We are back in Europe

Unfortunately, we have had to interrupt our travels (for family reasons), and are now back in Europe until further notice.

Below are the links to the photos of the last few weeks through the USA:

RTW - U.S.A. (Part 1: Texas - Houston, Galveston)

RTW - U.S.A. (Part 2: Louisiana)

RTW - U.S.A. (Part 3: Texas - Austin, San Antonio)

RTW - U.S.A. (Part 4: San Diego, California)

RTW - U.S.A. (Part 5: Arizona)

RTW - U.S.A. (Part 6: Utah)

RTW - U.S.A. (Part 7: Las Vegas)

Giant cacti, a ghost town, a truly grand canyon and many other natural wonders

Our road trip started by crossing the mountains of California into the desert, taking us to the state of Arizona. Spending the night in Phoenix, we left early in the morning to explore the area around this desert city; the route we wanted to take is called Route 88: The Apache Trail. This road, through a beautiful mountainous desert landscape decorated with some man-made lakes, took us to a ghost town (previously a mining village, now a tourist attraction) called Goldfield, complete with a prison, saloon, brothel, and gunfights like you know them from classic Western films. Continuing further north, the route took us through the spectacular landscape around Sedona (called the "Red Rock country") uphill to the snowy mountain town of Flagstaff, where we slept for the night.

The next day we got up early again, as it was time to drive to Grand Canyon National Park, where we made several stops along the South Rim to admire the truly awesome views down into the most famous canyon in the world.                 

On the way back, we intended to drive parts of the Old Route 66 (no route trip would be complete without it), which was unfortunately undriveable due to the fact that the route is no longer maintained and was therefore very icy. Inside the village of Williams, we did, however, get a glimpse of the historic "Mother Route".
                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                
Continuing with the non-stop spectacular scenic views (we have seen very few boring landscapes since we left San Diego more than 1000 miles ago), Monument Valley, inside the huge Indian Reserve that is the "Navajo Nation", was next. A 15-mile self-guided loop on a very bad road took us down into this otherworldly land, where many a Western films have been produced. While the sun was setting and the rocks were red, we drove (in our car - not on horseback like in the films) across the border to Utah.

Hot wintertimes in California

Arriving in San Diego (by plane from Houston), we rented a car for the next two weeks to start our roadtrip through the Southwest of the States.

Before leaving for the roadtrip, we spent one day in San Diego, staying with Moe and Karl, and their dogs Armani and Mia. San Diego has great weather year-round (we had about 25 degrees Celsius - not bad for the middle of January), perfect for spending time at one of its many great beaches and coastlines; we especially liked La Jolla (where sea lions are chilling in the sun), Black's Beach (a beautiful nudist beach which can only be accessed by a 20-minute hike), and Coronado (an island with great views of downtown, and a beautiful long beach in front of a huge attractive Victorian Hotel).

Moe and Karl, on the morning after having taken us out for wine and dinner (during which Charlie's ex-flatmate Barry from Glasgow and his girlfriend Louise joined us - great to catch up), went for a superb breakfast with us (Açai bowl with fruits), which was representative for their great and unforgettable hospitality.

Goodbye Texas

Back in the "Lone Star State" we spent Saturday afternoon in the St.Arnold brewery with Ales, Amelia, Ainoa and Gianncarlo, where we tried several beers for free :-) but sometimes after a very long time in the queue :-(

Some days later, we said goodbye to Texas, but not before visiting Austin, with its big and beautiful Capitol, its "lake" that is in reality a river and its green areas. The day after, we drove to San Antonio to see the historical Alamo and to walk along the "River Walk".

Thank you, Ales and Amelia, for the great times, we will miss you!

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Click here for the first batch of photos from the country where everything is BIGGER.

Around Louisiana with Penelope

Ales and Amelia kindly lent us her car, named Penelope, to go on a little road trip to Louisiana for a few days. We stopped for a night in Lafayette, where we stayed in a cool little hostel called "The Blue Moon". The fact it was a Monday night and the town was pretty dead (to say the least) might have played a part in it, but, although the people are friendly, we were rather unimpressed by this little city described by our guidebook as "a place that is likely to entice you to stay longer", so we decided to leave town immediately after breakfast and continue to New Orleans.

The French Quarter, lined with beautiful colonial houses (French and Spanish style) and other historical districts like the Garden District with its Victorian architecture have either been largely unaffected, or have entirely recovered from, the devastating hurricane Katrina which hit the area in 2005. Some other neighborhoods, like East New Orleans are apparently still in ruins (we decided not to visit these parts). We spent two pleasant days in the so-called "Big Easy", tried the traditional Louisiana Gumbo stew and pastry (beignets). Of course we didn't leave before seeing some live music in one of the many bars, where we caught a truly authentic atmosphere including an elderly black person enthusiastically "playing" his broomstick along to the ethnically diversified blues band.

Happy New Year!!!

We have been a little lazy during the last few days, and our blog isn't really up to date, as you will have noticed. We have enjoyed Christmas in Houston with (Tere's) family and are ready now to continue our trip through the US.