TX Trip Day 2 - Successful Arrival

So I have to start tonight's blog post with 2 contrasting travel pictures. The top one here is yesterday, our attempt to get out of Colorado. The bottom one is our successful travel through New Mexico and into Texas!

All of us, including Pepe Monkey, decided to take it slow this morning as we were unsure what would lay before us. Leaving the hotel around 9:45 am, we found the roads a bit slushy, but nothing we couldn't handle. Only a few miles into New Mexico (about 20 minutes into our trip), we turned off the major highway I-25 onto a smaller one, only to find it blocked by a big "Road Closed" signed.

Luckily enough, 2 cars decided to slide past the sign and talk to some state troopers watching over the road. Upon their return thckblckglasses waved one car down to ask what was said. We were told that the road may be closed for half an hour or five hours, the trooper was non-committal. TBG flipped the car around and we headed in a new direction - again diverted!

Eventually, we were able to head in the right direction. The roads were still slushy, but the further east we traveled, the less slushy they seemed to be. Once reaching Amarillo, TX the roads were clear and the speed limit was 75 mph - time to catch up.

It was a relief to finally be going in the right direction and travelling through multiple states, as intended. There was a good driver rotation and snacks all around. 

I'm not sure how well you'll be able to see the details in the picture. In the foreground are 2 oil pumps (known as grasshoppers!) and they are surrounded by hundreds of brand, new wind turbines. I love how this is a contrast of old fuel and new fuel resources.

 Well, it's time for bed in the old west. More adventures to be had this week, so stay tuned for the family adventure :)

Spring Break - Texas Road Trip Day 1

This has easily been the weirdest day ever!

Me, thckblckglsses, and my mom left our house this morning at 5am with intent to be in Wichita, Kansas by nightfall. During the night it had started snowing, and unbeknownst to us the highway between our major city, Denver, and the state line was closed. In theory, this trip should have taken us around 9 hours to complete (including stops). In reality, we are not there, not even close.

We hung out at a local fast food joint called Del Taco in order to pass the time and hope the highway opened up again. After 2 hours we realized this would not happen, and started to discuss our options. It was finally decided that instead of driving east to Kansas, we would drive south directly into Texas (our final destination for this road trip). An hour later we were on the road, and by Noon we were ready to stop for lunch. 

Although, it was still snowing the roads were passable and the goal seemed to be a possibility. 

By 2pm our hopes dwindled. Diverted from the highway due to a multi car pile-up, we picked our way through the small town of Fountain. Emerging back on the highway around half hour later, only to find ourselves at the back of the line of cars stuck behind the pile-up. My mom made the brave decision to drive through the median (thoroughly covered with snow and a bit slick) in order to pop us back out on the opposite side. A short drive back to our exit point allowed us to follow a side road an hour down the road to Pueblo.

After stopping for a quick bathroom break (ok, not quick, as everyone else on the road was there!), we were back on the highway and happily headed toward the border. Roads were intermittently slick and wet. A mere 8 miles from the border we were again diverted off the highway!!! So frustrating!!!

Someone did not want us to make it out of the state today. Cozily snuggled in beds at the local hotel we wait for sleep and pray for better weather tomorrow. Texas is our final destination, and, as I told my sister on the phone today, we will get there even if we have to walk.

Glenwood Springs, CO

Glenwood Springs in western Colorado is known for it's famous hot springs. People have been swimming here for centuries, and the Hot Springs Pool has been around for at least one of those. This is the side of the canyon where Glenwood sits. Upon our arrival I was lucky enough to see these hang-gliders slowly falling through the canyon - everyone else was inside checking us into the hotel.

After checking in we headed over to the pool, there was just enough time for a few hours of swimming before dinner!

Dinner always has to be at the Italian Underground. Usually the wait is long, but it's worth it. The snug sitting is in the basement of an old brick building. TripAdvisor visitors give it 4 out of 5 stars. If you're ever in Glenwood, check it out!

As we waited for our turn to eat I wandered up the walkway to find some interesting metal art...

My niece could not resist hiding behind one!

All throughout Colorado, smoking in restaurants is prohibited. Frequently, you'll see people standing about on the sidewalks having a quick smoke before dinner or between drinks at the bar. This sign is a good indicator that some of those smokers have no respect for the gardens surrounding Grand Avenue.

 Day 2 was full of swimming - all day - until this set in...

Guess it's time for a drive home :(

On the drive to and from Glenwood Springs from Denver via I-70 you will pass through a mile long tunnel build through the middle of a mountain. As kids we always tried to hold breath through the whole drive and dad would slow down the closer we got to the exit of the tunnel! 

The tunnel portion on the left is the Eisenhower Tunnel, built in 1973. In 1979, the Johnson Tunnel was opened to allow more traffic to pass through the area.

Driving through the tunnel - hold your breath!!!

One last stop on the way home for some grub. Beau Jo's is the maker of mountain pies, "Colorado Style Pizza." They're made with thick, wheat-honey crust that is perfect for dipping in honey at the end!

Pueblo, CO - Days 1 & 2

Okay, so I'll admit, when the school announced that this year's professional development was to take place in Pueblo, Colorado I was not too excited. I decided to make the best of it and take along my camera and Pepe to tell the story of our trip.

We came into town on Monday night and settled into the hotel room. Pepe didn't mess around:

We had this huge room to ourselves - one bed for Pepe, one for me:

Tuesday was spent in training all day with a short dinner at Ruby Tuesday - ha - that was totally coincidence! Many of my co-workers had driven down that morning and were ready to "hit the hay" for the evening so I wrapped up my night early. I did manage to catch a glimpse out my window to see my view:

Yeah, not really the best view, but I did find out that one of my co-worker's uncle owns the liquor store - Loco!

Pepe and I settled in and watched a bit of TV before wrapping up the evening:

Wednesday was, again, full of training. I tried to snap a picture of Pepe working hard, but the camera was acting up. He was fully engaged - take my word.

The evening was full of a paid dinner and $1 drinks at a local bar. Pepe took a peek over the railing into the Pueblo river walk and said river:

We walked down the street to the bar and it was cool! The place was called Phil's Radiator and looked exactly like an auto shop. Seems like a great concept for a place - although the owner sometimes has clueless people wander in with car parts, set them on the bar, and ask if he can repair it! Hilarious! "No, but here's an ice cold beer"

I decided to leave the bar early - 9ish - before the "crazy" comes out of everyone. I'm thinking that co-workers and $1 drinks are not a great idea. So far our trip has been fun and we learned a little bit about Pueblo. Tomorrow is our last day, so we'll see what kind of adventure comes our way!

Southeast Colorado

A few months ago I took a business trip down to southeast Colorado. I've never really been out that way, so I decided to take some pictures to share my journey.

This is a railroad bridge on the way to La Junta. I think it's very simple and "old skool" so I couldn't resist taking a pic.

 Corn fields are always amazing to see right before they're cut down.

I think this house looks very much like an old plantation. I was driving past so I didn't get the best shot, but you get the idea.

Rocky Ford has a great announcement to their township. I've never seen anything like this!

Rocky Ford grows all kinds of fruits and veggies - I regret not stopping on my way out of town.

This was my destination - La Junta, Colorado - although not super exciting it was something different.

On my way back home I stopped and met up with my in-laws for dinner. They took my a this BBQ place on the side of I-25. Not too bad for a highway joint.

As you approach Pueblo from the south you see this lone windmill on the side of the road.

It was a warm trip - I had the AC on - but I thoroughly enjoyed seeing new sites!

The Sights... Hollywood!

Hollywood Blvd and the Chinese Theater - many celebrities have imprinted hands and feet in cement outside of this theater. As I walked around and saw the famous names laid forever in dried mud, I wondered what it must be like as a current actor to be asked to lay your name beside the greats... I would never feel worthy enough.

Shirley Temple is one of favorite actresses. She was so young and spent many an hour inside bars with her mom and manager, while they discussed her work and pay she would just sit patiently and wait. My great-grandfather was a bartender inside a frequented bar and one day decided to create a special drink just for her, maybe you've heard of the Shirley Temple? When I was young, that too was my drink! So awesome!

Although difficult to see, in the upper left hand side is a sign at Hollywood and Vine. I knew this intersection was famous but could not recall what for, according to Wikipedia it gained fame in the 1920s for being the center of radio and movie-related businesses. Although there is not much there now, you can see that the sidewalk is adorned with Stars as part of the Hollywood Walk of Fame.

The Hollywood sign - this is about as close as we could get. It sits amoung a beautiful area in the mountains and looks over the city, as seen in the picture below.

This is the Griffith Observatory. It's a great FREE way to learn a bit about space. The dome to the left contains a high powered telescope that scientists use to observe the sky, day and night. Of couse, it is also the location for many a movie scene. Can you think of your favorite?

For those of you that are fans of Kat Von D, here's a shot of her tatoo parlor, LA Ink. Only minutes from my cousin's apartment, it's not in the best part of town.

This picture did not turn out great, but the top sign is a higway marker for the famous Route 66. In my previous blog post I included a picture of the "End of the Road" in Santa Monica.

Although these are only a few of the sites to see in LA, we managed to cram it into a day and a half. Not too bad! I look forward to returning and being able to spend more time exploring to see the beauty and infamy that's almost at every corner!

Food!!!

Food - it wouldn't be vacation if I didn't talk about it!

There are so many famous places to eat in LA, but we had only so much time. One necessary stop was In-N-Out Burger. These will never move to Colorado because it would be too far to transport their never-frozen meat, so one must consume it when one can. We managed to squeeze into this one during the noon-hour and after fighting our way to a table, wolfed down fresh cut fries and yummy burgers!

As we walked toward Hollywood Blvd., we came across this gem. You may have seen Ron Howard hanging out here in the film American Graffiti (not exactly this location, but you get the point). We had already stuffed ourselves full of In-N-Out so stopping was out of the question, but still a great landmark!

Donut shops were a common site whilst driving around LA. I snapped a picture of this sign while we were stopped at a light, later I found out that it's actually part advertisement for a Neon Sign Museum - it's a shame we didn't have time to look around.

As I mentioned in the previous blog entry we ate at the North End Cafe and Pinkberrys, both mentioned on TV.

We were lucky in that our breakfast was provided by the hotel every morning. This made it easy for 4 of us girls to grab a quick bite and then get ready for the day. On Tuesday we visited Santa Monica and had dinner along the promenade at a great Italian place. The waitress, although nice, was a little overly excited about being in Hollywood and finding out about goings-on around town. She was giddy when my sister explained she had just tried out for The Voice... at least she's enthusiatic.

Wednesday night we treated my cousin to a mexican dinner at a great place on Sunset Blvd. The margaritas were huge and it put us in the mood for swimming!

Along our journey towards Hollywood Blvd., my cousin took us into Yammy's Pizza. Come to find out her roommate is empolyed there and is trying to make it a landmark in LA. They recently installed wood panelling on the front of the counter - sign your name and praise the pizza!!!