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Candy and I are starting our road trip today!
Yeah!
So this is going to be -- how many days is it, actually?
I believe it's... well, I think initially we had 10, but now I think it's 11.
Okay, so like a 10 to 12 day road trip.
I know we're starting today, Thursday, August 27th and then we'll be back in Florida, Tampa by September 8th and that's a Tuesday.
So definitely like a week and a half to two weeks... somewhere in there.
We're going to make multiple stops and each day we're going to plan about, I would say, average eight hours a day.
There are some places where we'll be only driving like four hours a day
but most of the days will be like an eight hour drive average
and we'll probably be adding on more hours because we'll be making pit stops
and probably looking at some gorgeous scenery along the way because we're going towards Utah first
and I've always wanted to go to Utah because they have the most beautiful landscapes there.
They do. We got a little teaser a few years -- has it already been three years?
Probably, yeah.
Actually, around this time, Labor Day weekend, we went with our girls on a girl's trip
to uh... what was that? I can't think of the name of the national park right now that we went to.
Zion.
We went to Zion and then when we were driving there from Las Vegas, we were like, we should have just stayed in Utah this entire trip.
It was just so gorgeous.
Yeah, I feel like we wasted our time in Vegas.
Yeah, skip Vegas. Go to Utah.
Yeah, maybe it's because of our age too.
We're a little bit older and we've been to Vegas so many times that we were kind of over it by the time we went again.
And we enjoy the nature a lot more now
and we're not hikers, but I still like a little bit of hiking and seeing like the mountains and stuff.
So yeah, if you're debating between Vegas and Utah, go to Utah.
But yeah, first we're going to Sedona, Arizona.
We just left from LA about two and a half hours ago and right now we're in Coachella -- driving through Coachella.
Yeah, Candy was just telling me about her Coachella experience and how horrible it was
because I was telling her I would never want to go to Coachella.
I'm just not a big music fest person like that.
I like my own concerts I like to go to but I don't like big music festivals like that.
Yeah, the music part was awesome and everything in between that is not awesome
and again, this was 10 years ago already when I went to Coachella.
Yeah, she went before it was like a fad.
Yeah, so I don't know if it's changed since then -- the logistics of it... but um, anyways...
Anyways, yeah so we're passing by Coachella area now and it's really in the middle of the desert.
There's nothing around here.
It's like 106 degrees.
Yeah, it was 108 earlier.
You can feel it through the window, how hot it is.
So after Sedona, we're only going to stay one night there.
Kind of like a pit stop because I was thinking Phoenix first but then we were like, you know, we should just go a little bit further to Sedona
and also there's more beautiful scenery there so I found this resort called the Sky Lodge Resort
and they're supposed to have like this deck or terrace that has a beautiful view
of one of their iconic red rocks so kind of looking forward to that.
So we're just going to relax and get some rest and have some dinner there
and then next day, we're going to go towards Capitol Reef National Park
but on the way, I want to go through Burr Trail Road which has some of the coolest views
and they have like this one view where you could see all the switchbacks of the road.
I think the driving might be a little bit terrifying but Candy's going to have to drive that part
because she doesn't do so well with motion sickness if I'm driving on mountains so good luck with that, Candy. Hahaha!
We'll see if I can do it.
So Burr Trail Road is pretty famous in Utah.
I didn't really know about it until a month ago when I was planning this out
and my boss actually told me about it because he used to live in Utah
and he said you definitely need to go through that road.
It's gorgeous and it's awesome.
Some of the views like you probably won't be able to see anywhere else,
so definitely going to go through there
and then we'll end up at Red Sands Hotel which is in Torrey, I believe, or near Torrey.
And that's close to Capitol Reef National Park.
Yeah, if you watched part one of Crystal's road trip when she came to California from Florida,
she didn't replace Kuma with me. Kuma is still here.
Yes, Kuma is here.
So this is still a dog-friendly road trip.
So we will be staying at all the dog-friendly hotels.
Yes, I didn't forget to mention Kuma. Sorry, Kuma.
Yeah, Kuma is with me still.
And the route is different this time.
On the way here, she took a different route on the way to California.
So on the way back to Florida, it's a little bit of a different route and we'll also be stopping by Nebraska.
Yeah, but before we get to Nebraska, we still got some other stops.
But yeah, so the one that I took from Florida to California -- that was really quick. I did it in five days.
It was a little bit longer than what other people do, but I took five days because I wanted to do 8-9 hours each day
since I had my dog and I wasn't sure how much she could take within a day.
She actually did really great. She probably could go longer.
but I felt like eight to nine hours a day was perfect for me as well because I didn't feel too tired each day.
I felt like it was just the right amount of driving for driving solo every day.
This trip, since I know I have Candy with me too, I'm going a little longer and stopping by different places because I'll have some help driving.
I could probably do it all by myself again but...
Yeah, I'm sure she can.
But it would be nice to have some help, so it's great that Candy decided to come with me back to Florida.
So yes, we'll be staying in Capitol Reef for a couple of days exploring the national park.
Maybe do some night photography because they have a place where they're known to have a really great place for night photography
and then after that, we're going to make our way towards Arches National Park.
Stay there for a couple of days and then we go to Denver.
Yes.
And Denver is kind of like a pit stop, so we're only staying there for a night.
And then we move on -- that's when we go to Nebraska.
We're staying in a town called Beatrice, which probably nobody knows where that's at
but that's where our grandma used to live or near there -- real close to Beatrice
and our uncle has a farm in Wymore.
Yeah, which is like about a 20 minute drive from Beatrice.
We have not been to the farm in years. I don't even remember... maybe almost 10?
Uhhhh... has it been 10 years?
When did grandma pass away?
I don't know... has it been that long?
Anyways, it's been awhile.
But we actually have been to the farm since kids because we lived in Nebraska when we were kids in the late 80s,
so from' 86 to '89, we lived in Nebraska because our dad was in the military in the Air Force.
So we lived in Omaha on Offutt Air Force Base or near Offutt Air Force Base
and our grandma's house was a couple of hours, so we would go there often
and see our relatives and go to the farm
and the farm -- it's actually very fond to us.
We have very fond memories of it.
Every time I go back to the farm, I really enjoy it and I always feel very nostalgic.
I'm like, oh I remember when we used to go there and play with the cows or feed the cows
and then they used to have wild cats, so we used to feed the cats
and our little brother would play in the hay
and our cousins would have like these dirt bikes.
The farm -- gosh, our grandpa owned it
and it's been a family for years and years.
And his grandfather owned it.
Yeah, I think his grandfather owned it too, so it's been in the family since the early 1900s.
Over a century.
So yeah, we're staying there for a couple of days so we can spend time with our uncle and our cousins and see the farm again.
After that, we're moving on to Kansas City and that's a pit stop too.
We're only staying there for the night.
And then we move on to Nashville.
So Nashville I'm super excited about because it's been like this fad or trendy city that everybody's been visiting lately
and Candy and I have just never made it there.
So, finally, we're going to do it because it's on our way back anyway
and I'm kind of excited for this cool like trendy city everybody's been talking about.
Yeah, I was like, oh man, I wish I had like some cowgirl clothes.
I know! Maybe we can go buy some while we're there.
Or is that something touristy and they're like, Ugh, not more tourists dressing up like cow girls.
I think they're used to it by now.
Then after Nashville, we go to Atlanta, it's kind of a pit stop as well.
And finally Tampa.
So yeah, it's going to be a lot of fun, a lot of days of driving, but a lot of cool places that we've been wanting to check out together, so really excited about this.
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Candy's eating some rice balls right now.
We packed some lunch for the first day.
We make this kara-age, which is Japanese fried chicken nuggets with soy sauce and ginger, sake and mirin.
It's super easy to make, so we make it the night before and just put it in the fridge.
We also make some rice balls. Candy makes her version with Japanese rice seasoning.
It's got seaweed, plum, different types of seaweed...so yeah, it's a very healthy mix.
Yeah, so she puts some healthy Japanese herbs in there.
And I have my version of the rice balls which I have to open.
But this is like the more classic type of rice ball they call it onigiri and it's just rice with seaweed.
You do sprinkle some salt on there, tho.
Yeah, so it's rice with seaweed, but on the rice you put some salt so it'll give it some flavor
because if it's just rice and seaweed, it's pretty bland so you need some salt on it
but that's what I make. I make little mini ones.
And then Candy also brought some healthy carrots.
And I brought some chickpeas as well which I gotta find later.
We always pack some lunch on long road trips like this because we know we're gonna be eating pretty crappy for the rest of the time
so just to have like your version of healthy...
like I know the fried chicken nuggets aren't really that healthy, but at least it's like home-cooked food too
so we're not always -- well, we're gonna always be eating out, so having some home-cooked food is nice to have before you hit the road
especially like a long road trip like we're doing.
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We're in Arizona now. We're about three and a half hours away from our first stop in Sedona.
So far the drive has been great.
More cars than I thought there would be, but not that bad. No traffic or anything.
We stopped by -- this was still in California, but we passed by this one sign that said, 'State prison. Do not pick up hitchhikers.'
So that was pretty interesting.
I've never seen a sign like that and who knew it was illegal.
Yeah...
Well, I mean no, it is illegal.
Oh, it is!? I didn't even -- oh no wait, yeah, it is illegal.
Haha! But it's like people do it anyways, so I guess I kind of forget that it's illegal.
Yeah, I mean, I'm pretty sure it is, right?
Yeah, I think it is. I think you're right.
But I just see people -- you hear about people doing it all the time, so I guess...
I've never hitchhiked in my life.
I guess over the years, I just forgot that it's illegal.
Oh, there is a rest stop.
Did you want to go to the rest area here?
Yeah, maybe we'll just go there.
And we can switch there too because you've driven...
It'll be half-half, but only if you want to.
Yeah, I don't mind to go ahead and start.
Yeah, so this is how we kind of decide who's going to drive next.
Yeah, like I could probably still go on, but if you wanted to switch it's fine with me too.
Yeah, I don't mind switching now.
Yeah, Candy, you know, she wants to do stuff on her phone like catch up on our social media and all that
but she gets motion sickness, so it's a little bit hard for her to do.
She could do it for a little bit but not too long.
Whereas, I don't have that problem.
I have to take a lot of breaks, but I think this last stretch, I wasn't taking any breaks and I could feel it, so...
It's like, you know what? I can't do anything anyways and I'm not sleepy, so you might as well drive. Hahaha.
Yeah, so we're at a rest area -- the first rest area in Arizona. It's right after you enter Arizona.
Yeah, so it's like not even five minutes.
So here we are. It looks pretty nice.
Gotta put on the mask.
Yup, put on your mask for sure.
Alright, so that rest area, the bathroom was actually air-conditioned which was nice.
There was soap - yay!
The only thing I don't like is I hate those faucets where you have to push the button
and then the water comes out for like two seconds and you're like who can wash their hands in two seconds!?
So you have to keep touching it and I'm like, well, this defeats the purpose of washing my hands and touching surfaces.
Another thing this bathroom I thought was kind of weird but I guess I kind of get why they do it.
The doors were short on the bottom and the top so when I stand up, I can see out.
So anyone that walked by, if they really wanted to look in, they could
so that's a little odd, hahaha!
I did come upon those a lot coming over here.
I think it started like in Texas, in western Texas
and then New Mexico and Arizona had a lot of those.
It must be like -- I bet like they want to make sure there's not people sleeping in there maybe.
Instead of having security look under each door,
maybe it's easier if they just like look above.
I don't know, I'm just guessing.
Maybe.
But anyways, very clean though.
Very clean with lots of toilet paper
so definitely -- if you are trying to find a good rest area, that's a good one.
And then the next one's in 46 miles
so there's actually another rest area not too far away from the first one in Arizona.
Very cool.
I just started seeing some saguaro cactuses.
Oh yeah, I see them!
Yup, see? It's an Arizona thing and they only have them in Tucson
or Tucson and surrounding areas
because me and Kuma stopped by Saguaro National Park while we were in Tucson
and it was great to learn about them .
I didn't know that this was the only place that the saguaro cactuses grew
and that they're one of the most well-known cactuses around the world.
Look at you. You sound like a geologist.
I know, I learned so much from that national park.
It's like whenever we switch, it's usually like Crystal gets more of the relaxing views while I'm driving
because I can't really drive through when it's like mountainous and windy
so it's like I want to enjoy the views without having to drive, but I can't because I get sick
so I can only enjoy half of it
like I'm trying to focus and I'm trying to look at the views so, anyhoo... hahaha.
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We just turned on 60 and we just passed by this cute little town called Wickenburg.
There was some kind of historic thing there too like someone's historic home.
It looked really western.
Yeah, everything was western themed. There's like saloons and...
Cowboy pictures.
Yeah, hahaha. But it looked super duper cute.
Now this is cowboy cookin' over here.
Yeah yeah, see. Cowboy cookin'. Let's get some cowboy cookin' right there.
So we got two more hours to go. Not bad.
Candy was listening to a podcast called -- what was it? Nice white teachers or something?
No, Nice White Parents.
Nice White Parents. Sorry. Hahaha!
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Look at this cute little rest area.
Kuma, do you like the rest area?
She seems mad.
So I needed to stop again.
I think generally we stop -- I don't know...
Every hour and a half.
Yeah, every hour and a half to two hours we stop.
Oh yeah, I'm gonna get you!
Awww.
Yeah, you know your name.
Oh my, somebody's excited.
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We're about 40 minutes away from Sedona and the views are getting really gorgeous now.
We're entering Verde Valley and I think we see the valley
because it's just vastly open and it looks amazing.
The video and pictures won't do it justice.
Like you just have to see it in person. It looks really, really cool.
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We are almost at our hotel. We're going uphill now to Sky Ranch Lodge.
Oh boy, I like this how we're going up.
It makes me excited because I'm like, oh maybe there'll be a grand view at the top.
I mean it looks like it from here, from what I'm seeing.
Candy can't look, but from what I'm seeing, it looks pretty grand.
Here it is. Sky Ranch Lodge.
I wonder where the entrance is.
Uhhh... it says lobby and gift shop up there.
CRYSTAL: Let's just try up here first. CANDY: Oh yeah, I see the sign.
Alright, so we're in Room 222.
Yeah, I see the number.
They're like little cottages.
Yeah, these are cute.
Awww, this is cute! Look at this little garden we have.
Alright, let's enter our room.
Oh this is nice!
It is so nice.
Oh this is nice!
It looks brand new. It smells new.
Yeah, they must have done like a remodel or something.
Yeah and then back here... oh, they even have a microwave.
Oh wow.
Oh look, a little fridge too.
The shower is frickin' awesome.
Yeah?
Yes! It's so pretty.
Oh my gosh! This is so nice!
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