Golden Gate Tweedie!
Goodness me!
Yet another hectic week in the world of the Travelling Tweedie that is me!
The boys and I have been exploring San Francisco this week and we’ve managed to fit in an awful lot.
When you think of San Francisco you almost always think of the Golden Gate Bridge first, and luckily I got to see it up close. I say luckily because a lot of the time its covered in a thick blanket of fog.
It was built in 1937 so that the people who lived in the city could get acess to the North without having to go all the way around the headland, and bless my tweed, it’s a very big bridge. At two miles long it took us a very windy 90 minutes to walk across and back!
Its not golden?!!
We’ve also seen Alcatraz island (spooky); been on some cable cars (fun!); visited the science museum (lots of animals) and eaten lots of nice food (Tweedies love eating!).
I could totally escape, I could
I ain't afraid of no cheetah!
BUT, my favouritest thing this week has been a very special visit to Pixar studios. Sean and Thom’s lovely friend Dan took us on a private, behind the scenes look at the studios and I was so excited I nearly burst my seams!
We saw where the animators work which was crazy – they don’t have offices, they have beach huts and comfy sofas. We got to see lots of cool models and pictures of past films like Toy Story and The Incredibles too.
And I got to catch up with some of my friends from Pixar!
Monster? Big softie more like
The Incredible me!
Luigi, me and Thom
Dori was pleased to see me but I don't know what Nemo's problem was
That’s it – Tweedie out – the United States of America has been amazing:
- I’ve visited the Statue of Liberty and the Empire State Building
- I’ve been to Niagra Falls (technically Canada, ssh!)
- I’ve been to the moon!!
- I’ve been on TV!
- I’ve visited the aliens in Roswell
- I’ve hiked into the Grand Canyon
- I’ve been to Hollywood
- I’ve sunbathed at Big Sur
This weekend we’re off to Lord of the Rings country – New Zealand!
Is America a real country?
We’re on the eve of departure from the first country on our list of countries to be visited on our world trip, we’ve been away from home for just shy of ten weeks and we clocked up 5,800 miles just in our rental car! But are we travellers yet?
As we’ve been collecting and reading accounts of bits and bobs to do in America a lot of it has been from locals to those areas and there seem to be very, very few travellers who include the USA.
You’d perhaps be forgiven for thinking not when you look at the travel guides and travel blogs, Thailand, Vietnam, New Zealand, Europe, Autralia but not so much on the United States of America – probably the most famous country in our solar system and barely a word is written about it, in relative terms of course.
I think that a large part of this is due to the absolute prevalance of American travel writers which I believe is inversely proportionate to the number of actual American travellers. In conjunction with this large number of American travel writers are American readers of travel writing. As I write this I know that most of these words are being absorbed by blue passport holders – hello!
As we’ve been travelling the length and breadth of this great country we’ve met many lovely people who all say the same thing when we tell them about just the American leg of our trip:
‘Wow, you’ve seen more than I have and I live here!’
It would appear, from everyone we’ve met and the vast majority of (American) blogs that we’ve read that these people aren’t alone; Americans, you should totally check out your own country. Take it from us, it’s amazing!
We have loved travelling through the USA and we consider ourselves travellers and that America absolutely does count, what do you think, does it count if your RTW trip starts in the USA?
Sunset at the Grand Canyon
We stopped on a wall on the South Rim of the Canyon from about half an hour before sunset; there was still colour in the rocks, the shadows were long and there was still a lot to be seen in the canyon below. We both noticed how much quieter it became as the light faded. We also laughed at the tourists who would drive up, park the cars, but mostly leave them idling, walk up to the wall with their cameras in front of their faces and take about five photos. If there was a group or family you can expect a couple more; they would get back in their cars and drive off. This was at sunset at the Grand Canyon. There’s nothing else around for miles, they were in the National Park – where on earth were they rushing off to?
Anyway, back to the Canyon. As we sat on the wall, with the Canyon dropping away in front of us in just a few yards there were only two other people who had come to experience the sunset whilst the world passed away.
As I sat on the rim of the Canyon, watching the shadows chase the light up the rocks, across the canyon and down into the depths I kept hearing two lines from a poem by Dylan Thomas:
Do not go gentle into that good night.
Rage, rage against the dying of the light.
There’s a magical silence in nature just as the sun is disappearing and only moments before darkness descends and everything goes quiet. The day animals and bugs hand over to the night animals and bugs and they start making their own noises. But for about two or three minutes this silence floats through the air. With the darkness of the Canyon in front of you, the world and you are at peace. Just sitting. Just being.
If you really want a beautiful experience hang around until after sunet, take a jumper, and wait for the jewels in the sky to start glittering. You’ll be able to see the Milky Way and you may even see some meteors flying through the sky, but certainly you’ll see some shooting stars!
The photoset of the sunet follows, as does the whole of the Dylan Thomas poem. The next post is going to be about sunrise at the Canyon.
Do not go gentle into that good night,
Old age should burn and rage at close of day;
Rage, rage against the dying of the light.
Though wise men at their end know dark is right,
Because their words had forked no lightning they
Do not go gentle into that good night.
Good men, the last wave by, crying how bright
Their frail deeds might have danced in a green bay,
Rage, rage against the dying of the light.
Wild men who caught and sang the sun in flight,
And learn, too late, they grieved it on its way,
Do not go gentle into that good night.
Grave men, near death, who see with blinding sight
Blind eyes could blaze like meteors and be gay,
Rage, rage against the dying of the light.
And you, my father, there on the sad height,
Curse, bless me now with your fierce tears, I pray.
Do not go gentle into that good night.
Rage, rage against the dying of the light.
Do not go gentle into that good night by Dylan Thomas
Visiting the Grand Canyon
The Grand Canyon is very difficult to capture – in photography, in words or with paint. It is simply too much for your brain to comprehend and its subtlety to great to be captured. We travelled in from the East and used a less direct route so that we could take in the scenery leading up to the Grand Canyon National Park and would recommend others do the same. We started in Flagstaff but if you come into the Park via Route 89 to Cameron and then State 64 into the Park itself you will notice that the land starts to change and introduce you to the scenes that you’re going to see.
We started at the far east side of the Park at Desert View, where the Watchtower is located. When you first look at the canyon you don’t see it. It doesn’t look real. There are bright vivid colours directly in front of you, then it kind of washes out to a greyish colour, then it’s bright again in the distance. And that’s just the colour. Then there are the variety of types of rock, which add to the colour, but also begin to give you depth and contrast. The shapes of the rock, the size, the width. We were standing on the rim looking at the immense rock that we were standing on and staring down, out and around at other bits of rock and it doesn’t look so big. Then you’ll notice the Colorado and you’ll say ‘Is that it?’ that dirty brown stream? You know that the canyon is massive, it’s all you can see in front, below, to the left and right of you but it all seems, perhaps smaller than you thought?
There’s a reason for this and it takes some time and it’s why I think it’s important to take your time when at the Canyon. I don’t think the human mind is fit to comprehend such immense scale, imagine 1,000,000 people – you can’t do it can you? This is a number beyond comprehension. The Grand Canyon is a place beyond comprehension as well but if you take time you can begin to take it in and it’s all about the perspective.
That dirty brown stream is actually 300ft wide, and the fact that you can see it very clearly from a mile above should begin to help you realise the scale of what you’re seeing – it’s as wide as a rugby pitch (or NFL) pitch is long. You can see the North Rim from the South Rim and it doesn’t look so far. But it’s ten miles. Imagine walking in a straight line for four hours – try and think of a place that’s not a road or highway where you could do that. That’s how wide the canyon is at this point.
Because most of us live in heavily populated areas with lots to see and do, buildings to enter, roads to travel we’re used to that level of perspective and it takes a period of adjustment to comprehend what the Grand Canyon has to offer.
Returning to the colours this perspective will also help you to understand what you can see – the different scales, distances and types of rock gives the Canyon a look and colouration that appears not to make sense. The play of light and shadow at various points, the distances between you and them all mix together to make a fuddled view. I took many, many photos when I was there but I can assure you that none of them capture the Canyon. There are some photos that I’ve seen, for sale in the gift shop, that come very close but there is something that isn’t quite right. This isn’t the ‘soul’ of the Canyon (or perhaps it is) but there is a muted element to the colours which can often seem greyish, or almost as though you’re seeing the world with ‘just got out of bed eyes’ and the camera doesn’t quite get it. That’s entirely fair because the human eye is infinitely more powerful than any camera lens and this doesn’t seem to get it either.
Is the Grand Canyon crowded with tourists?
Of all the things that most startled me about the Grand Canyon was the attitude of the visitors to this astounding feat of nature. There are only five million visitors each year – by comparison Stonehenge in the UK gets 800,000 but Niagra Falls racks up 14 million and Times Square – 35 million each and ever year! I’ve been to all of those and can assure that they do not come within a fraction of an inch to the awesome sights that await you at the Grand Canyon.
And although there are five million visitors to the Grand Canyon each year a Park Ranger told us that only 5% hike into the canyon itself. This is just 250,000 people. I was told this by the Park Ranger who had just led us 1,000ft into the Canyon as she congratulated us on being part of that 5%. I was trying to take in this fact whilst absorbing the immense scenes above, below and all around me and I simply can’t understand why there aren’t five million people inside as well as outside the Canyon!
I suppose that as the Grand Canyon is a cruel and beautiful work of nature, at the highest point on the South Rim it is a mile straight up from the Colorado River and temperatures at the bottom can easily exceed 100F (40C) in the summer months which probably deters most people would be more than a little put off. People can die hiking into the canyon. But most don’t and those that did were seriously overdoing it.
Camping at Grand Canyon
It costs $25 to enter the Grand Canyon National Park and this is good for seven days. We camped at the Mather Camp Ground and this was $15 per night.
The Mather campground was great, our pitch was pretty huge and had a large picnic table and fire ring. However, there is only one small shower block that will cost you $2 per 8 minutes of shower time! The campground is very close to the ‘market place’. You should avoid this at all costs. It has everything that you will need but you will find yourself paying double and in some cases more for really basic items.
A visitor to our tent!
There’s one other thing that we noticed when at the canyon, we were at 7,000ft, oxygen is low at this height. Lighting a fire is therefore also really quite hard – bring lighter fuel and patience!
There are three free bus routes that will take you to all parts of the National Park and to some parts that you can’t get to with your car. The buses run regularly and start very, very early (before sunrise) and also very late (11pm) so you’ll be able to get around easily.
The Visitor Information Center has a fantastic array of information about what you can see and do at the Grand Canyon, including FREE Ranger guided tours as well as the geologic and cultural history of the Canyon.
I have two posts following this one and each will give you a different perspective on a visit to the Grand Canyon; there is simply too much to cover in just a single post:
- Sunset at the Grand Canyon
- Sunrise at the Grand Canyon
Congratulations, Mel & Steve
Happy wedding day, Mel & Steve!
Today is the wedding day of one of my best friends but we can’t be there because it’s back in the UK and we’re ‘stuck’ in San Francisco!
My beautiful friend Mel is getting married to a lovely guy called Steve and Thom and I want to wish them love and happiness for their future together.
Sorry we can’t be there guys, have an amazing day!
xxx
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