Day 2: I have been in Las Vegas too many times to get a charge out of the place, plus the temperature there is oppressive – just crossing the street to a Dim Sum restaurant was painful enough. We had a good hotel with a good location – close to the airport.
While we had some plans for the evening, I got tired early last night and fell asleep only to wake up around midnight. I wanted to go out and explore one of the hotels, but the ambient temperature was just dropping under 100 so I gave up that notion quickly. Again, I am not that interested in seeing and living the relentless cacophony, strobe like pulsating light streams, weary eyed wandering zombies throwing their play money around like rice at a wedding, and the penetrating smell of cigarette smoke which invades your skin and clothes much better than any COVID 19 virus wished it could do.
China Town is not much to look at, long Las Vegas streets with wide intersections, a concrete jungle of store fronts and business establishments strewn over a larger area than the nice tidy Chinatowns that we are used to seeing. But we went to some seafood dim sum restaurant that saved the day. It had that hurried crowded and efficient smell of a successful restaurant filled with local Chinese, a few tables with pretend Chinese and then there was Gerri and me. Gerri was quick to order as the group of waiters and waitresses converged at our table with an assortment of freshly prepared dim sum. One after another after another after another – so much food – and don’t ask me what I was eating but it was a B+ to A- as experienced by my epicurean non-Chinese tastebuds. Gerri was busy gnawing on some fatty pork and bone dim sum offering that she was raving over – I would have chosen bathroom sludge over that dish…. To each his own. But we were both SO happy to eat dim sum at this restaurant and witness the hordes of Chinese friends and family hunkered down for the afternoon sampling their choices slowly while solving the world’s financial problems to their advantage. The thing that irks me the most is the people at these tables that eat the most are generally the thinnest Chinese. How is that possible?
Day 3: And now I have to start to collect myself and get organized for our trip back to the airport to pick up our car and off we go to Kanab. More later……..
As you know, we spent most of the day at Zion. Gerri had been there once but still enjoyed the day. We walked between 6.5-7 miles on two trails including walking up to and fast freezing our feet in the Narrows – Shuttle stop 9 - wearing these pitiful water protector feet coverings that transmitted every pebble, stone, sharp edge, and uneven crevice to the soles of our feet making it near impossible to walk more than a few hundred feet without retreating to the muddy riverside landmass that connects to the walkway. Still, it was an adventure and the path to the stream was beautiful and shaded and reasonably cool, although we had to be careful not to trip over the numerous squirrels that were unblinking by the masses of humans passing by – presumably hoping for some to feed them and thus defy the directive of the national park.
We also walked a short path to one of the emerald pools at an earlier - shuttle stop #5 – which was comfortable and scenic. Nothing too ambitious, I particularly enjoyed the walking after two days of either avoiding the Las Vegas heat or the long Thursday drive from Vegas to Kanab.
Zion is a manageable park – it took about 30-40 minutes to drive from east to west through two man made tunnels magically carved through massive rock formations – one was a mile long that was constructed in the early 1900’s. We thought we were so smart getting an early start to try to avoid the masses of tourists but when we arrived at the parking area to catch the free shuttle, we almost did not find a parking space….but that turned out to be the hardest part of the day. The shuttle buses were so frequent, we had not a moments wait during our three rides up and down the shuttle only road.
I have never seen anything like the beautiful scenes I witnessed at Zion. The pictures do not substitute for the experience of being there in the middle of the amazingly beautiful vistas, with red and vivid earth toned sculped rock and mountains with both vertical and horizontal demarcations, some with gentle slopes and other with vertical towering walls that dwarf and humble humanity in this powerful massive nature preserve. Others can describe the terrain with more detail and color but regardless of how it is described, the visceral connection with nature that one feels cannot be overstated. It was both overwhelming but also felt comfortable as the park was nicely prepared for humans with three levels of trails to fit the needs and abilities of all comers. And maybe my experience was especially strong since I do not generally like to hike in the wilderness, opting rather to swim and appreciate the beauty of the seashore.
Everyone was friendly and many greeted us as we passed each other on the trails. You felt safe; you were on an equal footing with the others there to enjoy the day and experience nature and its majesty. People there were all ages and sizes, mostly white with a smattering of blacks and Asians, some hobbling overweight and out of shape taking frequent breaks, others young and strong, some families, and some larger groups as one would predict. It was really nice to feel the connection to both nature and humanity, rather than the prevailing feeling you get when you read the paper or watch the news – that your worth depends upon your political ideology and nothing more. It was also a great respite from big city life of crime, outrageous behavior from certain groups accepted as normal, the constant lying and exaggerated dialogue form the government and mainstream media, and the increasing number of emerging national and international blunders, worries and concerns.
Day 4,5: The last two days were filled with one adventure after another. Of note, the drive from Cedar City to Salt Lake was the challenge most dreaded as I reviewed the week’s itinerary. It turned out to be a rather pleasant journey (the highway was safe and straight, and Gerri helped me with the driving), filled with an expansive panorama of beautiful low-lying fertile plains with the backdrop of the familiar Utah mountains that surrounded us, completing this beautiful picture that we were drawn into driving north on Highway 15. And we made a few stops on the way – one to Beaver, Utah where I could hardly resist my curiosity to venture into the Outlaw Saloon, and another town with some historic significance and a community of Mormons who’s never ending pristine, side-to-side row of houses were mirror images of each other. We parked next to one family at a historic site that was not yet open. I think we frightened them – the mother was wearing a dress from the 1930’s and the daughter quick to avoid any eye-to-eye contact. Maybe they had never seen a Chinese person or someone who looked like an Arab terrorist? Their loss…..
But let’s not get ahead of ourselves. The day before we drove to Bryce National Park and also ventured to a smallish national forest – Red Canyon where we were able to see the “hoodoos” from the ground up, in contrast to what we experienced at Bryce Canyon National Park. The huge contrasts between Zion and Bryce dictate that both be visited. And while I witnessed never previously seen picturesque vistas at Zion, my mind could never have imagined what we witnessed at Bryce, nor believe that stream erosion and frost weathering could have produced the massive amphitheaters of towering red hoodoos. It is truly remarkable that nature can be produce such diversity – certainly much more than the Democrat party; and that water, earth, and air could carve so many shapes and forms as they fight with each other over the centuries. Gerri and I did a few short hikes, mostly on paved but some unpaved terrain which proved a little scary. Plus the height, and unlike many parks with delineated secured trails with protective railing and barriers, these trails were mostly hugging the terrain dangerously close to hundreds of feet of fall off, and the frequent sections of erosion and deterioration that we witnessed was a bit unsettling. Those younger and more fit found their way down to the bottom of the amphitheater to explore on their own the magnificent structures of the hoodoos. We were content to stay safe and have a more controlled experience. But to be truthful, some of the advertised hikes were truly scary. At least I understand better how tempting it is (at least for careless young people) to stand on the edge of a precipice to pose for a photo op, and the not too uncommon fall to one’s death that we read about infrequently.
A little wasted after reaching Cedar City and the worst of the Hampton Inns, we still managed to find our way after dinner to partake in a star gazing telescope adventure. Truly a GREAT experience to actually see in real time Saturn, Jupiter, the Andromeda galaxy, etc, etc. hundreds of stars seen from this unimpressive cylinder which claims it can view objects hundreds of millions of miles away with such precision and clarity. Each of 4 or 5 telescopes were maned by national park staff and they were patient and kind as were the guests who were waiting outdoors in line in the pitch-black sky for their chance to view what the scope was pointing toward in the sky. The experience to get to this outdoor, totally dark and to me pretty scary outdoor site adjacent to a parking lot was also a bit unnerving. To get there, we were told to watch out for the deer and be careful to keep to the speed limit in what seemed like a never ending winding unlighted path toward the sky that we ventured toward. But we were glad to have brought with us some extra coverings to keep us warm as it was very cold, at least in contrast to the previous days of blistering desert heat. What insignificant nothings humans are…..those who think they are at the center of the universe would be taught a quick lesson if they had come with us that night!
Ok, back to the present. As we approached Salt Lake City, we stopped at an outlet mall just off 15 North and purchased a few items. We also ventured to REI 10 miles closer to Salt Lake but couldn’t find anything worth the price. A fill up of gas, we found a good spot to park and checked into our favorite Homewood Suites. Boy I was really looking forward to that pizza and cold beer – and REALLY disappointed when the place was closed on Sunday. Who the hell closes up on Sunday any more? This is crazy. Anyway, as we walked into town to find a substitute, we found hordes of folks entering the Greek Orthodox Church to attend a Greek Festival…….music, Greek dancers, beer and the BEST Greek olives and great Greek foods. We ate, I drank, we took some food homewood and we were very happy…….
Best Photos: Zion and Bryce are so distinct they don't warrant identifying
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