The End of the Adventure

I got home almost a week ago, and after catching up on sleep and laying around lazily for a couple of days because I didn't feel like doing anything, it occurred to me that I'd better get busy crossing things off my To-Do list (which had only grown while I was away). In this way, the past week has flown by, and I realized tonight that I'd better finish off my travel report while I still remember it (a lot of candles on your birthday cake = bad memory). :P

When planning my route home, the mileage and hotel prices worked out for me to stay in Topeka, Kansas and Denver, Colorado. I really had no plans to sightsee in Topeka at all, but it turned out to be a pretty cool city. First of all, my hotel was AMAZING - compared to some of the run-down places I'd stayed in on my trip. I got a great deal on hotwire.com for a 3-star hotel, so I knew it would be nicer - but I still gasped in surprise when I stepped inside. A REAL hotel with waterfalls and a restaurant and a cool glass elevator. My bed was wonderfully comfy and since check out time was not until noon, I enjoyed it immensely (as you can see).

On my way out of town, I discovered signs pointing to "Brown vs. Board of Education", so I decided to follow them. They directed me to an old school that now houses a museum focused on the Civil Rights Movement. Topeka is where the lawsuits began that culminated in the Supreme Court decision that segregated Education was unconstitutional.

 

During the drive through Kansas with my sister at the beginning of my trip I'd noticed a couple of interesting places that I really wanted to see. So on this last part of my journey, I decided to take full advantage of my freedom (and extend my vacation as long as possible). Did you know there is an actual "Wizard of Oz" Museum in Kansas? Well, there is. You have to drive about 10 miles off of I-70 to find it, and when you see the front you may think it looks like it will be kind of hokey, but it is really cool. There were many displays and a lot of interesting information about Frank Baum and how he wrote the story and the process to make the book into a stage play and then a movie. I loved it! So of course, I had to buy lots of themed items in the gift shop.

The tornado in the movie was just
a huge canvas tunnel like this model.

 

Can you see the poor witch in her red shoes? Shocking, really...

Dorothy stuff - just one of the many displays 

"WICKED" play props, costume items, playbills, etc.

I also stopped at the Russell Stover chocolate factory. This was a place my sis and I had planned on visiting, but they were closed on the day we'd driven east. So I made sure I was there during open hours to visit their discount back room that is full of all the chocolate from past holidays at very cheap prices. I filled my cart to the brim with chocolate for my sister, myself, and friends and family back home.

The rest of the day was a lot of driving. It was so interesting to me on this trip to notice the changes in the scenery and vegetation from state to state. Different areas had different types of trees, and varying colors and landscapes - I really enjoyed just gazing out the windows. I even tried to take pictures through the windshield a few times, for instance when I saw what looked like hundreds of windmills in Kansas. Not many turned out, though, because, you'll be glad to know - I kept my eyes on the road.

The temperature in Kansas the day I drove through. 

 

After spending the night in Denver, I had breakfast at a cool 50's type diner, then headed west. I hadn't planned to stop until I reached home, but a phone conversation with a friend convinced me to take my time and "stop & smell the roses" so to speak, even though I was on my last day. Thus, I came to stop in Vail, Colorado, and explore the village area. I have always been curious about Vail, because it seems to be the place that famous and rich people go on ski vacations. The village resembled the streets of a European town like those I'd walked in Switzerland or Germany. I absolutely LOVED it! There was a car made entirely of legos, and a lot of fun shops and restaurants. What a cool place - it was worth the hour detour I took.

And then I drove home. No stories to share of breaking down on the side of the highway or having to run away from crazy strangers or anything. Of which I'm grateful. What an amazing, eye-opening journey! I feel blessed to be able to have done so much exploration, seen so many things, visited with loved ones, and had my testimony strengthened. If you are thinking of taking such a trip, I would not hesitate to tell you to DO IT!

Adventure Road Trip Week 3

The adventure in Georgia ended with a few tears but I was also ready to be on my way to explore new horizons. First, I drove to York, South Carolina, to visit with someone I went to high school with. Thanks to Facebook and a recent reunion, she and I have been in touch (loosely) the past couple of years. She has a great husband and a son going in to 8th grade this year. I enjoyed chatting with all of them, and they even took me to dinner at a great Japanese Steak House where we ended up sitting by a man from Park City, Utah, who was there on business. "It's a Small World" strikes again!

I made it to Salisbury (pronounced "Salzbery" by the locals, apparently) rather later than expected, but luckily, Kim, my former college roommate, and her husband had waited up for me so I didn't have to sleep in my car or anything. After crashing on their couch for the night, I got to greet their 3 sweet boys and say hello to a salamander, a HUGE spider with all her little spider babies (about 1,000), 27 "CARS" cars (we counted them) and a herd of rubber ducks. And that was only the beginning of what promised to be an exciting day.

We all spent the day at Kim's in-laws' beautiful home on High Rock Lake. There was a lot to do, including kayaking and swimming in the lake and getting pulled around by a jetski. Another former roommate, Tonya, who lives about an hour and a half away, came over with her husband and 6 kids. We enjoyed visiting and even playing a little in the water with the kids.

2 of Kim's boys

My expert rowing abilities

Kim & I on our "grandma-speed" ride, with her son mocking our fear...

Still look like college kids, right??

The next day, Kim & I spent together, walking and driving around the area to see some historical sites, including beautiful houses and a Confederate Prison Cemetery. We even braved chiggers in the grass to visit an old cemetery that has 4 mystery "pirate" grave markers!

A home from the 1700's in downtown Salsbury

Monument to fallen soldiers from Pennsylvania

Military Cemetery built near a former Confederate prison site

2 of the mystery pirate headstones
from the 1700's

I took off on Wednesday to blaze a trail on my own. In one day, I drove through North Carolina, a small part of Virginia, all of West Virginia, and Ohio. I enjoyed singing at the top of my lungs through the green, gorgeous Blue Ridge Mountains, and felt a connection to the shabby little coal mining towns of West Virginia. I found out later that I may have some ancestors who came from that area.
I spontaneously stopped at the Beckley Exhibition Coal Mine, where a model of a mini coal mining town exists that you can explore.

West Virginia - through my windshield

One room schoolhouse

Typical street in a WV mining town... I think. 

In Ohio, I drove into a storm - black clouds on the horizon, gigantic lightning splitting the sky - through the driving rain and gusty winds, then out the other side where the sun broke through the clouds. (This is the picture at the top of this post - I HAD to stop and take it!)

After enduring one night in a supremely run-down hotel in Columbus, Ohio (seriously - I don't think anything had been updated, fixed, or deep-cleaned since the 80's), I drove on to Indianapolis. I enjoyed the unique buildings downtown, and spent an hour visiting the Soldiers & Sailors Monument. I thought about climbing the 330 stairs, but I had left my car near a parking meter and was afraid the time would run out before I could get back down. So I wimped out and took the elevator to the top. Good thing, too - the stairs were narrow and hot, and I think I would have had an attack of anxiety due to claustrophobia. It was bad enough in the tiny elevator. The view from the top, however, was spectacular.

Soldiers & Sailors Monument

See that narrow stairway??

Me at the top

Cool Church downtown

My next destination: Nauvoo, Illinois. The first thing I did was drive toward the bluff overlooking the Mississippi River. It is incredible - you drive west on Mulholland Street, and you can't see the temple at all. Then, suddenly, it snaps into your view, huge and majestic, taking your breath away.

My quaint little motel room was a dream compared to where I'd just come from, so I was very excited. I set out on foot to explore some of the town.

My little room with a real quilt!

 That night, I went to the Nauvoo Pageant, prepared for something similar to the Manti Pageant I've seen a few times. There was absolutely no comparison - I was blown away. There was an actual stage and lighting and the actors had microphones - it was more like a play. I was so caught up in the spirit and the stories of these faithful people who built and lived in Nauvoo so long ago.... my favorite part was the entire cast dressed in light clothing, the temple lit behind them, singing "The Spirit of God", and the actor portraying Joseph Smith speaking his testimony of the Savior. Very powerful. And I realized, as I looked at the picture I took, that it looks like the spirits of the people there. It felt like they were there, too.

No flash with my camera means blurry pictures... but you get the idea.

I wish I could have stayed in Nauvoo longer, but I'm grateful for the time I had. I spent the morning in a temple session, then drove to the end of Parley Street, where the Mormons lined up their wagons to cross the Mississippi River when they were driven out of their homes. It must have taken immense faith, courage, and determination for them to leave all they had built behind and follow a prophet into the unknown.

 

Statue of Joseph & Hyrum Smith- last look at Nauvoo before they went to Carthage and were killed.

Statue of Joseph Smith & Brigham Young discussing moving the Saints west.

The wagons were loaded onto flatboats to cross the Mississippi.

The wide Mississippi

Well, that brings me to tonight. I am sitting in the most luxurious hotel room I've stayed in since my days traveling as a software trainer. Good 'ol hotwire.com - 3 star hotel for a 1 star price! I am loving it - especially since check out isn't until noon tomorrow, so I can be lazy in the morning.

My adventures are winding to a close. But I am still trying to enjoy each part of the journey - even the travels home.