Yes! My dad, my boyfriend, my fish Franklin, and myself are all back in our cozy homes in New York after a 2 week road trip home. My last weekend in Grand Junction was sad, but filled with laughter and great people. On April 29th I went to the church I grew very close to, one last time. Once I left there, it was time to drive!
I started my trip going to Rifle Falls State Park. When I pulled in, they said the park was full and to go to the fish hatchery for 10 minutes or so and come back. Well, next thing I knew, I was hiking on a trail I found at the fish hatchery and it took me to the falls!
This is the home of Colorado's only 80 foot triple waterfall! Beware of the snakes on the trail!! While I was there a man told me to check out the rock climbers and a cave that always has ice in it right down the road! I was in no rush so I went to check it out and my jaw dropped watching the rock climbers.
Once I left there I went to Eagle, CO to hike! I didn't realize that where I went was in the back of a really nice development and the trails go through cow fields! I found myself crossing over cattle guards and on a path behind mansions. The views were very pretty though!
After I got done there, I drove to Edwards, CO which is just west of Vail. My cousin lives there and she and her boyfriend offered to let me stay! I woke up early on Monday morning to head to Boulder and hike the Flatirons. My recruiter told me that I'd really enjoy the hike and I am so glad that I found the time to do it because it was amazing.
Above is the view from the top. If you look in the distance, you can see the Continental Divide. Once I finished I called my grandma in Longmont to let her know I would be there shortly. Her and I went to her favorite restaurant, La Peep, and did some shopping.
Above is a picture of a house near my grandma's where they had our favorite flowers, tulips, all over their yard! It was really beautiful.
On Tuesday, my boyfriend Nicholas met me in Denver. Driving to Denver from Longmont is crazy and there are always accidents. Using public transportation is a must! I took a bus from Longmont, and he took one from the airport. It is $9 for the RTD all day pass and it is totally worth it. He and I went to my company, Medical Solutions, to meet my recruiter and one of her co-workers, Kelly, for lunch. We highly suggest the Ale House and ordering the Colorado lamb pita salad.
Nicholas and I walked all around Denver and stood at exactly 1 mile high at the State Capitol Building!
We were told that as technology grows, they find that the 'mile high step' is changing. Currently it is marked as the 15th step, but a man told us they haven't changed it and it is really the 13th step. Either way, we stood a mile high at some point and for picture purposes this is the 15th step!
Nicholas and I walked all around Denver seeing street art, the art museum, and library. We took the bus back to my grandma's house after picking up the best apple fritters ever from Winchell's Donuts. Omi made some chicken noodle soup and afterwards we planned the next day!
We left Longmont around 9 am to head for Omaha, NE, an 8 hour drive. By the time we got settled in our hotel we headed out for some Omaha steak! We went to Spencer's For Steak and Chops. We ordered the filet mignon and an Angus beef burger, which were delicious!
The next day we went to my company head quarters! I walked in and a few people greeted me. As they lead me around the office, we walked into a room filled with people starting a slow clap...for me. I was as red as a tomato standing alone in front of all these people! Everyone in the office was really nice and welcoming. I couldn't believe all that goes into each assignment and all the people involved. Walking out of the office I knew I made the best choice to work with them!
Off to Kansas City we went! One of Nicholas' friends told him about a place called Joe's Kansas City Bar-B-Que, so we went to Kansas City, Kansas.
Highly recommend the Z-Man sandwich and their fries! We then went back to Kansas City, Missouri to walk around. We went to the WWI memorial and saw what they said to be, the best view in the city.
If you've been keeping up with my blog posts, you know I made a great friend Jessica in Grand Junction. She took her following travel job in St. Louis, Missouri, so we went there next! When we got there she had a place in mind for dinner. We went to Salt and Smoke and had a delicious meal - we recommend the mac and cheese! We spend the next day touring all around St. Louis.
Seeing the Arch is a must!
St. Louis Botanical Gardens.
We went to Forrest park before heading home to get ready for the Cardinals vs Cubs baseball game!
Happy Cinco De Mayo! Saturday morning we said our goodbyes to Jess and started our drive to the windy city, Chicago! If you ever go to Chicago, do not drive your car around, you'll regret it. It took us some time, but using the L, aka the train system, was by far the best option to get around and your ticket is also valid for the buses! A girl I went to high school with lives in Chicago and we took her recommendations for where to eat. In honor of Cinco De Mayo, we went to a taco place called Blue Star, which had margaritas on tap!
These tacos were delicious!
We then went to Old Crow and sat on a roof top while enjoying some drinks.
THE BEAN!
We also went to Trump Tower, just to check it out. No one said anything so we sat in the back lounge area and looked up where we wanted to go next. Why not right?
We enjoyed a nice Italian dinner at Bella Bacinos. We got to sit outside next to the river with some chardonnay.
Sunday morning, my dad arrived on the train! He had a few things he wanted to see in Chicago and so we began!
Sears Tower (Now called the Willis Tower)
Gino's East deep dish pizza is a must! After we ate here, Nicholas had to fly back to Charlotte, NC. So, Dad and I continued to wander around the city!
Unfortunately, Nicholas couldn't make it to the Michael Jordan statue. I guess we will have to go back!
Millennium Park once again!
The Buckingham Fountain.
At Navy Pier we went on the Ferris wheel and walked around the green house.
We then left Chicago and found a place to stay for the night. The next day we went to Indianapolis. This was not in our plan at all, but it was a nice stop between Chicago and Cincinnati. Turned out to be one of our favorite cities! It was easy to walk around, not a lot of people, and lots of parks and rivers! We had lunch at the Weber Grill restaurant and it was great. My dad was very pleased!
Soldiers and Sailors Monument.
The State Capitol Building was really amazing! If you're there, go inside!
We went to check out the Colts Stadium and recently they put a Peyton Manning statue up! He is my favorite player! I was in awe! After we saw this, we checked out the stadium and went to White River State Park.
When we left, we went to see the Indianapolis 500 race track. Unfortunately they were closed, but we saw a little bit of it. Off to Cincinnati, Ohio we went! When we went to the Weber Grill restaurant, the manager told us about the Rhinegeist Brewery. When we got there, it looked like a large warehouse, it probably was! The beer was great and the rooftop was beautiful.
Graeter's Ice Cream is a must have in Cincinnati! Right across from one of them is a restaurant called Eagle. Go there and get some chicken! Best fried chicken ever! We even ordered another plate of it. Another great restaurant is Bakersfield and for breakfast check out Maplewood (pictured below).
After breakfast we started our long haul to Buffalo, NY! My roommate from college lives there so we met up with her and her family.
This is what 50 wings looks like!
We had some frozen custard and ice cream at Anderson's. That night, we headed out to Paige's cottage in Canada.
We went wine tasting the next day after enjoying the nice weather. Unfortunately, the lake is still very cold so we did not swim!
Uncle Dick is 6'7", just in case you were wondering.
Paige's Uncle Dick and Aunt Kath surprsied us with this carrot cake in honor of nurses week!
The next day we walked around the little city that the cottage is near. Afterwards we went to Niagara Falls! We had already been to the American side, so this time we got to check out the Canada side.
Friday, May 11th, we left Canada, Paige, and her wonderful family. It was time to begin our drive home, but of course not until after hiking at Letchworth State Park.
We arrived home around 6 pm that night and Nicholas surprised me by already being there! It was a great trip filled with lots of memories.
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