We were invited to our friend Nano Lopez’s art show at the James Coleman Gallery in Key West. When we booked the hotel, we booked it in advance, and the receptionist had told us we got the last room. John and I thought that was odd and asked the person if there was some convention going on and she said no it’s Fantasy Fest which happens every year.
We had a blast with our friends and three new artists we met. Not to name drop (but I will lol) if you know any of them they were all pretty cool and it was an honor to get a chance to hang out with such talented people. James & Lori Coleman, Bill Mack and his wife and Anna Sweet’s mom Connie Sweet.
Maria
John
John
Maria
Maria & John – with our good friends Nano & Mariya
His eyes are openHis eyes are closed he painted his eyelids to look like his eyes were open
Today we visited Cedar Breaks National Monument and Brian Head Peak. We’ve been all over the world, and I have to say that the United States is the most beautiful place and unique. I find it amazing how so many people leave for other places when they haven’t even seen most of the US. We have so many different landscapes so many things to see and do if you couldn’t afford to leave the US you have many options.
While exploring the red rocks, we stayed at the St. George Inn and fell in love with it, so we decided to cancel our reservations at all the other hotels and stayed there longer.
We also took a helicopter ride over the red rocks which was terrific. The helicopter didn’t have any doors, so it made the journey more adventurous.
Today we drove from Sedona to the Grand Canyon West Rim the next morning we had to wake up at 5 am, and besides it being early in the morning it was frigid.
The next morning we met at the visitor center, and a bus picked us up to take us to the airport we flew on a plane and got a bird’s eye view of the Grand Canyon. The second part of the tour today was on a raft around horseshoe bend, so we got to see how big these rock walls are from down below. The third part was a visit to the breathtaking Antelope Canyon. All three were terrific and made our trip excellent.
We drove from Scottsdale to Sedona where we checked into the Enchantment Resort. When we checked in and got our villa, they had the bed decorated with rose petals that said Love it was so pretty. We decided that since this place so private and remote, we would take it easy and enjoy the views and the peacefulness. Supposedly Sedona has several vortex sites but we didn’t experience anything out of the ordinary.
We decided to spend our Honeymoon traveling in Arizona so we flew from NY to Phoenix, and it was 110 degrees at which was insane. We rented a car and drove to Four seasons in Scottsdale. The room had an electric fireplace that made the place look nice and cozy. John had a unique idea and planned a hot air balloon ride which was a wonderful surprise neither of us had ever been on one, so it was nice to share it on our special trip as husband and wife. One crazy thing is how we landed the balloon ended up slowly coming down to a crash landing the pilot told us all to get closer towards the side in which we were heading, and nobody got hurt which was great.
Today on our way to Asheville, North Carolina we passed through Lynchburg, Tennessee and visited the Jack Daniels Distillery. It was a great tour I was trying to find something online with some facts on the 150-year-old Whiskey.
This is what I found Jack Daniels. Hope you enjoy my pics.
Today on our way to Nashville, Tennessee we stop off at the Corvette Factory to see the plant and the museum. I have plenty of pictures of the museum, but unfortunately, they don’t allow any photography at the factory, so I have no pictures. Corvette Plant facts.
The museum was cool to see the different body styles over the years. They also had a time-lapse video of the sinkhole collapse that destroyed a bunch of their cars.
August 30, 2017
Today we drove to Chicago, Illinois and checked into the Peninsula hotel which was just recently renovated. It is a fantastic hotel with smart technology everything is controlled by an iPad. We decided to have dinner in the hotel since we were tired from the drive and unpacked and unwinded. We had dinner in the hotel restaurant which is called The Lobby, and it was delicious, and the service was excellent.
August 31, 2017
Today we had tickets to the Skydeck Chicago which was insane. It doesn’t look like much in the pictures, but when you are about to step out on the ledge to take the picture it hits you, I have to be honest I hesitated a bit. We decided to have lunch at the Shanghai Terrace which was at our hotel, and it was delicious. After that, we had tickets to a river cruise on Chicago’s First Lady which was nice. We were able to see all the tall buildings. After the tour, we walked to The Rookery Building to take some pictures. We rested a bit before having to get ready for dinner at Everest. John and I were looking forward to our dinner at Everest, and unfortunately, we were disappointed. We ordered a bottle of white wine, and they served it to us, and the temperature was off. We had to ask them to chill the bottle in ice which they should have done that on their own. The restaurant is costly. The service was also not up to par, and the restaurant wasn’t even busy there were only two tables being served. The last thing which I found disappointing upon exiting nobody said thank you or goodbye.
September 01, 2017
Today happens to be my birthday, and at first, I was upset with John for booking our flight home because most of the day would be spent on an airplane but I quickly got over it because we had a great time on our road trip but like everything else, good things have to come to an end.
Skydeck ChicagoMaria & John at Skydeck ChicagoMaria & John at Skydeck ChicagoMaria at Skydeck ChicagoJohn at Skydeck ChicagoSkydeck ChicagoSkydeck ChicagoSkydeck ChicagoSkydeck ChicagoSkydeck ChicagoSkydeck ChicagoSkydeck ChicagoSkydeck Chicago
Peninsula HotelStaircase at The Peninsula HotelPeninsula HotelPeninsula Hotel sitting areaPeninsula HotelShanghai TerraceShanghai TerraceShanghai Terrace
I love seeing a greek flag so whenever I do I have to take a picture
Merchandise Mart
Lake Point Tower
The RookeryThe RookeryThe RookeryThe RookeryThe RookeryThe Rookery
August 28, 2017
Today we drove to Milwaukee, Wisconsin we were supposed to spend one night in Manitowoc, but we decided that driving to Milwaukee was okay since it was only about two hours away from Manitowoc, so we changed our plans.
We drove through a lot of cute towns one that we liked was Sister Bay. We decided to grab a bite to eat at Door Country Creamery which was good, and they own goats and make fresh cheese from the milk. I love goats they are one of my favorite animals.
Upon arrival, we checked into the Hilton Milwaukee I fell in love with our hotel. I am honestly a sucker for old buildings and elaborate staircases. I have enough pictures of stairways and walkways to fill a website. When we checked in, we decided to do what we usually do and take a walk around the city. We already did a bit of research and knew what we needed to see which was, of course, the Riverwalk we decided to have a bite to eat at Water Buffalo, we ordered two appetizers but to be honest with you the quantity and the price were disappointing we wanted to have a quick bite to hold us over until dinner.
We had dinner at the Rodizio Grill – Brazilian Steakhouse which was good we’ve seen advertisements in magazines, and we always wanted to try it so tonight was the night. It was delicious our waiter was outstanding and attentive. I would recommend eating here and make sure you sit in Cameron’s section he was definitely on point!
August 29, 2017
Today we decided to take a walk and find the Bronze Fonz Statue. If you don’t know the Arthur Fonzie “The Fonz” played by Henry Winkler, he was from the show Happy Days. It’s a great show maybe you can watch it on Netflix or OnDemand. We also decided to take a tour of the Pabst Mansion which is cool because we love Pabst Blue Ribbon Beer. We also visited St. Josaphat Basilica once again a beautiful church.
