Sedona & Jerome (Photo Heavy!)

First of all, I want to apologize for being a positively abysmal commenter of late.  Work last week was hell on steroids and my Bloglovin' feed quickly spiraled out of control.  Currently I'm at 426 unread posts...eek!  After long days of training, preparing, and dealing with unprepared trainers the idea of writing a post was just unthinkable.  Hence why my Grand Canyon post was so boring.

But now it's the weekend and I finally have some time.  Aren't you all excited?

So when I first came to Arizona everyone I met (and I mean everyone) would tell me, "You have to see Jerome, Sedona, and the Grand Canyon."  It was completely universal.  Most of you have probably heard of Sedona.  Jerome is a small former mining town that is built into a mountainside.  Rumor has it that it's haunted both by its many inhabitants that died in the various fires and mining accidents as well as the patients in the mental asylum (now turned hotel). 

Anyway I woke up early on Saturday morning and headed to Sedona by way of Jerome.  The road you take to Jerome from Prescott goes up the mountain meaning I was dealing with switchback curves at around 20 mph and l o n g drops down.  If I looked over the side I had mini-panic attacks.  I actually laughed out loud, though, when Bruce Springsteen came on my iPod singing "I'm goin' down, down, down, down..."

I managed to stop at a few places and take some photos of the scenery, the drop, and the curves:

I eventually made it into Jerome though it wasn't easy given the narrow streets.  I parked and walked around a bit, admiring the original buidings and the gorgeous view.  I was a bit surprised that Arizona hasn't done more to preserve the buildings--many had either been purchased as private residences or were completely rotting.  I watched a history video in the old silent movie theater which was quite interesting.  I won't go into Jerome's history but you can read more about it here.

Also, the building below with the Nelly Bly sign used to be a brothel, which was the third iteration of the building after the first two burned down.  Fun, huh?

After walking around for a bit I ate a delicious lunch of taco salad and the most amazing margarita ever at a restaurant called Quince (yes, a margarita at noon, don't judge).  They were one of the very few restaurants I've found in Arizona that had knowledge of gluten-free diets.

 

After Jerome it was on to the positively gorgeous town of Sedona. Just like other places in Arizona, I audibly gasped when I caught sight of the huge red rocks and gorgeous silhouettes. I don't think it will ever cease to amaze me. I decided to go on a helicopter tour, since my brother- and sister-in-law really enjoyed the one they went on. Before actually leaving I had some time, so I visited some of the scenic view points and even hiked a little up a trail. It was pretty perfect for pictures.

While on the helicopter tour (which was amazing, I totally recommend it if you're in the area) my camera died. I've never had an issue with this camera so I was pretty bummed. However, I decided to take it as a reminder that I will still have the memories despite not having a camera to capture them and just enjoyed the scenery with my eyes. I did get a few good pictures though, which I have shown below:

If you want to see all of my pictures please check out my Flickr.

All in all I am really enjoying my time in Arizona.  I have flashes of homesickness (like when I walked into Walmart and it was set up almost exactly like our own Walmart) but I know that this really is a great opportunity and I should be thankful for it.  Sadly no matter how hard I try, the bright red of the rock just isn't as brilliant without my Robbie by my side.  He's like a pair of 3D glasses.

I hope you all aren't getting tired of these photography posts.  I wouldn't worry too much if you are, however, since...you know, my camera is dead.

Have a great weekend, all!

It's Pretty Grand Indeed

So here it comes, my post on the Grand Canyon.

On Saturday Rob's brother, Nick and his wife Jessi came to visit me all the way from Maine. Once they got here we more or less went to bed (damn jet lag) and woke up early the next morning to head to ye olde Grand Canyon.

The drive was around two and a half hours and very scenic.  I'm amazed at just how different Arizona is from my own home state (and indeed any part of the US I've been), and also at how many climates and cultures exist within the United States.

Anyway we got to the park and immediately (and excitedly) made our way to the first viewing spot.

And oh. my. god.  You guys.

The Grand Canyon is everything I imagined and then some.  We couldn't say anything aside from "holy shit!" and "Ohhh my gooood" and "Whaaaat?"  The people around us were mostly from other countries but I'm pretty sure they were all saying the same thing.  

After we checked out the visitor's center we drove along Desert View Drive, stopping at every single point to take picture upon picture upon picture.

All told, I took close to 500 pictures but not one of them came even close to capturing the beauty and the absolute magnitude of the Grand Canyon.  The pictures below are my fruitless attempt to do so, but really, you just need to go there.  Right now, seriously.  I'll wait.