so here are a few highlights:
- stopped for speeding by a very mellow chinese cop in san francisco after austin said "hey, you just blew by a cop" on geary blvd. i had been following the cop, and then the speed limit apparently dropped 10 mph. he was cool, though, typical SF kinda person. before he got to the car, he knew it was a rental and i was a tourista...so he let me go, no lecture, no nothing other than have a great stay in SF. just another reason to go there and stay, period!
- were in yosemite when the mariposa fire was going on. made for a strange and interesting encounter. the electricity was out in the valley due to the fire, and the smoke was evident. however, there weren't many people there, traffic was light, and we still got to see awesome views.
- las vegas - were there when l.a. had their quake, but we didn't feel the after shocks.
- grand canyon in 53 degree, wind blowing-thuderstorming weather. who knew that there is a MONSOON SEASON at the grand canyon?
- saugaro cactii as you are going into phoenix!
- chino-bandito! #1 eating fun on the trip
- biking across the golden gate bridge and into sausalito! something i had always wanted to do! done that now! have the t-shirt to prove it!
- clam chowder and sour dough bread at cliff house...our first stop from the airport on the trip!
- austin drives down lombard street in san fran! (he also did a fair amount of driving on the trip up until we got to san diego and i took over the rest).
- continuation of the bubba gumps shrimp company restaurant marathon. this time we ate in the one at fisherman's wharf in san fran as well as the one in monterey! went to the one in santa monica for a magnet, but they didn't have one specific to that one. now have been to the bubba gumps in the following locations: mall of america (tshirt), nyc, santa monica, san francicso, charleston, monterey, chicago. wouldn't even go back, but the food is consistently good!
- sleeping in the wigwam motel in holbrook, az!
- ellen buys tshirts everywhere: madrid at the mine shaft tavern, bubba gumps in sf, a kliban cats in hippie outfits in sausalito, a chino bandito tshirt in chandler, az, an "i biked the golden gate bridge" shirt from bay city bikes in sf.
- dry creek turquoise ring was bought in alburquerque and i bought a crazy horse turquoise pendant in pagosa springs from the same place i got my ring 2 years ago. unfortunately, i could not find another ring anywhere with wild horse turquoise.
- doing 100 mph in nevada about 5 times because you don't realize how fast you are going! austin joined the 100 mph balls to the wall club in canyonlands national park!
- sitting on the virgin river in zion national park with my feet in the water
- sitting on a bench at marina green in san fran watching the fog roll in and the sun set over the golden gate bridge. fog horns were going as well
- going to winslow, az to "standing on a corner" and having pictures taken there to honor the eagles tune "take it easy"
- garlic fries at the san francisco giants game and the wonderful, devoted fans there!
- austin's visit with the baseball coaches at UNLV
- air conditioned chase field in phoenix! what a great facility!
- trying to find cheap tequila in yuma, az...who thought it would be difficult finding a liquor store? aren't they on every corner everywhere? not in yuma...but we did find one and yes, the tequila was cheap!
- the hot springs, again, in pagosa springs, colorado
- the blue diamond almond factory in modesto! pam and i got samples of all sorts of almond flavors not available in the east. we bought up a bunch, and then rebought again los angeles to take home! jalapeno smokehouse and wasabi/soy were the best...and then i got home and found them in our walmart...go figure...
- fish tacos...everywhere...and the winner of the best is...farragos in pagosa springs, where i had the very first one 2 years ago! second place: del taco
- west coast fast food places: austin loved jack in the box, and we also ate twice at in-and-out burger (sf and la) and various del tacos for the fish tacos!
- seeing triest (my former english student) and ross (her new husband) in madrid and alburquerque! they fed us a home cooked meal, and it was so relaxing and wonderful!~
- killing another digital camera...it slid off my lap directly into austin's open cup of tea while we were in the canyonlands national park. result: no flash, and a hunt over arizona at the best buys for a new camera. none like the one i had, so i got a nikon coolpix, which austin hated, and it was replaced when we got home with another kodak easyshare. i got smart this time, however. i took out the 2 year warranty plan...
- miles of produce in the salinas valley...lettuce and grapes as far as the eye could see!
- olives and garlic at garlic world in gilroy, california, garlic capital of the world!
- almond cookies from anna's bakery in chinatown in SF. i have gotten them there the last night of every trip i have been on to SF, and they are worth it!
- sedona and its vortexes. i didn't feel the power there, but it had potential...austin locked us out of the car at one of them. sigh...
- over 1000 pictures and lots of videos taken during the trip
- xm radio! it was in the last of three cars we had on the trip
- the toyota corolla we drove for most of the trip. what a beast! great gas mileage (33/34 mph on average) despite the brutal terrain we put it through as well as the speeds at places! it also protected us from...
- the car accident in los angeles. rear-ended and the car held up unbelieveable considering the smash! the other car, a 1999 mercedes, was in pieces parts all over venice blvd as well as the parking lot next to the accident and required a tow. i drove away with a few nicks and cuts in the bumper
- los angeles, may it fall into the sea. the worst driving i have ever seen in my life, and i have driven in houston, nyc, chicago, atlanta, d.c., seattle, san francisco, you name it, i have driven it, and nothing, NOTHING, compares to the total automobile anarchy of los angeles. first, the 101 and the 5 are constantly, 24/7 bumper to bumper. secondly, motorcycles vroom down between the lanes at insane speeds, weaving in and out of traffic NOT IN THE LANES. people pass on in the right lane, and even when the right lane is for PARKING. there is no such thing as a turn signal there. people just cut in and don't care how close they come to clipping you. there are no left hand turn lanes with signals. there are no HOV lanes in l.a. and the maps are inaccurate. no one there can give directions because either they don't drive or have just come to sodom/gomorrah west. there is no mass transit system, so you can't get on a BART or subway or even find a decent bus. everyone speeds and the POLICE DO NOT COME TO ACCIDENTS UNLESS YOU NEED AN AMBULANCE. i found this out the hard way when i called after our accident. now i know why people do what they do...there are no consequences. our accident was caused by a guy who was cutting in, no turn signal, from the right lane and stopped halfway out into my lane. after i had been smashed in by miguel, the guy who caused the accident smiled and took off...i think i understand now why people who live there are crazy...it is a really false reality...
when the REB blog is completed, i will let people know if you want to read it.
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