Vegan MoFo Day 5: Awesome Arizona, Part 3

After spending several days in Jerome and Sedona, it was time to pack up and hit the road again. Our destination was a place that was on my bucket list: the Grand Canyon.

We arrived at the South Rim around 4 pm on Halloween. We took some pictures, but mostly, we just stood there and stared. Pictures can't really capture it!

By the way, it's really funny to be at the Grand Canyon on Halloween. That night, we saw lots of little ghosts and goblins running around the park!

I wanted to wake up early and see the sunrise, so we got dressed and drove over to one of the lookout points. Of course, I had a particular lookout point in mind...

Hmph...the Bradys didn't have a chainlink fence...they must have heard about Jan's plans to sleep on the rim.


Another day, another hike. After fueling up on bagels and peanut butter, we hit the South Kaibab Trail just before 8 am for a hike to Skeleton Point.

Along the way, we noshed on some Clif bars and more bagels with peanut butter. We also carried lots of water in our Camelbaks to keep us hydrated.

We weren't sure how long the hike would take, because the hike back up takes longer (walking uphill). The guide recommended 4 to 6 hours roundtrip. However, the guide must have been referring to ordinary, meat-eatin' folk. Not us Super Veg*ns!

Yup, that's 3 hours and 49 minutes on my stop watch. Without no stinkin' beef jerky.

We might have been Super Veg*ns, but that didn't mean we weren't Super Hungry when we finished. Luckily, we just followed this guy straight to the dining hall...

I was so hungry, I think I would have eaten the insole of my hiking boot if left with no other options. Fortunately, there were some veggie tostados (ask them to hold the cheese and the sour cream, and it's vegan!) and veggie chili available for sale. It wasn't exactly fine dining, but when you're that hungry, you're just happy it's edible!

We woke up early the next morning to catch another beautiful sunrise. We stopped at the Desert View Watchtower before leaving the Park and heading to Flagstaff.

But first, I had some business to attend to at the El Tovar Hotel:

"But Clark...don't you want to look at the Grand Canyon?"

"It's great, let's go!"

We spent one night in Flagstaff. I think it's probably a cool place to go to school, but we didn't find a whole lot to do there. I do remember going on a nice run, eating some good vegan pizza at New Jersey Pizza Company, and watching a Patriots football game in our hotel room. All in all, not too exciting :)

We spent our last full day in Sedona, enjoying one last hike (Doe Mountain) and a drive through Red Rock Crossing. 

 We also wanted one last look at Cathedral Rock before heading to Scottsdale.

We had a very good, and very memorable, last meal in Scottsdale before flying home the next day. We ate at a little Jamaican restaurant called The Breadfruit, mostly because I have this thing for actual breadfruit. I say the meal was memorable because my hubby decided to spear something I'd cast aside on my dinner plate and pop the whole thing into his mouth. 

What was this thing I'd cast aside?

An entire Scotch bonnet pepper. 

If only he'd asked, "Gee honey, why did you set that particular thing aside on your plate?"

I would have answered, "Because, honey, this pepper was so hot that, even though it is fully intact and has not been cut or pierced in any way, it still made my rice hot enough to nearly melt my face off."

But he didn't ask. And so....yeah, The Breadfruit. It was memorable! 

NB: if you happen to consume an entire Scotch bonnet pepper, do not attempt to quench the flames by guzzling down a huge glass of water. From my hubby's facial expressions, I gather that it didn't help.

So, in honor of our fantastic trip to the Southwest, I decided to (un)cook up an old favorite - Raw Tortilla Soup from Gena's blog. Bell peppers, tomatoes, celery, sun-dried tomatoes, lime juice, cilantro, and southwestern seasonings (cumin, chili powder, paprika) are blended together (I also add a zucchini for thickness and extra nutrition) and then topped with some chopped avocado, tomato, scallions, cilantro, and corn. I love to scoop up the soup with some baked tortilla chips!

We also had some salad on the side - baby spinach, arugula, cucumber, celery, corn, tomato, and avocado, tossed with some lime juice, Bragg's, and olive oil. The soup is a family favorite, and my hubby loves it because it does not include Scotch bonnet peppers. 

I hope you enjoyed our little trip to Arizona! Stay tuned for our next travel adventure!!

Vegan MoFo Day 4: Awesome Arizona, Part 2

After sleeping off my Rawsome Raw Platter, I was rarin' to go the next morning. My hubby and I both love running in new places, so we got up at dawn and ran up into the hills behind the Inn. We were hoping to catch the sunrise, because we heard the red rocks absolutely glowed at both dawn and dusk. It's true...they do!

After our run, we tucked into a huge breakfast - oatmeal and fruit for me, and a stack of pumpkin pancakes and an omelette for my hubby (he's vegetarian). Mostly, we just enjoyed the crisp mountain air and the gorgeous view from the Inn's patio.

After getting fueled up and showered, we were ready to start exploring Sedona. We headed out for a morning hike on the West Fork Trail in Oak Creek Canyon.

We hiked for just over 3 hours and saw some incredible red rock cliffs and gorgeous fall foliage. It was October 30, but the foliage was at its peak in Arizona!

After a quick lunch at Subway (we tried to eat cheap lunches, so we ate there almost every day!), we drove to the Chapel of the Holy Cross. This beautiful church is built right into the red rocks!

I can't imagine how awesome it must be to worship in a place like this!

This is the view from the church's parking lot...

Unbelievable, right?!?!

I tell you, there was something about that warm sunshine and dry mountain air that just energized us. Even though we'd already run before breakfast and hiked all morning, we weren't ready to quit just yet! We wanted to hike some more, so we drove to the Cathedral Rock trailhead. Cathedral Rock is sort of the quintessential symbol of Sedona, with its beautiful rock spires and deep amber hue. This was an incredibly challenging hike - it's 1.5 miles up and back, with a steep 600-foot elevation change. There were many times when I thought, I can't do it, I can't do it, it's too hard, I have to stop....but something compelled me to keep going. Let me just tell you - reaching the top of that trailhead is one of the defining moments of my life. The overwhelming rush of emotions I felt was like nothing I'd ever felt before in my life!

 Here are some views from the top...

We couldn't stop grinning on the way down. We were both so excited about this hike!

After a day full of running and hiking, we had worked up huge appetites. And I had an appetite for one thing, and one thing only... 

Yup, another Rawsome Raw Platter. Back to D'Lish! My hubby ate a ginormous burrito and had a cookie for dessert. That's how we roll...play hard, eat hard!!

Tomorrow: Part 3, the Awesome Arizona wrap-up

Vegan MoFo Day 3: Awesome Arizona, Part 1

I don't think I'll ever forget where I was on the evening of Election Day 2008. When most people were doing their civic duty, or hunkered down in front of their television sets watching early election returns, I was...on a plane, flying home from a trip to Arizona. I was kind of bummed about being trapped 30,000 feet in the air while the historic election was taking place, but I got home early enough to watch the coverage as polls started closing across the US. My hubby and I had already completed our absentee ballots, but we still felt like we missed out on something...actually going to the polls and standing in line with our neighbors. There's just something so awesome about being able to vote in a free country, you know? So, whenever I think about my Arizona trip, I'll always think of that election. They're just tied together in my memory!

Today, we'll be taking a trip to beautiful Arizona, the land of the Grand Canyon, old mining towns, and lots and lots of cacti. You laugh, but just ask my husband...I was beside myself when I saw my first real cactus just after we left Phoenix-Sky Harbor Airport. I mean, it's not like I see cacti every day in Rhode Island, people!

Our tummies were rumbling after our long flight, so the first thing we wanted to do was grab lunch. I had done my homework before I left RI (an essential step for vegan travelers, no?) and wrote down the names and addresses of several veg*n restaurants along our travel route. There was one in nearby Scottsdale that I wanted to check out, Green New American Vegetarian restaurant. I remember several things about this meal: one, it was the first time I got to try Zevia soda (I am a HUGE Zevia fan!); two, I had the most amazing seitan ever - the No Harm Chicken Parm Sandwich; three, my hubby loved his Secret BBQ Chicken Sandwich so much, he still talks about it; and four, I had my first-ever vegan soft-serve ice cream cone. It was...amazing. But I was still three years away from becoming a food blogger, so course I didn't know I was supposed to be taking pictures of this yumminess. But just trust me...it was awesome.

After lunch at Green, we hit the road in our rented PT Cruiser and chugged puttered drove our way to Jerome, billed as both "America's Most Vertical City" and the "Largest Ghost Town in America." It was three days before Halloween, so I thought it would be a blast to spend a night in a place once known as the wickedest town in the West. We checked into the Ghost City Inn and spent the remaining daylight hours walking around town and checking out the sights.

The local brothel...

I thought it was cool that there was a big "J" on the mountain!

I couldn't wait for it to get dark, because I was super excited about our dinner plans...we were going to The Asylum, a former hospital (some say insane asylum) that was converted to an upscale restaurant with a decidedly psycho bent to it. I mean, there were old medicine cabinets, straight jackets, and skulls on the walls. I'm into that sort of stuff, so it was right up my alley!

No food porn, but I remember having the Sesame Tofu, Brown Rice, and Butternut Squash entree with pickled ginger and wasabi peas. It was pretty fantastic!

The next morning, we laced up our running shoes and hit the streets for a pre-dawn run up and down the hilly streets of Jerome. We even saw a couple of mountain lions! We ran out to the state park and up to the old gold mine, enjoying the fresh mountain air and beautiful scenery.

After a great breakfast at the hotel, we visited the Jerome Mine Museum and browsed through the eclectic artisan jewelry and crafts stores in town. I must say, this was one cool place...it's really small, but it's definitely worth a visit if you are in the area!

We headed to Sedona in the early afternoon and checked into the Apple Orchard Inn. We then took a Pink Jeep Tour on the Broken Arrow Trail, which was incredible! Our guide, Christine, was gnarly driving up and down those steep trails!

After our tour, we ate dinner at D'Lish Very Vegetarian Restaurant. This restaurant will always hold a special place in my heart, because the food looked so, so amazing that it caused me to spontaneously bust out my camera and do something I'd never done before: take a picture of my food. Yay, first food porn!

Introducing the Rawsome Raw Platter. Almond pate, raw slaw, guacamole, raw burger, sea veggies, raw beets, raw carrots, raw crackers, lettuce, avocado, sprouts, and pumpkin seeds. It also came with a little pitcher of some killer salad dressing. It was love at first sight. And it tasted as good as it looked! I think I ate nearly the entire thing and then my hubby had to stuff me back into the PT Cruiser. But I didn't care!

Tomorrow: Part 2 of Awesome Arizona!