National Parks and Sin City

It’s me again. Sitting in a little shabby but comfortable hood in the forest of Yosemite National Park, I am sending you the best wishes. Here, I am enjoying the calm of the nature as another exciting week has just passed…

… it started with our arrival at Moab last Sunday. Moab can be found in Utah and is a small town surrounded by red stones. Apparently it is the Eldorado for bikers and just at the entry of Arches National Park. While my dad was biking, I primarily enjoyed our townhouse that I rented on vrbo.com. I must say, that we were really lucky as it was not only spacious but also clean, had an access to a pool and was fully equipped. 

Little me in an arch

We did some hiking and rafting in the Colorado River: Ok, we did less rafting than swimming in the river but however we had a wonderful day on the water with really funny guides. One was the typical American guy: tall, with muscles, well tanned and probably the girls’ dream in high school.

Rafting in the Colorado River

Utah's landmark: Delicate Arch

 Afterwards we continued our trip through Utah and stopped at another (the 1000^th?) canyon which was Bryce Canyon. Unfortunately there was a heaving lightning storm that prohibited us to hike – we only took photos and went then to Cedar City. On the route we faced a blocked road that had an unforeseen deviation, so that we spent nearly the whole day in the car. Cedar City – where we stopped in a simple hotel – is a small town in Utah and only a 2 hour drive away from Las Vegas.

Bryce Canyon

I hate Vegas. It is hot. It is crowded. It is only funny when at least 21. It is huge kitsch hotels. Oh, and have I already mentioned it? It is hot. Sin City is a place worth to go once and to make someone’s own mind about. The best time here was shopping at the outlet city in air-conditioned stores (I show you the haul when time goes by). Of course, the mega hotels (like Treasure Island, Venetian, Ceasar’s Palace, Mirage,…) are stunning – but after having seen the 3^rd complex the excitement fades away.

People are drinking, partying and playing at one of the thousand casinos. When I am allowed to do so, I try to come back and give the city a second chance.

The Strip at night

Last but not least we yesterday had a long drive to Yosemite National Park that lead us through famous Dead Valley. Although the thermostat rose without stop, we passed it safely with a lot of water in the trunk. Now we are here for another 3 days, enjoying the green trees after two weeks of mostly sand and red stones. It is quite urgent to recreate as last week was really tiring.

Enjoy your Sunday and the rest of the week, I benefit the most as possible from my last week on vacation.