Great Weekend! (Scott)

We kicked things off with a little miniature golfing action on Thursday night with Mom & Dad Pool. It was my first time ever keeping score. Scott was a master -- he says he's going to quit his job and become a miniature golfing champion. Ashlee, despite her claims to be athletically inept, came in close second. I smelled the joint up, but I did have the only hole-in-one! It was the ugliest shot ever -- I hit the ball way too hard, it shot down the course, passed the hole, hit the fake rock at the end, and then gloriously ricocheted back for the point. Edie started out strong, but sort of petered out -- I think it was because halfway through the game she got her mind stuck on the promise of dessert at Chili's -- she was talking about molten lava cake for a while.

Friday we met up with Mom Riggins and Grandma Donna for a late lunch. A few hours later we met back up with the Pools for a little celebratory dinner at Benihana's -- a close friend of ours just took a job in D.C. and she leaves next week. Then immediately after we drove over to Grandma & Grandpa Guenzler's house, where we continued our little weekend of fun with some homemade fruit pizza for dessert. With our stomachs blissfully full, we rolled ourselves to bed.

We kicked off Saturday morning with breakfast in Malibu and then we spent the rest of the morning and the early afternoon walking all over the Getty Villa -- it was pretty awesome. For those of you who don't know, J. Paul Getty was this oil tycoon who struck it rich in the 1930s and spent much of his life collecting great works of art. To share his collection with "the people," he built a replica Roman villa on a choice piece of real estate across from the beach in Malibu and he stashed it with his best pieces. Eventually his collection got so big, the Getty Trust had to build another museum site -- the Getty Center -- further up the 405. We visited that one last week.

We ate a late lunch, so we skipped dinner and met back up with Dad Pool to catch the new Disney movie Up! at South Coast. Simply put, we give the movie two thumbs up and we heartily encourage all to see it. It's even in 3D! After the movie we were feeling a little peckish and Grandpa Jon had just the treat -- gourmet ice cream from Strickland's in Irvine!

Well, that about wraps up our weekend so far. Tomorrow we're doing breakfast with the grandparents and in the evening Ashlee and I will be having our last date night before Mongolia -- we've got dinner reservations at Maggiano's, our favorite restaurant and the place where I proposed. It's the simple things...

PS - Although Ashlee has a soft spot for animals, I think if she had a weapon she would have killed the poor mockingbird who thought it was a good idea to serenade the neighborhood at 4:30am this morning.

Mailing Instructions (Scott)

For anyone interested in sending us mail, here's some info from our welcome book. Please note, I'll need to find a way of posting our address in the Cyrillic alphabet -- believe it or not, but this website doesn't seem to support the Mongolia language...:

Mail

Few developing countries in the world offer the level of service considered normal in the United States. Mail to Mongolia generally takes two to four weeks to arrive, and some mail may never arrive. Occasionally, letters may arrive with clipped edges because someone has tried to see if any money was inside. Also, some boxes may be opened by customs officials to ensure nothing illegal is being shipped. Advise your family and friends to number their letters and to include the word “Airmail” on their envelopes.

Check with your local post office for information on weight and size limitations for packages. Packages sent by surface mail usually take two to three months. Volunteers have found that letters and packages have a better chance of arriving if correspondents do not use a variety of interesting stamps; write the address (with the exception of “Mongolia”) in the Cyrillic alphabet; use sturdy, well-taped boxes for packages (to discourage tampering); write “via China” on mail; and use padding for breakable items (including cassette and CD cases).

Mailing Address

Your address while you are in training is listed below in English and in the Cyrillic alphabet. Peace Corps staff regularly bring trainees' mail to the training site.
Be aware that you may incur customs charges on your personal mail, especially packages. How packages are labeled in the United States can influence these charges. For example, if someone sends you a package containing both printed matter and “luxury” items, such as music cassettes, the customs charges calculated by the post office in Mongolia will generally be less if the printed matter is emphasized and the luxury items are not.

Countdown: T Minus 2 Weeks (Scott)

Wow, our departure date is rapidly approaching: we are leaving two weeks from tomorrow! Yikes!

We spent Memorial Day weekend in Havasu -- it was five days of family, friends, drinks, and relaxing in the sun. One of the highlights of the weekend was when I hit a $100 jackpot on a slot machine called Zeus; and it was only a 30 cent bet! It was great spending quality time with my family...although I'm sure they're sick of us by now and are ready to send us off to Central Asia for two years!

Now that we are back in town, we don't have any more trips between us and Mongolia. I guess that means we really need to begin preparing ourselves. We have quite a bit of reading material that we need to go back over: our welcome book, cultural adjustment guide, and a couple pieces of recommended reading. We told ourselves that we are not going to start actually packing until the Monday before we leave.

Until then, however, we'll be filling our time with more friends and family. And food.

Because I know you miss the cartoons and because I'm jealous of all those with iPhones (Ashlee)

5/17/09 - Laguna Hills

Another trip comes to a close. Now comes the fun part of going through our pictures, typing up my notes, and making an album. It's great having a Mac!

We left Zion at about 2pm Utah time, putting us in Vegas at about 4:30pm Nevada time. Dealing with these time zones was a bit tedious, especially because the distances we were traveling were relatively short -- it's not like we were flying around the world or anything. Stupid daylight savings time didn't help either -- is it Arizona that throws a wrench in everything because even though it's Mountain time it doesn't follow daylight savings, so that half the year it's on the same time as California and the other half it isn't? Ashlee had the brilliant idea that the whole world should just switch to one 24-hour clock: no more time zones or am/pm to deal with. It sure would make sojourning a lot easier...

The drive to Vegas went fine, except for the terrible gravel road we had to drive on for miles just outside Rockville, Utah. Ashlee also had a difficult time at certain parts keeping Hamish going with the flow of traffic. The speed limit for much of the way was 75mph and most people were going over 80. With the hills and the crosswind, poor Hamish was getting the speed wobbles after 65mph. Hyundai!

After our peaceful week communing with nature in Zion and the Grand Canyon, it was a bit of a shock crossing the Nevada state border and being bombarded with mile after mile of casinos, adult erotica shops, firework stands, rude drivers, and billboards advertising fully automatic rifles for sale. Makes you glad to be alive, huh?

After hitting a nasty patch of traffic just outside of the Strip, we made it to Gen and Joe's apartment in Henderson. About 15 miles from downtown Vegas, Henderson is a flourishing suburban town, complete with its own PF Chang's and Cheesecake Factory. Gen and Joe rent a wonderful little condo right in the middle of town complete with the greatest cat in the world: a 14-year-old basketball-sized furball named Sassy with a bit of a squished face and the prissiest walk you have ever seen. After dinner at Applebee's (hey Dad, we finally got the 2 for $20 deal!) we called it a night.

After a lazy Saturday morning lounging around and catching up, Gen and Joe drove us into Vegas to meet up with Scott and Edie, who came out to Vegas for the weekend. We caught lunch at Caesar's Palace, then a caffeine jolt at the MGM Grand, and then we headed back to the Trump Tower, where the in-laws were staying.

Hmm, so what can I say about Vegas? Well, on the one hand, it is a great place to spend a weekend: there are nice places to stay, great restaurants to eat at, awesome (but expensive!) shows to watch, and absolutely tons of people to watch -- Ashlee and I are great at passing judgment on all sorts of people. I know, I know -- it's hard being perfect. On the other hand, however, it's also an incredibly vice-filled place (Sin City, duh) that can really bring out the bad side in people. Let's just say that if a hostile alien race ever comes to Earth to study human beings to see if we are worth saving, I sincerely hope that they don't conduct a case study in Las Vegas. Sorry, I watched Star Trek recently.

In the early evening we headed to the Venetian to catch dinner and a show -- Scott and Edie got us all tickets to see The Phantom of the Opera, something that I have been really looking forward to. Since we spent part of our honeymoon in Venice, it was real fun to explore the Venetian a bit. While they got much of the outside architecture spot-on (the Campanile, Doge's Palace, and Rialto Bridge), the cheese-factor for the Grand Canal and gondola rides was off the charts. Like a complete snob, I kept thinking that everyone oohing and aahing at the canal needed to get to the real Venice -- you know, the one in Italy -- as fast as possible.

Cheesy canals aside, the food at the restaurant we ate at was certainly no joke. My pasta (linguine with sea food in a garlic white wine sauce) was amazing. It's always a great feeling ordering the perfect dish! Right after dinner, we had to hustle across the casino to catch our show. It was awesome! Brilliant music, great acting, and intricate sets -- a superb show. Thanks, Scott and Edie, for getting us tickets!

Sunday morning we made the short-drive from Henderson to Vegas one more time, except this time we tackled the Strip with Hamish. We met up with everyone for brunch at the Mirage. On a buffet scale, the place was a 9. Delicious!

With swollen bellies, we said our goodbyes & safe travels and loaded back into Hamish for the drive home.

All in all, it was a terrific vacation and we had a wonderful time. Now that we are back, however, it is becoming more and more real that we are leaving for Mongolia is less than a month. Wow...

5/15/09 - Zion (Continued)

Ok, so if you're into science and you have a bit of a rugged spirit, I have the perfect job for you: a park ranger! We took the most excellent bus tour this morning led by a ranger who was been with Zion for 13 years. A trained geologist and avid rock climber, you could tell the guy was passionate about nature and it really came through in his tour. He did a wonderful job relating the geological and cultural history of the region. I'll try to recite some of the facts that I found interesting.

- Zion was declared a national monument by President Taft in 1909 and a national park by Congress in 1919, making it one of the oldest parks in the country.

- Zion contains the largest sandstone cliffs in the world.

- Depending on how you measure it, Zion also holds the largest stone monolith in the world: the White Throne. The reason it depends on how you measure it is because a park in Australia has a monolith that is half the height but double the width and they claim to have the largest monolith in the world.

- The water we see "weeping" from the sandstone has taken 2,000 years to percolate out of the rock. Thus, the water we see was actually rain in the time of Julius Caesar.

- Zion contains more plant species than the entire state of Hawaii.

- Zion means "place of refuge" and it was named by Mormon settlers who moved to Utah for freedom to worship.

- Zion is unique in that it contains several different micro climates -- from pine forests to arid deserts.

As you can probably tell, it was a very informative tour!

After our tour, we jumped into Hamish and took him along the public road into the park, up the eastern switchbacks, back through the 1.1 mile tunnel bored through a mountain (thanks, by the way, to the workers who built this road and tunnel back in the 1920s -- they lived in rail cars and worked 15 hours a day all for $1.50 daily!) to the Canyon Overlook trailhead.

A short 1-mile roundtrip, the trail took about 30 minutes to walk up to an outlook of the entire canyon. It was simply gorgeous. It was one of those moments when I just thought: Man, I'm lucky to be here. Lately I have begun to take being off work for granted, but at certain points on this trip (even when I was bed-ridden w/ a stomach bug in the Grand Canyon) I couldn't help but think that 2 months ago I was spending 8 hours a day in an office and now here I am seeing the world!

After our mini-summit we returned to Hamish and made our way back to the park entrance -- it was Ashlee's turn to guide Hamish through the tunnel.

We just ate a tasty lunch at the deli outside the park and now Ashlee is shopping (don't worry, she doesn't have her purse with her) while I am sitting her writing this in the cool shade staring at the brilliant blue sky towering over the already towering sandstone cliffs while a healthy breeze is rustling the cottonwood trees hanging overhead.

Goodbye, Zion National Park!

5/15/09 - Zion

Knowing that we needed to be inside the park for our guided scenic tour at 8:45am, we got up at 6am this morning and were out the door by 7. Our plans for an early start were a bit spoiled, however, by the fact that Springdale is a very sleepy town and pretty much nothing is open that early in the morning. I was looking forward to some more world-class Bumbleberry pancakes, but the restaurant that serves them was dark. We looked to see if there were any hours posted, but we only saw a sign saying "Open AM." WTF, what does that mean? We walked across the street to another breakfast place called Oscar's. We were hopeful because we saw lights on and people moving around. As we walked into the patio, we saw a server who told us that they wouldn't begin serving food until 7:30, but they had coffee ready -- to which Ashlee stuck her tongue out. Yep, I guess we're just a couple of city-slickers expecting restaurants to be open at 7 in the morning...

We did eventually find a place a few blocks down -- the Pioneer's Restaurant. All morning long I was fooling myself by saying that I'd just get a bowl of oatmeal and some fruit -- yeah right. I ended up getting the Pioneer's Skillet. I think the dang thing had everything in the restaurant's pantry in it: ham, potatoes, cheese, broccoli, squash, cauliflower, and celery with two overeasy eggs and garnished with bacon and sausage and toast. Oh lord. As I was eating (only half -- and just to give me some sustainable energy for our hike..er..bus ride) I was wondering what a European tourist would think about ordering such a breakfast. I was also dreading the waiter asking us what trail we were tackling today -- Observation Point at 9 miles? Angel's Landing at 13 miles? No, actually the 2-hour guided bus tour...

5/14/09 - Zion National Park (Continued)

After a brief respite in our room (actually I was in the room while Ashlee was shopping), we suited up and headed back into the park. We jumped onto the shuttle and took it to the farthest part of the canyon. All along the way was -- surprise surprise -- more gorgeous scenery: soaring sandstone monoliths dotted with ponderosa pines, blooming wildflowers, and weeping cottonwood trees. Gorgeous.

Our little afternoon trek was called the Riverside Walk as it was a paved path that followed the river along the ever narrowing canyon. It got to the point where the walls were so close together that we were in complete shade. The shuttle bus driver had explained to us that sandstone functions like a giant sponge -- it soaks up any water that touches it. As a result, one of Zion's biggest characteristics is its "weeping rocks." As we walked through the narrow canyon, water was steadily cascading down the walls. As a result, flowers and other vegetation were growing right out of the walls -- they were called "hanging gardens."

It was such a wonderful walk and we took a bajillion pictures. We also spotted a bit of wildlife -- tons of curious squirrels, including a couple that seemed to be a bit frisky, and one very pregnant-looking female deer munching down on lush greenery. We absolutely loved strolling along this path.

Finishing up, we jumped back on the shuttle and rode it to the front of the park, admiring the setting sun all the way. Back out in Springdale, we caught dinner at our little pizza place from last night and then headed back to our room for a well-deserved shower.

Realizing that we have not yet done any star-gazing on this trip, we headed back downtown (only about 3 blocks) and caught the candy store just as it was closing. We got some soft-serve yogurt and sat on a bench right on main street waiting for the stars. Unfortunately, Utah is on Mountain time and even though it was 9pm, the sun had just barely set. So there we were, tired from hiking and being in the sun all day, freshly showered with full bellies, finishing our dessert and the friggen stars weren't even out yet! I thought Ashlee was going to fall asleep on the walk back to our hotel. At about 9:30 we stepped outside and scanned the sky -- a few stars, but not as many as we were hoping for. Oh well, I guess it's just a good reason to come back to Zion!

Tomorrow we're getting up early to participate in a ranger-guided scenic tour of the canyon -- we need to be in the park by 8:45am. It's a 2-hour tour, after which we'll be packing up and heading off to Henderson, Nevada to visit Ashlee's cousin, Gen, and her husband, Joe. More fun to come.

5/14/09 - Zion National Park

We woke up and got out of our room by 8am this morning. Our first stop was breakfast -- we've heard repeatedly that it's important to get a good meal in your belly before hiking. Taking this advice to heart, we stopped at a little diner just a block from our hotel. This placed served the absolute best pancakes in the world! Called "Bumbleberry Pancakes," they are about the size of a plate and loaded with blueberries, blackberries, and raspberries. Delicious!

At breakfast this morning I realized that Utah is a bit more conservative of a state than California. I realized this because I got a couple of weird looks from some of the elderly patrons in the restaurant. Wondering if my fly was open or something, I looked down and realized that I was wearing my t-shirt saying "Conserve Water, Shower Together." Doh!

After breakfast, we hit a few snags before things got rolling. Right outside of the restaurant we jumped into the free shuttle for the 5-minute ride to the park. Just as we were about to disembark, we realized that we forgot to bring our park entrance ticket that we bought yesterday. Dangit! We had to go all the way back to our hotel -- I guess it wasn't that bad because it only took us another 20 minutes or so.

With our ticket in Ashlee's bag, we re-boarded the shuttle, rode to the park, and strode up to the visitor center. Outside the building is a station to fill up your water bottles and camel bags. After topping off, we jumped on another shuttle to take us deeper into the park. After sitting for a few minutes, I began to feel water seeping through the back of my shirt and the seat of my pants. At first I assumed I had just sat in a wet seat (don't ask me why it would be wet) -- then it occurred to me that my camel bag was leaking and completely soaking me! Dangit again! Feeling like a complete hiking buffoon, Ashlee and I had to get off at the first stop and sort things out. I realized that after I filled up my pack, I didn't screw the lid on properly so that when I sat my bag against the back of my seat, water sloshed out the top. Rookie mistake.

Doing our best to not get discouraged -- and disregarding the idea of bad omens -- we jumped on the next shuttle and headed to the Emerald Pool trail head. I realize that now might be a good time to explain a little about Zion. Zion National Park is Utah's oldest and most visited national park. The park is essentially a 15-mile canyon centered on the Virgin River, a deceptively powerful stream of water that through the process of downward erosion has carved the largest set of sandstone cliffs in the world. The park is full of trails for everyone from beginners to world-class canyoneers.

Our hike for the day was a 3-mile round trip jaunt around three separate "emerald pools." The scenery was just as striking as our drive into the park yesterday and the hike didn't disappoint. It took us about 2.5 hours and we got some phenomenal pictures. All in all, I think we hung in pretty well, but I definitely feel pretty out-of-shape. The thought kept popping into my head that maybe it wasn't such a good idea to have canceled my gym membership when we moved out of Newport -- well that and the fact that we have been eating with reckless abandon since we discovered we're leaving for Mongolia in June. Also, I'm not sure if it was the elevation or the heat (80s), but I thought I was getting out a breath a little too quickly.

We were also happy with a few of our REI hiking items. Our shoes came in real handy as some of the surfaces were a bit slippery and our sun hats were indispensable -- just like portable shade! The only downside to hiking is that you are so busy concentrating on your footing that you forget to look up and just admire the beautiful sandstone cliffs reaching over your head.

We finished our hike around 12:30 and made our way back to the Visitor's Center for lunch. We ate a deli called Sol Food and it sure did hit the spot. We're back in our room at the moment plotting our next move. I think we may go for a little afternoon hike and then catch a late (well for us!) dinner. Until then!

5/13/09 - Zion National Park

Simply put, today was excellent!

After checking out of our hotel, we headed back to the Rim one last time so Ashlee could get some of the shopping out of her system -- yeah right, like that will ever happen. All the stores we visited carried pretty much the same inventory and we found a couple of t-shirts that we liked. After shopping, we walked over to El Tovar, the fanciest lodge in the Grand Canyon Village.

On the way to El Tovar, I noticed a maintenance person scooping up shovel-fulls of pooh from the neatly manicured lawns of the Arizona Room. What animal was responsible for those monster heaps, we wondered. Well, we soon found out.

After walking through El Tovar like we owned the joint and enjoying the view of the Canyon on its comfortable patio rocking chairs, we were crossing the parking lot when we came across a deer quietly munching grass next to a car. At first we startled it, but we quickly gave it space and it calmed down. So that's the Crap Culprit!

Shopped out, me more than Ashlee, we headed back down the Rim Trail in the direction of our hotel. On the way I stopped to take a picture of the canyon when we noticed a group of people staring up a large condor perched on top of the look-out house. Amazing! What a fitting end to our visit to the Grand Canyon!We soon grabbed a quick snack at our hotel, loaded into Hamish, and hit the road. To get to Zion, we had to drive along the southeast edge of the Grand Canyon towards the middle of Arizona and then northwest to Utah. It was a gorgeous drive and Hamish tackled it like a dream.

After stopping at one last scenic turnout (Grandview Point) we said goodbye to the Grand Canyon National Park and officially entered Navajo Land, or as Bella...er...Ashlee calls it, "the Rez."

As Grandpa Jon promised, we soon happened upon our first Navajo road market. They are literally these wooden lean-tos clustered together on the side of the road decked out with flags waving in the breeze and sporting hand-painted signs saying things like "Really Really Good!" and "Nice Indians!"
We stopped at several of these markets and admired the handiwork. They all sold similar items: all sorts of Navajo jewelry, pottery, tomahawks, sculptures, etc.. Everything was claimed to be handmade there in Arizona and everyone was very friendly. After much deliberation, Ashlee made a purchase: a hand-sized turtle sculpture made of fired horse hair.

After visiting these markets, I was struck by the seemingly strong cultural affinity between Native Americans and what I have read about traditional Mongolians. Both are a very hardy people who are nomadic by nature. Both are very friendly and hospitable. Both exhibit a profound reverence for nature and show deep respect for animals, particularly horses. Lastly both are a fiercely proud people who seem to be fighting against the current to survive in the modern world. Hmm, maybe after our time in Mongolia, Ashlee and I will explore more Native American culture.

Between stops at these markets, the drive was beautiful. Again, maybe it helped that we were just passing through in an air-conditioned turbo-charged Hyundai and it's not yet summertime with its sweltering heat, but there is just something striking about the land that captures you. Perhaps it is because everything is so rugged and untamed, which is the complete opposite of how things look in developed and manicured Southern California.

On the way through Arizona we passed through the towns of Gap and Page and then Lake Powell. We soon found ourselves in Utah.

In Utah we found more gorgeous countryside. Ashlee remarked how the scenery changed so gradually that it managed to look so similar while being so different. Nevertheless we found ourselves in the land of red rock. The highway ran straight and true and we only passed a few cars. The highway itself was two-lanes and I showed some true Hyundai power as I was forced to pass a number of slower moving trucks. The elevation constantly fluctuated between 5,000 and 6,000 feet with numerous dips and hills. We were surprised at the number of bicyclists that we passed.

Zion National Park sits about a hundred miles into Utah. While I don't exactly know much about it, I do know that it is place that Ashlee has wanted to go to for years. While we are actually staying in the small town of Springdale just outside the west entrance of the park, we actually got to enter the park from the east and drive through it to get to our hotel.

It was friggen amazing -- by far one of the most spectacular drives ever. It was like going back in time. I felt like I could have seen Fred Flintstone come screeching around any switchback. You'll have to see pictures to understand. Other than the gorgeous scenery, the other highlight of the drive was passing through a mile-long tunnel bored through one of the larger mountains. Awesome!Like I said, we are staying in the small quaint town of Springdale for the next two nights. While our hotel is a bit dated (Brady Bunch floral wall paper) it is clean, affordable, and only a 5-minute free shuttle ride from the park entrance.

After a delicious pizza dinner, we walked through a few shops before calling it a day and returning to our room. We caught the results show of American Idol (Adam's safe, phew!) and, to my delight, I discovered our hotel has WIFI.

I checked my email, and to my even greater delight, I saw a message from the Peace Corps detailing our departure information. Apparently we are meeting with all other Mongolia-bound volunteers in Los Angeles on Thursday 6/11 and then leaving for Mongolia on Friday 6/12. We'll be flying out of LAX -- a 13 hour flight to Seoul and then another 3 hour flight to Ulaanbaatar.

Things just got real.

5/13/09 - Grand Canyon National Park

Well, the good news is that the Grand Canyon is so beautiful that no matter how much you have built it up in your head, it does not disappoint. The bad news, however, is that I picked up a nasty stomach bug, resulting in one of the worst night's sleep I've ever had and causing me to spend pretty much all Tuesday afternoon in bed. It is now 4:15am on Wednesday morning and after 12 hours of sleep, I am happy to report that I am feeling much better.

We got here to the Grand Canyon on Monday afternoon. We are actually staying inside the park at a place called Maswik Lodge. The place is nice and clean, but without any frills or air conditioning -- I can see Rick Steves staying here. After getting settled, we immediately set out on a quarter mile walk from our hotel room to the rim of the canyon.

I'm pretty sure that the Grand Canyon is one of the natural wonders of the world, but if it's not, it sure as heck should be as it is absolutely breathtaking! Standing on the rim of the canyon staring across the 10-mile wide chasm and realizing that it has been hundreds of millions of years in the making certainly puts things in perspective. I cannot remember ever feeling so insignificant.

Ashlee and I followed the Rim Trail east about half a mile or so to another of the lodges. Apparently the South Rim is also called the Grand Canyon Village and it boasts several lodges that are all operated by the same company and differing only in price and proximity to the canyon.

We ate dinner at a place called the Arizona Room. A little pricey, you are really paying for the spectacular view. Ashlee got lime chicken and I, ignoring Ashlee's stern look, opted for the baby back ribs in a spicy chipotle sauce.

After dinner, we meandered back along the Rim Trail a bit and just admired the scenery. We headed back to our hotel, grabbed a beer at the lounger (Fat Tire on tap!), and got back to our room just in time to catch "Dancing w/ the Stars." That's right, these past 6 weeks with our parents have turned us into big fat reality tv watchers. Heaven, help us.

After turning in a little early since we planned to catch the sunrise in the morning, I woke up at about midnight with terrible heartburn -- stupid spicy ribs, when am I ever going to learn? I took three or four tums and fitfully tried to get back to sleep. I awoke soon after, however, and realized it was more than just heartburn that was keeping me up. I made it to the bathroom just in time to er...lose my dinner. From then on, I was tossing and turning until morning.

The bright side of the situation is that my wife is a wonderfully caring and understanding woman and I was in very good hands. I stayed in bed until about 10am or so nibbling on toast, sipping water, and napping. At about 10:30, I felt well enough to go out.

This trip has allowed us to break in some of our REI gear for Mongolia. We both outfitted ourselves with our camel bags, hiking shoes and socks, and floppy sun hats (actually, Ashlee's isn't that floppy). If Annie and Alyssa could have seen us, they would have shaken their heads in disgust.

We caught the free shuttle to the Visitor's Center where we examined our options. We had both hoped to hike a portion of the Kaibob Trail, a trail that actually leads to the bottom of the canyon. Knowing how easy it is to get in over your head tackling such a trail, I was worried I wasn't well enough for the challenge. Instead we opted to trek along a 3-mile portion of the Rim Trail, a paved path that meanders along the rim of the canyon. It's probably one of the most beautiful walks I have ever taken.

The weather conditions were perfect: blue skies w/ a nice steady breeze and the visibility was great; we could see clear across the canyon. Every couple hundred of feet or so we would stop and just admire the view. I wouldn't say that the park was crowded, but there were definitely gaggles of fellow admirers. I was amazed at how diverse the crowd seemed to be. It seemed as if no two people we passed on the trail spoke the same language: French, German, Dutch, Spanish, Japanese, Chinese, Aussies, Southeast Asians, etc. It was amazing to know that no matter what language people were speaking, we were all saying the same thing: Man, how incredible is the Grand Canyon?

About halfway through our walk, I began to feel poorly again. Understanding and concerned as always, Ashlee suggested we make our way back to the road to catch the shuttle back to our room. By this time I had decided that it was not the flu that I had, but instead it was something I ate. This feeling was reinforced by the fact that every time I pictured those babyback ribs I had the previous night I shuddered in revulsion. I decided to press on.

We finished our walk and got back to our room by 12:30. I barely managed to kick off my shoes before flopping on the bed and falling asleep. Ashlee woke me up 20 minutes later; she went and got sandwiches and she wanted me to eat something. I didn't even want to move, but I decided to humor her. I sat at the table, took one bit of sandwich, and then immediately made a bee-line for the bathroom. So much for that, I thought.

I decided not to ask any more of my body and I spent the next 6 hours in bed. Ever attentive, Ashlee encouraged me to stay hydrated. I assured her that she shouldn't feel guilty if she wanted to go out and enjoy more of the canyon, but she stayed by my side nonetheless. In retrospect, this time in the room did allow her the perfect opportunity to finally finish Book 7 of Harry Potter and I did catch her napping at least once.

By 6:30pm I felt well enough to go out and catch the famed Grand Canyon sunset. Stepping outside and feeling the cool breeze, I could tell I was feeling much better. In fact, I was feeling so much better that after walking to the rim, I decided to treat myself to an ice cream cone. Ashlee was a bit weary about me eating dairy with an upset stomach, but she soon realized that there was chocolate ice cream in it for her and she gave in without protest.

There we were: it was sunset at the Grand Canyon and we were sitting on a rock wall with our feet dangling into the canyon below as we enjoyed delicious ice cream. It was gorgeous watching the falling light bring out all the shapes and shades of the canyon. It had to be one of the top ten moments of my life.

To make it even better, we made it back to our room in time to catch the second half of American Idol -- I swear I used to be the type of person who would devour things like The Economist and great literary works, but I really have become a reality tv junkie!

After going to bed early last night I woke up bright and early at 4am. I was thrilled to discover that I was feeling much better and that my stomach had calmed down. Ashlee woke up just after 5am and we threw on our clothes and rushed down to the rim to catch the tail-end of the sunrise. As expected, it was marvelous -- hmm, can you tell that I'm running out of adjectives here?

We sat at the same spot as last evening with our feet dangling into the canyon. We were only mildly disturbed by the large group of pre-teen girls on a school outing behind us. I definitely did not envy the chaperone of the bunch.

At 6am we caught breakfast at the Bright Angle Lodge: warm oatmeal with sliced bananas. It hit the spot!

We're back in our room at the moment just relaxing. We're going to pack up in a bit and bid farewell to the Grand Canyon. Before we go, I promised Ashlee we could visit a few of the shops lining the rim. It's the least I can do for the excellent care she gave me yesterday.

So that's the first leg of our trip down. While part of me is a little bummed that I got sick and that it kept us from hiking into the canyon, Ashlee and I still had a wonderful time. Plus, lying around in bed all afternoon napping yesterday was extremely relaxing! Not to mention the fact that now we have a reason to return -- yeah right, like we need a reason to come back!

Today our end destination is Zion National Park in southwest Utah. It will be about a five-hour drive as first we need to drive east and then northwest to get around the Grand Canyon -- I guess it would disturb nature a bit to build a bridge across it, eh? Along the way we will be passing through Navajo Land, which Grandpa Jon has told Ashlee is rife with "shopportunities" and places to stop for fresh fry bread.

Oh, the sojourning life!

5/11/09 - Grand Canyon Caverns

Oh Arizona, the land of John McCain. It certainly has a much different feel than the places we visited on our last roadtrip through Northern California. While we were waiting for our tour to start, I overheard a couple of tour guides chatting about the current economic crisis. After a bit of Obama-bashing, one of the guides put forward a plan that he heard about via email. According to him, the government should take all the bail-out money back and give it out in equal payments to 30 million random Americans over age 30. Three conditions would be attached to this money: (1) they must retire immediately; (2) they must buy a house; and (3) they must buy an American-made car. The thinking behind this plan is that it would free up 30 million jobs, it would stabilize the housing market, and it would rescue the auto industry. Hmmm, what do you think of his plan?

Getting off the interstate and driving down Route 66, I can’t help but think of the Pixar movie Cars. In the movie, the main character is a big-city hotshot who finds himself stranded in a small town, Radiator Springs, off the beaten path that was forgotten after a large interstate highway diverted all of its traffic. The little town was brimming with enthusiastic entrepreneurs literally falling over themselves to accommodate visitors that would never come.

The Grand Canyon Caverns felt like a mini-Radiator Springs. It was a combination gas station, motel, mini-mart, RV park, rodeo arena, restaurant, and tourist attraction. The front entrance from the highway had a big sign saying “You’ve Found It: Grand Canyon Caverns!” propped up next to a large fiberglass dinosaur. Hmm, caverns and dinosaurs!

To complete the Radiator Springs metaphor, our tour guide through the caverns was a human Mater, the tow-truck character whose voice was provided by Larry the Cable Guy. He was a rough-cut man with a large belly, a bushy mustache, and a sort of wheezy smoker’s voice complete with a southern twang. He also looked as if he had a fat wad of chewing tobacco stuffed in his bottom lip. He was actually the one I overheard brainstorming ways to fix the economy. Despite the somewhat scathing description, he was nice enough.

For $28 (AAA discount!) Ashlee and I got to ride an elevator 200 feet underground to a series of subterranean caverns. Our guide said that in the early 20th century a couple of locals happened upon an open shaft that appeared to plunge deep into the earth. With visions of gold and jewels dancing in their minds, one of the men agreed to be lowered into the hole over a hundred feet with only a lantern to light his way. After exploring for a few hours, the man returned to the surface and reported to his partner that the shaft led to caves full of gold, silver, and diamonds! Thinking they hit the jackpot with the world’s first gold/silver/diamond mine, the men bought up all the land and began to excavate. It turned out that the gold was actually rust, the silver was a sort of metallic powder, and the diamonds were a non-precious substance called selenium, or as our guide put it: “nature’s popcorn ceiling.” In an attempt to salvage the situation, the men turned the caverns into a tourist attraction. They charged people 25 cents to be lowered down on a rope to explore the caves alone with a lantern.

Now here we are almost a hundred years later paying $14 each to do basically the same thing with only a few (major) exceptions: we get to use an elevator; there are concrete paths lined with rope lights; and we had Mater wheezing his way along with us.

The caverns themselves were really impressive. Twenty stories underground, they are extremely dry and maintain a constant temperature in the mid 50s. Back in the 1960s during the height of the Cold War, the government turned the place into an impromptu nuclear fall-out shelter. They filled one of the larger caverns with huge drums of water, saltine crackers, and rock candy in the hopes that it would be enough to support two thousand people for two weeks. Luckily the shelter was never used and the supplies are still down there, making the caverns a still-functioning bomb shelter. I can only imagine what the supplies must taste like.

Among other things, we saw a mummified bob cat, a life-size model of a giant ground sloth that fell down into the caverns and died trying to claw its way out, and we heard that all the air in the caverns actually originates 40 miles away in the Grand Canyon.

All in all, although parts of the tour were a bit hokey (i.e. Rocky the rock dog), it was still pretty interesting.

After leaving the caverns, we jumped back onto Route 66 and made our way back to the I-40. Along the way, we passed through the real Radiator Springs. Self-proclaimed the “birthplace of Route 66,” Seligman, Arizona was a tiny little town that appeared to be absolutely hurting for business. I noted several international flags hanging about, yet saw one hotel with a prominent sign saying it was “American-owned.” God bless the USA, we don't want no dang foreigners taking our money...

We’re now on the 40 headed east through Williams and Kaibob National Forest to the Grand Canyon’s South Rim. According to The Lady, we’ll be there by 4:30. Woo hoo!

PS – I’m already hungry. Thanks, McDonalds.

5/11/09 - Route 66

At Ashlee’s request, we sold our souls and ate lunch at McDonalds. While I’ll admit the food is tasty, I couldn’t quite shake the feeling that the place represents pretty much everything that I hate about Western culture. It’s heavily commercialized, artificial, and standardized…but it tastes good. Damn.

We’re driving east along Historic Route 66 at the moment heading towards the Grand Canyon Caverns. Cruising along in our nice air-conditioned sportster…er…sedan knowing that we are just passing through, I’m struck by the natural beauty of the landscape. Nothing but rocky ridges, boulders, shrubs, and Yucca plants. The road is a little windy as it hugs the railroad and we pass little settlements every few miles. Every time we pass a house, I can’t help but wonder about the people who live there. Are they natives or perhaps retirees? Where do they work? What do they do for fun? And Ashlee’s million-dollar question, where is the nearest Trader Joe’s?

We have also passed numerous white crosses along the road indicating past road fatalities. As a result, there seems to be a nascent anti-drunk driving campaign that we have witnessed in the form of sporadically placed road signs posted every quarter mile or so. Each individual sign is just one piece of a larger message – you read the full message as you drive along. However, it appears that quite a few of the signs are missing – ironically maybe some of them have been knocked over in drunk-driving accidents. As a result, drivers are left with incomplete messages:

Sign 1: No matter the cost
Sign 2: No matter how new
Sign 3: The best safety device
*Missing Sign

And

Sign 1: Violets are Blue
Sign 2: Roses are Pink
*Missing Sign

Then again, maybe it’s just a bit of creativity on the part of the local towns to encourage the travelers to exercise their imaginations a bit to complete the messages themselves. If so, Ashlee is happy to indulge them. Here’s one of her little diddies to complete that last one: “Violets are blue, roses are pink, and farts from your butt always stink.” Ah, I’m so proud.

Grand Canyon Caverns, here we come!

5/11/09 - I-40 East

As I write, we are just passing into Arizona, the Grand Canyon State. Alas, I did not have my camera ready to take a picture of the welcome sign. Ashlee is jealous of the state flag.

For my Havasu peeps, it was fun entering Arizona on the 40 because we crossed the Colorado River right at the end of Topock Gorge, which was the end destination of so many childhood river runs. In fact, I’m pretty sure that underneath the bridge we crossed is the rope swing that I was always fascinated with, yet way too scared to try, as a kid.

Ah, our “National Park Trip.” We left Walnut today bright-eyed and bushy-tailed at 6:30am. I think my dad was a bit jealous because, for him, it’s just another Monday, complete with his breakfast of oatmeal and eggbeaters.

The first leg of our trip stretches from Walnut to the South Rim of the Grand Canyon. According to the map that Ashlee put together, we’ll be covering 470 miles today – roughly 7 hours of driving. The drive so far has been lots of desert – duh. We only hit a spot of traffic just 20 miles out from home in Ontario at the junction of the 60 and the 15. Just as on our last trip where we “discovered” the Grape Vine, we now know what the Cajon Pass is. Hamish tackled it like the warrior he is.

Mr. Troutman, I just wanted to let you know that after driving through Victorville, I now know why you idealize the Pacific Northwest, with its rainy climate and lush greenery.

The 40 has been kind to us. It’s quite a nice road – a divided four-lane highway that is nice and straight. Large portions of it have been recently resurfaced, so it has been a very smooth ride. We did hit a few patches of road construction – they must be getting ready for the summer crowds – and there were a couple long 60mph stretches that seemed to go on forever. It’s funny that the difference between 60 and 70mph feels so great.

For most of the way, good ol’ Hamish chugged along at 70mph. We still got passed by a number of vehicles, including a monster F-350 towing a trailer with two jet skis whose driver I could practically feel glaring at me. Since the speed limit for autos with trailers is 55mph, I felt particular satisfaction 20 miles down the road when we saw the same truck pulled over to the side of the road by the CHP. Boo yah!

Our first stop of the day was beautiful Needles, CA, the vacation destination of the Pacific Southwest. We stopped to refuel and change drivers – Ashlee’s got the wheel now. I was hoping to catch a Starbucks in Needles, but the city looks way bigger on the map. I settled for a can of Starbucks doubleshot from Chevron. Almost like my tall iced double latte….

Like I said, Ashlee’s at the wheel now. She’s in a very bubbly mood grooving along to Eric Hutchinson. She’s currently using a very loud “outside voice” and she’s a little freaked out at all the wildlife (birds, lizards, and butterflies) “darting” out into the road. She also laughed for almost a full minute after seeing a sign announcing a town called Shinarump. I guess it is a funny word.

We plan to stop in about 20 minutes for lunch in Kingman. Ashlee wants a burger, but I’m fancying a sandwich. After lunch, we’re planning to jump onto Historic Route 66 in search of the Grand Canyon Caverns. I’m not exactly sure what it’s all about, but I think it was a Grandpa Jon recommendation.

More to come later.

P.S. – Our favorite song of the trip so far has been Rascal Flatt’s “Life is a Highway.”

Mother's Day Weekend (Scott)

What an excellent Mother’s Day weekend! Saturday morning we picked my mom up and took her out for a special Mother’s Day tea at a little place called Tea & Teacups in Yorba Linda. Although a little frilly, the food was tasty, there was plenty of it (including a fat slice of lemon cake!), and, most importantly, my mom really seemed to enjoy it.

We spent Saturday afternoon with Dad Pool & Edie. We had the brilliant idea of catching the new Star Trek movie at the IMAX theater at the Spectrum. Apparently we weren’t alone in this stroke of genius, however, because when we showed up an hour before showtime we found a line stretching from the front of the theater all the way to the parking structure. The theater was huge though – it must hold a thousand people – so we still managed to grab some good seats, thanks to Ashlee’s tenacity. The movie was awesome – and the IMAX theater only made it more awesome.

We spent Sunday celebrating Mother’s Day with the Riggins. We had breakfast at Arthur’s – an Okie diner in Orange – and then spent the day lounging on the sand at Laguna Beach. Although the morning was a bit overcast, there was just enough sun to give me a serious burn on my legs and, oddly enough, my armpits. I swear I used sunblock, but I guess I didn’t lather up the armpit area enough. They’re a bit scorching at the moment.

All in all, it was an excellent weekend!

REI! (Scott)

After lunch with some good friends, Ashlee and I trundled off to REI to stock up on some supplies for Mongolia. For those of you unfamiliar with REI, it's an outdoor gear shop that sells pretty much everything from mountain climbing equipment to running shoes. It's a place that makes you feel like you can do anything if only you have the right equipment -- with those shoes K2 would be a cinch!

This week REI is actually hosting it's anniversary sale, so we found several great deals. After three hours and lots of dollars, we left with bags of stuff. Among other things we got:

- a sub-zero down parka for me
- matching pull-over North Face fleeces
- very floppy sunhats
- a very handy Leatherman pocketknife with 20 different tools
- a French press for my morning cup of joe
- a pair of "REI adventure pants" for me
- a pair of pants for Ashlee that convert from pants to capris to shorts
and
- several pairs of wool socks for both of us

My favorite item of the day was a Grandpa-style vest that has the most pockets I have ever seen. Ashlee teased me a bit for picking it out, and she seriously doubts that I'll wear it -- I guess I'll have to show her! I was also looking to get a pair of pants that convert to shorts, but I realized that when I unzipped the legs, the hem of the shorts fell about 8" above my knees. A little too racy for Mongolia, I'm afraid.

We also picked up a pair of heavy duty stainless steel water bottles complete with sport caps.

We'll have a chance to break most of this gear in next week on our trip to the Grand Canyon and Zion National Park. Until then, adieu!

Laguna Hills (CA)

Ah, we've moved into our third summer home: Casa de Pool with Dad & Edie here in Laguna Hills. Today was just another Monday. We dragged ourselves out of bed at 8am, spent 2 hours catching up on the latest episodes of The Office, and then met Dad Pool for lunch at Ruby's Diner at the Spectrum. Afterwards we watched the new Wolverine movie (X-Men: Origins?). I know, I know -- doesn't everyone hate Mondays?

This past weekend was a blast. Saturday was Shawn and Kay's wedding. Ashlee and I were both in the bridal party -- it was a lot of fun and I'm sure that everyone had a really great time. I'm also very thankful that the rain stayed away.


Yesterday we went to a Bon Voyage dinner hosted by the L.A. Peace Corps office. It was at a Cambodian restaurant in Long Beach (I think finding the place was the first test for us as invitees) and there was quite a turnout. It was very refreshing for Ashlee and I to be in like-minded company. These days we spend so much time just explaining what the Peace Corps is that it was nice to be around people who already know what's up.

As for the rest of the week, we don't have much planned. I do know that Dad Pool is taking us out to the Improv theater at the Spectrum for a comedy show on Wednesday and this Saturday we are taking my mom out for tea for Mother's Day.

We'll be leaving a week from today on our next roadtrip: the Grand Canyon, Zion National Park in Utah, and Vegas. Woot woot!

Pictures from California Trip!