Author: Ed

Roadtrippin’ thru Utah – Bryce Canyon, Day 2

Today was Day 2 of Bryce Canyon and frankly, based on the epic majesty of what we saw on Day 1, we weren’t sure that we could be wowed more. We were…wrong.

We started off VERY early, getting up in time to haul our sleepy selves to Sunrise Point to watch the waking sun illuminate and highlight the thousands of breathtaking hoodoos of Bryce Canyon. This spot is legendary, and while cloud cover unfortunately prevented us from getting the full effect, we weren’t complaining. The view was spectacular and unlike anything we’d seen before.

After heading back to the Ruby Inn to get a little more shuteye, we decided to drive the main road through the park all the way to end, and stop at each of the thirteen viewpoints coming back. Each of these viewpoints, starting with Rainbow Point at the southern end, offered their own unique and unforgettable vistas.

One of the most impressive was Natural Bridge, which isn’t technically a bridge but rather an arch created by erosion over many millennia.

And here’s a little video clip at the Aqua Canyon viewpoint, elevation 8800 ft:

After heading back into town, I saw the last thing I expected to see. Many of you know my obsession with East German relics and artifacts, so you can only imagine the sound of my jaw dropping to the ground when I spotted a derelict Trabant 601, parked against an equally derelict looking Old West-style tourist trap. The Trabant is synonymous with East Germany, made famous to the world when the Berlin Wall fell in 1989, and thousands of these little smoky 2-stroke cars streamed westward, carrying countless dreams of a better life. Well, this Trabant certainly went westward too – far more westward than any Trabant could dare to dream!

After doing some research online, I found out that this car had been left here by a former East German who goes by the name of D-Rolf, who travels around the world in these cars. This particular car had been left behind by him in 2002, after the Winter Olympics in Salt Lake City. At the moment, he is traveling through Pakistan…in a Trabant, naturally.

Now, one thing that had been lacking over the last few days was decent food. Being on the road, we’d eaten a lot of mediocre garbage, and we’d had enough. So, we headed to the Lodge at Bryce Canyon for a decent meal.

It was just what we needed. Organic chicken, real vegetables, fresh ingredients, you know, the good stuff. And as you can see here, even Ruby was pleased.

Goodbye, Bryce Canyon. You are…beyond words.

Next stop: The Kims leave the wilderness behind and go back to city life. Salt Lake City, watch out!

Ruby and Dad Visit Endeavour – Again

Last September Ruby and I watched the Space Shuttle Endeavour, the last of the space shuttles, make its final landing at LAX. It was a really significant experience for me, as the space shuttle program was a huge source of inspiration for me as a kid, opening up my mind to countless possibilities. As all of the space shuttle orbiters were built in Palmdale, NASA saw fit to donate the final shuttle, Endeavour, to the California Science Center for future generations to see and be inspired by.

So, with the Endeavour now in its almost permanent home (it’s in a temporary exhibit area at while its permanent exhibit space is being built), I took Ruby to see the grand old spaceship. This time around, Ruby was definitely able to understand that we were going to see a spaceship, and that spaceships go into space!

It truly was an amazing and touching experience. The shuttle program meant so much to me as a kid, and I could see genuine excitement from Ruby too, who at not even three years old had lots of questions and genuine fascination. On the walls were photos of the astronaut crews for each of Endeavour’s twenty five missions to space. I told Ruby they were astronauts (beautifully multicultural and staffed by men and women, just like our country strives to be), who went inside the space shuttle into space. That very concept kinda blew her mind; she proceeded to then examine nearly every one of the crew portraits, fascinated that they all went to space.

NASA says that Endeavour is now on its final mission: to educate and inspire. I think I’ll bring Ruby back here from time to time so that she can continue to be inspired as I was as a kid. After all, Endeavour seems to be performing its final mission admirably as evidenced when Ruby asked, “Daddy, when I get older, can I be an astronaut and go into space?”

Or, as she literally said when I explained that this was a rocket engine took the following picture, “Daddy, when I grow up can I make a rocket ship engine?”

Ruby, you can be anything you want to be.

Dad and Ruby at Pretend City

 

Even as an adult, I’ve never completely lost the occasional desire to get lost in imagination. Thus, it was with great excitement to have a dad and daughter day at Pretend City, a really amazing and different kid of children’s museum. It is basically a miniature child-sized city, complete with a city hall, supermarket, homes, farms, a Ralph’s supermarket, emergency services, and various “businesses”. All I know is that I would have gone bonkers over this place as a kid. So it was a blast to let Ruby lose herself in this little imaginary town for a few hours.

Ruby preps food at Wahoo’s Fish Taco.

 

Then it’s off to the art studio.

 

Then off to Ralph’s to do some grocery shopping.

 

Then, Ruby decided to be a doctor. I think this look really works on her, don’t you?

 

A career in dentistry could be bright too.

 

Ruby also took to the stage!

 

Pretend City is awesome. It certainly demonstrates just how full of possibilities life is!