SUSIE'S SUPERLATIVES

Andrea did a great job summing up how amazing this trip was, and how much fun we had....it really was a life changing trip for both of us. I'm feeling inspired to take on so many new challenges with a renewed vigor!! Which is good, b/c my new job starts up in a week!!

To summarize the experience, I put together a little list of superlatives...fitting coming from a teacher, right???

Here goes...

BEST DRIVE: Big Sur
**Honorable mention for the ride from Grand Canyon to Zion thru the Navajo Reservation (this is where Andrea is giving a holla to Lake Powell...)

WORST DRIVE: freakin Nevada...the Extraterrestrial Highway...during an electrical storm, running low on gas, no other humans for miles...we actually discussed that we would welcome an alien abduction at a certain point in the ride...

BEST NIGHT SLEEP: The Nissen Family guest room in Mission Viejo--I'm still dreaming about that bed...

WORST NIGHT SLEEP: Night 2 at Zion Nat Park...so windy we thought that our tent might take flight...not to mention is was 95 degrees...

BEST ROAD TRIP SONGS: "Good Night" by Black Eyed Peas and "Make a Little Birdhouse in Your Soul" by They Might Be Giants.

DUMBEST HUMAN: Brittany from Tag-Along Rafting (you can ask "Adrianne" for more deets on that one...)

BEST BLOG FOLLOWER: Tasha and the kids!! Thanks for all the comments!!

BEST FISH TACO: this was actually the most challenging...it's still up for debate b/c we were never able to have a side-by-side taste test, ALTHOUGH Andrea is crafting a letter to send to the Food Network to see if we can arrange something with Bobby Flay...BUT, I'll have to say it's a tie, for now, between Lahaina's in San Diego and Wake & Bake Cafe in Moab....YUM!

BEST ICED COFFEE: (and we tested ALOT): Wake & Back Cafe in Moab...shout out to our boy Shane!!

BEST BEER: Alaskan Amber

MOST POPULAR CALI NAME: Bryce

BEST RENTAL CAR EVER: the Pimp Mobile (she really did corner like she was on rails...)

COOLEST NEW WORD: Hoodoo

CREEPIEST BAR CROWD: Woodys Tavern, Moab, UT...although I did get a kick out of the guy in the man-skirt.

FAVE CAMEOS (aka, peeps we met): Greg (Wikipedia) and the Swedes!!

FAVE MUNICIPAL BUILDING: the City Library in Salt Lake City....sooooooooooo jealous.

CITY WITH THE HIGHEST NUMBER OF WOMEN WEARING ANKLE-LENGTH SKIRTS AND WEIRDLY COLLARED SHIRTS: SLC

BEST BUG OVERREACTION: Andrea on our way to Yosemite...almost jumped into the backseat when one flew in thru the window...I almost crashed I was laughing so hard...Greg had to take care of the bug.

FAVE ACTIVITY: Mountain biking in Moab!!

BEST HIKE: Emerald Pools in Zion
**Honorable Mention to Spruce Tree Cliff Walk in Mesa Verde, CO....it did make me want to live in a cliff dwelling...

PLACE I WOULD MOST LIKELY MOVE: Toss up b/w Flagstaff, AZ and Tahoe City, CA!!

PLACE ANG WOULD MOST LIKELY MOVE: NOW--Santa Barbara, CA...but she does plan to retire in Springdale, UT where she will be a park ranger in Zion Nat Park, and most certainly devote plenty of time to her illustrious mountain biking career.

PLACE WE CAN'T BELIEVE ANYONE LIVES: Nevada.

BEST ANIMAL SITING: the Elk in Grand Canyon
**Honorable mention: the wild donkey "mirage" on the side of a weird desert highway

FAVE LICENSE PLATE: Wyoming

AND NOW, for your amusement, I must include the 10 bottom lowlights of the trip...we knew they would happen *in no particular order*:
--locking they keys in the trunk at 7am
--showing up,soooo excited to go rafting, and finding out that our trip was scheduled for the day before.
--pulling out a filling, and then consuming said filling, while eating a S'more
--the day it rained and we left our tent window open...uuuuuugggggggggghhhhhhhhhhh
--the ants that almost carried us away at Zion, I swear they could fly.
--being the only English speaking tourists in 3 out of 4 National Parks in Utah
--getting our ENORMOUS sleeping bags into their TINY little sacks for the plane ride home...Andrea finally broke a nail!!
--Andrea's bubbling shins...no more spray sunscreen after that episode.
--finding 49 states worth of license plate sitings and never finding STUPID KENTUCKY. boo to kentucky, you should get out more.
--walking out of the airport at JFK and being instantly reminded of what humidity is....good to be home.

That being said, most everything was amazing and perfect---and I need to mention a few things we could not have done without:
1) Brain and Shannon for lending us all their camping gear, our tent rocked!!! Thank you soooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo much.
2) the I-trip. Mr Mayernik, that you so much for the loan--one listen to Utah talk radio and I knew we would have been screwed without it...
3) Balance Bars!! Andrea is now addicted...
4) Sunscreen and Bugspray...we were very responsible...well, at least after the San Diego fiasco
5) Caffeine!!! Many hour on the road = Many consumed ICs and DCs!

But most of all, I am thankful to have gotten the chance to spend an amazing 3 weeks with such a wonderful friend...we had SO much fun, laughed our way thru 5 states, toughed it out and never missed out on a chance to try a new outdoor activity, even in 100 degree heat!! (except the hot air balloon ride...I pulled the plug on that one...) Andrea's photojournalism was truly impressive, but more so was her adventurous spirit!!! Thank you for making this a trip I'll never forget...and for never kicking me in the face :) TOWANDA!!!!!!!!!!!!

Adios everyone, thanks for keeping up with us---we loved reading all your comments!! I'm off to go sit on the couch and crash for a few days...we haven't stopped moving in 21 days.

~Susie