Between Santa Fe and Flag, I stopped at Petrified Forest / Painted Desert National Park (see photos!) The park is pretty nice, a detour that is definitely worth the entry fee and extra time in the car. Mom wanted me to take some of the wood, which I was planning on doing, until I figured out that it was illegal - anyways if everyone took a piece home there wouldn't be any left (so I got some at the gift shop 3/$5 is better than jail and/or a $350 fee).
I checked into the hotel on Route 66 in Flagstaff - which seemed like a good idea, except that it was the WORST hotel that I've stayed in the entire time. Seriously, I wanted to shower - after showering. On top of that, it was Route 66 and it was Memorial Day weekend, which apparently means that Harleys will be going both directions at all hours of the night. I have since decided that I only like Harleys during the daylight.
Flag Day 1:
The next day I drove to Monument Valley, UT which is definitely one of my favorite places that I've been so far. It is not a national park, because it is on Navajo land, but it is treated the same as a national park by the US and by the Navajo (and we don't have to worry about disrespecting their lands or their culture at all, because they make the rules and they run the show). I really wanted to do a horseback tour of the park, but they were all sold out, so I took a Jeep tour. I still want to do the horseback tour next time, but the Jeep tour was really cool. In a Jeep, they can take you farther into the restricted areas in less time (so you get to see more cool stuff). On top of that, they only take 3 or 4 people at a time, so you get a more private and custom tour. I went with these two German guys (who have probably seen more of the US than I have). They were interesting, one spoke English better than the other, but they were both cool. The tour guide was a Navajo named Nathan. He lives in Utah and can't imagine living anywhere else. I can understand that, Monument Valley was amazing. Nathan showed us the vegetation (yes, there's vegetation), buttes, petroglyphs and arches then sang some Navajo songs. Towards the middle/end of the tour the wind was really strong and our group got stuck in a sand storm. The storm didn't last long, but it did cover us all in red dirt. I don't think I would like that every day, but I do think that at least once a week it would be nice it would be nice to be covered head to toe in red dirt.
Flag day 2: The Grand Canyon
Next time, I won't go to the Grand Canyon alone - it is something I would have had more fun exploring in a large group. (No Mom, not Girl Scout style). I got tons of pictures (which I'll upload someday, but apparently not today, because it is taking FOREVER to upload the MV UT pics), a couple of t-shirts and most importantly a snickers ice cream bar. I only went to the south rim and stayed on the main roads (mostly), but the canyon was pretty amazing... Actually, it didn't look real - it looked like one of those old movies where the actors are walking down a path in front of a painting that is supposed to be the landscape behind them (I think The Sound of Music and Gone with the Wind have scenes like that, but I could be wrong). It was surprisingly cold in the park, in the 60's for most of the day. Nobody was dressed appropriately (except one couple, but the were strange and I'm guessing they probably dressed like that all the time - You know what I mean, with handkerchiefs tied around their necks and the most comfortable looking socks/sandals combination that you've ever seen). Aside from the odd couple and their standard tourist attire, everyone was dressed for heat and was disappointed. The thermostat only hit 70 as I was leaving the park. I was okay with the cool weather though, I think I was just happy that my ice cream didn't melt.
That's all for tonight - Time to sleep.
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