1. The Grand Canyon :
I am sure most of you would have at least heard about it, if not familiar with the history of the magnificent Grand Canyon, located in the state of Arizona. Once again we mortals are left fascinated at nature's splendid creation!
The Grand Canyon is a great chasm carved by the Colorado River. Known for its beautiful and intricate landscape, owned by the "Hualapai" tribe, which has been preserved over generations, the Grand Canyon attracts dozens of tourists every year. We were lucky to be one amongst them.
The best part of the Grand Canyon was the "Eagle Point".
The chasm has been formed in such a way that it closely resembles an Eagle. We were taken to the "Skywalk Glass Bridge" (4000 ft above the Colorado river) which offered a breathtaking view of the Canyon through a transparent glass floor.
The Canyon below us looked so scary that, at one point of time we were terrified that the glass would break! We were told that the skywalk is able to support about 70 tons of weight. Howver, stepping on the glass did take some courage as it was crystal clear and gave you the impression of standing on air.
After our tour of the skywalk, we settled down for a meal of baked beans and jacket potatoes. Now, this was not our idea of an ideal lunch but it was a change from the food that we are used to. Vegetarians do have limited options.
Somethings to keep in mind :
- You are not allowed to take any personal item onto the skywalk, not even a camera. Lockers are provided where you can keep your items. However, the official photographers there offer to take pictures of you which you can purchase later on.
- The heat can get a little unbearable. Do make sure that you are dressed in the lightest and most comfortable of clothes. Preferably, go in for shorts.
Kudos to the management for ensuring that the visitors are offered a comfortable and pleasurable experience. Be it in terms of providing air-conditioned buses while commuting between one end of the Canyon to the other and making sure that adequate safety measures are taken, while the visitors walk over the Skywalk glass bridge.
In spite of the scorching heat, we had the most lovely time. A once in a lifetime experience for sure!
2. Mount Rainier :
When my cousin at Seattle chalked out a plan for us to visit Mount Rainier we were very enthusiastic about it. But the Mountain truly surpassed all our expectations! Never before had we seen a mountain covered in snow, with the sun shining brightly over it, that too in the month of July. This was definitely the highlight of our trip to Seattle!
Mount Rainier is actually an active composite volcano located Southeast of Seattle, Washington, in the United States. Although we are permitted to climb the mountain at our own risk, we chose to stay at the foothills :)
We had a super time making snowballs and throwing that at each other. The weather was quite pleasant. Although there was a lot of snow everywhere, surprisingly it was not very cold.
3. San Fransisco (SFO) :
There were a bunch of things we loved about San Fransisco. One of the most populous cities in the state of California, the weather was one of best things about the place. A little on the cooler side, we absolutely loved the weather. Mostly because staying in a hot city like Dubai, you learn to appreciate the winters as and when you get the opportunity to experience it!
The extremely popular Golden Gate Bridge is located in San Fransisco in the United States. The bridge has been a popular location for numerous films - both for Hollywood and for the Indian film industry. Films like Kal Ho Na Ho had many of its scenes shot at the Golden Gate bridge. It was misty the day we went there, due to which we could not get a very clear view. However, the bridge looked immensely beautiful with the fog surrounding it.
Another magnificent creation is the Lombard Street at SFO. Now, this street is known as the "crookedest" (that is) most winding street in the world! Have a look !
Yes! This is how the street looks. :) The street was actually built out of necessity, as the hill was considered too steep for most vehicles to climb. The street has been decorated very well with flowers and there were many tourists like us who were taking photos of the street.A distinct characteristic of San Fransisco are its roads. Consisting of many hills, the roads of San Fransisco go uphill and downhill, and it is quite a unique experience driving there!
One of our last destinations at San Fransisco was the Alcatraz Islands, popularly known as "The Rock".
As a part of the tour, we were taken on a ferry ride to the Island from Pier 33, near "Fisherman's Wharf" at San Francisco.The Islands became very popular for the period that it served as a prison. It has been said that no prisoners have ever successfully escaped from the prison. As we were taken for a tour around the now-abandoned prison, we were given headphones which guided us step by step through the classical prison. Voices of the inmates of the prison were actually recorded which was kinda spooky.
The narrator tells you about the famous escapes that took place. Looking at the state of the prison, you will marvel at the person who was there and how they had to spend there days. However, the entire tour was extremely informative and was an interesting tour through history!
The Academy award-nominated action film "The Rock" was primarily shot at the Alcatraz Islands.
