takin' the long way around.

We got into the Grand Canyon so late last night that we didn't have it in us to post, but since I am up earlier than my sleep-loving bestie, I decided I'd fill you in on yesterday before hitting the sites.

We woke up in Denver and had a scrumptious breakfast prepared for us by the Schlachtenhaufen's, which included french toast, sausage, greek yogurt, strawberries, cantaloupe, and some of the most delish peaches we'd ever had.

Dan and Stephanee said the peaches were from Palisade and were some of the best you can find in the west, so we should consider stopping to pick some up when we drove through. They didn't mention anything about the 5+ wineries just off the exit to the tiny town, but we took advantage of one of those as well and did a little tasting. We left Palisade all smiles with peaches, nectarines, pears, 2 bottles of white and 3 bottles of sweet red in tow!

In total, we were in the car for about 14 hours. It sounds more hellish than it actually was, considering that the states we drove through were some of the prettiest we've seen in the good ol' US of A. The Rockies in Colorado and rock formations in Utah (Mexican Hat, Wilson Arch, and Monument Valley, to name a few) had us stopping off for lots of pictures (well, sometimes stopping... and sometimes just requiring Linz to stick her head out of the sun roof to snap a shot or two).

It was getting to be dark once we reached Arizona, so not much to report on it's sites so far, though we did experience a rather sketchy hole-in-the-wall Mexican restaurant called Amigo Cafe, where we were greeted by two donkeys at the door and ate a relatively mediocre (but filling) spicy dinner. But hey, it's all about the experience!

We checked into our hotel around midnight and after some hubbub at the front desk, finally made it to bed. I am sure we will have some great stories and pics from our day at the Grand Canyon, and are excited to have a day off from driving! It's hard to believe that tomorrow night, we will be at my new home in California.

xxo.
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Things we noticed today: 
-Even just a few tastes of wine can make you tipsy enough to have to take a turn in the passenger seat
-Bugs on the windshield + driving west on flat desert roads during sunset do not make for easy driving conditions


Best Purchase of the Day:
-Peaches & wine from Palisade, CO


Soundtrack of the Day: Ke$ha- Boots & Boys, two Dixie Chicks albums, Rodney Atkins- Farmer's Daughter, even more of The Passage (it's 74 chapters long, and we're only up to 15!)