The Sands Motel has been a fixture in St. George, Utah for a LONG time. In the Fifties, it was called the Sleepy Hollow Hotel:
When the Vegas craze hit during the Sixties, it became The Sands Motel and outlived its namesake:
A few years ago, when we were driving through St. George, we took photos of it in all its glory:
You can see all the photos here:
Where:
Sands Motel
581 E Saint George Blvd
Saint George, UT 84770 Google Map
Phone: (435) 673-3501
Two-Heel Drive has a beautiful review of the Guadalupe River Trail in San Jose. You can read it and see all the lovely photos here:
Speaking of flowers, the best excuse for walking the Guadalupe River Trail is to check out the nearby San Jose Municipal Rose Garden. A couple years back it was a monument to the city’s errant previous mayor, who could introduce appalling City Hall structures to stroke his ego but could not prevent the once-glorious rose garden from declining into an embarrassing state of disrepair. The good news is it’s great now — a riot of pure rosy loveliness, even with blooms fading a bit with summer’s approach.
Where: The Guadalupe River Trail San Jose, California
Length: 11 miles open (discontinuous)
Surface:
Gravel – Alviso at Gold Street to Highway 880 (6.3 mi.)
Paved – Highway 880 to Grant St/Highway 280 (2.7 mi.)
Paved – Chynoweth Avenue to Lake Almaden Park (2.0 mi.)
My friend, Jere, is the author of the most wonderful blog, Blind Prophecy. This Memorial Day, he went to the Cincinnati Zoo.
He was looking for an inventive and enjoyable way to fit exercise into his day.
Since my gym was closed, I decided to get my day’s exercise by visiting the Cincinnati Zoo. It’s about a 3 mile walk each direction, plus I spent the whole day on my feet. Despite a bit of rain and some very humid air (which made the rain forest section seem especially realistic), it was a very pleasant day. As our friend Nick put it tonight, “the zoo is one of the rare things about Cincinnati that doesn’t suck.”
I love to see people enjoying the cities in which they live. Sometimes it seems like we don’t spend enough time being tourists in our our towns. Congratulations to Jere for making this Memorial Day memorable!
You can see all the photos here:
Here is a beautiful collage from Whimsy’s Quill:
In the collage is an afternoon of us walking about the pier, various photos of downtown, and of the Underground Tour.
I love to see photos of people’s trips to various places, but I especially love this 5 By 5. It’s a great snapshot of a weekend in time.
One taco joint is pretty much the same as any other. There are so many that it’s impossible to eat at them all. If you are in the San Diego area, you are doing yourself a disservice if you don’t have at least one meal at Lucha Libre Taco Shop.
The highlight of the shop is the prestige of the Table of Champions.
Unlike the rest of the tables at the place, this one is beautiful. It is roped off with velvet ropes. You are served your tacos and burritos on REAL plates with REAL silverware. Your glasses are filled with the wine you ordered. While the rest of us normal schelps watch you eat in style, you are treated like a champion.
Here is a feature on KUSI News - San Diego:
You can see all the photos I took that night here:
Where:
1810 West Washington St., San Diego, CA 92103
Google Map
Phone: (619) 296-8226
Mike and I are planning a trip to Yellowstone National Park soon, so we were interested to see if we were going to be buried in six feet of snow again this year. Fortunately, the lovely Roland K. Smith visited Yellowstone on opening day this year and gave us a bunch of photos to see how our trip might be.
For some strange reason we didn’t get to Yellowstone Park once last year. We decided we were definitely going to change that this year and further determined that, if possible and the weather permitted, we would go to Yellowstone on the first day that vehicular traffic was allowed into the Park.
Last year, Mike and I went to Yellowstone on opening day and we got a FAR different welcome.
The snow was piled higher than our ears. I don’t think we’ll run into that again this year. Thanks, Roland, for scoping it out for us!
To see more of Roland’s Yellowstone Photos:
To see more of last year’s Yellowstone trip:
I love these photos from Rudy and Cassie on their trip to Disneyland. I always wanted to have a picture of myself trying to pull out the sword in the stone, but no one would take one of me. Next time I go, I’ll have to finally get a snapshot of me.
You can see all the photos here:
I love this tweet from Rudy:
It seems like whenever I tell the Internet I’m going to Disneyland, the whole world wants to experience it with me. We all turn into children again when we talk about Disneyland.
Hiding in the heart of the warehouse district of Portland is a museum of toys. Protected behind glass to keep them safe from little hands, lies the childhood of many. A true piece of history is in each toy telling us stories ranging from the late 1800’s to the 1930’s. Ward Jenkins visited the museum with his two children and was surprised at what he found.
They simply don’t have the money or space to have the entire Kidd’s toy collection available to the public. But what is available to view is quite impressive.
A fascinating place. And better yet, it’s free!
Oh, and I have to say this: visiting the museum offered the opportunity for me to talk to Ava about racism. Hadn’t planned on it, but hey, no time like the present.
You can see all of his photos from the visit here:
Where:
Kidd Toy Museum
Google Map
1301 SE Grand Ave
Portland, OR 97214
(503) 233-7807
Roadside attractions that are free to the public are rare indeed. When they come in the form of a giant blue whale, you’ve hit nirvana!
You can learn more about the Blue Whale here:
Emily Elliott took video of the Blue Whale and shared it on YouTube:
Here is what the Blue Whale looks like from above
Next time you’re thinking of taking a road trip, try Route 66. The Blue Whale is just one of many niceties that you’ll find along this old road!
This is the second time we’ve stayed at the Radisson Town Lake. We love it because it overlooks the river and Congress Bridge. Congress Bridge is where the largest urban bat colony in North America live. In the summer, huge clouds of bats leave the bridge every evening at dusk.
This year, however, the bridge is quiet and abandoned.
It’s too cold this year to support the bats, so I suspect they are vacationing a little longer in Mexico. We came to Austin for the SXSW Interactive Festival, so the bats were a secondary attraction.
The hotel swag, however, was quite enjoyable.
The toilet paper origami left a little to be desired.
The towel origami, however, was beautiful.
I don’t care for Sleep Number beds. They are beds that are filled with air depending on what firmness you want. It took a lot of tweaking to get my side of the bed to feel like a “normal” bed. I guess my sleep number is 45, but I didn’t enjoy finding that out. The Radisson brags about their Sleep Number beds, but I don’t find them pleasant or appealing. It’s more like sleeping on a camping mattress.
You can see all the photos for the Radisson Town Lake here:
On the whole, our stay at the Radisson has been enjoyable. They charge ten bucks a day per computer to be online in your hotel room, which I find appalling. I guess I’m used to cheaper hotels that try to attract me with free wireless. I like that I can just walk to the convention center from this hotel. I LOVE the view of the bridge, even though this year it’s bat-free. I even love the TGI Friday’s in the hotel lobby. Sometimes I’m so tired that I just need a quiet meal that is familiar. Someday, Internet connectivity will be free at all hotels just like water and televisions. Until then, it’s hit and miss.
Powered by WordPress
(c) 2005 Michael Moncur, Laura Moncur, and Starling Studios