there, but hey!). I really enjoyed Mt. Rushmore, it was absolutely incredible and it never fails to blow my mind how men with picks, drills, hammers and dynamite carved such an intricate sculpture. I couldn’t help but wish to stay there longer and just take it all in. There are things that people do that truly blow my mind, and the creation of Mt. Rushmore is at the top of my list. I’ve never seen such an intricate and beautiful piece of art before and I’m so glad I was able to see such a historical piece of our country.

Day 6: Kansas and Nebraska To be honest, this day was pretty boring which is why I wasn't too worried about being sure to post last night. We left KC and headed toward Oakley, KS to pick up two of my cousins (Eva and Juanita). We met them there with two more cousins and it was nice to have a small little family reunion with some of my cousins. We all grabbed lunch and began heading in the direction of Mt. Rushmore. We stopped in NE to say hi to a friend of my dads and then continued heading north, where we stayed the night in Valentine, NE. My dad went grocery shopping for us to stock up on real food so we don't have to eat out every day. We did laundry and rearranged the car to accommodate 5 people now instead of two. Having all of them here is fun, especially because I've missed them, but I know at times I'm going to wish I had my own space. I can't wait to continue this journey with some of people that are very special to me. Now, we are 60 miles away from Mt. Rushmore and we just explored the Badlands and had a Mexican-sized lunch at a picnic area in the Badlands. Pictures and a new post are soon to come about Mt. Rushmore and the Badlands National Park!

From Muscatine, we headed to Kansas City, MO to pick up my nephew!! I was so excited to see the little (actually huge now) dude. My dad was pretty excited too, and were happy to be able to spend the next couple weeks with him. Before we got him, we used my food app to scope out a BBQ place around KC. We settled on Oklahoma Joe’s which was featured on Man vs. Food and Food Paradise. It was paradise for sure. Barbecue food is one of my favorites, I love me a good pulled pork sandwich and ribs. We got there, and the line was out the door, but the line was steady and moved along pretty quickly. I got a good ‘ol pulled pork sandwich and my dad got brisket and 3 ribs and we shared a side of onion rings. The meat tasted like it had just been cooked over a campfire in the back, it was cooked to perfection, sooooo good. I enjoyed my sandwich so much that I just about had to force myself to finish the last couple bites. I was NOT going to throw away a perfectly perfect and tasteful sandwich. I tried some of the ribs my dad got and oh my lord I’ve never had better ribs. It fell right off the bone, tasted freshly smoked and tasted like a piece heaven. I wish I got ribs. :/ The onion rings we shared were also really good, they didn’t have the gross thick batter and they weren’t too oily either. God, I love Oklahoma Joe’s. They need one in Massachusetts. After dinner we got my nephew, got a hotel and I took my nephew, Breck, swimming. We’re gonna have a good time with Breck, he’s an awesome, smart, sweet little kid. I can’t wait for the rest of the trip with him. :) Tomorrow, we’re off in the direction toward Mt. Rushmore, but first, we are going to be picking up two (maybe one) of my cousins in Kansas. I’m extremely excited to see them, I haven’t seen them in a while and have missed the girls I was always attached to. Breck and my dad are sleeping so I think it’s time I try to sleep. The trip has just got a lot more interesting with a five year old, I’m so excited to spend some time with him!

Today we traveled from Niagara Falls (Canada side) to Chicago. The drive was pretty long and boring but hey, you gotta get to where you gotta get! I drove a little through Canada, almost to the border, and then in Michigan and Illinois. We were getting into Chicago at around 4:30-5 and I guess there was some sort if event happening around Navy Pier because every single parking lot was full. (We also couldn’t fit in the parking lots because of the carrier on the roof of my car). We drove down the pier (the road on the left in the last picture) and I got out and took some pictures of the skyline and the water. Unfortunately, we didn’t get to walk around Chicago because of the parking issue and we didn’t want to stay in the city too late. By the time we navigated our way out, it was probably 6-6:30 and we traveled outside of Chicago to stay the night. I wish we could have found parking and venture around the city a little, but it is what it is. For dinner, we got an amazing deep dish pizza. I’ve been looking forward to getting a slice of pizza since I first learned that we would be coming to Chicago. We went to this very popular place called "Lou Malnati's." It's a place any local will quickly recommend because it's "the best Chicago deep dish pizza." Literally. It says that right on the menu. We got a cheese deep dish pizza with peppers and onion and extra sauce on the side and boy was it great. We’re on a loosely timed schedule for tomorrow because we’re going to Kansas City to pick up my nephew! Though we didn’t see much of Chicago, it was still pretty amazing to see such a beautiful city. Tomorrow, we are going to Iowa and Kansas City; we’re going to Iowa to see a little town that my family first lived in when they came to the US. I’m glad my dad is getting the chance to go back to this little town after all these years.

Despite the rain and the cloudy weather, it was still such an amazing experience. Grateful doesn’t even begin to describe how I feel about being able to experience this. I love nature and the natural beauty that the world holds. The unstoppable force and free flowing direction of natures beauties is something that will forever bring me peace and solace. To be able to see something completely free and unchanged by man is something I will forever hold close to me.

Day 2! Today was day one of two Canada days. I've been looking forward to Canada because it's such a beautiful country. So we left Maine at around 7:30 am and began the gloomy, long drive to Québec or Montréal (it all depended on how we were on time). The Canadian border is pretty weird honestly. I've only traveled into Canada once, and it was with school so the border procedure was different, but today, we drove up to the border, handed our passports over, were asked some questions and then drove through. Maybe this was just oddly too easy for my dad and I because we're used to traveling through the Mexico border together where you have to get a permit to stay in the country. So after the easy border crossing, we began taking it all in. The scenery, the signs, the roads and the cool weather. Though much of the scenery was the same, it was still really nice. It's so clean and green here, there's no trash on the side of the highways and get this.. No billboards. None! It was weird, you're so used to seeing advertisements and directional signs so often, that it just looks so bare here in Canada with very few billboards and only the necessary road signs. (We saw no more than 10 billboards from Bangor, Maine, to Montréal, Canada. And the ones we did see, were buried far away from the road on farmers land). We got a kick out of the moose signs too, there were so many "moose crossing" or " use caution: moose" signs that I lost count. The weather was so nice despite the overcast and rain showers that lasted all day. I don't think the temperature ever went above 75° and it wasn't humid!! We got to our hotel at around 7 pm (I think?!) so today has been a long day. We didn't do much today, for it was a travel day. Tomorrow shouldn't be as bad, we are heading to Toronto early in the morning so we can get to the city at a decent time. We had dinner at a place by our hotel that was pretty good. I got a #5 which consisted of two (loaded?) hot dogs, fries and a drink. My dad got a #1 which was this weird (but very good!) hot sandwich/sub like thing with fries and a drink too. You'd think that a hot dog is a hot dog and hot dogs are good, but these hot dogs I had were fantastic. They had mustard, relish, ketchup and lettuce and vinegar on them and they were just two of the best hot dogs I've had. My dad's sandwich had a lot of stuff that we didn't know what it was, but it was a delicious little (actually, it was big) sandwich. We learned a few things in good ol' Canada today: Gas is expensive!!!!! ($5.50 a gallon!) Information centers are on the RIGHT. New Brunswick was nicer (people wise/scenically) than Québec. Québec is a strictly "French road sign area" (seriously, as soon as we were out of New Brunswick and into Québec, the English on the road signs vanished). You can get away with knowing where to go just by looking at the illustrated signs! Spanish is (in some ways) close to French. The people are (kind of, sometimes, not really) nice here. We can get by here in Canada. :) (P.S, please enjoy the road sign that says "St-Dominique" on it with me, because I never get to enjoy those stupid little things with my name on them unless I'm in Canada because of the French-ness of my name!)