Zazzy Zion

Whether you want to do a casual hike or climb a 3000 feet tall sheer vertical rock,
Whether you enjoy watching people or the Bighorn Sheep,
Whether you want to go horseback riding or biking,
Whether you want to camp or stay in a nice lodge,
Whether you like to photograph the landscape or the night-sky,
Zion National Park has something to offer.

Zion's orange, pink, red and white, textured sandstones with a brilliant blue sky as the backdrop are a delight to watch, touch, feel, hike or rollover :))  If you ask me to describe Zion in one word, I would say "Red"!

Red, Blue, White, Green, Heaven

Checker Board Mesa

Temple of Sinawava

Rock climber at Temple of Sinawava

Emerald Pools Trail on the left & Virgin river.

On the Emerald Pools Trail

On the Emerald Pools Trail

Relaxing after hiking on the Emerald Pools Trail

Loved the grooves and the curves :))

Siva made a dent on Zion :))

Three Bighorn Sheep

Of course, this has become our trademark and  I promise you will see more jump shots :))

Buffaloes in the Backyard :)

The place where we stayed for a week, during this breathtaking road trip to Utah & Arizona -  "Zion Mountain Ranch" (ZMR) -  turned out to be the highlight of the vacation. Credit goes to Sheila for picking up this place out of so many options :))

To start with, it was centrally located and that made it easy for us to do our day trips to Bryce & Antelope canyons
and be back  in the evening.  ZMR, is a real working Ranch with log cabins built on a rolling hillside for guests to stay
and enjoy the nature. The ranch was surrounded by a  forest, a  deep canyon and a mountain on 3 sides.

The 2-story log home we stayed with Siva's family, was nicely located overlooking the meadows and the mountain range.

The ranch had a big herd of Buffaloes roaming the rolling meadows behind the cabin.

A small watering hole is located right behind the cabin and the Buffaloes would all gather there to drink water.

Any time we were relaxing in the cabin or return from our excursions in to Zion, we started looking for the Buffaloes. 
For the week we stayed at ZMR,  we all became very close to and fond of the Buffaloes.

Swetha, Shreya & Riya running back to the house after a Buffalo viewing session :))

Everyday during the morning,  a herd of Deer came across from the forest and surrounded our cabin to graze in the grass.  The ranch also has plenty of horses and 2 cute ponies for guests to go riding on the horses. One of the many best things I loved about staying in ZMR is the "Pristine and Crystal Clear" night skies.

More on the Deers, Horseback rides and clear skies on upcoming posts :))

2000 Pesos

While we were packing and getting ready for the Cabo San Lucas trip, I noticed a 2000 Pesos bill (Mexican money) in the travel pouch and decided to use it in Cabo.  This should have been the left over money from our April, 2007 Cancun, Mexico trip. Usually, when we re-enter US, we exchange the foreign money back to $$$. Somehow, we had missed this.

When I tried to use the 2000 Pesos bill in shops they were refusing to accept it. I thought I would change it in the Resort but resort people asked me to check with a bank.

On the day we walked to the Cabo town, I found a Mexican Bank (BanaMex) and walked in. One of the officers listened to my story and then examined the bill.  Then he told me something I have never heard of before. In Mexico, they periodically make old bills invalid and keep issuing newly designed bills. May be this is to avoid counterfeit money.



Then he told me that my 2000 pesos (almost equivalent to US$200 ) is worth only 2 pesos :((
I told him that may be, I will frame it and hang it on my wall. That would be the costliest art work in the house :))

Moon over Torrey Pines

Wait, wait, wait...this is not yet another post about Sheila and me going to Torrey Pines beach for watching the Sunset :)) Actually that is the reason we went. The kids decided to stay at home and we ended up at TP beach.

After the usual hiking up the hills and taking the trail down to the beach we noticed the Moon hovering over the TP Cliffs. During the last 5 years of enjoying the TP beach, the timing was never like this day, with the Sun setting and the moon rising over the cliffs :))

With the Sun still shining, the cliffs take on a magical, Golden Yellow hue reminding me of the movie Mackenna''s Gold.

As the Sun starts setting, the cliffs turn a dreamy red!

The cliffs lose their luster as the Sun sets.

Cabo - Sunrises

After moving to west coast, I have started enjoying Sunsets over the Pacific instead of the Sunrises over the Atlantic. Since Cabo is located on the Sea of Cortez side of the Baja California, it gave a unique opportunity to enjoy the Sunrises over the ocean. Every day morning around 6:30, I got up while the girls were sleeping and headed out to the beach to enjoy the Sunrise. I sipped my morning coffee at the restaurant by the beach and took these fotos.  It was interesting to run in to the same set of people,  who got up early everyday to watch the Sunrise and go for a stroll on the beach. Thank God/Nature, no two sunrises are the same :))

Cabo - Lover's Beach

"Lover's Beach", located right at Land's End is a popular and famous beach in Cabo thronged by tourists.

Lover's Beach extends from the calm and serene Sea of Cortez to the rough and tumbling Pacific.

While the resort beaches are narrow with less sand area and sloping towards the water, the Lover's Beach has a long and wide stretch of  soft golden sand. When the boat landed us at the Lover's Beach, the place was packed with people. Couple of cruise ships had docked in that day and a big crowd from the cruise ship had just then arrived by boat. I  had another "hmmm ...only in Mexico" moment as Beer was easily available at the beach :))

This beach is surrounded by odd and unique rock formations and rock designs I have never seen any where else. There are also so many small and big caves surrounding the Lover's Beach, adding yet another dimension ;)

You might have guessed by now, the rough and tumbling Pacific side of the beach is called the "Divorce Beach" - no kidding!!!

Cabo - Lands End

"Land's End", the most distinctive and beautiful rock formations at the southern tip of Cabo  is one place we absolutely wanted to checkout. The Land's End is where the Pacific and the Sea of Cortez merge.The naturally formed rock Arch, called  the "El Arco" at Land's End is a famous landmark of Cabo. The only way to reach Land's end is to take a 15 minute boat ride from the resorts. Water Taxis ($10 per round trip, per person) and Tour boats ply from dawn to dusk and pick you up at any beach near all the resorts.

Land's End rock formations

El Arco, the Arch

View of the rocks from the Pacific side

A cave visible from the Pacific side. Look closely at the right side wall of the cave's entrance. A boy is asking for a ride.
Look at the next pic for a close up view of the boy :)

Boy asking for a ride :))

This place, viewed from the Sea of Cortez side is called the "Pacific Window".
Water is rushing in from the Pacific to merge with the Sea of Cortez.

This unique rock formation is called the "Neptune's Finger" :))

4S @ El Arco

... to be continued ...

Cabo - First Impressions

 







Right after Christmas holidays, we started dreaming and looking forward to our trip to Cabo San Lucas (aka Cabo). Cabo is nicely located at the tip of Baja California peninsula, Mexico, with the Pacific on one side and the Sea of Cortez on the other. The "Tropic of Cancer" runs just north of Cabo and accounts for its nice weather.

As we were flying over the Sea of Cortez, the view below was amazing. At few places, I could see both the Pacific
and the Sea of Cortez at the same time. The land was mostly barren but the views of the small islands and
the light green  & blue Sea of Cortez were enchanting.

We stepped out of the airport and were waiting for our shuttle service to take us to our resort. The first thing that caught my attention was the nice whiff of beer. I turned around and noticed a couple of folks having a Corona in their hand. There is a beer shop just at the exit of the airport building :))  I was thinking, "hmmm...Only in Mexico" and was about to go get one for myself :))  Just then, our shuttle arrived. As soon the shuttle started moving, the driver opened an ice cooler and distributed Beer to everyone :)). Again, I was thinking "hmmm...Only in Mexico".

Once we passed "San Jose Del Cabo", a small town on the Sea of Cortez, the scenery changed completely from barren desert to shining blue ocean. The road from "San Jose Del Cabo" to Cabo is littered with a series of Hotels, Resorts and amazing houses on the beach. The driver was rattling of the names of all the celebrities  who own houses along the beach, including Tom Selleck,  Jennifer Aniston, John Travolta, Gwyneth Paltrow, Jessica Alba, Paris Hilton & Michael Jordon. Even the US Consulate is located on this stretch of the beach.

We checked in, had a late lunch and checked out the resort, "Villa Del Palmar". The resort is located right on the beach with Swimming pools at 2 levels, multiple hot tubs and restaurants located at the edge of the beach.

As we stepped on to the beach the Sun was setting.

Villa Del Palmar

After dinner, with dreams of Margarita on the beach, I slowly drifted off in to sleep :))

...to be continued...