Beginning to see that Southwestern Flare...Day 3

Day 3
Sunday, October 3

 We started off day 3 well rested.  Sleeping in a bed for more than 4 hours was awesome!  We awoke at 8 or 9 and it was already warm out.  I could get used to Arizona weather in October, but the summer weather would deter me.  Though we would only be spending half a day in Tucson, Shelly was planning on making those 6 hours eventful.

We started the morning off by heading to Sabino Canyon which was only a 10 minute drive from Shelly's house.  We took a tour up and down the main road (we were too lazy and didn't have enough time to do the 7 mile round trip hike).  The tour offered some good background info on the Canyon and the area.  One cool fact that we learned was that the cactus (pictured below) don't grow their first side arm until they are about 80 years old.  Crazy!

Sabino Canyon

 

One eyed tiki man

Cactus older than 80 years

Snoopy on top of his house

Faustino and I at the top of the tour

Shelly and I

 It was a beautiful day and it was a beautiful area.  I'm glad that we got to go and see a different part of Tucson.  They even had a couple funny signs (below).

Showing what could happen when riding your bike across the bridge

After Sabino Canyon we went to Shelly's old apartment complex to use the pool and lay around.  Couldn't have asked for better weather to lay around under the sun.  Honestly - relaxing by the pool was just what we needed after two long days of driving. 

Finally our stomachs were starting to growl and football was on (it was Sunday of course).  We headed to Sir Veza's Taco Garage for what else but tacos and beer.  $2 Bud Lights to be exact.  Awesome!  We sat outside under the mister, drank beer, ate chips and salsa and watched football while we waited for our food.  Our food arrived and my shrimp tacos were delicious.  :)

After watching the 49ers lose, we headed back to Shelly's to pack up our stuff.  After a quick goodbye and thank yous, we were on the road once again.  Next destination: Las Cruces, NM.  But not before taking a photo with the cowboy pictured below.

Ahh, don't shoot!

Faustino was the driver for day 3 - my legs needed rest.  And in no time we were crossing the border into New Mexico.  The Land of Enchantment should be known as the Land of Great food!

After the jump forward (time zone change) and 4 or so hours of driving, we made it to our campsite in Las Cruces.  We set-up our tent, made dinner and were in our makeshift bed by 9pm.  We were even far enough out of town that the stars were illuminating the skies.  But soon enough our eyelids were heavy and we were out.

Thought on Day 3: Tucson was cuter than I had originally expected.  I didn't think I would care for it much, but the styles of houses showed that there was a lot more culture there than I had originally thought.  Even the cookie cutter houses weren't so typical.  They each had the southwestern flare that I was so excited to see.  It was great seeing Shelly and she showed us a good amount in what little time we had together.  We were even able to relax which is exactly what we needed by Day 3.

Battling Thunderstorms from the Grand Canyon to Heart Attack Grill all the way to Tucson...Day 2

Day 2
Saturday, October 2

Day 2 started off earlier than I normally get up...4:15am that is.  Now, I'm used to waking up 6-7am with an alarm.  So I was astonished when I actually woke up on my own at 4:15am (I accidentally set my alarm for 4pm) after only going to sleep a measly 4 hours earlier.  Faustino and I made it to our car by about 4:30am after stumbling to get our stuff ready to go.  When we went to open the door with the clicker we realized something was wrong.  Either the clicker was broken or the battery was dead because it wasn't unlocking!!!  What the...  Its only our second day and our car is not working.  This can't be happening.  After about 2 seconds, I tried the car and you guessed it...our battery was DEAD.  Kaput.  Beyond life.  Again...this can't be happening.  Oh no, what do we do?  I'll call a tow truck so they can jump it...  Wait a moment, why do that if I can call Jackie and have her jump our car.  She couldn't have fallen asleep that quickly, we only just left moments before.  Jackie's phone's dead...what the???  So I ran back to her apartment, knocked on the door and yes she was still awake.  So after about 10 minutes of giving juice to the car, we were finally able to start the car.  And phew, we were on the road by 5am.  But boy was that nerve wracking.  It had all the signs of ruining our trip.  And I'm too much of a control freak that I would have let it drag me down for the next 10 days.  But luckily that wasn't the case.

So here we are, on our way out of LA and everything is going smoothly, until wait for it.  We missed the exit to the connecting freeway and didn't realize it for about half an hour.  Faustino's sleeping because he needs to sleep (running on 6 hours of sleep for two days isn't healthy you know).  FAUSTINO!  Wake up!!!  Where are we, we missed the exit.  Do we go back or keep going?  Luckily, Faustino with his dreary eyes found that we would hit another freeway that would continue to take us to the Grand Canyon.  Phew!  Relieved to say the least.  Hopefully we'll only lose an hour or so.  And that is probably all we lost being that I was driving fast and there wasn't any traffic because who is up at 5am on a Saturday to go to the Grand Canyon anyway.  Me...us.  We're that crazy, yes we are.

View from the road on the way to the Grand Canyon

Driving in the Mojave Dessert

 Driving through the Mojave desert was the most beautiful site I had seen (but each day as you will see, I saw many beautiful things).  It was so desolate which made it even more pretty.  Anyhoo, as we were driving, I saw ahead of me a massive amount of rain.  In a couple moments I would be driving through a rain shower so heavy I could only see 10-15 feet in front of me.  And then a few minutes later we were out of it and it was bright as day.  And there we were in the Mojave Desert again with nothing around us but hills and land.

So after about 5 hours of driving and finally getting to the Arizona border I ask Faustino to drive.  I need a break and he's awake.  Driving through northern Arizona was nice and fast (I feel like we have the slowest speed limit in the U.S.). 

Getting into Arizona, obviously

We only had about an hour left to go before we got to the Grand Canyon and what did we see in front of us?!?  More rain and gray skies.  Though some think its dismal, it was spectacular to me. 

Rain on the car

Then lightning!!!  I loved seeing and looking for all the lightning coming down.  Little did I know, that lightning would follow us through most of our trip. :)

Lightning seen on our way to the Grand Canyon

Finally after several hours of driving we get to the Grand Canyon!  Woo hoo!  We finally made it.  It was still raining when we arrived but it wasn't too cold or windy.  We decided to pack our cameras and go for a hike which was only a little more than a sprinkle.  When I saw my first ever live view of the Canyon I was amazed.  So amazed that my mouth dropped and Faustino had to tell me to close it (haha).  At the beginning of our hike, we only saw 2 other people.  20 minutes into the hike, the rain stopped and it was a nice day with mist covering the Canyon.  Soon there were 20 people and then 200 (okay maybe not 200 but still, many more people started showing up).  We were able to take a nice slow hike, taking pictures and we were able to really just enjoy the moment.  We weren't there to be professional hikers, we weren't there to build up a sweat, we were merely there to enjoy the scenery and be amazed by what this world truly has to offer.


Faustino and I

Faustino enjoying the view

Photo by me...

After revelling in the immenseness of what the Grand Canyon is, we bought a couple hot chocolates and decided to be on our way.  Our next stop: Heart Attack Grill in Chandler, Arizona.  Let me start this part off by saying that we are huge lovers of a good burger.  That paired with Faustino seeing an article about the Heart Attack Grill on msn.com and it was settled.  He had wanted to visit this restaurant since he saw the article over a year ago, so what better time to do it when we are on our way through Arizona.  Off we went to Chandler.  We had 3 or so hours to drive and we needed to get to the restaurant by 8:30pm.  We were making great time, we'd be there by 7:30-8pm.  But of course everything in the world said nope you aren't going because as soon as we got to Phoenix we hit traffic, then once we got off on our exit we made a wrong turn, and finally our car was saying that we had such little gas that if we kept going we'd die right there in the middle of the street.  But I pushed it, Faustino wanted to go and even though he said it would be okay that we didn't I wanted to make it there for him.  I'm controlling but I like to see other people happy too.  We turned the car around, and made it to the Grill about 5 minutes before they shut down the kitchen!  Woo hoo, we would have our lard cooked french fries after all.  And I must say, that even though the women are dressed in tacky and demeaning outfits (think Hooters), the restaurant is filled with cheesy decor (again think Hooters), and it could give me a heart attack, despite all of that...the burgers were awesome!  They were indeed superb.  I wouldn't go again but I enjoyed the experience.

Faustino in the hospital gown and wrist band provided by the Heart Attack Grill

From Chandler, after getting gas that is, we drove down to Tucson.  And as soon as we got back on the road the lightning started up again.  I've said it before and I'll say it again, it was so beautiful.  And each time the lightning struck down I smiled.  The 1.5 hour drive to Tucson was quick and we made it Shelly's house and hopped into the shower.  That night we went to a place called the Sky Bar in the hills of Tucson with Shelly and her roommate Allison.  We had a couple of tall beers and caught up on each other's lives.  It was great seeing Shelly since I haven't seen her in a year and the likelihood of me seeing her before Kiersten's wedding next August are slim to none.

After closing down the bar at 2:15am, we headed back to Shelly's.  Faustino and I passed out shortly thereafter, seeing as it had been the longest day (22 hours that is).  Once our heads hit the pillow the lights were out.  What a great day!

Lesson from Day 2:  Never think just because you're only listening to music for about a half an hour the night before that your car won't start.  It doesn't take THAT long for your battery to die.  And if you have an instinct from the night before that the battery is losing life, don't dismiss it.  You don't want to wind up in the streets at 4:30am with a dead battery and an 8 hour drive ahead of you.  Word to the wise...

Thought on Day 2:  I loved sharing the Grand Canyon experience with Faustino.  It was both our first time seeing such an incredible place.  I felt like a kid again, so naive.  But this time I had some knowledge about the world being bigger and more remarkable than I could have imagined.

San Leandro to Santa Monica to Brentwood to Burbank. Oh what a day...1

Day 1
Friday, October 11

The Road Trip (RT) started out like any other...driving to get to destination and I drove from San Leandro to West L.A. while Faustino slept because he worked the night shift thus needing to sleep.  I've never driven down south so this would be interesting.  Luckily it was pretty smooth because we left at 11am on Friday.  I'm sure my driving 90mph didn't hurt either.

The view of the grapevine

 After driving the grapevine (my first time), we made it to the LA area by about 3pm.  But because my friend was still working we decided to head to Santa Monica.  Despite being stuck in traffic, we made it to the pier. I'm typically not a big fan of the huge tourist spots.  But this was nice, especially because 10-20 helicopters decided to fly over the pier about twenty minutes after we arrived.  Because Faustino has great eyesight he saw them first from far away (I thought they were birds, haha).  Within minutes they were overhead and louder than I could of imagined.  I don't think they typically fly over the pier on Friday afternoon so it was a nice treat to start our trip.

One of the helicopters overhead

 We then walked around, enjoyed the pier and some fries in the nice weather.  Even took some pictures to share.  Couldn't have asked for a more beautiful day.

At the Santa Monica Pier

 After playing on the swings and feeling sick, we went to Jackie's in the Brentwood area.  Drank a beer, waited for a couple friends and then headed out to Burbank.  

Jackie, Faustino and I at her apartment

Beer Jackie sells at work

At the Big Boy's in Burbank we went to the car show that they have every Friday night.  We got to see boat loads of cars (hehe).

Of course I had to take a picture with the yellow boat. :)

Not supposed to touch the cars.

With Big Boy

The ladies with Big Boy

After walking around looking at cars for an hour or two we decided to go eat at an Italian restaurant down the street.  Food was superb and the beer was good.  They even had a little club in the back called "The Lounge" or something similar.  The DJ wasn't great at mixing and the music selection wasn't very good, so needless to say it was a little lame.  There was about 10 people who must have stayed from dinner because no one in their sound mind would have gone to this place on a Friday night just to go.  Unless they were getting free drinks.  Overall, we would go again to have dinner but not to listen to the music.  We finally decided to call it a night around midnight, seeing that Faustino and I had to get up early for the next day's adventures.

Thought about day 1: The drive wasn't as bad as I thought it would be, I was able to drive calmly while listening to music and letting Faustino nap.  The weather was beautiful and it was a great way to start the trip.  Can't wait for day 2. :)

Soul-searching, gut-wrenching trips

For me there are two different types of trips.  There are the trips/vacations which are mindless and they're meant to be that way.  Meaning that during these trips you aren't trying to determine the meaning of life on earth.  For me these type of trips tend to be quick getaways to places like Vegas where life is so fast you don't think about whats going on in the world or they're to the beach somewhere because you're trying to getaway from everyone and everything.  Essentially I call these breather vacations.  These trips are usually nice and they help you relax.  Though, I definitely enjoy them, they don't tend to be fulfilling to me, they are basically just an easy way to escape reality.

Then there are those soul-searching and sometimes gut-wrenching trips.  These trips are journeys and adventures.  They are the things life-long memories are made of.  These tend to be the stories you tell with a wide smile on your face a big chuckle in your heart.  These experiences can open your heart and mind past what you ever thought possible.  They tend to offer a lot of firsts.  Like the first time stopping on a busy highway, putting on the hazard lights just to get a picture with the "Welcome to Arizona" sign meanwhile trucks and cars are honking to cheer you on. ;)  Or they are a first time to a country completely different from your own, with a culture unlike any that you've ever encountered.  Even more so, these trips often put your life into perspective.  You have deep conversations with both yourself and other people.  And generally, they are life altering and they mold the rest of your life.  Sometimes these trips start out as the first type and quickly change into the second and other times you know from the get that they will be both soul-searching and gut-wrenching.  Not because you  plan it to be that way you just have this feeling that it will.

Sometimes you have to be a little crazy ;)

In my short life of 25 years, I have been blessed to have two to three soul-searching trips.  Trips that had an awing effect on me.  And that my friends is how my eleven day road trip started out.  I knew it was going to be great but about an hour into the drive with Faustino sleeping in the passenger seat and me thinking, I had this feeling that this was going to be a lot more than I had anticipated.  And I welcomed it.

On the road in Wyoming

Please continue to stop by my blog over the next few weeks as I will be adding photos (above is just a glimpse at what was taken), captions and stories from my wonderful adventure!

My love of Fall and Winter

I know I've posted this before some where else, but seeing as today is the first day of Fall (and Winter is just right around the corner) I can't help but think about why these two seasons happen to be my favorite. So here we go, the list of 10 reasons (old and new) of why fall and winter are my favorite:

1. Rain. I love Rain, and everything about it. I love the smell. I love the sound it makes on my roof (when I lived in a house). I love the feeling I get inside when it starts. I love the memories it brings. I love the fact that it reminds me of my grandmother because she too loved the rain. And as I was in Woodland last Sunday it happened to rain (a light rain) for maybe 30 minutes and as it went I immediately felt this sense of happiness. That with the rain brought a new light of day and an optimistic look on life. And then this overwhelming feeling of joy that Fall was just around the corner.
   


2. The changing of the trees. I love when the leaves are red and orange. I miss fall in Woodland, because I miss being constantly surrounded with beautiful trees (whether they are green, red, brown or yellow).
   


3. Seeing my breath on a cold morning. I love cold crisp mornings and seeing my steaming hot breath hit the air. I love walking during these mornings because no matter how fast I walk I don't get hot (or too sweaty, gross).
   


4. Fog. I love fog when it’s light and makes the day kinda gloomy even though I don't see it as gloomy, I see it as beautiful. I know it can be foggy year round in the bay, but the Fall and Winter fogs are more beautiful and enchanting.
   


5. Warm fires. I love the feeling of a house being warmed purely by a fire in the stove. Its one of the greatest warmth’s possible. Even though, I don't currently live in a house or apartment with a fireplace I still look forward to the fires burning in the stove. And I love the thought of the next time I'll be surrounded by the ones I love and a roaring fire to keep us warm (which just happens to be my next reason).
   


6. Thanksgiving. Simply put, I love food. It’s almost as easy as that. I love my family. So when family and food are there I am in a blissful state of mind. I like watching football on Thanksgiving and being with all of my family because I am truly thankful to have them in my life. I love the cold weather outside on Thanksgiving Day and the warmth inside the house (caused by cooking, a lot of people and love). The contrast can be truly amazing.
   


7. Christmas. I love Christmas but not because of the presents. As you probably already know, or have guessed by now, I have been molded by the members of my family. So this means that seeing them often are some of the most important experiences in my life. Basically, I love being able to spend this time with the people who mean the most to me. On another note, I love the way a real Christmas tree smells. And as I grow older, I remember how much I loved going on our annual tree cutting trips and the wonderful moments of togetherness that ensued. The recollections of hanging the ornaments, listening to music and enjoying one another’s company will forever remain with me as some of the warmest days in my life.
   


8. New Years. I love when the New Year comes around because its time for a new beginning. Or at least that’s how it feels. I intoxicated by the possibility of something great that seems to be more exciting and feasible when this time comes around.
   


9. Hope. I love the way people get during these times. It’s like a sense of hope and compassion is brought out more than any other time of year. People are more giving, willing to let things go, and are more likely to help others. This to me is great. I love how this time brings out the best in people.
   


10. Snow. I love it yet I'm happy that I don't live in a place where it always snows.

As of right now, above all else, I am looking forward to enjoying this Fall and then Winter. And of course, I hope you enjoy it too!

A New Year...A New Me

Things I believe in:

• Both good and bad things happen to good people


• You have to work hard to get/have/do what you truly want or else its not worth it


• You have to work hard to be happy and its no easy task


• You can set the tone for the year by where you are and who you are with as the clock strikes 12 on NYE

These are just ideas that have popped in and out of my head the last couple of days while I think about life, my life in particular. And the last one just happens to be a new belief of mine because of my Nye. This past Nye as the clock struck 12 and the date turned into January 1, 2010 (yes people 2010, isn't it crazy?), I was standing on the Las Vegas Strip with my one and only admiring the fireworks shooting in all different directions. I like Vegas and at the same time I think its pretty cheesy. But boy can you go wild there, but that's beside the point.

Faustino and I across from Caesar's Palace in Vegas after the countdown.

2009 was a hard year for many. For me it was emotionally tiring, so I was glad to ring in the new year and the new possibilities. And being on the Strip was exciting...the biggest firework show in recent years coupled with 300,000 people cheering and the one I love by my side. This may not be how most like to bring in their new year but it was perfect for me.

That being said, I feel the sparks of the fireworks lit up my insides. You could even say they lit a fire under my ass. And as the first few weeks of the new year have passed I feel more motivated than I have in a really long time. I am ready to dive into volunteering, running, reading, exploring and most importantly...living. This year I really just want to live. Forget this year, forget the past...I want to live in the present! I am making this change in my life. Simply put, I am going to get my life organized and I am going to be happy!

Now, you may be wondering "how did spending Nye in Vegas set the tone for your year?" Well... that would have to do with my traveling/wandering soul. I started the year off traveling and I'm going to spend the year doing just that. I want to spend the year exploring and I already have 4 trips in mind. I am even hoping to return to Salamanca in October, if only for just one week. My fingers are crossed and my money is being saved.

So here is to the new year and a new me...a more organized, happy, living life to the fullest me.

The view from the plane on our way to Vegas.

Run Ali Run

I did it. I really did it...I completed my first 10k (okay maybe 2 months ago but still). Some would think 'hey thats cool but I could do that, its easy enough.' Now, no one has said that to me but I have a feeling some feel this way. However, to me it is such a great accomplishment that I never saw coming. Who would have thought that a couch potato like me would have run a full 10k and in 60 minutes??? I wouldn't have guessed it in a million years.


Here is how it happened...


In January 2009, my very good friend sent an email to her family and friends stating that she was going to participate in the US Half Marathon Women's 10k. And she invited us all to join her in goal of completing the race on November 1. As soon as I read the email I knew I had to accompany her in her mission. Looking back on it, I feel it was almost as if I were destined to do this. It sounds a little funny and dramatic to say that, but there was no real reason for me to do this, it just sounded right. I replied to her email and informed her that I too would run the race with her.

A week or two later I started a running program that would help me be able to run a full 30 minutes within 8 weeks. Now at the time, when I first started running, it was January and my body was not happy with me. I actually got shin splints the second week of training and my knees were crying. I'm pretty sure it was because of the cold weather and all I knew was that I kept thinking "If this is how its going to be the whole time, I'm going to quit right now." Well, I did quit...for the time being. But I wasn't going to quit the race. I made a commitment to run with my friend and I was not going down that easily.


After running two weeks in January, going on vacation in February and being lazy in March, April and May, I decided to make the effort...again. In the beginning of June I resumed the training program from the beginning. Within weeks I was running 24-28 minutes out of 30. Granted they were in intervals, but that was a big step for me. After 6 weeks of running I was able to run a full 30 minutes!!! Oh my, I was amazed, astonished and ecstatic.

In August I backed out of training as hard as I had in June and July. But I was still able to run 30-40 minutes straight. In September I came to the realization that I only had two months left. I started to train harder and usually in the morning before work. Because it was starting to stay dark later, I knew it wasn't the safest idea to be running outside in the dark. So I made the decision to join a gym. It was the first time in my life that I had ever belonged to a gym in my life. I started working with a trainer and maintained my running program. On September 16th I participated in the JP Morgan Chase Corporate Challenge which was 3.5 miles. I finished in under 35 minutes. Oh my, oh my, was I surprised. It was the hardest thing I had done to date. Once again I was unsure and skeptical the race in November and how it would go if this one was so hard. But I kept training. I kept up my running schedule and before long, before I knew it, my race was here.


Race Weekend...was a blur. Saturday was halloween and we took Faustino's niece and nephew to trick or treat. My legs got tired after 1.5 hours and I was more than ready to go home. Though the hour was going to fall back at 2am, I knew that I would need plenty of rest for my first big race. Sunday came and I woke up at 5am for the 7:30 start time. We had to leave the house by 5:45 due to the Bay Bridge closure. I made it to the start line 5 minutes prior to start time and met up with my friend.


And the race begins...


The first minute was uphill and then from there it was all about getting my timing down. I knew I wanted to complete the race in 60 minutes so I just had to maintain a good speed. Actually it was a speed that I had never maintained for that long. When the race started I forgot to look at my watch. But I approximated the start time so that way I would be able to monitor my time. About 5 minutes into the race I got a text message from my Aunt Pat wishing me good luck. I didn't open it but I could see the beginning of the text it helped set the tone for the race. For the next 55 minutes I kept a steady pace, always trying to stay close behind the woman in the pink top.


About half way through my race the half marathon runners were passing me up (they started 30 minutes before the 10k runners). Man, were they going fast... but that is beside the point. Finally I finished mile 6 and only had a few more minutes to go... but it was uphill. This was really tough and my pace slowed down. But there were people sitting in the park along the walkway that kept cheering everyone on. It was a struggle and I finally made it to the top of the hill. But they say what goes up must come down and sure enough there was a steap downhill portion right at the end.

Knowing my luck, if I sprinted down the hill and to the finish line I would either 1) fall down right on my face or 2) throw up at the end. So instead of taking my chances, I maintained a steady but increased pace. And there it was... the finish line. I finished my race just shy of 60 minutes which ended of being a 9:40 mile.

That was two months ago...so now what do I do? What else? I start training for the Rock n Roll Half Marathon in Seattle on June 26, 2010. My parents, my brother, my Aunt Pat and I have made a pact to run the half marathon together. I was proud of my feat but what I am even more proud of is my parents, their dedication and hard work. I know we will do great come June. :)