infinite canyons

I have to start this post by saying that I feel that we weren't able to capture the whole beauty of the Grand Canyon as we wanted to. Using the camera of your phone is sometimes challenging because it doesn't capture the exact colours, depth and sometimes distorts perspective a bit. Still, I wanted to mark this part of my journey as it was one of the most amazing parts of our USA road trip.

There are so many words I can use to describe The Grand Canyon but even if I put them all here, together, they wouldn't be enough to explain what I felt when I looked at it again and again at its amazingly infinite vastness.

The colours that you can see in the carved stone of the canyons are absolutely beyond belief. And the thought that the Colorado River has been eroding the plateau for thousands of years makes it all even more mystical and it made me wander about ancient times.

We wanted to visit Horse Shoe Bend, so on our way we had lunch at Cameron Trading Post, a very complete shop/restaurant/gallery/motel, with loads of beautiful Navajo jewellery, which I absolutely adore. We had a fabulous meal there that consisted of a traditional Navajo fried bread. I had mine with roast beef , gravy and sautéed onions and Luis chose his with chilli beans, lettuce, cheddar cheese, tomato and mild green chilli peppers.

We wanted to visit Antelope Canyon on the same day but we learned that because they're located on private land and explored by the owners, it has strict opening and closing hours and you have to visit it with a guide. We were too late to visit, so we drove from Arizona, to Utah and we arrived at Monument Valley a bit after sunset. There were not crowds of people hanging around anymore so we got the whole sight for ourselves. But because it was dark, we weren't able to take a lot of pictures. The sandstone buttes lay still and lost in time, showing the traces of erosion in beautiful deep orange and red shades.

So the next day we were able to visit Antelope Canyon. The rocks are stunning and the sun light hitting the complex shapes only helps to make the experience more beautiful. Though I have to mention that I hate guided tours and the place was crowded with people that clogged the narrow paths. I was always being left behind to try to absorb the beauty, but it was really difficult to concentrate with all the noise and the cliché speeches being given by the guides.

<3

California Deserts

As we arrived in Palm Springs at night, it wasn't possible to understand how it is organised as a city, so the next morning we were absolutely overwhelmed. As I believe I said before, I love the desert and arid places with hot weather. Coachella Valley is as dry as it comes and is embraced by beautiful and dramatic mountains.

Half of Palm Springs is made out of country clubs, as I expected. Whenever I thought of it before coming there I always imagined retired rich people with a dark tan and pastel coloured golf apparel either hanging out next to a swimming pool or driving golf carts around. Sorry if this sounds prejudiced, but I find it kind of funny, though.

One thing I loved was the Spanish architecture heritage and the super organised and lovely neighbourhoods. As we walked and drove around soaking in the vibe, we decided to go north, towards Joshua Tree National Park.

I have never seen Joshua Trees and now I want to have one but can't find it anywhere in Portugal! They're really cool and funky looking and there are thousands of them. On our way to Yucca Valley we had to stop a few times as the surrounding nature was taking our breath away. Yucca Valley is a little city with loads of hipster/alternative shops and coffee shops. We had lunch there and visited some vintage shops.

We heard somewhere that there was this place called Pioneertown, only a few minutes away from Yucca Valley, which was created in 1940's as a set for western movies. So, not as old as it seems, it's old and interesting enough to take a detour. Some of the buildings have real businesses inside.

This day we had to drive to Las Vegas but we had time. The drive is 3 hours and a half , so we had time to stop whenever we wanted.

One thing about driving from point A to point B that I've learned is to enjoy the ride. Because in between are all the things you didn't predict and you can be surprised if you take a minute to look around. You may find amazing things if you do decide to go check what's around you. This is how we found The Amboy Salt Flats and the Amboy Volcano Crater, this black beauty in the middle of the sandy Mojave Desert. I have to say that I've never seen a volcano before, and Luis was laughing at me because apparently this is a really small one. Nonetheless I was psyched to be there and to think how those black rocks laying still on the ground were once vivid lava (don't mind me, I have become an enthusiast of geology and mineralogy throughout the years but I'm still very naïve in the field).

Ok, so, after all, we were driving for a bit on Route 66 without knowing, I guess it could have happened before but we were too absorbed with everything to notice it! 😅

One thing I knew I wanted to see near Las Vegas was Ugo Rondinone's Seven Magic Mountains. They're beautiful and we got lucky to see them as this public art exhibition ended at the end of 2018!

All over the roads we drive by, there are peculiar things, some made by nature and some by men. I'm not sure if I felt this way because of the harsh contrast between it and the calmness of the deserts we were coming from, but Las Vegas did not win my heart. We were even thinking of getting married there before we arrived, but Vegas is not worthy of the celebration of such a pure thing as the love me and Luis have for each other. I guess it's just not for us, as I couldn't feel anything but the cheesiness and fakeness of everything around me. Therefore I will skip my Vegas experience and my next post will be about Grand Canyon!! <3

Salvation Mountain

After changing a flat tire in Mexico and waiting for a while to cross the border to the United States again, we set our way towards Salvation Mountain, a huge folk art site in Imperial County, California. I've always felt a certain allure for this kind of constructions, and always wondered why would somebody dedicate so much time and effort constructing with their own hands such eccentric places. I guess that's what makes them so mystical and I always feel a swirl of bewilderment as I get closer.

This construction is the second one created by Leonard Knight, who, in the last half of the 60's, experienced a spiritual awakening that led him to worship and dedicate himself to God and Jesus up until his death (in 2014). He made his way from Vermont to California in the next two decades, doing this and that, and having in mind the creation of the biggest hot air balloon in the world which would have written the words "GOD IS LOVE". After many attempts the balloon did not thrive and so he decided to make one last effort to spread his faith.

For four years Knight started creating a mountain made out of sand, cement and junk he found in the dump. He then painted his artwork with his beloved sayings and prayers. This first mountain collapsed, creating a huge cloud of dust, due to the overloading of sand and its heaviness.

Having interpreted this setback as a positive message from God, he started reconstructing his mountain with proper and much lighter materials such as adobe clay and straw. This new construction started in 1989 and has evolved ever since. It is possible to walk under it, and there are some 'museum' rooms and nooks, which are all huge altars that praise God with messages of redemption.

Although I don't identify with any kind of religion, I can say I've felt really peaceful and happy and loved with all this naive beauty and all the blissful, endless desert that surrounds it. I guess Leonard Knight wanted to spread love, as he said 'love is the strongest force on earth and can combat the hate that is so prevalent in today’s world' - and I couldn't agree more.

As the sun set, we left and drove lazily in the direction of Palm Springs. We couldn't help stopping the car next to the road to watch the beautiful lake reflecting the sky and the mountains with the thinest moon crowning that eternal sky.

<3

Last days in Havana

So, on our last days in Havana, we walked around a lot and were able to find this amazing old theatre that is now a carpentry. Also in walks we couldn't help starring at the women practicing Santeria at Plaza de la Catedral, I just love their style! <3We really walked and walked and walked! From Habana Vieja to Centro Habana, we just rambled around. We actually started walking on the Malecón and only stopped after we walked for 14km. On our way we saw 2 women having a very dark Santeria ritual where they were killing a chicken right next to a bay. How bizarre!? Then we took a bus, which cost only a few cents to come back. That way it was possible to get to know Havana's surroundings, and we didn't meet any tourists on our way there and back.La Bodeguita del Medio and El Floridita are two of the most famous bars in Havana, where Ernest Hemingway used to hangout. Today they're crowded with tourists but the old environment is still striking. On the way between both bars we bumped into some people in the street selling puff pastry treats filled with guava paste. They're absolutely delicious!We went to La Guarida, to book an early dinner and we fell in love with the old building. The dinner was good and I would tell you to order as many starters and desserts as you're able to. When you're finished head to the rooftop terrace to enjoy the sunset and the view of nightlife starting to burst. After our dinner we proceeded to have a couple more drinks and soak in the culture one last time.<3

Welcome to Viñales

After a four hour drive in our taxi colectivo we arrived in Viñales. We couldn't have wished for a lovelier hostess. We stayed at Casa Dra. Alicia, a little house in the quietest part of the village. Alicia was just amazing and we got to spend 3 nights at her place. We had lovely late night talks on her balcony and a delightful dinner in a nearby restaurant where we talked about our cultures and living in Cuba. Juanky, Alicia's boyfriend used to be a history teacher and now he earns a lot more as a barman. Words can't describe how amazing they were to us.On our last day we went to a beach called Playa de Cayo Jutías. It's only about 50 kilometres away from Viñales but the roads were in such poor condition that it took us 1 hour to get there. Anyway, it was totally worth it! The beach is super clean and you can easily get away from the crowd if you walk a bit along the shore. Our driver stopped on the way to get his lunch and that's where we bought ours as well. It was super cheap and incredibly delicious (it included a delicious stewed pork, yellow rice, avocado and manioc)!Because we spent a little too much money in New York, we had to compensate in Cuba, so we decided to walk everywhere we wanted to go and pass the horse rides and the tours. The furthest we went was Cueva del Indio (which is 6,3km away) and we were the only people walking. We had a lot of water to hydrate and we stopped to drink some fresh guava juice on our way. The cave is actually not that amazing, considering the time we had to wait plus the whole experience inside it, which was too short. Anyway, the walk was absolutely worth it as we took in the landscape and were able to spot a snake, some griffons, a buffalo and an incredibly cute hummingbird.The houses are so colourful and cute. Alicia told us that the houses are blue and pink because that's the only colours you can get when you go and buy paint, you can't really choose. Her dream was to have a sand colour house and she made it come true. Though I preferred the former flamingo pink. There are no glass windows in most houses, so there are quite a lot of bugs. We didn't have insect repellent, but I would advise you to bring some, as the itchiness can get quite annoying. While at the balcony one night we were able to see a tarantula! It was the first we saw on our trip and it was rad!If you walk around Viñales you'll be able to find some cool caves to explore! Remember to bring a flashlight (of course we didn't have one, only our cellphones). Also, try some mamoncillo, a little fruit that you can find in trees over there. We ate way too many! Luis climbed up a tree to pick them and we shared them with some kids that were playing baseball nearby.We usually don't go to the beach that often but if we've known beforehand how wonderful the beach was we would've stayed longer. The water is so incredibly hot that you never want to get out of it and the view is so stunning that you could stare at the ocean for the rest of your life. The sky became super cloudy in the afternoon and it started raining but I think that only made the beach look more appealing and mystical.<3

Cuba is Blue and Pink

 Havana was our next stop after New York. We decided to stay for 1 day there first, then go to Viñales for 3 days and come back to Havana for our last days in Cuba. That way it was possible to get to know this amazing city a little and come back for more! I've never seen so much colorful buildings in my whole life, and boy, do I love color!People are polite and helpful. Though there are already a lot of schemes for tourists, so be careful. Also, if you want to visit Havana's surroundings and neighborhoods, try to exchange some CUC (Cuban Convertible Pesos, the money that you get from the ATM) for CUP (Cuban Peso or Moeda Nacional) at a Casa de Cambio. With CUP you can have a meal or a juice almost for free!Traveling by bus is the cheapest way to travel but buses are often super crowded and surely are not for pussies! Try to negotiate if you're traveling in a taxi colectivo. Also, don't be surprised if your driver honks to every woman and teenage girl that passes by! Men are still very sexist. As I was with Luis, I never felt unsafe, but a lot of women I know who traveled to Cuba by themselves felt disrespected.Sundays are baseball days. You can buy a ticket for a few cents and enjoy a social afternoon with a lot of cheap snacks and  plenty of excitement. We watched Industriales against Isla de la Juventud.Stay tuned for more from my trip to Cuba!

NY #1

We arrived at about 11pm, so we went straight to the hotel by public transportation. I felt I belonged with all the crazy people on the subway! 😜 The next morning we went right out and we walked non stop.As a NY first timer I felt bliss wherever I was. It was all I ever imagined and more. I just felt I belonged to all that frenzy! And because we don't really like to stick to rules, we just decided to ramble around.Our rambling drove us (not in a correct timeline order) to Central Station, China Town (where we had a great foot massage), Little Italy, The Met ♥ and Rockefeller Center.As we went on, we came upon Brooklyn Bridge, so we crossed it and continued strolling towards the South. There's an amazing park over there, where people go to play sports, chill or have a collective BBQ with friends and neighbors.At the end of the afternoon we were starving, so we looked up for a cool restaurant to eat and we ended up going to Yemen Café (176 Atlantic Ave, Brooklyn). I can tell you that I would eat the same lamb with hummus for the rest of my life!Stay tuned to find out what's next! ♥

From Oslo to NY

I've planned a trip earlier this year and I want to show you the wonderful places I've been. Me and my boyfriend sold everything, from our car to guitars, so we could have enough money to spend 40 days away from home. Our journey began with a stop in Oslo, Norway. I'm not very into super cold countries, nevertheless it's impossible to stay indifferent to their culture and politeness. We only had 6 hours to visit the city, so we tried to enjoy it the best we could.We were able to visit the Oslo Opera House, and walked our way to Slottsplassen, the square where the Royal Palace stands. All the way from the train station to there, there are a lot of smaller streets where you can find second hand shops. I fell in love with a traditional costumes shop called Heimen Husfliden. There you can find a huge collection of amazing jewellery and clothing made with the best materials.We went back to the airport by train. Next stop -> NY, USA! Stay tuned for what's next! :)Oh! I loved the psychedelic vibe on the plane!While we were on our flight to New York, I actually felt an urge to go to the window, because I had the feeling we were flying over Greenland and my instinct was right! The view was just mesmerizing. No photos can do it justice.