Sublime to the ridiculous

Time to leave the luscious views of mountains and streams and fresh air and begin the journey back to NYC.

But not straight back to NYC first we're enjoying the special madness that is Las Vegas :)

It was a happy Thanksgiving

Tried out the slow shutter speed for the water :)

A walk after breakfast along the Pools walk and then a walk along beside the river

 The snow stopped and the sky turned blue again and made for glorious walking conditions.

So thankful for the beautiful countryside and the glorious weather and great companionship.

Driving through Utah

Headed out from Page AZ and drove through stunning country in Utah. The ever changing landscape that is this amazing countryside. 

All these photos are taken whilst Sue drove us to Zion National park.

My view from my possie in the back :)

View from the cafe where we eventually had lunch

Cafe view again

Antelope Canyon

The journey to Page AZ was leisurely...we took a little side tour to a trading post.

A hogan

A lovely interlude then onward to Antelope Canyon.











Sue had done our research and we knew the Lower Canyon and a certain tour company was the highest rated.

We were there after midday and it didn't matter as it was a wonderfully sunny day and the light was fabulous.

Our guide showed us a new way to use pano on the iphone.

Monument Valley

To wake in a place like this....warm and comfortable in one's hotel room...with glorious views.

Don was our guide and a perfect match for us as he is a Navajo educator and gave us insights into not only the valley itself. He shared with us the processes that need to be developed and maintained to support the Navajo nation's cultural heritage.

Nothing was too much trouble and he gave us great insight into the history of the land and it's people.

An evening at home meant we could relax and enjoy the vistas and the monument.

Travel on your birthday...

...it's a must! Well it has been a must for me over the past 10+ years all because I moved to NYC and my birthday happens around Thanksgiving. What is the point of taking just two days for Thanksgiving when you can combine it with a few more days and a couple of weekends and voila a nice little vacation time to use to celebrate.
The day began beautifully with a perfectly prepared breakfast- in bed no less. Then whilst I finished my packing and ablutions the others tidied the apartment we were staying in and hit the road.



We arrived at the Grand Canyon rim and walked to the Grand Canyon Village- a little further than we anticipated so two hours later we arrived and were particularly ready for lunch. :).
The first time I went to the Grand Canyon I wasn't particularly in awe- I don't know what it was- the weather, the light something...
This time the light was right and the colours splendid. I think perhaps the long walk gave a greater perspective to the size of the Canyon.




 The shot above has the group out on the rocks that you can see zoomed in on in the photo on the right.
Throughout our walk along the rim we and others and commented on the numbers of folk who risked life and limb in such ridiculous journeys out on to perilous rocky outcrops.





The more I look at this shot of the Grand Canyon I think of Albert Namatjira's glorious paintings...and I have to say it is my favourite photo of the day.

By the time we reached Monument valley it was dark but the morning vistas from our room were so so splendid....

Add we saw the sunrise...

From our room's balcony!

Sedona...

We started out after breakfast in our rooms, gathering up the bits we couldn't eat then to keep for our breakfast the next day. First stop after checkout was the car hire place- I've never seen such a large car hire area- it was like another whole airport lounge with so many care hire companies. In a one minute survey 25 people passed me as I guarded the luggage :).
Our large car fitted all we needed water, cases, cameras, snacks and off along the highway from Phoenix to Sedona we set with the assistance of the onboard GPS and the 70's radio station to sing along with.
We made it to Sedona early afternoon found our accommodation and went to explore a small shopping center with the necessary lunch venue.

After lunch we shopped a little and did a bit of hunting and gathering in Whole Foods finally settling in to our glorious accommodation with these splendid views. We were nestled down in time for the sunset.