It's Like We Know What We Are Doing

April 3, 2017 The Grand Canyon was never on the list of places I thought I was going to go.  I'm not an outdoor person, so why would I feel the need to go there??   But I was going to Arizona.  Once I realized the Grand Canyon is right there,  I couldn't not go.   It just felt wrong.   Especially since I have a shiny new camera that I need to test out. But here's the thing.   I didn't go in with a game plan.  I kind of figured I could wing it and see what happens.  Which is not a thing I actually recommend for anyone.  It usually ends up poorly.  But this time it actually worked out so much better than I could have ever expected.   That being said, there are a few tips I have for anyone thinking about going to the Grand Canyon for the first time while doing very little research in advance. #1 - Figure out Where You Want to Go There are at least two parts of the Grand Canyon you can visit in Arizona.   ...

Monday, November 28th If you are trying to get to the Big Buddha, you have to know it's not as easy as just saying, "I want to see the Big Buddha!!"  And if you're trying to see the Big Buddha, it's best to not have an early afternoon flight home. Our original plan was for the three of us to get up and check out of the Airbnb together.  Kat's flight was earlier than Adele and my flight.  So if we all left together, we could travel to the airport train/luggage drop-off as a group.  Kat would head towards her final destination.  Adele and I would head out to see the Big Buddha.  Great idea!! Things changed. Kat's flight was in the late morning, which meant she had to leave so much earlier than Adele and I wanted to wake up.  But the real kicker was that our late afternoon flight was delayed until the late evening.  We changed our strategy the night before.  The two of us decided to see Kat off, then clean up the room and check out by...

Thursday, May 19 Mom's dream trip was always Australia.  It was always talked about as a "One Day" type of trip.  Sometimes, the conversation would be more forceful than others.  Like when Oprah went to Australia.  Mom watched the episodes and talked a bit more seriously.  That was in 2010.  And Australia never happened. Elias and I have gone to the Travel and Adventure Show for the last few years.  We usually meet up with Adele and Sooj and wander the halls, waiting for inspiration to strike.  That's when the idea of Australia came into focus.   Elias and I drove home from the convention in 2015, talking about what we'd seen.  We spent several minutes talking with a travel agent that specializes in Australia, picking up several pamphlets for light reading.  During that drive, we came to a decision.  It was time to either make Australia happen or leave it be. Let's be honest.  Every year the trip was ignored, it became har...