It's Like We Know What We Are Doing

Friday, June 2nd "Are you going to the canal??" That was the first question anyone asked when we announced we were going to Panama.  It makes sense, really.  Panama is really known for the canal. Except for me.  I knew the Panama Canal was a thing .  But I didn't entirely understand what kind of a thing it actually was. The day before our cruise, we spent a day in Panama City.  It rained and we honestly didn't get a full feel for the city.  As much as I will say we can have a great day despite the rain, it's always a lie.  Rain changes everything and makes you hate the world.  But you put on a brave face as long as you can and you try to duck into buildings and take long lunches to wait out mother nature. You might also have to wear a poncho. We ducked out of the rain and into the Panama Canal Museum in the Old Town district of San Felipe of Panama City.  Adele and I had scoped this out a few days earlier as we Ubered it to m...

April 4th, 2017 Page, Arizona is surprisingly lush with natural wonders.  I was there specifically to see Antelope Canyon, but the more I looked into the area, the more I realized there was more to see around this sleepy little town. One of the places I found in the area was Horseshoe Bend.  Horseshoe Bend, along with Antelope Canyon, is one of those areas just made for Instagram bragging. Horseshoe Bend is a few miles away from the center of town.  It's the place where the Colorado River meanders into a bit of a cul de sac. Driving South on 89 from Page, the parking for Horseshoe Bend is on the right hand side of the road.  It had rained the night before, so a good chunk of the parking was underwater.  I arrived around 9a, pretty early in my mind, but not early for the rest of the tourists.  The parking lot was a bit crowded (since half of it was underwater), so that's something to keep in mind.   The signs around the Bend say ...

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.   ...

Thursday, May 26th When in Uluru, if you don't do a sunrise excursion, you're not doing it right.   I mean, you're in the middle of the Outback to see a Big Damn Rock, you better be up and at em when the sun rises. So we were.  And seriously, it was early. Our excursion went until about noon.  The check-out for the hotel was at 10a.  Which meant we needed to check out before leaving at an insanely early time.  Which meant we needed to be packed first.  Do we remember it was a late night last night ??  And there was unlimited wine?? I could have felt better. We jumped on a bus at 6a that took us closer to Uluru than we had seen last night.  The excursion was to hike around the mountain.  It was a "light" 8k.  We could do this.  Right?? And then we couldn't.  We had one of our team bail within the first five minutes (a good time to bail if there ever was one).  The rest of us included the thre...