The Blue Lagoon

We spent the last day at Iceland's famous Blue Lagoon geothermal spa. The milky blue waters are loaded with minerals that are supposed to rejuvenate your body and soul. I was shocked by how warm and clean the water was, which apparently gets cycled out every two days to keep it fresh. With a 7 hour flight home ahead of me, I was pretty concerned with keeping my hair dry which proved to be impossible! After my 20 minute massage, my hair was soaked, but I have never felt so relaxed in my life! The Blue Lagoon should be on everyone's bucket list. I hope to come back to this beautiful country to see what it looks like in the summer time. Sunrise was at about 11:30AM and sunset was at about 3:30PM which limited what we could do/see during the day. Nightlife doesn't really get going in Reykjavik until midnight. A beer runs about $1000 krona, which is about $8.25 US, so its not exactly cheap to drink/eat/sight see but there are ways to stretch your dollar. I think I have turned into an international happy hour hunter!

Iceland is a Frigid Beast!

Reykjavik is an interesting little city with a lot of character. We spent an entire day walking the icy streets looking at Viking stuff and trying to pronounce signs. Icelandic is unlike any language I have ever heard and most of their words look like someone key mashed their keyboard. I have yes (ja) no (nei) and thank you (tak) down so far and that is probably going to be the extent of it. The food here is pretty gnarly! They actually serve quite a bit of whale and puffin, but its so pricey here that I haven't been very adventurous. We took an amazing tour of the lava fields while riding Icelandic Horses. My mini-horse (ear and hair pictured in the corner above) was very friendly...it only went crazy on me once.

Idaho Falls, possibly the most uninteresting place EVER

A work trip landed me in Idaho Falls, ID. As the largest city in eastern Idaho I was expecting alot more than what I got. Its a pretty depressed little community. From what I could tell, the "falls" are essentially rapids that drop about 10 feet. The locals were friendly, Mormon, and wholesome so no complaints there, but Mitt Romney was a favorite topic and 5 out of the 10 people I asked named Olive Garden as their favorite restaurant in town.

The Town Too Tough to Die

We made our way from New Mexico back into Arizona with a stop in Tombstone. The whole town is a bit of a tourist trap, but its still essential for anyone who appreciates history. Apparently the real gem in the area is the old mining town Bisbee. After putting over 1500 miles on my rental car, I was ready to get back to Tucson to lay by the pool for our last day. It was 84 degrees with a light breeze, book, pool... perfect end to a fantastic trip!

Truth or Consequences and Chile...Boo!

The plan was to spend Halloween in Truth or Consequences, NM so we drove from Taos south, through Santa Fe and Albuquerque (which I can finally spell), and landed in T or C. We quickly realized that Truth or Consequences wouldn't be a good resting place. The town changed its name from Hot Springs to Truth or Consequences in 1950 after a game show. The place is pretty depressed so we cruised on down to Hatch, NM so I could check out the chile capital of the world. I was in heaven! We stopped at Sparky's for some BBQ pork and green chilies and we were not disappointed! We wanted to cover a little more ground so we decided to spend the night in Deming, NM which is a popular rock and mineral collecting area near the southern border. A roadrunner that looked just like "Roadrunner" crossed in front of my car on the way there which made me smirk.

Taos Mountain Balloon Rally

As it happened we landed in Taos during the 29th annual Mountain Balloon Rally. At sunrise (between 7-8AM) they had their "mass ascension" so I had to get up early, but it was worth it. After coffee and the balloon viewing, we went to the San Francisco de Asis Mission which was built between 1772 and 1815. The church was a popular subject for Georgia O'Keeffe so it felt oddly familiar. We tried to get Bloody Mary's and watch football after our busy morning, but they aren't allowed to serve alcohol until after noon on Sundays...apparently its an old Catholic thing. Taos is probably one of the coolest towns I have ever been to. Its bohemian culture is charming and inviting and the food is incredible!

No big deal, I was just in 4 States at the same time!

So far I have driven a Mitsubishi Galant from Tucson, AZ to Gallup, NM to Taos, NM. My mother hides her eyes every time I pass a semi-truck, which never fails to make me laugh. Ridiculous! Northern New Mexico is breathtaking! It was a little out of the way, but no Southwest road trip would be complete without a trip to the Four Corners! Its maintained by the Navajo tribe, and its kind of a tourist trap, but I figured I had to do it once. I took highway 64 from the Four Corners Monument to Taos and witnessed some of the most beautiful scenery ever. I wanted to stop at a "Trail of Fear" haunted house on a Navajo reservation but my mom said just reading the sign scared her to death so it was "out of the question!". I had an amazing dinner at my uncle's restaurant in Taos and then went to a bar to listen to soul music and check out all of the Halloween costumes. New Mexico takes Halloween very seriously...I like it here!

Gold, Glory, and God

The San Xavier Mission was founded by the Jesuit Father Kino in 1692. Its the oldest intact European structure in Arizona, and its the oldest Catholic church still servicing the original community for which it was built...the Tohono O'odham of Wa:k. The Mission was around 150 years before the area was even part of the United States! The Baroque facade beautifully pays homage to 4 female saints and to the mother country, Spain. The main alter inside has two huge gold lions that were restored by Gloria Giffords, Congresswoman Gabby Giffords mother (TOAST!). The surrounding area had an amazing variety of cacti and scenic mountain backdrops from every angle. This is a must stop for anyone visiting the Southwest.

What Would Dillinger Do?

Tucson, Arizona is a city with a lot more history than I realized. The historic Hotel Congress is where we found ourselves for the first night of our Southwest road trip. It was built in 1919, but in January of 1934 John Dillinger and his gang were captured here. Its rumored that many ghosts frequent the building, which is probably why they have a table that is a giant ouija board in the lobby! It was pretty fun to sit there and attempt to communicate with spirit world while I drank my morning coffee. The vibe of the hotel is massively cool, but the windows are single pane glass and its located in a pretty busy part of town so its quite loud at all hours of the night...I must be getting old.

Mt. Roberts with Lady Baltimore

Labor Day weekend in Juneau visiting the sis. We took the tram up Mt. Roberts for an amazing view of downtown Juneau, Douglas, and the Gastineau Channel. A one-eyed bald eagle named Lady Baltimore lives at the top of the tram. A poacher (I had no idea people "poached" bald eagles) shot Lady Baltimore through the beak and the the bullet exited out her left eye. The whole story/situation/exhibit is a bit freaky, but it was totally worth the trip up because Native Alaskans own the whole operation the artwork and old photos they have on display in the lodge area is some of the best I have ever seen.

42nd Annual Oregon Country Fair

The Oregon Country Fair never fails to impress me with the sheer amount of hippie freaks concentrated in one area. It is the ultimate people watching event of the year...hands down! The entire fair is on private property, nestled in the woods. All of the vendors (artists, tarot card readers, massage therapists, wood workers...etc) booths, food stalls, stages, drum circles, you name it, are tucked in the trees and grass in little makeshift stands that look like tree forts. Its a total trip! Where else can you see a man, in full drag, on stilts that look like goat legs, jumping rope?! I mean come on! Tops are 100% optional for women and 50% of the people are totally high on life :)

This couple was more than happy to pose for me! "Happy Fair!"

Chihuly and Tapas in St. Pete

A little burned from my day at the beach, I decided to walk around the waterfront and check out the art in St. Petersburg to avoid too much direct sun! They have a pretty good Chihuly collection, with many of his styles on exhibit, but after walking through it I decided it probably wasn't worth the $15 entrance fee. If you have been to the Bellagio you have seen more spectacular installations. The waterfront area in St. Pete is lush and tranquil, with little restaurants and shops lining the main street. The best surprise was discovering that my favorite Tapas restaurant, Ceviche, has a location right on Beach drive!

Siesta Beach, Sarasota FL

I couldn't have picked a better spot for my first trip to the Gulf! I covered it in an earlier post, but the sand is what makes it amazing. The Gulf water is so warm and crystal clear. I could see fish swimming around my legs! Everything, from the water to the sand, was pristine. I didn't see one cigarette butt or piece of trash...makes Waikiki look like a sewer! In fact this beach puts all beaches to shame! Its easy to see why Dr. Beach ranked this place the #1 beach for 2011.

The Best Sand I Have Ever Felt!

100% Quartz sand = the best sand I have ever seen, felt, walked on. Its got to be about 90 degrees here, but the sand is cool on your feet. My towel just melted into a fluffy white cloud of this stuff!

Devil Crabs

One of the best things about finding myself in Tampa again is the food! My coworkers here introduced me to Brocato's Sandwich Shop, home of the Devil Crabs the size of footballs! I wasn't sure what to make of it until I cracked it open to find that its essentially a crab cake...on crack! I drizzled a little Texas Pete's hot sauce on it...perfection! Yay Cuban food!

The Shrine

I decided to take a little road trip about 25 miles from downtown Juneau to The Shrine of St. Therese, Queen and Patroness of Alaska. This really cool little chapel was built in 1938 on a small island connected to the beach by a footpath. As I was walking back from the island to the beach I saw a pod of Killer Whales about 100 yards from the shore breaching and swimming around. Words cannot describe how amazingly beautiful it is up here!

The Mendenhall Glacier

Named after Thomas Corwin Mendenhall (some buckeye who helped draw the boarder between Alaska and Canada), the Mendenhall Glacier is 12.5 miles long! This picture doesn't do it justice. You can see this toothpaste blue glacier from most of the roads near the valley. The scenery is breathtaking here!

Yep...I'm in Alaska!

I'm not sure what this animal is, but it was at The Viking tonight! I have only been in Juneau for a few hours but so far its living up to all of my expectations!

St. Patty's Day in Indian Wells

Turns out the PNB Paribas Open was a great place to spend St. Patty's Day! Sharapova, Nadal, Federer, a Corona with a brilliant straw...it was a good day! Our seats were fabulous and the weather was gorgeous, what more could a young tennis fan ask for? FYI- PNB Paribas is the largest banking group in the world and its headquartered in Paris so it was bitter sweet when the French player, Marion Bartoli (yeah, sounds Italian right?!) lost to Caroline Wozniacki. My trip to Palm Desert was entertaining and relaxing! GOOD TIMES!

Tapas in Tampa

I'm back in Tampa for the new year so I had to hit Ceviche for some (drum roll please) ceviche! I suppose there could be worse places to travel for work. The food here is good, sun is always shining, and its in the upper 60's in January!