Memphis....visiting Graceland!

On route to memphis we stopped for lunch at a place called "mama hemils" it was southern fried bbq buffet style "restaurant"! It was the oddest buffet we have ever been to! The food was a little odd and it was like being at school, the plastic plates had dividers in! And the plastic tables with plastic table cloth and plastic chairs ! It was all very simple! It was a experience! Not sure we would return! 

We continued to memphis, we were staying at graceland rv park! Right opposite graceland itself! It was great, the campground itself had a different street sign for each row where the rvs were parked and they were all names of Elvis's songs!

We were right next to heartbreak hotel and next to lots of elvis souvenir shops! We quickly set up tent and went out to explore! There was many souvenir shops and a few cafes on the main road, we could of got the shuttle into memphis town but it was already 7pm and the last bus back was 10pm didnt really seem like it would be worth the $20 it would cost to get us there! We were happy just having a browse! All we really wanted to do was visit graceland and we were doing that tomorrow and we couldnt wait. Looking around the shops was great, it was all over priced! But it was great to have a look at it all! I manage to find my sister a present here that i knew she would love (not elvis related!) so was really pleased that i found that! Something unique to that part of america :) and we also just bought a few postcards! We were really lucky to get pictures infront of the gates at graceland when they had shut! They had musical notes and silouettes of elvis and they never close in the day, a few of the people taking pics said they had been waiting 5 days for the gates to close! We also got some good snaps of some other things whilst it was empty! We got back to camp around 8pm, both had showers and chatted and then fell asleep quite quickly ! It was my first night without my hot water bottle! And I felt really warm all night and in the morning! 

We got up around 7.30 and the usual routine i made breaky & lunch and luke put the tent away. We then went to get our graceland tickets at 8.30 ready for the first tour at 9am! Only 6 of us done thetour the  younger ones thought it was to expensive....it was $37 to see everything not just the house but the airplanes, his cars, and 3 others exhibits, so overall not a bad price! We were on a tight budget so it was quite a lot for us, but we knew we wouldnt come here again as you dont really go on holiday to memphis ! You come to see graceland! And its something we have both always wanted to see so it was worth it! We just couldnt understand the others missing it out!

We boarded the tour bus and we entered graceland it was all very organised, we had a audio tour aswell! Graceland is small in comparrison to other rich & famous peoples mansions now days but what a gorgoeous house and very grand in its own way, we couldnt wait to get inside!

When we entered we were dissappointed to discover we werent allowed upstairs, as this was Elvis's private area and it was being kept that way. We first looked at the living room, it was very beautifully decorated for that time and had a huge 15 foot sofa along one of the walls, there was a Baby grand at the end, one of the many he had in the house over the years. There were portraits of him and his dad and other lovely colourful things. Next was his parents bedroom, again very beautifully decorated, it was minimalistic but the decor was very beautiful. We then went to the dining room which had a big table in that was set out as if people would have dinner on it that day! the kitchen was next and this is where there was always something going on, there was a Tv at the end of the room which was always on, all the staff were always busy in here and lisa marie said it was a great place to be.

We headed down to the basement where we were greeted by Elvis's tv room, it was brightly decorated in yellow and navy blue and had 3 tvs, a drinks cabinet and many chairs. Opposite this room was a games room with a pool table and chairs etc the basement is where he would go with his friends to chill out, in the games room it was decorated with heavily patterned fabric! 

We then went to the "jungle room" this wasnt its official name but what it was knicknamed! It had a very different decor to the rest of the house and a waterfall designed by elvis at the end of the room, there was a Huge round chair in the corner which was lisa maries favourite. He entertained in this room.

It was time to explore outside....we first went to his dad "vernons" office which had a couple of desks, pics and other arty things with elvis on them, next little room had just a small model of the house elvis was born and grew up in, then there was a Fire range room! He used this room with his friends as a fire range to let off steam.

Walking further outside and to another room....trophy room.....this was completely filled with awards of his lifetime....best record, most sold, etc etc there was so many! We spent a bit of time in here there was so much to look at and read, so many awards and then there was a section with his outfits ! It was really a great part of the tour. 

...a few of Elvis's awards

....a few of Elvis's outfits!

....the wedding outfits

We went out to the rackett ball building! He had started the building work for this in 1970 and it was finally completed in 1975! He over saw all of the building work and wanted this building to be exactly what he pictured. This room had a bar, weights room, lounge area and where the court used to be there is a huge collection of his lifetime achievements and awards it was amazing how many awards elvis had, it was very over welming they were just everywhere. This building is unfortunately where elvis was found the day he died.

We were coming to the end of the tour and the last stop was the meditation garden and the graves sites of elvis, his twin bother, his mum and dad and grandmother, his mother and him had originally been buried in another location but have been moved to graceland, and as his twin brother couldnt be moved there was a plaque placed in his memory with the others so they were all together at graceland. It was really amazing to be able to see this and read the lovely words on the stones. We had now finished the tour of the house and would go on to see more of the exhibits over the road. It was quite an experience to walk around Elvis's house, quite sad aswell what a great house and family he had, he made many great memories in this house and seemed this was his retreat from all his fame and the place he could be with his family and friends and just be himself, as we worked our way around all the exhibits we realised that in this house he had many laughs and had a lot of fun surrounded by the people he loved.

We made our way to the sincerely elvis exhibit which had his costumes in and had a few tvs in there which were relaying different parts of his life, there was a table cloth in there which elvis and a co-worker had written a contract on over dinner! It was for some shows in vegas ! We then went to his car museum! And this was filled with all the different cars he own over the years and it was so interesting reading about how particular he was with the interior design! When he bought the cars he would then spend a lot more money having the interior redecorated to his specific taste! One car had a gold snake skin roof, others had bright red leather interior! When you first walk into the museum you see a car that elvis had bought priscilla and it was her favourite....

.....a mercedes roadster

There were so many cars in here all very grand, including the famous pink cadillac which is one of his first purchases and stayed in the family for many years it was never sold or exchanged.

There was also as section which had all of Elvis's "toys" go carts, golf buggies, snow mobils and a few other "toys" that elvis and his friends used to race around in the grounds of graceland and quite often they used to take the golf buggys out onto the road and race them! But strangely they never got arrested! There was a old stlye limosine which elvis bought for himself to be chaufered around in and even a tracter which he bought to be used in graceland! He also had a love for motorbikes and had a few of these!

The next exhibit we went onto was the airplanes.....elvis had developed a fear of flying after a flight he once took that nearly crashed and after that he drove everywhere, to all his shows and all rehearsals etc however the pace of driving everywhere could not keep up with the demand of his shows ! And he started taking flights on a small aircraft which he had remodelled to how he wanted it! And then he decided he would purchase a plane, a huge plane.....he bought a old delta passenger aircraft and made it his own calling it....lisa marie....after his only daughter. He bought the aircraft for $250,000 and spent $750,000 remodelling it! He said it was like a second graceland! It had a lounge area, bedroom, bathroom with half bath, bar (with mostly fizzy drinks as elvis did not have a taste for alcohol!) and many other features, it even had gold seat belt buckles! And gold sinks! And elvis used this plane for mostly business and getting to shows but also for occasional personnal journeys! Once he realised that lisa marie had never played in the snow so he flew her to a place in america that has snow so she could play in the snow for 15minutes and then flew back! She also celebrated her 9th birthday on the plane. When the plane came to permanent rest at graceland it took sometime to get it from the airport! about 13feet off each wing had to be cut off to allow it to fit in the roads! It was put back on when it reached it final destination! Many people came to see it be put in its permanent residence. We really enjoyed this plane exhibit and how very interesting it was.

...elvis even had a personal plane number authorised! N880EP!

We only had about 30 minutes left and 2 more exhibits to see! We quickly went to "68 special" this exhibit was about his return to the stage in 1968 after 7 years away, he was spending more time on his acting career which was slowly becomming less popular so he returned to what he loved....singing! And he was welcomed with opened arms, he spent a lot of time in vegas doing many shows. In This exhibit priscilla talks about how nervous he was but once he performed the first few shows he was over the moon at the reception he recieved. 

We then went to the elvis hawaii exhibit we only had about 5 minutes left :( so litrally went in and went out again ! Hawaii was Elvis's favourite place after graceland! He had many holidays here and made lots of memories here with his family there was a family home video on show of a holiday that was taken there it was great to watch.

Elvis was born on January 8th 1935 in Tupelo Mississippi and died August 16th 1977 aged 42 at Graceland, Memphis.The ultimate verdict of death was heart attack however it is thought that prescribed drugs may have contributed to his deah along with ill health. He is regarded as one of the most significant cultural icons of the 20th centuary and of often referred to as the king. Elvis has left a massive imprint in music history and will forever be remembered.

....this is where elvis, his brother, his mum, dad and grandmother lay to rest ....in the grounds of graceland

We really enjoyed our morning at graceland, we could of spent the day there! It was so interesting and what a great experience we may never get to experience again, it was quite sad walking around his house and trying to imagine him and his family living a happy life there, its sad he was taken so young but so amazing he is forever and will be forever remembered. 

Roswell & carlsbad cavern....

Today we were off to the land famous for UFO sitings ! Roswell! And then to see carlsbad caverns. We were sleeping in the cabin and we had to hand the key in to get our deposit back the office opened at 8am we thought that was fine as we leave at 8am everyday, however this morning we were leaving at 7am! Have no idea why!! But that ment we wouldnt get our deposit back :( we were ready to leave about 6.45 but of course we didnt leave until 7.30! Its just so annoying that you get up early ready to leave at a certain time and have to wait soooo long for others! The people that stayed in the tents said it was the coldest night yet, and dylon said he couldnt feel his toes from about 3am, we should have all shared the cabins i just dont know what the problem was! Oh well we had a half decent sleep! 

We set off at 7.30am and apparently we were leaving early because it was a long drive, when in actual fact it was only around 4.5 hours! We got to roswell around 10.30 and we were excited as we wanted to see some alien stuff....museum, shops and explore, so did some of the others expecially one who had said at the welcome meeting when we were asked what we were most looking forward to he said "roswell for the aliens"....well we didnt get taken to any of the places roswell is famous for .....we got taken.... To the zoo!?!?!?! A group of adults got taken to the zoo!! We couldnt believe it! We dont like zoos, i dont like that the animals are locked up and this one was terrible they had bob cats in a round cage about 4 square meters ....if that, 2 of them and there territorial range is between 5-50 miles! And the roof was like a circus roof pointed and colourful! I hated it and they had bald eagles in a stupidly small cage. Thats all i saw i was so angry. We had stopped here to have lunch..... At 10.30!!! Me, luke and jasmin were fuming, up until this point i was trying not to let him bother me to much but we were so angry! We have come all this way to a place famous for something and we were at the zoo!! I dont need to say much more about it other then it was shit and i was angry! I decided that i needed to say something to dylon as if luke did he would end up shouting at him! So as we approached the van there was only one talking to him so i thought this was a Good time, it was really bothering me and i have learnt not to let things poeple do bother me like they use to i either need to say something or ignore it and i am glad i have adopted this new attitude as it was making me feel less stressed and quite frankly happier! There is no point walking around being angry with someone but saying nothing! Anyway he was doing something in his phone and i asked him if we were going to any ufo museums and he said no, and i said its a Bit odd that we are in roswell and we have come to a zoo!?!? And he said he didnt get the feeling anyone wanted to go there (all the while looking at his phone!) and i wanted to say did you ask anyone!?!? But i didnt i just ended the conversation, it was like talking to a child, how can he base his decisions for the group based on his feelings, i cannot believed he asked no one and then took us to the shittiest zoo i have ever been to!! It was crazy! I later found out that the other couple wanted to go to see the ufo stuff and that most of the group hated the zoo! But did they say anything.....no! And thats why we look like we are moaning all the time and they dont ! Because they are playing follow the leader!! It was stupid.

Moving on.....we continued to carlsbad national park which was the home of the carlsbad caverns and a world heritage site. You could either do the hike down to the caves or get the elevator and have more time to walk around the caves, well me and luke were going to take the elevator and jasmin decided to get the elevator aswell, so he went and got the tickets. And then came out said the people doing the hike come with me and you three you go over there... And just sort of pointed and left he was really shitty, he really hates being confronted and it makes him behave shitty towards us and then a couple of hours later he is over it and nice! Its like witnessing a toddler have a tantrum! Anyway us three went on the 1.3mile walk around the caves which were very similar to the waitamo caves in new zealand but bigger and better, we got some great pics and really enjoyed it, we had a look in the visiter center and then sat in the cafe waiting for the others, if we are honest we were all so fuming about the morning and then the bad attitude he gave us, it was like he had joined the "group" when he was suppose to be the guide! 

We headed to camp and set up real quick, it was our turn to cook, what we were going to cook was suppose to be a group decision but we hadnt been involved! We were cooking sausage and mash ! Which was fine by us but it would have been nice to be asked! Anyway we cook a lot at home and a lot of the group hadnt cooked before so we enjoyed the cooking. There was two vegatarians in the group me and another girl and we were just going to have salad and mash! Dylon said he couldnt find any vegi stuff at walmart! Its not easy to find if you are not looking for it as its always a small section that you can quite easily pass! But the next day i found the section so we could of had vegi sausages and mash! Anyway it was fine it tasted good.

Dylon was taking whoever wanted to go to see the bats fly into the carsbad cave! We were going to go he said there were loads of them but at the last minute changed our mind, it was a relatively warm evening! For a change! And we just wanted to chill, one of the girls doing the washing up really wanted to go so i took over so she could go. We had showers and just chilled in the tent and chatted to jasmin, it was so nice to sit in the tent with my coat off and not be freezing! 

The group came back around 9.20! And they all said it was shit and they saw about 2 bats! So yet again we made the right decision and went with our instincts and made a good decision. We went to bed early, And i was warm enough to wear no coat! But i still had the hot water bottle at my feet! I slept pretty well until around 4.30 when i woke up cold :( but over all the warmer weather was so nice and such a relief from the cold! We left at around 7.50 the next day to start our 800km journey to san antonio and hopefully a less stressful day! 

New Orleans....the french quarter

We had a relatively long drive to new orleans and i was on the front seat which was ok got to listen to my music :) we had a lunch stop and me, luke and jasmin went to taco bell! Me and luke had never been there and it was on the list to try whilst we were in america! And it was so cheap and tasty!

After that it was onto new orleans! And when we arrived at our little hotel in the arse end of no where we were a little dissapointed we thoughht we would be staying at a "proper" hotel! And when we all got our keys there were two rooms that would have to share a bathroom and obviously ours was one of them! We didnt really care we just wanted a double bed! But when we got into our room we were massively dissapointed it was tiny, really dirty like a hostel room and there were two tiny single beds, i was so unhappy :( and luke was just pissed right off we went to the reception to try to change rooms and there wasnt any spare they were full and half the rooms were being renovated, all the other rooms apart from ours and another guys who was above us had two double beds and ensuite ! We couldnt believe it, we were a couple and the rest of the group bar the other couple were all travelling together as friends so sleep in seperate beds had a double each, i was so angry, they said they hadnt been told and to ask someone in the group to swap! I quickly laughed and said no one in the group is that accomodating! I couldnt believed dylon hadnt specified we were a couple! I was so angry and upset, then dylon walked in and we explained our situation, and he asked if we had asked any of the group to swap! I thought to myself  "have you met the fucking group!" All extremely young and would not want to move! At this point one of the girls walked in georgina and she was lovely and she was actually going home tomoz so when she left the girl she shares with would have two doubles to herself! It made no sense! Of course the group wouldnt see it that way as they have no idea what its like to be a adult! Anyway we moved and the room we were now in was lovely and what we would expect as a couple.

....our new orleans hotel

We decided to go for a walk to the main strip of the french quater....and find somewhere to eat. Our hotel was around a 10 minute walk and it was nice to walk and look at all the pretty houses that were also very colourful! When we got to the strip it was heaving.....it was a saturday night! There were people everywhere and already drunk it was only about 18.30! It was so crowded with groups of people drunk, street performers, half naked women, tramps, police.... it was just a big collection of colourful people! To be honest it wasnt really our scene, the smell was awful and everyone was smoking, it wasnt what i pictured! We tried to find somewhere to eat but really struggled finding vegatarian food, we wondered and wondered and wondered, we walked to the end of the strip and it was very roudy there people arguing etc so we walked back along the river, we asked in a information center if there is a cafe or a dennys somewhere in town as by this time we were starving and just wanted something quick and easy! The bloke in the info centre was so offended! He got a bit funny wih us, like why werent we eating in one of the cafes near by! To be honest we were so disinterested in eating in the local cafes it was so crowded and we were so tired, we eventually found a cafe at the start of bourbon street which is the main strip, luke had a 8inch meatball sandwich and i had a cheese bun and we shared sweet potato fries which were really tasty! We headed back after this had a lovely bath and fell straight to sleep! We was so tired! And we slept right through on our lovely double bed! 

We set the alarm for 9.30 and luke went and got me breaky in bed! Bagels, muffins and orange juice! It was just what i needed! Today we were going to make our way to the lakeside shopping mall to try to get luke a replacement phone as his is broke and its still under warrenty. Typical it was a sunday and the buses were only once a hour! When we got to the first bus stop we waited an hour so we must of just missed one :( and then when we got to the next stop we had also just missed one, we had made an appointment and we only had 45 minutes to get there so we decided to walk the second half.....we walked in the wrong direction and got totally lost snd when we asked in a garage where we were, he had no idea he said he was new! Luckily a local guy helped us and called us a taxi thank god, we didnt want to spend money on a taxi i was so annoyed we had to, it was only $16 but that could get us a dinner at dennys! Anyway it doesnt matter the main thing is we got there on time and luke got his phone replaced! They had no idea what was wrong with it but it definately needed replacing ! So he had it replaced but unfortunately because he had a o2 sim card and there were no o2 towers here in the usa he could not find signal :( so he had a phone that he could do everything on apart from make calls, texts and whats apps, at least we got it replaced tho. The journey home was long with lots of waiting but we didnt get lost and stayed on the bus! We got back around 17.30! And just decided we would get pizza and Watch some tv. Our night in new orleans the night before had been quite enough we just wanted to enjoy our own space, bath and watch tv before we started camping for the last leg of our tour!

....just a few of the lovely houses we saw.

We left at 9am the next day....bound for memphis :) we was both really looking forward to new york but were trying not to wish the time away! But the fact is we were fed up of the bus, group (not all!) and guide, and just wanted to start our own travel again, travelling in a group is one of the hardest things of our time travelling! And quite frankly we wont be doing it again! New orleans was ok, not what we expected, maybe it seemed worse as we were there on a saturday night! However in the daytime we saw some lovely houses and really unique things, so .....it wasnt our fave place but we were pleased we visited! 

TEXAS!.....San Antonio & Houston....watching the Houston - Astros play baseball!

Today was our longest drive....around 8 hours, it was going to be a long time in the van! We had sat on the back row of the van yesterday but knew if we did not put our bags on the seats we wanted we would be left with the back again! It seems most of the others didnt get the concept of rotation! And they had been putting there bags in the van early everyday it was so ridiculous it was so funny to watch them behave like this! They will probly look back and cringe at themselves! Did it really matter where we all sat as long as everyone rotated! Anyway we had to stoop to their level and put our bags where we wanted to sit! Jasmin has just said its like when you go on holiday and people get up super early to put there towels on sunloungers and then go back to bed!!  RIDICULOUS!

On the way we stopped for lunch on this great big field with a few houses around it, we had no idea what it was or why we had stopped here which was a shame because it had a lot of history that we knew nothing about, we knew this as there was a visiter center which handed a couple of the girls some info in it but we didnt gett he chance to read it. We had linch snd then s lovely lady came put of her house and asked us if we wanted to see a huge cannon! We wanted to see it! We followed her into her house which looked normal from the outside but when we got in it was so grand! Really high ceilings lots of lovely and very valuable pieces of art work and memoribilia, it was like a museum! When we saw the cannon it was huge and she also had a lovely car in her garage which i fell in love with....it was a Old white cadilac pick up truck which they had restored and it was beautiful, i wanted one! It was great to wonder around this lovely house and we gathered from what she was saying that her house was used as a fort. We wished we had been given more info on this place it looked like it held a lot of interesting history.

Anyway.....it was a long drive and by the time we got there it was about 18.30! We were all really tired and the plan on our tour description was to go into san antonio in the morning to explore the town, but somewhere along the line dylon had decided that we would go into town that evening after dinner! That night ....dinner was going to be steaks, i was calculating in my head and i was finding it hard to see how we would set up camp, cook and eat dinner and wash up and get to town that was 30minutes away! Also san antonio was suppose to be a nice town to wonder around and there was a nice river walk. The thinking around it was that we would then get to houston earlier and go to the nassa museum and the baseball in the evening, which is ok but people would also want to see san antonio in the day light and we were not at each place very long. Its a hard balance but to make everyone happy the plan should be stuck to unless everyone agrees as it causes problems! Also we want to see a snipet of everywhere not completely miss somewhere to get somewhere else quicker. So in the end there was some sort of group meeting that we were not involved in and it was decided we would go in the morning, and it was just aswell as the dinner wasnt ready until gone 9pm it took a while for the steaks to cook! So realistically we would not have been able to go to town!! Had dylon been experienced he would have known this, and i also dont think it was fair he told the whole group we werent going to town because jasmin didn't want to! How unprofessional.

We went to bed after dinner we were so tired travelling in the bus all day was more tiring then you think! We slept all night i had forgotten what that was like! I felt good in the morning, we packed up, made lunch and left for the town.

When we arrived in san antonio town i was so glad we hadnt done this at night it just wouldnt have been the same! It was a really old town full of character and history & it was a lovely sunny day :) we first went to the "alamo" which was a old fort used during a war, it wasnt open until 9am so we continued to walk and came across a shopping center, and after a little search we came across a disney store ! My frozen search is still in full swing! But the shopping center didnt open until 10am! So we went to do the river walk! It only took around an hour.....it was a reallly beautiful walk...and the winding path was empty there was barly anybody around it was great, we took some great pics....

After that lovely walk we headed back to the shopping mall, we had ten minutes before the shops opened, there was already a short que for the disney store forming i had no doubt it was for the frozen stuff! I saw some through the window and it was different to any of the other stuff i saw! But i saw no dolls :( i hoped they were hiding somewhere!

When the doors opened it was like a rush to the tiny frozen stand! Honestly disney ....you need to produce more goods ! Frozen is apparently very popular and there is barely any merchandise and what there is sells out very quickly! I had handed luke my stuff i was ready to grab any kind of frozen doll i could !! .....sounds silly but it was for my millie poppins! And she had asked me personally for these dolls and if you saw her little face and cheeky grin you would be behaving the same! My niece and nephew get anything they ask for from there auntie sarah :) thats what aunties are for :))

....to my horror there was no frozen dolls :( i was so dissapointed :( and the staff said they were getting some first thing in the morning ! I was so gutted.... missed them by one day :( i did not want to go home empty handed my little millie would be so dissapointed :( the search continues!!

After this we still had a hour left so we went back to the alamo to have a Look around, the streets of san antonio were filled with horse and carriages, authentic texan stores and all things you would expect to see in texas!! The alamo was now open but filled with school kids! We had a look around but didnt have the time to read properly about what had actually happened here! We read bits and pieces and it was really interesting. It would be lovely to spend a couple of days here the river walk was so lovely and the paths were filled with lovely restaurants and there was some old fashioned boats that you could take tours on, lots of shopping and lots of historic sites to see. But we had to leave shortly so we just did a quick trip to the post office to get stamps and while we were there luke was reading a FBI board which had faces of criminals that were on the run! It was pretty interesting if a little scary! Last night at our camp site there was a police car and security from the site with there bright search lights searching for someone right next to our camp site! We saw them once and thought not a lot of it and then they returned probly twice more and it was a little scary! We were only sleeping in tents! 

....a few snaps in the city

We boarded the bus and headed towards our next stop.....Houston! We couldnt wait as we may be seeing a baseball game !

We had about 4 hours to houston the journey was ok, we were excited as we were going to see a baseball game tonight ! We set up camp and got ready to go to the game! Me and luke really wanted to see some sports whilst in america so we couldnt wait. 

We were going to watch Houston - astros vs Chicago - white socks! When we arrived we got our tickets...$20 each....not to bad, and went to find our seats, we were quite high up but had a Great view. It started at around 19.15, and lasted around 3 hours. We watched around 45 minutes of it and then we all had hot dogs! Me and luke went for a wonder around half way through, we went to the gift shop and saw some seriously over priced clothes ! As you do at these events! And then i entered a comp to win a car....dodge challenger! And got a free towel for it! I love a freebie! We went back up to our level and went to the tiny gift shop there and there was a clearence section! I had been wanting a baseball shirt for a while but they were so expensive even for a fake one they were dear! And as i didnt really follow the sport i didnt want to pay a lot for the shirt! However it was a proper baseball shirt in the sale....it was last seasons away shirt for the astros! And it was $40 down from $125! It was a mens medium so a little big but i loved it so luke treated me! We had barely been buying anything so it was nice to have a treat! And nice to get a shirt that was relevant to our travels.

We then went to watch the game some more! It was really fun watching the players and the atmosphere was great, and i understood the game ! Which was nice, we got right into it! One of the group showed me a certificate she got for being at her first baseball game! I defo wanted one of those ....so i went and got one for me and luke! More freebies! 

The games was good but unfortunately chicago white socks won! As it was friday evening they had some soft ball players come and compete for who could hit the most balls out of the park! And after that there was some fire works which were pretty good!

What a great night at the baseball! We really enjoyed ourselves and got some great souvenirs! We would defo go watch baseball again! 

We would now journey to new orleans, where we would have two lovely nights in a double bed and be able to spend our days exploring together alone we simply couldnt wait :))

Monument valley, Mesa Verde NP, Durango and Santa Fe!

After our snowy start in the grand canyon we started our journey to monument valley. It wasnt a very long journey but we had a few stops on the way to a few souvenir shops and then we continued. As we drove towards monument valley the beauty of it just stood out, we were staying just a few miles away from the entrance in a lovely camp site. We all set up camp and me and luke managed to find a level bit of ground for our tent for a change! The group and guide were off on a jeep tour and dinner but we were not interested in doing that so we were just going to chill at the camp site! We all went to the visiter Center and into monument valley to take some pics it really was stunning. It was so windy probly the windiest we have encountered so far! I felt like the wind was litrally pushing me along! Me luke and jasmin went for a walk to take some pics and the rest of the group just went into the shop and for a hot drink! We got some great pics...

Dylon then took us back to camp, we made ourselves some dinner, and then luke fed a wild dog his turkey sandwich from lunch! The poor thing was starving :( on reflection we shouldnt of fed it because it wouldnt leave us and sat by our tent! But we hate seeing the animals go hungry. We then went and sat in the laundry room and charged all our cameras in the warmth and we got chatting to a guy in there who had done a lot of travelling and we was telling him all about our guide and group! He found it very interesting! He had done a few group tours in the past and decided they werent for him! And thats definately the conclusion we have come to!! we then enjoyed lovely hot showers, there was also a hairdryer! Something i hadnt seen for a while! So i took full advantage of that and washed my hair! We then went back to camp where luke made me a tea and a hot water bottle in our water bladder and put it at the feet of my sleeping bag to warm it up for me! And then we sat in the tent and looked at all our grand canyon pics :)

...our camp & the wild dog luke fed!

The next day we were leaving at 8, me and luke were up at 6.45 packed everything away, i did breaky & lunch and luke put away the tent, we were ready to leave at 7.30, we really were a good team together, this trip had really enabled us to build a stronger relationship and team. Some of the younger ones werent ready at all and were still in the shower at 7.45 and thats the time the breaky and lunch stuff is put away! We helped two people put there tents away, clear the table and then us with one of the other guys andy packed the trailer, still while one pair were putting away there tent! I run the risk of sounding old !.....but....being up and ready at a certain time is not something that comes easy to the younger ones, we have an hour basically (depending on what time you get up!) to get up, get washed, have breaky, make lunch, put away your tent and pack your own bags, and also help pack up camp and the trailer ready to leave at 8am! And if you dont have a good system/routine it will go tits up and the group will be waiting for you! Anyway we got away about 8.20am. Today we were off to mesa verde and then to durango to camp.

Not far from were we were staying we had a photo stop....it was the place where they filmed the part in forest gump were he stopped running! It was great we did a reinactment of that scene! 

Next we stopped at a spot where you could view a rock formation called "the mexican hat"....

We had a reasonable drive to our next stop which is Mesa Verde national park, here we were goin to do a tour of cliff palace. When we arrived obviously it was cold and windy ! Thats just standard everyday! We had a look in the visiter center and then me, luke and jasmin ate our lunch outside in the cold as we were told this is where we would eat our lunch! While the rest of the group went & ate there lunch in the van! Anyway we got to the van and were told that we were going to do a tour....we took the hour long journey into the mountains and then we arrived at our destination....we were going to do a tour of cliff palace which is the crown jewel of mesa verde national park, which is a architectutral masterpiece and is the largest cliff dwelling in north america. The collection of rooms, plazas and towers fits perfectly into the sweeping sandstone overhang that has largely protected it since the thirteenth century. We had a a tour guide that took us around the site. She was great she also taught us all about different birds at the park it was really interesting! I learnt alot ! We then started our descend down to the cliff palace which ment climbing down stairs and ladders! It was a relatively small area compaired to now days but for back then it was a grand site! Around 700 people would live here at the same time only in a few of the rooms the rest of the rooms would be used for storing supplies for winter. It really was a great piece of history and we enjoyed experiencing it and learning about it.

After this the guide took us to another spot for a short walk but me, luke and jasmin couldnt be bothered and we were still so so cold we sat in the van! We werent to bothered. After that we began the journey to durango.

It was a few hours until we got to durango and by the time we got there it was raining hard :( we stopped at the super market on route and luke found me a hot water bottle! I was soooooo happy i litrally wanted to jump on him! At last maybe a bit of warmth ! Our camp site was only 30 minites away and as we began to drive there it began to snow a lot! Me and luke were dreading it! We had been cold since the word go and this was going to be a nightmare! I dont no why but i half expected the guide to say we are not sleeping in these conditions and take us to a motel, at our expense obviously! We wouldnt have minded! But he didnt! And it was snowing so hard :( poor jasmin had the back door of the trailer smash into her back in the morning so she didnt want to camp especially in the snow! So we was going to share a cabin but the office was closed so she spoke to dylan then she manage to get a motel for the night he had to take her and then we would pick her up in the morning, no problem its an individuals choice to not sleep in the poxy snow! But dylan was not happy about it which pissed me off because e eryone can do what they want, as i have said before he is not our dictator just a guide! And i thought maybe we could all go to dennys for dinner as who wants to cook in the snow! But no ..dinner was cooked and we set up our tents in the snow it was awful :( i sat in the laundry room doing my blog while luke showered and then he went back to the camp and filled up my hot water bottle, and made me a tea while i showered! We went straight into our tent and tried to warm up! We got to sleep as we had the warmth but staying asleep was a joke i woke up several times and at several times i thought my toes would fall off litrally it was awful and my bones really ached :( at 6.15am i decided to get up i was so angry and rediculously cold after brushing my teeth i made my way back to camp and i felt like crying i was so fucking cold :( but i made the sandwiches and started breaky and luke started to put away the tent, the tent had ice in it and all over it and it was hard trying to put it away with no gloves :( but we did it and were ready stupidly early again, so helped the others with there tents and eventually we got away at 8.20am ! 

....snow just above our campsite.

I was just so cold i had well and truly had enough, today we were off to santa fe where we hoped it would be hotter! 

We did the journey to santa fe without stopping....around 4 hours. And when we arrived it was snowing a blizzard :( the camp ground was the rockiest sloppiest camp ground we had ever seen! After checking us in, dylon said there was 3 cabins available that sleep up to 4 people for $45! We were definately going to get one! Jasmin wanted one aswell so we headed down to the office followed by some others! It was funny as when we were in the van and everyone was saying its freezing two of the girls behind me said "yer it was cold yesterday it was cold the day before and we survived"! I dont give a shit if we survived it was bloody freezing ! What was even funnier is that they ended up getting a cabin!! You cannot put a price on being warm! Obviously dylon was not happy about it! I just dont know what his problem was it was at our expense and if we want to stay in a cabin we will! Its minus degrees no one is prepare for this weather so he should assume if there is a cabin then people should be offered it! There was only enough cabins for 12 people but we said people can sleep on the floor on thei inflatable mats then we can all be warm! But one girl didnt want to pay....it would have been about $8! And i dont no what was wrong with the others, one of the group ended up having the cabin to himself! It was silly! however we didnt care we were sleeping in this cabin whether he had a tantrum or not! It was a double bed bunk bed and it had a heater :) 

We were all taken into the town at 3pm he said he would pick up whoever wanted to go and have mexican food with him at 18.30 and if you didnt he would pick you up at 20.30! lukes phone had broke and dylon told us there was a apple store in town we were going to try to get it replaced. However when we got to town it was clear therew as no apple store! It was a Traditional old sante fe town and it was full of small expensive shops.....like $150 for a pair of gloves expensive! So not really aimed at tourists or a group of young travellers! It was still snowing and as soon as we got off the bus we realised there was no way we could spend 5.5 hours here! But dylon had not given anyone his phone number and we had no idea where he was, we were t going to eat the mexican doid at 18.30 so we were litrally stuck we didnt even no what the camp site was called! Which is both our faults dylon should tell us what its called and we should have checked before we went to town, he also should give his number to everyone for emergencys! 

....our cabin in the top left and sante fe town

Anyway jasmin had a idea to go to the information center and ask about getting a bus back to camp, we went and asked and luckily i had a reciept saying the name of the camp site, there was no bus that goes there and a taxi would be very expensive, we all just did not no what to do :( we were stuck in this town, it was cold and crap. Then the lady said she would give us a lift back when she finishes work in 30 minutes time. We couldnt believe our luck :) we were so thankful, we offered he some money but she wouldnt take it. We was all very angry about being left there with no way to contact the guide anoter clear example of incompetence.

We got back to our cabin it wasnt as warm as we wanted it but it was warming up pretty quickly and it was defo warmer then the tent! :) we just chilled out, had showers, wrote postcards and went to be at 20.30 nice and warm :) i actually slept without my coat and hat! And in the night took my jumper off! I still had the hot water bottle at my feet as they just wouldnt warm up! We got a relatively good nights sleep.

Tomorrow we go to Roswell and Carlsbad caverns.

Giant sequoia tress & death-valley

After leaving yosemite NP we were unable to take the route we were suppose to take as it was snowed over so we took another route. We went for walk to view some giant sequoia trees ! And they were huge...

....and pretty beautiful :)

The walk was around 1hr 30mins round trip and it was freezing, we really hadnt acclimatised to this weather ! We enjoyed seeing the trees but being cold is no fun! We begun to head to the next stop over for the night, i cannot remember what it was called all i remember is it being so windy that trying to put the tents up in that wind was practically impossible! And the wind also just made it even colder! I was really struggling at that moment with the cold i was shivering from head to toe and was really doubting the decision we made to camp! Its like being so cold you just dont know what to do with yourself! And because you are constantly in the cold you never truly warm up! It was our groups turn to cook dinner that night and we had a handfull of pasta and a spoonful of salad! Not our choice! And then we showered and i litrally put on as many layers as i could and got in my sleeping bag and made the decision that i was not going to get out of it until the morning! And it was only 8pm!! Luke made me a cup of tea and put hot water in one of our water bladders for a hot water bottle! I was soooo not impressed with this weather ! however we got a bit of sleep and the next day it was still cold but the wind had dropped! So we packed up and left. Today our journey would take us to death valley....

When we arrived it was bloody hot ! Just cant win! But i still couldnt get warm! Death valley was one of the hottest places in the world and very very dry! It had some great views we had a nice drive to the visiter center and we stopped at some sand dunes....

....the biggest sand dunes we had ever seen 

We had a picnic at the visiter center and then we were driven to a few spots for pics. We went to a point below sea level which was in the middle of the desert!....

We then went onto a site that had some very beautiful rock formations, it seems amazing that nature created things so beautifully! We got some good pics here aswell....

Although this blog post is relatively short it was a Very busy couple of days with a lot of time spent in the van ! But its ok as now we are off to vegas where there will be a lovely bed for us to sleep in and some warmth! We cannot wait.

The start of our tour....1st stop Yosemite national park

We had a early start leaving at 8am, the lifts werent working so the staff bought our bags down! And we was down just before 8 but the guide had already brieft everyone and they were out the door! So we just waited for our bags and joined them outside, everyone was loading there bags onto the truck and as we had just joined them we had no idea there was a order so we just got in line and when we got to the front the guide looked at the case like "where the hell am i going to put that" he found a space.....but what can you do if the guide briefs everyone before everyone is there ! His own mistake! We all boarded the bus a small van with 4 benches in for 3 people on each it was gonna be a squeeze!  However the seats were relatively comfy. We set off out of the city over a bridge and we had a photo stop here looking back on the city....

....it was a Great view of the city

 We were then off to walmart for some supplys, it was here we were numbered for the groups we would be in to cook, wash up and clean the van, me and luke were numbered different numbers and so i asked if we could be in the same group, thinking it would not be a problem we were travelling together as a couple so we should have been asked if we want to be in the same group! Anyway it was a simple request but he said no!! I couldnt believe my ears he said we have to break up sometime!  I couldnt believe i was sitting there...l a 26 year old adult that has paid a lot for the tour and he was telling me that we couldnt be together! I dont think so! We swapped with one of the girls that didnt mind what group she was in but that wasnt the end of that! It ended up being a huge problem! Its seems a bit petty but what i was mainly thinking of was the dinner cooking he said it takes at least an hour and i thought if we go somewhere were we can go for a walk or swim while waiting for the group to cook diner. We wouldnt be able to explore together as a couple and that just didnt make sense! We wanted to explore, take pics and experience everything together which i assumed would be obvious but apparently not!

We got to wallmart and it was huge! And so bloody cheap! My family had told me to go there when we got to florida as thats were they bought a lot of there stuff when they were in the states, and judging by this walmart store we would need half a day in there! They had everything you could ever want in one store! We will defo be going there in florida! 

After this we continued our journey to yosemite national park, we stopped at a fresh vegatable store, another supermarket and a very small town for a picnic lunch! Which was an experience!

....it was a very old town! It looked extremely historic!

After this stop it was straight to yosemite NP (national park!) when we got there we was not prepared for its beauty :) we spent a few hours stopping at various spots to look at the view.....

....The pics really do not do it justice, it was stunning. 

....we saw several different views of the stunning yosemite falls.

Yosemite falls is a combined height of 2425 feet and is the most popular & famous waterfall in yosemite national park, it really was a spectacular sight where ever you saw it from, we took many pics of this!

After then we headed to camp! When we arrived luke was a little dissapointed...the ground was uneven and full of rocks and the tents were practically on top of each other! Oh well this was our home for 2 nights! We all began putting up our tents they were pretty easy to put up.....

Althought the tents were easy to put up they only had a thin wrap over them and we was already cold! We were only told to pack a jumper and we just werent warming up at all! Well luke was but i wasnt ! Then the group that were doing dinner had to do that while the others could go for a swim or something! I had a shower and luke sorted our our beds and then we just chilled in the tent sorting our bag out etc and when we decided to go and sit at the table to wait for dinner we were shocked to discover that everyone had eaten and had finished!! And the meal was chilli con carne with the mince seperate and there was no mince left at all! So we had no dinner that night! We was fuming! Especially with the guide whos job it was to announce dinner and make sure everyone ate! We had paid for our meals to be included and here we were without dinner! As i am writing it it makes me angry! And after we had set up our tent ....completely set it up he came over and asked us to move it a bit!! So he could put the hammock up! We just looked at him....he gave everyone no advice on where to put there tents just let us grab everything and do what we wanted! His lack of experience is starting to show & irritate me.

We went to bed early and luke was super warm in his bag but i was just cold all night i find it so hard to warm up once cold especially when we remain outside and having a outside shower didnt help! We slept on and off and was up at 7am,  breakfast was set out you just help yourself....it was nice....english breakfast muffins, toast, bagels, cereal, fruit, yogurt, tea, coffee, cereal bars lovely. Today we were going for a hike up to sentinal dome it was a large dome shape mountain! we couldnt wait for the views! But before we boarded the bus we had to stand in the order we sat in the bus the day before so he number us again as it seems some members of the group couldnt remember what group they were in! I couldnt believe it so again i asked him in front if everyone could me and luke be together and he said no! And i said to him i am serious we want to be in the same group we like to do things together and he just basically ignored me and walked away! We couldnt believe it! I dont get what the big deal was he was adamant we werent going to be in the same group! He obviously didnt no me! It was making me sound like i was making a Mountain out of a mole hill! But it was such a simple request, we had paid for this trip he was our guide not my bloody dictator! This would be sorted by the end of the day! Since leaving on this trip i have realised that a lot of stress can be from you being bothered by what someone else has said or done to you and saying nothing! I just didnt want that kind of stress any more and really if someone has done something to upset or annoy you you should be able to talk about it in a adult manner! And that is what we would do later when he was alone and couldnt walk away from us! 

We went on this hike, and it was freezing! There was snow on the ground at parts! We had worn trousers but a lot of the girls had worn shorts and they were freezing! The hike itself to sentinal dome wasnt to bad it was nice with some great views and we came across some huge pine cones!

When we were at the bottom of sentinal dome we saw snow and there was a great view here we couldnt wait to get to the top and check out the views up there! And we werent dissappointed...

After our hike up we all walked down a different way meeting our guide dylon at the bottom he didnt mention a time or anything so we just took our time and when we reached the meeting point the view was just stunning the pictures really dont do it justice we spent a while just taking it all in it was just so amazing and then we went to see where the guide was, we found them all sitting just finishin there lunch! As we sat and began to eat everyone got up to follow the guide to some viewing point we had already been to! We were happy to just sit and have our lunch with the view in front of us! 

This is where luke befriended several squirals ! We hadnt seen the sign at the gift shop saying dont feed them! So luke shared his sandwich with them! It was so cute! They were climbing all over him! 

...it was cute to watch 

We went to sit in the cafe after that we were so bloody cold ! One of the girls had tied her jumper around her legs as she had worn shorts and was freezing! We boarded back on the bus we were now heading down to yosemite villlage area to be dropped off for some free time to explore. As we were dropped off at yosemite lodge i thought this is our chance to talk to dylon! Everyone else walked away and i got back in the van.... Luke behind me i knew he wouldnt get out and walk away! I asked him outright what the problem was with me and luke being in the same group? He didn't really give us a answer just kept saying no! He even said your together 23.5 hrs a day you can be apart for a while!!!! What a cheek! As if its his decision to make! I was pissed right off by this point i just couldnt believe that he was dictating to me about the amount time we spend together! Your a guide mate get off that pedastall you have made for yourself! I kept my calm the whole time! Mean while luke was at boiling point! He just wasnt getting it so i said "this is our trip that we have paid a lot of money to be on and we ARE going to be in the same group" i was so fed up of doing it the right way and asking politely now i was going to dictate! He didnt know what to say and was getting redder and redder in the face he obviously wasnt use to this kind of confrontation but he was only there to guide us not to take decisions away from us, everyone else on the tour apart from one other older couple were travelling alone or were single so didnt care about what group they were in but i feel the guide should ask the couples what they want to do, maybe that will come with experience with him afterall he was only 24 and had only done this tour once.

Glad we had sorted that problem out we went on a walk to explore! We had a map and there was a free shuttle in the park so decided we were going to do a loop, we had 3 hours, we started by going to the base of the yosemite falls! Then we walked to the museum and visiters center both very interesting. We met this american couple on route and we walked with them ! We had a lovely chat :) americans are so friendly :) we hadnt spotted any of our group so wondered where they had gone? Eventually 2 hours later we bumped into them they had just got a drink and gone to the deli to buy dylan a birthday cake! We liked our group, there was many nice people on the bus but we just thought it was like follow the leader! We had seen loads of pretty and interesting things and they had seen the bottom of the waterful and the deli! In every tour/country we had been to we had seen this follow the leader situation going on! It seems a shame as people miss out on things because they wont walk away from the group, maybe we would think differently if we were travelling alone or where younger? But i dont think so as we love to explore! We couldn't decide if dylon was gunna be a dylon! about the group situation! But we really couldnt care less! This was our trip we had been waiting for for along time! So we were gunna just have a good time :) 

At camp that night we made sure we had dinner! It was fajitas! They were scrummy! We then sat around the camp fire which luke made! He had made the one the night before aswell he was very good at it! And it was so bloody cold we all needed it! The marshmellows were handed round and we all just sat and chatted then we went to bed we had to leave at 8am and we had to pack away everything, the trailer, eat breaky and make lunch! 

Another cold night for me :( and it was raining all night! Plus we kept slipping down the tent! Litrally couldnt wait to get to vegas just for the hotel and warmth! We woke up the next day and thank god it was not raining! Me and luke had a good system! He took down the tent and i made the breaky and lunch! It was a good system as were hapily sitting down eating our breakfast while everyone was putting there tents down! 

 

This is exactly why we should be in the same team we work bloody well together! And we dont even discuss the system it just happens! Anyway we were leaving yosemite today and off to a new destination! I wonder what beautiful sights we see today! 

The Grand Canyon & historic route 66!

We left vegas at 8am and we didnt want to leave we loved it there and could have done with another 2 days there, today we were off to the grand canyon via route 66 ! We couldnt wait to see this beautiful sight. We boarded the van and set off, 2 hours into it we were in arizona ! The scenary driving has been stunning since we left san fran i hope it countinurs to be nice.

After around 4 hours we stopped at historic route 66! For lunch and a wonder! It was quite a lovelylittle  town! Lots of historic features and character! It was a real old american experience! And we ate at a small cafe called the snow cone cafe! It was a small shop/kiosk you ordered then waited for your name to be called and found a seat outside amongst the memoribilia! It was great and the food was scrummy! After lunch we wondered along the road and had a browse in all the shops we could have spent a couple of hours here just browsing! But we had to leave to continue our journey, so took loads of pics and i bought a new small handbag as mine had completely fallen apart :( i got one for $8 and we got a few postcards :) we loved experiencing this town what a real slice of america :)

We continued onto the grand canyon dropping some of the group off for the helicopter ride on the way, the rest of us then continued onto the camp ground and set up camp. It was pretty windy and the camp ground was sandy so the sand was going everywhere! After we had finished dylon took us for our first viewing of the grand canyon :) we parked in the car park and then just a short walk away we were looking at the canyon, it was breathtaking and it just went on you could see no end to it. I had a picture in my head of what the canyon would look and this wasnt it but i was in no way dissappointed i think that everybody has images in there head of what these famous landmarks look like based on the movies and our imaginations and a lot of the time they are very different. But the grand canyon looked stunning. We took a few pics then it was time to go and pick up the rest of the group from their helicopter tour. 

It was around 6 oclock by this point and we were all going to watch the sunset over the canyon at 19.22, and then have pizza, so we were taken to the gift shop and had a browse and then back to camp to get our warm clothes and then to the "rim" for sunset! The temp had dropped quite quickly and it was now pretty cold so i was very pleased about my new coat it kept me nice and warm! Me and luke found a spot to sit whilst dylon took the rest of the group to sit on a ledge! It was pretty windy and a bit to dangerous for our liking! So we just sat and watched it from where we were and it was lovely we left a bit early really as the sky was just going red when we left we knew from experience that this was the best part of a sunset but the group were leaving so we had to go. We had pizza in one of the parks restaurants dylon ordered 6 pizzas for us all and they came out huge!! We couldnt finish them all! We went back and sat around the campfire and then went to bed i went to bed in my coat and was actually warm for the first time! And luke really appreciated his hat. 

The next day we didnt get up until around 8.30 the rest of the group were going out at 9 am we had no idea where, but we wanted to explore together! So we made lunch and had breaky whilst they were getting ready to go. Then we decided to do some washing, and as i was walking back from the laundry i walked past a group of wild elks just chilling and eating! It was great and when i got back to camp luke said they had just walked past camp! We do love our wild animal sightings! We finally set off around 10.40am we went to the free park shuttle bus stop and we were off.....

..... The pics on left are ones i got walking back from the laundry and the ones on right are what luke got when they went through the camp!

We decided to go to a place called "hermits rest" it was the furthest away a 80 minute round trip with around 8 stops on the way there and 3 on the way back, there were various hikes we could have done but we only had the one day and we weren't prepared for a hike plus we really wanted to see the views of the canyon! Every stop we got off ....the views were just unbelieveable....

Luke was quite daring and went out to some ledges and i was a little daring! We just got so many great pics its going to be hard to pic the best ones to keep! We hadnt bumped into any of our group so had no clue what they were doing ! We really enjoyed this trip to hermits rest & we walked some of it as it was so scenic we saw some stunning scenary. We found a picnic bench when we got there and ate our pack lunch we were starving ....by this point it was 2pm! We were going to stop at 1 or 2 of the places we hadnt stopped at on the way on the way back but were needing a rest so decided we would now journey to a place called "yaki point" It was quite a journey on 3 different buses but it was nice to have the rest! The temp was really dropping again so it was also getting a bit chilly. When we reached our destination we werent dissappointed another great kodak moment! There was also a safe ledge here which we took some great pics on....

We really wanted to go to the geology museum aswell but it was 16.30 and it shuts at 5pm and we also had to be back at camp around 17.30-17.45 so decided to head back to the visiter center and have a look in there before heading back to camp. It was actually really interesting with lots of facts on the parks wildlife and history. We got the bus to market square and walked to camp from there we were feeling knackered and both needed showers. I dont think we drank enough water we drank around 2.5 litres but did a lot of walking, and you ares uppose to drink 1 litre per hour! And it was hot even no the wind made it a little chilly! It was dry and we were at a high altitude! so at quite a lot of risk of dehydration! So i think after dinner we would have a early one! One of the groups cooked dinner and we were the last to dish ours up and there was probly 2 spoonfuls left ! The size of the "dinner" really was ridiculous it didnt even fill a small bowl! People are so selfish filling there bowl right up when there is barely enough for everyone. Each group got to pick what they cooked and bought the ingrediants and there was obviously not enough for everyone. I feel that dylon should have ensured there was enough to go around, when you pay for a trip that includes meals you shouldnt be going to bed hungry!

That night the group played drinking games but it was to cold to be sitting outside so we went to our tent not that it was much better in there ! We played a few games together on our iphone and then tried to got to sleep but it was so cold and the group were being so loud! I think they thought we couldnt here what they were saying but they forgot how thin the tents were ! It was very interesting 

Listening! The wind was picking up and the temp was dropping and luke said there was bad weather coming....he was right! ......we woke up to snow! It rained initially and we was thinking how terrible it would be putting the tent down in that weather! But as it happened the rain stopped and it was just slightly snowing so luke quickly put the tent down and i covered our bags with a umbrella! And thank god we did all that early and quick as the snow got worse and heavier it covered the ground! We made our tea and breakfast and got ready to get in the van....and to our surprise (not!) the whole group apart from 3 of us had put there bags on the seats they wanted to sit in! We had to rotate where we sat in the van everyday as there were better seats or certain parts of the van with more leg room and better views and me, luke and jasmin (a german girl who we had become friendly with!) had been sitting in the back row for two days it warmer there but a tight squeeze with no leg room! Anyway so obviously we had been left to sit there again! Honestly ....it was like going back to playschool with some of the people in the group!! It really made us feel old seeing how these "children" behaved! Anyway they were made to move which obviously was the end of the world!! Being on another group tour was proving difficult! Mostly due to the behaviour of some of the "children" in the group!!

We were on our way and were taken to one last view point which was great as we got to see the grand canyon in the snow! We were so lucky to see the canyon in the sunshine and snow in 24hours! Thats very rare! So we were pleased.

We really enjoyed our time in the grand canyon national park even tho it was windy and chilly at night, we saw some spectacular sites and took some great pics. We also saw many wild and beautiful animals which we loved :) we would definately come back and visit again. What an amazing place.