While I spend a lot of time looking forward to where I want to go, I also enjoy reflecting on the places Eric & I have been. Our trip to Trinidad Northern California in 2014 was one of those trips that we repeatedly go back to. The photos from that trip were some of our favorites, but it was also the slow pace & feeling that we were living like locals that really stuck with us.
We kidnapped my parents for Thanksgiving. We packed ’em up in our car, took my youngest sister & her husband along with us, & headed up to Hot Springs Arkansas. We rented a house on the Ouachita River, brought food with us, & left all itineraries/plans at home. We were winging this one & adapting day-by-day.
Traveling with family is totally out of character for Eric & I. We’ve perfected how to travel with each other & have become a fine-tuned travel machine. When you throw someone else into the mix, we don’t know what to do with them: What do they like to eat? Do they like waking up early or sleeping in? Do they really want to hike all day or are they just saying that for our benefit? Will they think I’m anti-social if I read a book for a few hours?
But we also know that memories are made during family trips & so we forced ourselves out of our comfort zone for this holiday. I won’t lie, there were moments when I thought “why did we do this?” but they were quickly followed by sweet moments or laugh-so-hard-I-snorted moments. And like all good trips, I learned some new things. For example, I learned (or was reminded) that…
My father is a sugar addict…
And apparently so am I…
My mother will never lose her adventurous spirit, even if her body begins to slow her down…
My family can easily revert to childhood…
We might have to sacrifice our long hikes, but being on the trail with family has its perks…
There really ARE fairies & they live at Garvan Woodland Gardens…
Having my mom around is good for me — otherwise, I would have bypassed the fascinating Hot Springs National Park Visitor’s Center which is in a restored bath house…
I might also have missed the once elegant Arlington Hotel, with its beautiful murals, haunted looking stairs & mobster past.
If you visit Hot Springs, eat at Rod’s Pizza Cellar. It’s a local hangout that’s been around since 1975 & their thick crust is FABULOUS! There was live music when we were there, and my parents were in heaven listening to tunes from their college days.
Garvan Woodland Gardens is beautiful in daylight but PURE MAGIC in the evening (especially during Christmas)!
Don’t go hiking in Arkansas during prime hunting season. Even if the trail brochures say nothing of hunting, assume that it’s allowed everywhere in “the Natural State.” And if you do, don’t be stupid [name will remain anonymous] & place a branch on your head so you look like a deer…
I had my heart set on hiking the Little Blakely trails, but I failed to check if hunting was allowed in that area. Boy was it! I’ve never seen so much orange & camo in my life! I managed one photo at the beginning of a trail before we had to skedaddle.
No matter how often I tell myself “I don’t travel well with others,” trips like these remind me that travel isn’t just about new places & new people, it’s also about new experiences with the people closest to me.
I’m just like my country / I’m young, scrappy and hungry / And I’m not throwing away my shot! — Hamilton (Original Broadway Cast Recording)
Eric and I just returned from a quick trip to Chicago where we were lucky enough to see the Broadway production Hamilton. I’d been dreaming about seeing it since I first heard the lyrics and pretty much memorized the entire album by the time we arrived in Chicago. With these lyrics in my head, our experiences in Chicago took on a whole new meaning and reminded me why I love our country so much and why we must fight against the forces that constantly seek to tear us apart.
Before the show we took a food tour with Rebecca Wheeler, a local cooking instructor and self-taught chef. Rebecca’s Chicago Food Walks took us through the Devon neighborhood north of Chicago, which was almost exclusively Indian and Pakistani. Eric and I had never paid for a guided tour but the idea of having someone introduce us to an unfamiliar cuisine and culture sounded very appealing. Rebecca was AMAZING! From the moment we met her it felt like we were visiting a friend in the city. She spent just as much time listening as she did speaking, catering the tour to our interests. She was full of knowledge about the cuisine, showed great rapport with the local merchants and I especially loved that she inserted history into the mix. I could see how much she respects the people and neighborhoods that she tours. I never felt like we were separate observers, ogling at some exotic culture. I felt like we were guests being invited into someone’s home.
Immigrants, we get the job done. — Hamilton Broadway
Experiencing a thriving immigrant community in one of our country’s grandest cities was the perfect activity to precede a show like Hamilton, which tells the story of Alexander Hamilton, an immigrant who through his own grit and talent became one of our country’s founding fathers. Inspired by the biography by Ron Chernow, this musical was written by Lin-Manuel Miranda who is the living embodiment of America. Miranda comes from an interracial family and is a 2nd generation immigrant whose brilliance is beyond comprehension. I’ve been calling Miranda “the Shakespeare of our time” because of his brilliant wordplay, but I think that’s a discredit to him — he has more heart and depth than The Bard. Listen to the Hamilton soundtrack and you’ll hear it. You’ll hear the good, the bad and the messy in-between of our country. You’ll hear the past and realize it’s still our present. Look at the performers on stage and you’ll see the power of diversity and the beauty of colors in every shade. You’ll see the sold-out crowds and be reminded that there is still a majority in our country who celebrate our kaleidoscope and who welcome immigrants with open arms.
When the presidential election results were announced last year, I became scared about what that said of our nation. I realized just how naive I was in thinking that the hate and fear I saw on TV resided only with a minority. Saturday Night Live nailed it when they did some skits showing white Americans freaking out when they realized that racism still exists in our country. We knew it existed but I don’t think we realized (or wished to admit) that it was so prevalent (especially in those who we had chosen to lead us).
History has its eyes on you. — Hamilton Broadway
Combine this with the mass shootings, racially charged violence between black men and police and the fear mongering directed at refugees and immigrants and one can easily see why I would begin to doubt my country. But in comes Hamilton and my faith begins to slowly be restored. I listen to the lyrics and am reminded that our country has never been perfect and has struggled with these same issues since its birth. Freedom has always prevailed (even if it took longer for some to gain it). We’ve had decades of fear-induced policies before but the pendulum eventually swung back in a more moderate direction. Hamilton reminds me of this and stirs my blood to action — to be young, scrappy and hungry and never be satisfied with the status quo.
Raise a glass to freedom. Something they can never take away. — Hamilton (Original Broadway Cast Recording)
