January 10th, 2014
The Grand Canyon
We began our day with a little practice with our host, Dhruva at his Shala in downtown Flagstaff. We could immediately see what a toll sitting in the car and not practicing yoga for several months had done. It was great to practice with such a terrific yoga master though!
After class, we went to ‘Late for the Train’ on S. San Francisco St. It has a great vibe, friendly staff, and good assortment of foods and coffee type beverages. Thanks to the people there for treating us well, especially me in my post-yoga haze!
Our next destination was the big ticket item, the Grand Canyon itself. It is easily accessed within 1hr 20mins-ish either via the 64 or the 180 then 64 from downtown. The Canyon was simply put, amazing. We walked from the visitors centre by Mathers Point to the Bright Angel trailhead area which is the 2nd to last stop on the orange shuttle (about 1 hr 30 mins including stopping for pics). We then took the shuttle to Yaki Point, and then proceeded back to the visitors centre for a car picnic. The shuttles are all free to ride around on, but in the winter, you can drive your car most of the way, since the volume of vehicles is much less.
I made friends with the locals (some birds) and we also had the opportunity to write several of our postcards while watching the Canyon. We went down the Western route (road) to Hermit’s Rest during the afternoon and worked our way back to Hopi Point for sunset. Sunset was so incredible. I mean, how strange it is, that people gather around to watch the sun go down. But you can see why, and it was beautiful.
We concluded our day by cooking for our wonderful hosts and enjoying a delicious, if I do say so myself, dinner with them. We made a salad that I love to make, consisting of mainly: sundried tomato, artichoke hearts, feta, kalamata olives, and fresh baby spinach. The other main ingredient is any grain you want, ie: pearl barley, couscous, pasta, orzo, or quinoa. You can also add cucumber, tomato, red onion, chickpeas, or whatever else strikes your fancy. The dressing is just the marinade straight from the artichoke hearts. SO GOOD!
We will certainly be sad to bid our kind hosts farewell tomorrow, but very excited to finally experience Sin City!
tRNscontinental 