Three national parks and a little place called Vegas

In the last ten days we've re-established ourselves in the US after Mexico, covered a lot of ground over three different states and explored some fascinating and contrasting places. From the big lights of bustling Vegas, brimming with gamblers and party-goers, to the serenity of the vast Grand Canyon, eerily silent Death Valley and the beautiful wilderness of Yosemite national park.

Everyone hears so much about Las Vegas, the city that never sleeps, and all it's craziness. Before we even got to the states I had a clear picture in my mind of what it would be like. But when we arrived, eventually (there was a slight issue involving strawberry margaritas at Houston airport that meant we had to get a plane later than planned) it was not at all what I expected. I can't really pinpoint exactly why; perhaps it's because the strip was so long - we never made it up to the Stratosphere at the other end. Or perhaps because the city does sleep, things close and people drift off to bed from about 1am, albeit later than a normal day in a normal city. I'm not sure, but it took some re-adjusting. For the first few days I wasn't sure what I made of it, but by the end of our eight days - which everyone was right, is more than enough time in Vegas - the place had captured my heart.

Sophie and I took a (needed) day out from Vegas to visit our eighth state and what has been described as 'the most stunning natural spectacle' and also 'a big hole in the ground' (Chloe), the Grand Canyon.

Our tour guide on the way said we can take as many pictures as we like and describe it to our friends and family, but it's just not possible to explain exactly what it's like. And he is absolutely right. As George Wharton James, author of 'The Grand Canyon: How to See it' said:

"Though only two hundred and seventeen miles long, [The Grand Canyon] expresses in that distance more than any one human mind yet has been able to comprehend or interpret to the world. Famous word masters have attempted it, great canvas and colour masters have tried it, but all alike have failed."

With that in mind I will not exhaust my vocabulary in a feeble attempt to explain the feelings and thoughts this natural wonder conjures up. Instead I will say just two things: 1) I could have sat there staring with fascination all day - it's stunning, everyone should go see it; and 2) If you visit at the end of October, as we did, bring some warm clothing. Somehow we lost perspective that you are at altitude when you are staring down in to the Canyon, so of course it's colder than at sea level.

After our eight days in Vegas were up - highlights of which included Marquee Mondays, seeing Shania Twain, Calvin Harris at Hakassan for Hallowe'en, and the central bar at our hotel, which became our regular hangout from 4am till 7am - we headed on our way to our ninth and final state, California. First stop, Death Valley.

Now it may not sound all that appealing, but the drive in our new car, or LD as we call him, was spectacular. Again, for fear of not doing the landscape justice, I'm going to rely on the words of another:

"Strange how a landscape so unwelcoming and intolerant of life can be so inexplicably and compellingly beautiful" - H Wormington 

We then moved from one remarkable national park to another, heading straight from Death Valley to our final stop before San Francisco, Yosemite. In addition to the change in temperature being quite something - after two hours driving the desert landscape transformed in to snowy mountain tops - our accommodation in Yosemite was quite different too. 

Not only did we have bear lockers to put all our food and toiletries in (we didn't actually get to see any bears, rather disappointingly), in stark contrast to our luxury casino hotel in Vegas, we opted for tents; originally unheated, but that was an idea we quickly re-thought.

An evening spent snuggled by the fire in the guest lodge, playing cards - for fun rather than money - actually turned out to be one of our favourite nights. And our interrupted sleep, as we piled on another layer of clothing on to keep warm, was made worthwhile by the breathtaking scenery and wildlife engulfing us. 

It looked picturesque in its beautiful Autumn setting, but I'd like to return to Yosemite in the summer months. Although the evident devastation from this summer's wildfires suggest it may not be the best time to go, revisiting when it's not so cold, when Yosemite falls is flowing at its best, and when I can really make the most of my favourite national park is definitely on my to-do list.

My mermaid alter-ego

When I came up from my first dive in Mexico, one of the American guys I was with turned to the other and said (about me) 'she's like a little mermaid'. This made my day. Not only because it meant I was up to standard - always a relief when with a group of very experienced scuba divers (one had nearly 1,000 dives under his belt) - but since I was five (when I first watched Disney's The Little Mermaid) I have aspired to be one.

You're almost certainly thinking how immature of a 25 year old, but short of growing a tail and gills I can't see how you can be any closer to being a mermaid than scuba diving. That's why I love it so much.

Under the sea is a whole different world, and it's like all the different sea creatures have their own personalities. In the words of Sebastian the crab, 'darling it's better, down where it's wetter, take it from me.' 

I've done some great diving since my travels began, seeing ship wrecks, eagle rays, stingrays, turtles, lobster, Lion fish, morays, big parrot fish, barracuda, and masses of huge jelly fish. I even found my own little Flounder in Key Largo, a little yellow fish that decided to follow me on my second dive.

And with the Great Barrier Reef in Oz and Koh Tao, Thailand still on the hit list, I'm positive there'll be plenty more to come.

Ten of the best days of my life

We have just returned 'home' (to the US) from our Mexican adventure and I'm feeling a little despondent. Not because I'm not looking forward to a crazy week in Vegas, nor because as we came through customs we realised we could have stayed in the country for an extra six weeks (although that was slightly heartbreaking), but because on reflection Mexico is definitely one of my favourite countries. And now I'm not there anymore.

Cancun is a great beach resort, we were spoiled with an amazing beach at our near empty hotel, and I did some great diving (ship wreck and all), but for me it was our ten day tour of the country that made it. In fact, I'd go as far as to say they were ten of the best days of my life.

I've never been on an organised tour before, but I will certainly be doing more in the future (actually, I've just booked one for Thailand in January). This tour, the Yucatan Panorama was with G Adventures - I may have no comparison but I would recommend them without hesitation. Focusing on Mayan ruins, it took us round the Yucatan peninsula and allowed us to see the beauty of real Mexico.

After an initial meeting and dinner with the lovely people we were to spend ten days with, we set off at 6am from Cancun to our first stop, Chichen Itza. The early start was made worthwhile as we beat the crowds and intense heat to freely view the fascinating structures. Led by our fantastic tour guide, who not only imparted some interesting historical facts about Mayan culture - I was particularly intrigued by their sports arena which I couldn't help but compare to Quidditch - but also encouraged us to challenge them, which the history geek in me greatly appreciated.

The day ended in the town of Merida. A far cry from the tourist-heavy Cancun, Merida was full of Mexican culture, from the markets, to our stunning family-run hotel, traditional Yucutan restaurants, and street festivities.

From Merida we took a trip out to see the Haciendas (big houses renowned for their henequen production) and cenotes, water pools formed in the limestone over millions of years and like nothing I've ever seen before. The first one we went to was stunning and lots of fun - being first to hurl myself in to the water from 15ft earned me the reputation of most adventurous on the tour. The second cenote, located in a cave, gave us the opportunity to swim around with bats flying above our heads - not something I ever expected to be able to say.

From Merida we headed, via a diverted bus due to protests occurring across the region, to the jungle and wilderness of Palenque. Probably my favourite place on the trip, Palenque was amazing. The scenery superb, albeit not what I envisaged when I thought of jungle; the jungle huts unlike any accomodation I've ever stayed in; and the ruins even more spectacular than those of Chichen Itza. Being able not only to climb them, but discover unexcavated ruins among the trees and bushes made them even more intriguing.

All that's before I've even mentioned the waterfalls. We stopped at one to cool off after our walk in the jungle, but the highlight was our day spent at some massive waterfalls located about 40 minutes from Palenque. We bathed in the pools, climbed down the waterfall, launched ourselves in to the water, swam in to hidden caves, and it was all topped off with a superb picnic, with the best homemade guacamole.

The next stop on our trip was again very different from the others. Following an overnight bus journey, with a few hairy moments like our journey to the back of the bus to use the loos and the military search of the bus, we arrived at what I can only describe as paradise, Sian Ka'an.

A nature reserve with white sand and turquoise sea on one side, and a blue lagoon with luscious greenery on the other. Whilst some of the group ventured to the nearby cenotes and ruins at Tulum, after our jungle adventure we were relieved to have a couple of days to relax by the sea. And when I say relax by the sea, I mean literally. Our cabins couldn't have been any closer to the beach without being in the sea.

It was by no means a perfect stay. The communal shower rooms, hole in the ground toilets, lack of shop and scarcity of food in the restaurant wasn't everyone's cup of tea (Chloe in particular was relieved to return to Cancun after two days in Sian Ka'an), but the special moments in my eyes more than made up for it. Not only did we watch sunrise over the sea from our balcony both mornings we were there and sunset over the lagoon from the rooftop, one evening we got to release a nest of baby turtles in to the sea. As if that wasn't magical enough, there was a 'moonrise' as we set them on their way. It was enough to bring a tear to your eye (Sophie) and a moment I'm sure we'll all remember forever.

The final stop of our tour was Isla Meurejes, an island not far from back where we started in Cancun. Now if you'd have asked me before we got there what would have been the ideal finish to the trip, I would have said more beautiful beaches, rooftop pools, nice food and tequila! And that's exactly what we got. A fabulous last day on the beach, followed by beers on the rooftop of our hotel and then our final supper and final piss up, concluded with drunken stargazing on the roof. Hopefully that explains why I would count those ten days in Mexico as ten of the best of my life.

Not letting life escape me

This is the card my beautiful colleague, Milly gave me as I left work for the last time before my big adventure.

At the time I was extremely grateful and found the fact she recognised why I was off travelling incredibly touching. But it is only as I'm sat here in the Mexican jungle overlooking Mayan ruins that the words on the card have really begun to have meaning.

I love life back home but boy would I be missing out if I wasn't here exploring the world right now. So thank you Milly, for putting it so eloquently; I'm not here to escape my life, but to make sure life does not escape me.

The Lone Star State

It's been a great week in the Lone Star state. We've experienced real big cities, some crazy driving and a lot of people wondering how on earth we ended up in Texas.

Our introduction to the state was in Dallas. We spent a considerable amount of time learning about JFK, which is a big deal, as you can imagine with the 50th anniversary of his assassination fast approaching; seeing the memorial, the spot where it happened and that window.

We also admired the view from the reunion tower, spent a Saturday night checking out the locals bars and ate great food from two very different cuisines: tex mex and ethiopian (although Chloe might contest that statement after discovering the Texans like to put beef in everything, even refried beans). The only two downsides were our failed attempt to go bowling - rather hilariously making that failed attempt number four - clearly bowling being a significant part of American popular culture is an outdated myth; and the weather, dropping to around 20 degrees the first day we were there, we even wore jeans - quite a shock to the system!

South Texas, in contrast, has not only gifted us with glorious weather, but even more beautiful cities and more intriguing historical sites - although no real cowboys, which I'm a little disappointed about.

Austin, buzzing with students and with a plethora of bars and live music venues, plus plenty of shops and nice cafes is the sort of place I'd want to live. And it's impressive state capital building, tower blocks and beautiful university structures provide a lovely setting.

We loved Houston; the Flying Saucer bar in downtown with it's multitude of beers was a great place to meet local businessmen and women. And we were fascinated by the NASA space station.

But for me it is San Antonio, home of the Alamo, which has been the stand out city. The battle cry, 'Remember the Alamo' is one we've all heard, made famous across the world by John Wayne and Davy Crockett, even if our knowledge of the Alamo itself is somewhat vague. Not only is San Antonio's architecture and history stunning (even if the Alamo is a lot smaller than I'd envisaged), but it's river walk, more reminiscent of the likes of Venice than something you would expect to find in Texas, is out of this world. Lined with lovely restaurants, which light up the river at night, the walk has a mini theatre (which we were all excited to realise featured in Miss Congeniality), an abundance of pretty bridges, and great boat tours. 

Plus it leads to La Villita, a cute little village where the Mexican Commander surrendered to the Texans during the Texas War for independence in 1835; today overflowing with arts and crafts, and the best icecream I've had in a long time.

Now we're at Houston airport waiting to board our plane to Cancun, and I can't help but feel a bit sad; not only are we leaving Texas, the first leg of our trip is over. But as we head to Mexico, I'm sure much more adventure awaits.

Always desire to learn something useful

We have spent a lot of time on the road the past few weeks, travelling from the southern most part of the US, in Key West, Florida, through Georgia, round Alabama, in to Mississippi and Louisana, then round the largest state of them all, Texas.

As we've been exploring these different landscapes and meeting a diverse range of people, we've done a lot of learning - about the US, about different views and cultures, about the nature we've encountered, about all the different places we've visited and people we've met.

It's good to take a break and nurture the soul, which is exactly what this trip has been doing, but it's also important not to let your mind stagnate. So in addition to learning from our travels, we've been educating ourselves in the car. From learning Spanish, to the state nicknames and capitals, to UK Prime Ministers, general knowledge, London boroughs, animal facts, European capitals; Chloe and Danielle have even been imparting their knowledge on Harry Potter. We've tried to keep it diverse and we've tried to keep it beneficial.

As famous Greek playwright, Sophocles said:

New Orleans, an eclectic mix of fun

Before we arrived in New Orleans Leah, the landlady of the bar we were drinking at in Mobile, Alabama elucidated what it was like:

'It's dirty, it's grimy, it's trashy, y'all gonna love it!'

If only we knew just how much. Sure parts of it were grimy and the tourist traps like the famous Bourbon Street were trashy, but it was also quirky, authentic, unique.

Its eclectic mix of jazz bars, tattoo parlours, Mediterranean food, office blocks, steamboats, flea markets and historical sights make it unlike anywhere I've ever been before. Never have I been to a stranger, more random place than New Orleans.

The different districts and attractions almost belong completely separately. You would not expect to find coffee and beignets of Cafe du Monde alongside the strip clubs and cheesy music of Bourbon Street; nor the tattoo parlours and boutiques of Uptown to be part of the same city as the business district or voodoo shops, for which New Orleans is renowned. Yet oddly this amalgamation of anomalies comes together superbly.

It starts to make a lot more sense once you understand the history of the city. The impact of African Americans and native Indian Americans is obvious and once intermingled with the European influence, which dominates the large French quarter of the city in particular, you suddenly begin to see why it's such an unusual place.

It is this originality that makes New Orleans a must visit city. Whether you're looking for sophisticated jazz, kooky shops, great food or crazy nightlife, it really has it all.

And whilst the devastation caused by hurricane Katrina is still evident in a few places, particularly on the drive in, the city seems to have recovered now (contrary to reports I'd heard before we arrived). New Orleans is a large, bustling city - I was surprised by the scale of it - with a melange of people moving at all hours of the day at the very heart of it.

If you are looking to visit I would recommend the dinner jazz cruise on steamboat Natchez; a great combination of history and culture, with incredibly friendly staff and the opportunity to say you have sailed up the Mississippi river.

You should also check out the bars along Frenchmen Street and Decatur Street - Bourbon Street was lots of fun, but perhaps somewhere you should only visit once for the novelty. 

The eateries and boutiques along Magazine Street are definitely worth a visit. As are the tattoo parlours (especially Idle Hands) at that end of town if that's something that interests you.

And if the opportunity arises, you should try and see an NFL game at the dome. We were in town for the Saints hosting the Miami dolphins - and whilst we weren't at the game, the atmosphere was fantastic. I'm sure it helped that the Saints crushed the dolphins 38-17, but it seems New Orleans is a football-mad city.

Whatever you're looking for in New Orleans, in the words of our friend Leah, 'y'all gonna love it!'