Saturday, April 30, 2005
short cut to more pictures!!
to see a bunch of photos that i put on the other website, just click on one of the ones here. it will redirect you to another website where i've put a bunch of pictures today, along with the ones that are already in the blog. get it? just click on a picture, you'll see what i mean. enjoy. more to come now that i've figured out this shortcut. bye.
durango colorado
that's where we are today, saturday the 30th. sounds like the name of a tv show. DURANGO, starring clint eastwood or something like that. nice town, good size, nice shops maria, you would like it. lots of restaurants, some art galleries. so i've been trying for at least 30 minutes to get more pictures up, but alas, no luck. i will keep on trying. i can't figure out what the problem is, sometimes it works, other times no luck at all. and i do the same things every time. wtf????
so we went to mesa verde this morning, spent about 5 hours there i guess. brought our own lunch, as it was recommended to us. good idea. went to the cliff palace of these stone homes built into and under a cliff. kind of like san juan de la penya. really cool. lots of steps down, and then back up. breathless, i was left. we're at 7000 feet, so the oxygen we're getting is a lot cleaner than what's in NJ, but there's a lot less of it. a lot of nice pix, if i could only post them...
i think tomorrow we're going to take one of these rr trips up the mountains. durango to silverton. they say the scenery is fabulous and much more than you could ever see from your car on the road.
two weeks from today we come home. looking forward to it. all the hotel rooms are starting to look alike, and it's kind of hard (for me at least) to remember exactly what happened in what town and when.
we go to taos on monday. have to cross the continental divide again, and we will have no choice but to cross via one or two of these 10k + feet passes. hope the weather is okay.
so after about 4 weeks of seeing these many towns, i find that almost all of them have a strip on the outskirts of town where all the "new" commercial activity is going on. that's where you find the BK's, McD's, Walmarts, the hotel chains, the applebee's, in and out burger, etc, etc. all the things that the corporations are doing to homogenize the american - make that the world - lifestyle. i hate it. the strip-malling of america. it's not only NJ, the strip-mall state. i've ranted about this before. that's why i like doll's better than bennigans. that's why you will never find me in a red lobster restaurant. this is a serious cultural problem in america. meanwhile the original downtown areas next to the strips are left to decay and are left for marginal people; not to stereotype, but that's what it looks like to me. the good thing is there are exceptions. new brunswick has done a nice job bringing the downtown back. this town we're in now, durango, is a nicely maintained downtown with lots of viable businesses thriving here. that's at least what it looks like.
i'm done for now. i'll try the picture thing again. see you soon. miss you all. 2 weeks to go.
so we went to mesa verde this morning, spent about 5 hours there i guess. brought our own lunch, as it was recommended to us. good idea. went to the cliff palace of these stone homes built into and under a cliff. kind of like san juan de la penya. really cool. lots of steps down, and then back up. breathless, i was left. we're at 7000 feet, so the oxygen we're getting is a lot cleaner than what's in NJ, but there's a lot less of it. a lot of nice pix, if i could only post them...
i think tomorrow we're going to take one of these rr trips up the mountains. durango to silverton. they say the scenery is fabulous and much more than you could ever see from your car on the road.
two weeks from today we come home. looking forward to it. all the hotel rooms are starting to look alike, and it's kind of hard (for me at least) to remember exactly what happened in what town and when.
we go to taos on monday. have to cross the continental divide again, and we will have no choice but to cross via one or two of these 10k + feet passes. hope the weather is okay.
so after about 4 weeks of seeing these many towns, i find that almost all of them have a strip on the outskirts of town where all the "new" commercial activity is going on. that's where you find the BK's, McD's, Walmarts, the hotel chains, the applebee's, in and out burger, etc, etc. all the things that the corporations are doing to homogenize the american - make that the world - lifestyle. i hate it. the strip-malling of america. it's not only NJ, the strip-mall state. i've ranted about this before. that's why i like doll's better than bennigans. that's why you will never find me in a red lobster restaurant. this is a serious cultural problem in america. meanwhile the original downtown areas next to the strips are left to decay and are left for marginal people; not to stereotype, but that's what it looks like to me. the good thing is there are exceptions. new brunswick has done a nice job bringing the downtown back. this town we're in now, durango, is a nicely maintained downtown with lots of viable businesses thriving here. that's at least what it looks like.
i'm done for now. i'll try the picture thing again. see you soon. miss you all. 2 weeks to go.
Friday, April 29, 2005
from cortez, colorado
so we escaped from rawlins wyoming. what a disaster!. we get there and everything is cool, then they start predicting a snowstorm to start that night. so it did. the next morning there's maybe 3-4 inches of snow on the ground at 8 am. not bad, but it's supposed to get a lot worse and snow for several days. stuck in rawlins with the blizzrd blues again. they had closed I 8O east but we weren't interested in that, we wanted to go west on 80 for 25 miles and then take a state road south. then we heard that 80 west was closed. facing the prospect of being stuck there for days was very depressing. we got conflicting info over the next 2 hours from the internet and the tv and the telephone, so finally i said let's go see for ourselves. so we did. and it was open going our way. we left and had to deal with the icy snowy rt 80 for 25 miles, and then the state road for another 40 or so before we drove into the good weather in colorado. thank god.
Colorado National Monument video
so from the prospect of being snowed in at rawlins, we went to grand junction colorado, found an amazing park there, colorado national monument, that was like a mini grand canyon. lots of good photos. top down drive through the park, whiskey and cigars on the veranda after supper. it's a good life.
today we had to change the itinerary again because of snow in the high passes, 10k-11k feet. we didn't want to chance it, so we took an alternate route to cortez. found another great scenic drive, we had the road to ourselves, a little rain after a glorious morning, but more great photos. i can't seem to get them up here. but i'll keep trying.
tomorrow we head to mesa verde and then durango for 2 nights, then into new mexico for 3 days.
Mesa Verde N.P video
it feels like we've hit the far turn and are starting to head home. frankly, i can't wait to get home and back to the family routine and all. not that i'm having a bad time, not at all. but i wouldn't do this kind of trip this way again. too long and too many 1 night hotels; sometimes it feels like the only reason we're going somewhere is because we have a reservation there that night. don't cry for me argentina, i'm not looking for sympathy. i'm just saying hindsight is 20-20. so thanks to the nice people at best western in cortez, who are letting me use their office computer for free.
Colorado National Monument video
so from the prospect of being snowed in at rawlins, we went to grand junction colorado, found an amazing park there, colorado national monument, that was like a mini grand canyon. lots of good photos. top down drive through the park, whiskey and cigars on the veranda after supper. it's a good life.
today we had to change the itinerary again because of snow in the high passes, 10k-11k feet. we didn't want to chance it, so we took an alternate route to cortez. found another great scenic drive, we had the road to ourselves, a little rain after a glorious morning, but more great photos. i can't seem to get them up here. but i'll keep trying.
tomorrow we head to mesa verde and then durango for 2 nights, then into new mexico for 3 days.
Mesa Verde N.P video
it feels like we've hit the far turn and are starting to head home. frankly, i can't wait to get home and back to the family routine and all. not that i'm having a bad time, not at all. but i wouldn't do this kind of trip this way again. too long and too many 1 night hotels; sometimes it feels like the only reason we're going somewhere is because we have a reservation there that night. don't cry for me argentina, i'm not looking for sympathy. i'm just saying hindsight is 20-20. so thanks to the nice people at best western in cortez, who are letting me use their office computer for free.
Wednesday, April 27, 2005
930 pm, rawlins wy
i think i got one more picture up, but it won't let me do anymore. very frustrating, but i'll keep trying.
it's snowing like a bastard out there, just starting to stick on cars. tomorrow will be a very interesting day trying to get 200 miles south of here.
From Yellowstone, to the Grand Tetons, into Rawlins Wyoming video
it's snowing like a bastard out there, just starting to stick on cars. tomorrow will be a very interesting day trying to get 200 miles south of here.
From Yellowstone, to the Grand Tetons, into Rawlins Wyoming video
STILL on the high plains
we're in rawlins wyoming. just a travel day today, down from jackson and the tetons. good day for laundry and catching up on bill paying and internet stuff, since it's actually free here. our drive today was still more sagebrush and not much else. crossed the continental divide again, third time now. snow is predicted here tonight, not much, maybe a couple of inches at most. change of plans decided on though. we were going to continue east then south into rocky mtn nat park. internet tells me that the main attraction, the ridge road at 12,000 plus feet is still closed for snow removal. so, we're going south tomorrow away from any snow, adding 2 days to durango colorado and 1 day to santa fe. that will give us about 2 1/2 full days to explore 4 corners area from the colorado side. and an extra day in santa fe. all of which promise better weather than our more northern route.
saw some more antelope and deer today, they were playing i think. and we saw quite a few buffalo roaming in yellowstone. and i think i only heard one discouraging word since we've been out here. and today at least since we left jackson, the skies are not cloudy all day. but i wouldn't want a home here. it's just too far from anything approaching civilization. it's gorgeous country and all, but it baffles me why people are living in some of the places we're been through. nj guy talking i guess.
crossed 5000 miles today in the car. getting our money's worth for sure.
saw some more antelope and deer today, they were playing i think. and we saw quite a few buffalo roaming in yellowstone. and i think i only heard one discouraging word since we've been out here. and today at least since we left jackson, the skies are not cloudy all day. but i wouldn't want a home here. it's just too far from anything approaching civilization. it's gorgeous country and all, but it baffles me why people are living in some of the places we're been through. nj guy talking i guess.
crossed 5000 miles today in the car. getting our money's worth for sure.
from jackson wyoming
dick cheney's home state, one of my favorites. well, it's been a few days, i only got one picture posted before the computer started effin up. sorry. i have lots more when i can get to a cooperative computer.
more high prairie in idaho. many miles more of fence posts, telephone poles, snow plow markers. sagebrush must be the most common plant form in the US. had to stop in mud city, idaho (not a made-up name). had to stop, as in jaca- had-to-stop. of course, in the gas station/cafe/post office/deli/pizzeria/bait & ammo store that we stopped, the lady at the cash register, right next to the bathroom doors, was the sister of the wicked witch of the west, and of course there was a sign on the mens room door saying out of order. so like it or not, i had to initiate a conversation with the witch, in my very agitated gastro-intestinal state, as to whether or not it would be okay if i used the ladies room. she nodded her approval. it all worked out in the end...
Yellowstone N.P. video, part 1
so yellowstone and teton parks both still have major road closures due to snow removal ongoing. it added some time and miles to our trip. the parks are amazing. i know i've used that word before but, that's what it is. you want animal sightings? wolf twice, this morning right in front of the car, i video'd him. moose this afternoon in teton. tons of elk and buffalo. yesterday when we saw them for the first time, it was like oh wow how cool is that, taking pictures and all. today, when we came upon about 30 buffalo in the middle of the road, i was cursing at them to get the hell out of the way. it's a metro nyc thing i guess.
Mammoth Hot Springs, Yellowstone video
yellowstone with all the thermal activity going on is as if we were neolithic man thousands of years ago and seeing what it was like for him. from our rented car of course.
the tetons, the GRAND tetons. named after women's breasts by explorers who were away from home and their women for who knows how long. they see these magnificent projections from the earth and think of womens breasts. i can relate. they are magnificent and mesmerizing to watch. just like... never mind, PG.
so tomorrow we are leaving the tetons for rawlins, and then into colorado the next day. we've turned the corner, we're on our way back south again. i miss everybody. sorry there's only one picture. i'll try to get some more up when i can.
more high prairie in idaho. many miles more of fence posts, telephone poles, snow plow markers. sagebrush must be the most common plant form in the US. had to stop in mud city, idaho (not a made-up name). had to stop, as in jaca- had-to-stop. of course, in the gas station/cafe/post office/deli/pizzeria/bait & ammo store that we stopped, the lady at the cash register, right next to the bathroom doors, was the sister of the wicked witch of the west, and of course there was a sign on the mens room door saying out of order. so like it or not, i had to initiate a conversation with the witch, in my very agitated gastro-intestinal state, as to whether or not it would be okay if i used the ladies room. she nodded her approval. it all worked out in the end...
Yellowstone N.P. video, part 1
so yellowstone and teton parks both still have major road closures due to snow removal ongoing. it added some time and miles to our trip. the parks are amazing. i know i've used that word before but, that's what it is. you want animal sightings? wolf twice, this morning right in front of the car, i video'd him. moose this afternoon in teton. tons of elk and buffalo. yesterday when we saw them for the first time, it was like oh wow how cool is that, taking pictures and all. today, when we came upon about 30 buffalo in the middle of the road, i was cursing at them to get the hell out of the way. it's a metro nyc thing i guess.
Mammoth Hot Springs, Yellowstone video
yellowstone with all the thermal activity going on is as if we were neolithic man thousands of years ago and seeing what it was like for him. from our rented car of course.
the tetons, the GRAND tetons. named after women's breasts by explorers who were away from home and their women for who knows how long. they see these magnificent projections from the earth and think of womens breasts. i can relate. they are magnificent and mesmerizing to watch. just like... never mind, PG.
so tomorrow we are leaving the tetons for rawlins, and then into colorado the next day. we've turned the corner, we're on our way back south again. i miss everybody. sorry there's only one picture. i'll try to get some more up when i can.
Tuesday, April 26, 2005
Sunday, April 24, 2005
from ketchum idaho
hi all. well, 3 weeks of sunshine and going topless has come to an end. it's pretty cool here, drizzle on and off, and i'm afraid the week's forecast isn't very good, but what can you do? may be better for wildlife sightings if it's cloudy. so we crossed oregon over the last 2 days, a lot of high desert, it's really beautiful in a stark kind of no-frills way. a lot of sagebrush, some trees, not many. a lot of flat spaces in between the rolling hills. not really mountains. so which came first, the color "sage" on someone's pallette, or the plant?
i saw a ton of roadside crosses and flowers today and yesterday, all along the way, had to be 2 dozen easily over the 500 miles. these things are in the middle of nowhere. and it kind of made me sad that someone just expired out there on the road and no one (maybe) was around... and now someone else cares enough to drive out to the middle of nowhere and put flowers out there. true love, very sad.
on a funnier note. we went to the cemetery here in ketchum this afternoon to see mr hemingway's final resting place. we found it easily enough, small cemetery, big stone. right there, in the middle of the stone (it lays flat on the ground) right there above his name, some kind soul has left a pint of jack daniels. some things are more important in the after-life than others. whiskey surely must be one of them. we got a chuckle and documented it photographically. sorry, no way to post photos on this computer, you'll have to wait. afterwards, i was wondering if the intent was for visitors to have a shot with ernie, or not. surely that must be the intent. but we didn't go back and do it...
Hemingway Grave video
passed 4000 miles today, with a lot still to go. saw some more antelopes today near the road. local celebrities in this town include bruce willis, tom hanks, clint eastwood, demi and her young b/friend. it's really dead here, very very early spring, the town seems empty, we're totally out of season which is just fine.
the redwoods in humboldt were amazing, what large trees!! spectacular and awe-inspiring, make you feel small compared to nature sort of feeling. we also saw millions (no exaggeration) of wild flowers all the way up the northern california coast and into southern oregon, amazingly beautiful. besides the redwoods, there are beautiful eucalyptus and ponderosa pines.
i miss home badly, but like i said before, the sights are truly amazing. will try to get some more pix up as soon as i can.
mary hoagland, sorry i wasn't there. RIP.
see ya. miss you maria.
i saw a ton of roadside crosses and flowers today and yesterday, all along the way, had to be 2 dozen easily over the 500 miles. these things are in the middle of nowhere. and it kind of made me sad that someone just expired out there on the road and no one (maybe) was around... and now someone else cares enough to drive out to the middle of nowhere and put flowers out there. true love, very sad.
on a funnier note. we went to the cemetery here in ketchum this afternoon to see mr hemingway's final resting place. we found it easily enough, small cemetery, big stone. right there, in the middle of the stone (it lays flat on the ground) right there above his name, some kind soul has left a pint of jack daniels. some things are more important in the after-life than others. whiskey surely must be one of them. we got a chuckle and documented it photographically. sorry, no way to post photos on this computer, you'll have to wait. afterwards, i was wondering if the intent was for visitors to have a shot with ernie, or not. surely that must be the intent. but we didn't go back and do it...
Hemingway Grave video
passed 4000 miles today, with a lot still to go. saw some more antelopes today near the road. local celebrities in this town include bruce willis, tom hanks, clint eastwood, demi and her young b/friend. it's really dead here, very very early spring, the town seems empty, we're totally out of season which is just fine.
the redwoods in humboldt were amazing, what large trees!! spectacular and awe-inspiring, make you feel small compared to nature sort of feeling. we also saw millions (no exaggeration) of wild flowers all the way up the northern california coast and into southern oregon, amazingly beautiful. besides the redwoods, there are beautiful eucalyptus and ponderosa pines.
i miss home badly, but like i said before, the sights are truly amazing. will try to get some more pix up as soon as i can.
mary hoagland, sorry i wasn't there. RIP.
see ya. miss you maria.
Wednesday, April 20, 2005
2nd night in sf cal
before i forget, i wish i had taken a picture of this sign when we were in the desert on I-10, here it is: 2 signs actually, one under the other. top sign real large font:
SF Bay video
ok, so today was a boat cruise this morning to see the golden gate bridge up close; a ride to sausalito over in marin county, very cool money town, kind of mediterranean-esque in that it sits terraced on a hillside over the water.
Marin County, Sonoma video
then out to sonoma, walked around the old town and saw the mission there; then to the marin cty headlands, the hills overlooking the golden gate bridge across from sf. great views of everything there. very high up.
"CALIFORNIA STATE CORRECTIONAL INSTITUTION
EXIT 3
1/2 MILE"
second sign under it:
"DO NOT PICK UP HITCH-HIKERS
SF Bay video
ok, so today was a boat cruise this morning to see the golden gate bridge up close; a ride to sausalito over in marin county, very cool money town, kind of mediterranean-esque in that it sits terraced on a hillside over the water.
Marin County, Sonoma video
then out to sonoma, walked around the old town and saw the mission there; then to the marin cty headlands, the hills overlooking the golden gate bridge across from sf. great views of everything there. very high up.
tomorrow we're off to the north coast and redwoods for 2 days. don't know when i'll get a chance to get to a computer again, so here's a few new pix. thanks for reading. miss you guys!
Tuesday, April 19, 2005
Monday, April 18, 2005
rambling thoughts
pictures are taking way long. i'll just ramble a while...on saturday we drove from monterey down to fresno. across the central valley. flat flat country. toatally devoted to agriculture. we drove through the garlic capital of the world, the artichoke capital of the world, and the raisin capital of the world. then we drove though an area with orange groves, i never smelled that before. wow, for miles it smelled like the cleanest and sweetest restroom you could ever walk into. it was crazy.
the sierra nevada mtns: first you see a dim very dim line across the sky, not even sure that it's really there. then you see a line of what might be clouds out above the horizon, a thin line of clouds, but again, you're not really sure what yo're seeing through the haze. then you get a little closer and like an image appearing out of the air, you see the line of clouds is actually the snow-capped peaks and ridges of these really big mtns. very cool.
there are flowers all over the place. it has been very rare that wherever we were, we didn't see any flowers. it is like the roads are lined with gold to show us the way. like paint splashes of a mad artist in yellows, oranges, blues, violets, reds, whites. beautiful!!. the foothills, covered in what looks like green velvet, dotted with chestnut brown or black cattle grazing the hillsides. and always the sky, blue, sometimes hazy, other times a deep azure. and the clouds, when they do appear, just add a little dramatic flair.
stellars jays. we've seen a few of them, irridescent blue in the sunlight, with their black ninja-hooded heads.
thanks to ADA and the handicapped people of the world. because of the laws passed to help them out, a somewhat fat, somewhat lazy person like myself can have easy access to some of the wonders of our national parks.
all across the central valley and into sequoia and yosemite, they have numbers for their roads. just little side roads and drives and avenues and streets. it's very starnge and shows a severe lack of creativity on the part of the founding civil engineers here. why do they have 632 street? 205 avenue? 390 road? please come up with some real names for these places.
breakfast yesterday in coarsegold california. just a little greasy spoon for our eggs and....
elvis singing "little sister" on the radio. that's for you ron.
solvang cal was nice, a danish town, very quaint, if not a little like stepford.
well i've rambled enough. this is a great trip, i'm seeing some amazing things and places, and it's something i've always wanted to do when i retired, and miguel is a fine companion. but it's kind of bittersweet without you here maria, it's just not the same....see ya down the road.
the sierra nevada mtns: first you see a dim very dim line across the sky, not even sure that it's really there. then you see a line of what might be clouds out above the horizon, a thin line of clouds, but again, you're not really sure what yo're seeing through the haze. then you get a little closer and like an image appearing out of the air, you see the line of clouds is actually the snow-capped peaks and ridges of these really big mtns. very cool.
there are flowers all over the place. it has been very rare that wherever we were, we didn't see any flowers. it is like the roads are lined with gold to show us the way. like paint splashes of a mad artist in yellows, oranges, blues, violets, reds, whites. beautiful!!. the foothills, covered in what looks like green velvet, dotted with chestnut brown or black cattle grazing the hillsides. and always the sky, blue, sometimes hazy, other times a deep azure. and the clouds, when they do appear, just add a little dramatic flair.
stellars jays. we've seen a few of them, irridescent blue in the sunlight, with their black ninja-hooded heads.
thanks to ADA and the handicapped people of the world. because of the laws passed to help them out, a somewhat fat, somewhat lazy person like myself can have easy access to some of the wonders of our national parks.
all across the central valley and into sequoia and yosemite, they have numbers for their roads. just little side roads and drives and avenues and streets. it's very starnge and shows a severe lack of creativity on the part of the founding civil engineers here. why do they have 632 street? 205 avenue? 390 road? please come up with some real names for these places.
breakfast yesterday in coarsegold california. just a little greasy spoon for our eggs and....
elvis singing "little sister" on the radio. that's for you ron.
solvang cal was nice, a danish town, very quaint, if not a little like stepford.
well i've rambled enough. this is a great trip, i'm seeing some amazing things and places, and it's something i've always wanted to do when i retired, and miguel is a fine companion. but it's kind of bittersweet without you here maria, it's just not the same....see ya down the road.
from sf cal
hi all, about to go meet emily for a drink or dinner. weather still phenomenal. sunshine every day, all day. going topless a lot. 3 days in southern california, venice beach, santa monica, universal studios, santa barbara, the mission there. HEARST CASTLE!! second time i've seen it and it really is worth a trip. american royalty. then up the big sur coast, stopped at a few places on the way - ragged point, nepenthe, julia burns pfeiffer park with the waterfall into the ocean! -took lots of photos. will try to get some on here.
Ragged Point video
Whale Watching at Ragged Point video
Yosemite video
Sierra Nevada Foothills
since the grand canyon almost 2 weeks ago, i would have to say the nicest most amazing thing was yosemite. the scenery there is just jaw-dropping. every curve in the road brings a new and gorgeous vista. another "has to be seen" stop for sure. the giant sequoias in sequoia nat. park weren't too shabby either. we saw the largest living organism on the earth, some humongous tree. saw some coyotes on the way out of yosemite, got them on video. no bears yet, damn.
hey! what's up with our effin yankees?? i stop watching them for a few weeks and they go to hell. let's go guys!
let's see if i can get some pix on here. later.
Ragged Point video
Whale Watching at Ragged Point video
Yosemite video
Sierra Nevada Foothills
since the grand canyon almost 2 weeks ago, i would have to say the nicest most amazing thing was yosemite. the scenery there is just jaw-dropping. every curve in the road brings a new and gorgeous vista. another "has to be seen" stop for sure. the giant sequoias in sequoia nat. park weren't too shabby either. we saw the largest living organism on the earth, some humongous tree. saw some coyotes on the way out of yosemite, got them on video. no bears yet, damn.
hey! what's up with our effin yankees?? i stop watching them for a few weeks and they go to hell. let's go guys!
let's see if i can get some pix on here. later.
Tuesday, April 12, 2005
new pix!!
takes a long time, but here's a few new ones. leaving so cal tomorrow, off to santa barbara, then solvang. next day to san simeon and hearst. monterey, sequoia, yosemite, and san fran. see you monday, em.
see ya
see ya
Monday, April 11, 2005
from so cal
i guess the best thing i can say is that the weather has been fabulous, great driving weather, not hot, just right. since the last post, we went from sedona's red rocks, SW across arizona and crossed into california at I10. Highway Country 101.5 FM helping us along. quite a few flowers out in the deserts, which don't at all look like the sahara desert, lots of different plants, flowers, joshua trees. it might look a lot different by the middle of the summer, but right now it's real pretty. and BIG. the spaces out here are so BIG, compared to what we have in the NY metropolitan area, it's mind-boggling.
Welcome to California, On the Road, Joshua Tree N.P.
on saturday the 9th, we drove up to death valley junction, through joshua tree NP. very unusual looking trees, like something out of an ancient geological age. sorry, no pix. this computer won't let me do it. lots of wild flowers there too. the scenery driving through the desert with big mountains on your sides and in front of you was spectacular.
Amargosa Hotel & Opera House video
so then we arrive at the amargosa opera house and hotel in death valley junction. this is an entire story in itself. the only thing happening out there is the weather. the "opera" on sat nite was the most fellini-esque event i have ever personally attended in my life; and don't forget, we were young and crazy in the 70's...
Marta Becket's Masquerade
About this video: It is pretty long, almost 13 minutes.
i was able to video the show, and you'll see for yourselves what i mean. so after the show, we were starving, but all there was at the amargosa hotel was a vending machine with fritos. fritos and whiskey, in our dumpy room, weren't going to cut it. we asked around where was the nearest place to get something to eat at 930 pm, and we found out that 7-8 miles down the road in nevada, there was a casino. so we set off. when we got there, it was saturday night in amargosa valley, so there were lots of cowboy hats, and the women were in their best bluejeans. there was also musical entertainment at the bar: a guy about our age, and his female singing companion, 50-ish. he played an electric keyboard, actually 2 of them. they had some other instrumental parts in their laptop. it was exactly like the will ferrell SNL routine. it was worth a laugh, and at least we ate. miguel won a few dollars. what a surprise.
then there was the peacock. i'll leave that for another time.
so we decided to leave death valley a day early, especially since the highway we were going to enter the park on has been closed for repairs since an august flood. anyway, kind of a blowout, but the scenery made up for it.
so as i sit here in sherman oaks at kinko's, i think it's santa monica, venice beach and malibu tomorrow.
Venice Beach, Santa Monica video
then off to santa barbara and the wine country in the hills above it. the same area as the movie sideways was filmed in. weather report is still great for the rest of our week.
gas!! how about 3.19 for an effin gallon of gas! that was the most expensive, but it's been consistently 2.50 - 2.70. goddam bush and cheney and their friends in oil.
time to go. sorry i couldn't get any pix up, will try next time. bye everybody. miss you guys.
jh
Welcome to California, On the Road, Joshua Tree N.P.
on saturday the 9th, we drove up to death valley junction, through joshua tree NP. very unusual looking trees, like something out of an ancient geological age. sorry, no pix. this computer won't let me do it. lots of wild flowers there too. the scenery driving through the desert with big mountains on your sides and in front of you was spectacular.
Amargosa Hotel & Opera House video
so then we arrive at the amargosa opera house and hotel in death valley junction. this is an entire story in itself. the only thing happening out there is the weather. the "opera" on sat nite was the most fellini-esque event i have ever personally attended in my life; and don't forget, we were young and crazy in the 70's...
Marta Becket's Masquerade
About this video: It is pretty long, almost 13 minutes.
i was able to video the show, and you'll see for yourselves what i mean. so after the show, we were starving, but all there was at the amargosa hotel was a vending machine with fritos. fritos and whiskey, in our dumpy room, weren't going to cut it. we asked around where was the nearest place to get something to eat at 930 pm, and we found out that 7-8 miles down the road in nevada, there was a casino. so we set off. when we got there, it was saturday night in amargosa valley, so there were lots of cowboy hats, and the women were in their best bluejeans. there was also musical entertainment at the bar: a guy about our age, and his female singing companion, 50-ish. he played an electric keyboard, actually 2 of them. they had some other instrumental parts in their laptop. it was exactly like the will ferrell SNL routine. it was worth a laugh, and at least we ate. miguel won a few dollars. what a surprise.
then there was the peacock. i'll leave that for another time.
so we decided to leave death valley a day early, especially since the highway we were going to enter the park on has been closed for repairs since an august flood. anyway, kind of a blowout, but the scenery made up for it.
so as i sit here in sherman oaks at kinko's, i think it's santa monica, venice beach and malibu tomorrow.
Venice Beach, Santa Monica video
then off to santa barbara and the wine country in the hills above it. the same area as the movie sideways was filmed in. weather report is still great for the rest of our week.
gas!! how about 3.19 for an effin gallon of gas! that was the most expensive, but it's been consistently 2.50 - 2.70. goddam bush and cheney and their friends in oil.
time to go. sorry i couldn't get any pix up, will try next time. bye everybody. miss you guys.
jh
Friday, April 08, 2005
3 pix
to show you a little bit. takes a long time to make these happen. will try again from next stop. enjoy...
from a cafe in sedona az
sorry it's taken me so long to get this in. we'll see about pix in a little while, for now, some impressions. today is friday, day 5.
Vegas video
las vegas: the strip, bigger than i pictured it; glitz; neon; under construction; tacky; went to the venetian, it's not italy but it's a beautiful fake. had a drink with kim that night. miguel won a few bucks as he always does. picked up our new (621 miles on it) chrysler sebring convertible. buzz and todd on the road.
leaving las vegas: tuesday morning. top down, Taj on the stereo, bright sunshine all over.
Joshua Tree Forest, AZ video
on the way to rt 66 in az, stopped in dolan springs and the joshua tree forest that's there. what a cool sight, miles after mile of these weird looking joshua trees, all up the mountains. a forest indeed. that afternoon, peach springs az. hualapai lodge, ownwed and operated by the local indian tribe, it actually sits on indian land. at the risk of being politically incorrect, i'm sure the translation for "hualapai" must be "paybacks are a bitch, white man". the hotel itself was fine, the problem was that a rr crossing was about 100 yds behind the hotel, and it was a very busy line. several times an hour, the bells would sound, then the train would pass through, blowing its horn three times, all night long. it wasn't funny. even a few JD's didn't help my sleeping that night. i got so sunburned with the top down that i thought for sure they would give me a discount when we checked in. no sun for me for the next couple of days. gas was 2.19 a gallon, not horrible.
day 3 wednesday: on the way to the grand canyon. it's really far from anywhere, but everything seems far from anywhere out here. BIG places, BIG spaces. first view of the grand canyon was just like i've read: it takes your breath away. no words, at least not mine, no pictures can do it justice. has to be seen to be believed. just the most enormous beautiful natural sight you could ever see.
elk munching the grass out back of the hotel, like 30 feet away. had a cigar and some JD outside at night.
Grand Canyon, Sedona video
thursday 4-7, grand canyon east rim to sedona az. east rim is maybe nicer than what we saw yesterday, less development, more open, less tourists. saw the painted desert from a distance, it really does look "painted", many colors: red, shades of rose, beige, light brown, and BIG. saw charcoal gray lava beds, who knows how old? huge areas covered in dark gray lava. sedona: worth a couple of days visit. red rocks all around. very similar to los mallos in riglos spain, but all over the place, every where you look there are these beautiful rock formations.
Montezuma's Castle, AZ
today: we leave sedona, heading sw across az to the border w california. staying tonight in ehrenberg az, next to the colorado river. tomorrow, into mohave desert and death valley. weather is spectacular so far.
i miss everybody a lot already. let's see if i can get some pix in here. later.....
Vegas video
las vegas: the strip, bigger than i pictured it; glitz; neon; under construction; tacky; went to the venetian, it's not italy but it's a beautiful fake. had a drink with kim that night. miguel won a few bucks as he always does. picked up our new (621 miles on it) chrysler sebring convertible. buzz and todd on the road.
leaving las vegas: tuesday morning. top down, Taj on the stereo, bright sunshine all over.
Joshua Tree Forest, AZ video
on the way to rt 66 in az, stopped in dolan springs and the joshua tree forest that's there. what a cool sight, miles after mile of these weird looking joshua trees, all up the mountains. a forest indeed. that afternoon, peach springs az. hualapai lodge, ownwed and operated by the local indian tribe, it actually sits on indian land. at the risk of being politically incorrect, i'm sure the translation for "hualapai" must be "paybacks are a bitch, white man". the hotel itself was fine, the problem was that a rr crossing was about 100 yds behind the hotel, and it was a very busy line. several times an hour, the bells would sound, then the train would pass through, blowing its horn three times, all night long. it wasn't funny. even a few JD's didn't help my sleeping that night. i got so sunburned with the top down that i thought for sure they would give me a discount when we checked in. no sun for me for the next couple of days. gas was 2.19 a gallon, not horrible.
day 3 wednesday: on the way to the grand canyon. it's really far from anywhere, but everything seems far from anywhere out here. BIG places, BIG spaces. first view of the grand canyon was just like i've read: it takes your breath away. no words, at least not mine, no pictures can do it justice. has to be seen to be believed. just the most enormous beautiful natural sight you could ever see.
elk munching the grass out back of the hotel, like 30 feet away. had a cigar and some JD outside at night.
Grand Canyon, Sedona video
thursday 4-7, grand canyon east rim to sedona az. east rim is maybe nicer than what we saw yesterday, less development, more open, less tourists. saw the painted desert from a distance, it really does look "painted", many colors: red, shades of rose, beige, light brown, and BIG. saw charcoal gray lava beds, who knows how old? huge areas covered in dark gray lava. sedona: worth a couple of days visit. red rocks all around. very similar to los mallos in riglos spain, but all over the place, every where you look there are these beautiful rock formations.
Montezuma's Castle, AZ
today: we leave sedona, heading sw across az to the border w california. staying tonight in ehrenberg az, next to the colorado river. tomorrow, into mohave desert and death valley. weather is spectacular so far.
i miss everybody a lot already. let's see if i can get some pix in here. later.....
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