An Ode to America

Exploring the Southwest

Day 10 on the road.

I’m in Salt Lake City right now.  By next week, we will be in San Francisco, but Salt Lake City is actually the last city we’re staying in before our final destination.  I often feel like I’m backpacking in Europe again, and I guess we kind of are “backpacking” through the US.  When I was in Europe, I carried around a bulky 25 lb. backpack, and as touristy as it made me look, it was actually a great conversation starter with fellow travelers and locals.  This time around, our New Jersey license plates and car packed with all our belongings were what people were noticing. We’ve even had people from New Jersey wave or honk at us or come up to the side of our car just to chat.  Everyday we go on a new adventure, whether it’s climbing to the top of a vortex in Sedona, catching one of our favorite musical acts in Denver, or driving for 10 hours and making sandwiches at rest stops along the way.  As amazing as it’s been, I have been craving some time to myself to write and reflect on all the good that we’ve encountered on our travels through America.  I wish we had been able to explore Middle America and the Midwest a little more, but the Southwest has kept us pretty busy.  We had hoped to catch glimpses of all of the landmarks and national parks along the way, but there is SO much.  I find myself lighting up at the sight of every brown road sign we pass indicating a recreational area.  Places I definitely want to come back to and explore:

– Boulder/Denver, Colorado Round 2
– Mesa Verde, Colorado
– several day hike into the Grand Canyon
– Sedona, Arizona Round 2, 3, 4, 5, etc.
– Zion National Park, Utah

I was actually quite surprised to see so many people from countries, such as Spain, France, Taiwan, Australia, Dominican Republic, and many more, in some of the places that we’ve visited on this road trip.  When I think of what places people from other countries want to visit in continental US, I think of New York City because of all of the movies and TV shows, Miami because of the beach and clubbing, and Washington DC because well, it’s our country’s capital.  I thought the tourism in the rest of America came from… Americans.  Just goes to show how big our small ponds may seem.

And now, a random selection of  pictorial highlights from the past week and a half…

Dhanurasana in four states at the same time! New Mexico, Arizona, Utah, Colorado.

On our way from the Four Corners, a search for the nearest gas station took us 40 miles off course.  We stumbled across a breathtaking canyon that stretched for miles along Route 161.

Meditating at the top of Bell Rock in magical Sedona, Arizona.

Met new friends from Taiwan as we climbed Cathedral Rock – Sedona, AZ.