Ghosts, trucks and chefs! (Oh, my!!)

Today began with hidden treasures and ended as nothing short of amazing.


We began the day by heading up Historic Route 89A toward Jerome, AZ. Jerome was a silver and copper mining town in the late 1800's, and more recently, was the birthplace of Maynard from Tool :)


We tried to visit the State Park there first, but - our luck - it is only open Thursday thru Monday.

Luckily, we had more then one stop planned! Next we headed to the Gold King Mine and Ghost Town.

We felt a bit like the American Pickers, this guy had stuff everywhere!

Something different around every turn.

After we'd had our fill of buried treasure, we headed for lunch at a BBQ place nearby. We were actually heading somewhere else, but I saw it and we thought we'd try it. Turns out, the owner is from Chicago and came out here (like everyone else - all transplants!) to bring Chicago BBQ to the 'Wild West.' 

Stuffed and happy, we headed back to the hotel. Andrew wanted to take a nap - he's getting homesick for our bed! - and I went to the pool. After a while, Andrew came to meet me there and then we went back to the room to get ready for dinner.

As I mentioned when we first got to Sedona, Bob had set up reservations for us at two locally-owned restaurants as a wedding present, and tonight we dined at the second one: Dahl & DiLuca Ristorante Italiano. 

A-MA-ZING! 

We started with the stuffed mushrooms, followed by the Insalate Mista (house salad) and our entrees. Andrew had Rainbow Trout stuffed with crab meat and wrapped in prosciutto, and I had the Ribeye with a gorgonzola sauce. Both were the specials tonight, and both were fantastic! 

Just as with the other restaurant, desert was compliments of the chef - a wonderful Amaretto Crème brûlée:

And then, the really amazing surprise Bob had set up for us arrived.

Chef (and co-owner) Lisa Dahl stopped by our table and gave us a personalized, signed copy of the Dahl & DiLuca cookbook! How wonderful it was not only to meet the mind behind the delicious food, but to also be able to take home something that so well represented our amazing honeymoon! We've had such a great time, and it's only been made better by this great gift Bob gave us! 

Tomorrow is our last day here, and we will miss it - but, to quote Chief Seattle, we will "take [our] memories and leave only [our] footprints," as Arizona has left its footprints on our souls. 

Palatki Ruins, and Slide Rock

This morning, Andrew and I headed down the (quite long) dirt road to the Palatki Ruins and pictograph site. These dwellings are from the 1100's and were made by ancestors of the Hopi Indians. The National Park Service operates a small visitor center and guided tour to both sites.

This two-story dwelling, located high up on the face of the cliff, probably housed around 15-20 people

The ancestors of the Hopi were farmers and hunters, hence the pictographs denote mainly animals and images of plants

The Hopi believed that snakes represented their ancestors, coming back from the underworld

This is a pictograph of a young woman, the ceremony denotes she's of marriageable age

After the ruins, we had lunch at the European Deli, right in town. It's owned by a Polish family, and it was very good! I had a Roast Beef sandwich with Bleu Cheese and a horseradish sauce on it, and a cup of an Organic Zucchini and Garlic soup and Andrew had an Irish Rueben. We had Limonata and (real!) Fanta to drink, and a Milka bar for dessert :)

After lunch, we headed up to Slide Rock State Park. The water was COLD but it was still really cool. I can see why it's so popular. We hope to come back here in the hot summer months to take full advantage.

And, tonight - we ordered pizza from Famous again - Mexican tonight! - and ended the night by watching the Bears/Lions game. It's not over yet, but it's not looking good for Da Bears, who - by some strange turn of events - I'm rooting for... Yikes! 

Good night, and Good Luck Bears!

All in all, a pretty good day!

Okay, I'm sure I don't have to tell any folks from Wisco - but both the Brewers and the Packers won today!!

I, of course, represented in true Sconnie style on the trails today! Andrew and I walked the rest of the Boynton Canyon Trail - and it was worth it!! The end of the trail took us up the side of the canyon and we got some amazing views there.

Part of this trail took us through a forested area that really looked a lot like the Dells are of Wisconsin.

Didn't really do much else today except prepare for the games by going into town and getting beer, then grilling out this evening. Glad we didn't plan much else in town though, it was BUSY! 

I think we're going to try to get to the Indian ruins and pictographs at Honaki and Palatki tomorrow, and maybe a bit more hiking... we shall see. Whatever we do, I'll share! :)

Good night, all!

Pink Jeeps are much better then pink elephants

They're not kidding when they say "You've GOT to do it!" Today, we took the Broken Arrow trail from the Pink Jeep Tours out of Sedona. It was probably one of the best things we've ever done! This trail was really amazing - it had gorgeous views, and felt like we were on a Jeep Jamboree! One spot had about a 45 degree grade... oh yeah, that would be right next to a gigantic drop off too!

The tour stopped at Submarine Rock and Chicken Point, but the tour guide also took time to teach us about the geological history of the area and point out other fun sites, like Snoopy Rock, Pooh Bear, Yogi Bear and the Two Nuns. 

Simply put, we had a fantastic time! 

Here are some more photos from the tour:

It's a camel! See it?

After our tour, we had lunch at the Barking Frog. Sounds good, right? Well - it was, but it was a bit over priced... then again - we are in Sedona... 

We went back to the room for awhile, then headed out for our first hike in Sedona! We did most of the Boynton Canyon Trail, which is private to the folks staying here at the hotel. It was about 2.4 miles - and we did all but the last 1/2 mile or so. Tomorrow, we plan on finishing that trail and also hiking the Vista Trail - which is also on property. We can also get a day-pass for any of the trails for like $5, so I'm sure we'll find our way on to a few others! :)

We ordered pizza for dinner - and were still able to keep to our plan of not eating anywhere we've already eaten (hence, no chains!) The place was called Famous, and it was pretty good.

Tomorrow is also Packer Sunday - so we plan to grill out and watch the game tomorrow night. Hope to report another win! :)

Have a good night!

That is all. :)

That is all.

:)

Rockers and wineries

This morning, Andrew and I went shopping in the Tlaquepaque Village. Local artists and Native Americans sell their products there, and it's good to know you're not only getting authentic wares - you're also supporting the local economy.

After that, we ate lunch at the Oak Creek Brewery, which had the most amazing Orange-Vanilla Wheat beer.

This afternoon, we took a tour of the Page Springs Cellar and Winery. A bit different then Wollershiem - but that is to be expected :) A sister winery of theirs is owned by Maynard Keenan - and his wine is in our hotel room. Probably won't be drinking it - but it would be fun to taste. They also have a tasting room nearby, hopefully we'll get there too!

Leftovers for dinner, and early(ish) to bed, tomorrow is our Pink Jeep Tour!

Good night!

Oh, Sedona - I love you!

9:54 pm - Sedona, AZ

Checking in from the Enchantment Resort in Sedona, this place is simply amazing!

This morning, Andrew and I had our last buffet breakfast (hopefully for a long while, not that it wasn't good, but my oh my - it was a LOT of food...) and got in the car and headed to Sedona. We took our time, since we knew check-in here wasn't till about 4 pm. On our way we stopped and did a bit of shopping and ogling at the red rocks :)

Once at the hotel, we still had a bit of time before we could go to our room, so we hung out poolside and sipped overpriced - but very delicious drinks - until around 3:30 when the bell man came to let us know our room was ready.

Room... ha! I should say, our CASITA was ready! We basically have a house to ourselves, complete with a deck, outdoor grill, dining room, amazing shower, and kitchenette.

Tonight, we had reservations at Cucina Rustica courtesy of Bob's wonderful and very thoughtful wedding gift to us. It was fantastic! We started out with an appetizer (can't remember the name - I'll tell you later :) ) and the house salad. Then, I had the Veal Saltimbuca - which is veal topped with Prosciutto and Mozzarella in a Marsala wine sauce, and Andrew had the Seafood Pasta special - which had about 14 types of seafood and fish in a Chardonnay sauce over linguine.


Bob had told them we were here celebrating our honeymoon, so the table was strewn with rose petals and they gave us dessert with compliments from the chef. 


All in all, a great evening. 


When we got back to the hotel, we found a gift of champagne and chocolate dipped strawberries from the management here.

I feel so special tonight! :)


Have a great sleep, see you all tomorrow!

Sunrise, Sunset

8:10 pm, back in Williams, AZ.

LONG days start with sunrises - but when the sun rises above the Grand Canyon for the first time in your life - it's something you do not miss. Andrew and I got up at 5:45 am, dressed quickly, and went to meet the sun at the Canyon's South Rim this morning at 6:25 am. I've seen sunrises many places in my life - but little can compare to this. Words cannot begin to describe the quick and drastic changes in color, and the awe such a vision inspires.

Here's a snapshot from my mind's eye:

And, another:

I know, right? :)

After we welcomed the new day, and froze our assets off in the process, we headed back to the lodge. On the way, we met these fine gents:

Lucky, since that was basically the only wildlife we'd seen other then the moo cows and the ravens!

Later, after getting ready, we took the shuttle out to the visitor's center and took in the short film about the history of the Canyon and it's first explorers and inhabitants. 

Lunch at the El Tovar Hotel (which is on the Historical Landmarks list) was fantastic - and some final site seeing and wandering like only we can do ended our time at the Canyon. We were due back to the train depot at 3:15 pm. 

On the ride home, the train was robbed!! by the nicest outlaws we've ever met... :)

A champagne toast brought us back to the depot in Williams.

Dinner was at the Railway Cafe again, on our package, and that about wraps up the day.

Tomorrow, we'll head to Sedona and we'll get to see those red rocks up close!! 

Sleep tight, don't let the outlaws bite!