Bunny's American Adventures~
I know, I know, we've been back for several days and still no commentary... I haven't had time! I had a guild to glomp and rp to catch up to and I still need to level some more to catch up to my usual partners-in-crime and-and-and...
Nutshell version: A week in Tennessee, a week in Arizona. Loads of fun. Didn't die of allergies or the heat, surprisingly enough. Wanna go back.
I just -know- I'm going to forget so many things...
Tennessee killed my stomach. And I consider myself being a non-healthy eater as it is, but that is obviously only on Finnish scale. O.o ...the Tennessee scale was quite something different. If it wasn't either deep-fried three times or glistening of butter, it was apparently not edible. I had to resort to heartburn medicines and I've never, ever had to try any before. So much boggling.
(I was cured and feeling better within a -day- in Arizona. ...I found myself craving for salads, which to those who know me in RL is something to faint about.)
I had started a basic non-prescription regular-pharmacy-stuff allergy-medication a few days before the trip and I was fine throughout the week in Tennessee, but Arizona eventually got me. I still don't know if it was actually allergies (to which I gave plenty of reason to act up because Kela was so cuuuute that I had to pet him -- that'd be the dabbit's cat, and then there was all the traveling with the doggie in car and hanging out in cat-inhabitat aka dabbit's comp room <.< >.>) or if I actually just sort of got a cold. Yes, in Arizona. The air conditioning was like the wind I'm so not used to! Either way, by the end of the second week I was blowing my nose constantly and taking painkillers because it made my head hurt. x.x
(Again, cured in a couple of days when I got home.)
The weather was hot in both states. It was around 90 Fahrenheit / 32 Celsius in Tennessee, and
about 102 Fahrenheit / 39 Celsius in Arizona. However, since we didn't actually hang out in the great hot outdoors that much and the cars were air-conditioned and the air was dry... it wasn't really bad at all. Although boy did you -feel- the sun when you stepped into it. @.@
Environment-wise Tennessee looked strangely like a southern version of Finland sans the lakes. Trees and hills. Oh, and there were mountains which we don't really have, but the horizon was tree-covered, just like in here. Arizona of course was quite different. We also took a daytrip to Sedona to see red rocks and to have a picnic in a park where we most decisively did not hike. ^__^
I returned home with a huge loot amount in books! This includes:
- Neil Gaiman: Coraline
- Hanging Out with the Dream King - Conversations with Neil Gaiman and His Collaborators
- Neil Gaiman's Neverwhere (in comic format)
- The Furies (to find out what happened to Lyta Hall...)
- Serenity - Those Left Behind (yey random Firefly comic!)
- Marvel 1602 (Marvel written by Gaiman, what's not to love? o.o)
- Neil Gaiman: Fragile Things
- Terry Pratchett: Thud!
- Philip Pullman: His Dark Materials Trilogy
- Gravitation 1-4 (I was in withdrawal, shuddup!)
- Innocent Bird 1 (another manga, seemed Talvi-Shai-ish, then turned into Chameleon-Alex)
Being me, my other random shopping objects include stuff like Navajo sand painting and beads from hairclips and a random flowy mock-kimono shirt. ...I should have really shopped more in the gemstone-places, but ohwell. And seeing Kokopelli everywhere made me squee ohsomuch. ^__^
We stayed in Jameson Inn the first few days, then went to Pigeon Forge to a resort I can't remember the name of but was v. nifty, shall update later maybe <.<, then when we were supposed to fly to Arizona, the flight got delayed so much that we wouldn't have been able to make the transfer, so American Airlines paid for our night in Hilton, which was sort of nifty -- the only place with comforters instead of the silly, silly tucked in sheet-system that was driving me nuts. And then in Arizona we stayed the week in Sheraton Desert Oasis, which was insanely nifty villa. Like the Pigeon Forge, there was a jacuzzi in the bedroom, but the shower in Sheraton made me sigh of relief... the first one that wasn't just bolted in the wall and drizzling gently down on you (although they had that as well, the shower area had two showers in it), but an actual regular, normal 'you can also hold it in your hand' shower. Oh, and just like the whole Arizona seemed to be -- Sheraton decor was so Qalian! Seriously, Arizonan houses could have been placed in Khal!
We went to the movies in both states, to watch Shrek 3 and Pirates of the Caribbean 3 (squeee!), and then Shrek 3 again. *grins* (Since we'll go to the Pirates again in -here-, to get the subtitles. <.<) We also went to Dixie Stampede in Tennessee. I don't have words to describe any of it. ...let's just say that it was the defining culture shock moment. *nods* The culture shock factor was screaming higher in Tennessee anyway, Arizona felt more 'normal' to me, despite it looking like Qalia.
We had had all great plans about botanical gardens and zoos for Arizona, but after we realized we'd just DIE outdoors, we did the random picnic and shopping in Sedona (thanks Ali for driving! <3) and visited the Heard Museum, which was pretty impressive in its open guilt-tripness. I'm a Finn, I approved. I don't know why, but when Finnish kids play cowboys and indians, the indians are always the heroes. That, and I like museums. ^__^ Ohoh, we also visited the local Native American Casino briefly. Didn't gamble, just wanted to see it.
Generally in both places we were really just hanging out with friends, which was the main reason for the trip anyway. ^__^ Was so much fun to finally meet people I hadn't met before -- and meet dabbit again, of course. And always so sad to leave. ; ;
Oh, and I spotted at least ten bunnies in Arizona! And one of them came to the roadside to look at me o.o when we left for the airport. I swear it flopped its ear goodbye. *nods sagely*
...now if I could just revive the chibis from all that Chibichanga! they did...
<3
Nutshell version: A week in Tennessee, a week in Arizona. Loads of fun. Didn't die of allergies or the heat, surprisingly enough. Wanna go back.
I just -know- I'm going to forget so many things...
Tennessee killed my stomach. And I consider myself being a non-healthy eater as it is, but that is obviously only on Finnish scale. O.o ...the Tennessee scale was quite something different. If it wasn't either deep-fried three times or glistening of butter, it was apparently not edible. I had to resort to heartburn medicines and I've never, ever had to try any before. So much boggling.
(I was cured and feeling better within a -day- in Arizona. ...I found myself craving for salads, which to those who know me in RL is something to faint about.)
I had started a basic non-prescription regular-pharmacy-stuff allergy-medication a few days before the trip and I was fine throughout the week in Tennessee, but Arizona eventually got me. I still don't know if it was actually allergies (to which I gave plenty of reason to act up because Kela was so cuuuute that I had to pet him -- that'd be the dabbit's cat, and then there was all the traveling with the doggie in car and hanging out in cat-inhabitat aka dabbit's comp room <.< >.>) or if I actually just sort of got a cold. Yes, in Arizona. The air conditioning was like the wind I'm so not used to! Either way, by the end of the second week I was blowing my nose constantly and taking painkillers because it made my head hurt. x.x
(Again, cured in a couple of days when I got home.)
The weather was hot in both states. It was around 90 Fahrenheit / 32 Celsius in Tennessee, and
about 102 Fahrenheit / 39 Celsius in Arizona. However, since we didn't actually hang out in the great hot outdoors that much and the cars were air-conditioned and the air was dry... it wasn't really bad at all. Although boy did you -feel- the sun when you stepped into it. @.@
Environment-wise Tennessee looked strangely like a southern version of Finland sans the lakes. Trees and hills. Oh, and there were mountains which we don't really have, but the horizon was tree-covered, just like in here. Arizona of course was quite different. We also took a daytrip to Sedona to see red rocks and to have a picnic in a park where we most decisively did not hike. ^__^
I returned home with a huge loot amount in books! This includes:
- Neil Gaiman: Coraline
- Hanging Out with the Dream King - Conversations with Neil Gaiman and His Collaborators
- Neil Gaiman's Neverwhere (in comic format)
- The Furies (to find out what happened to Lyta Hall...)
- Serenity - Those Left Behind (yey random Firefly comic!)
- Marvel 1602 (Marvel written by Gaiman, what's not to love? o.o)
- Neil Gaiman: Fragile Things
- Terry Pratchett: Thud!
- Philip Pullman: His Dark Materials Trilogy
- Gravitation 1-4 (I was in withdrawal, shuddup!)
- Innocent Bird 1 (another manga, seemed Talvi-Shai-ish, then turned into Chameleon-Alex)
Being me, my other random shopping objects include stuff like Navajo sand painting and beads from hairclips and a random flowy mock-kimono shirt. ...I should have really shopped more in the gemstone-places, but ohwell. And seeing Kokopelli everywhere made me squee ohsomuch. ^__^
We stayed in Jameson Inn the first few days, then went to Pigeon Forge to a resort I can't remember the name of but was v. nifty, shall update later maybe <.<, then when we were supposed to fly to Arizona, the flight got delayed so much that we wouldn't have been able to make the transfer, so American Airlines paid for our night in Hilton, which was sort of nifty -- the only place with comforters instead of the silly, silly tucked in sheet-system that was driving me nuts. And then in Arizona we stayed the week in Sheraton Desert Oasis, which was insanely nifty villa. Like the Pigeon Forge, there was a jacuzzi in the bedroom, but the shower in Sheraton made me sigh of relief... the first one that wasn't just bolted in the wall and drizzling gently down on you (although they had that as well, the shower area had two showers in it), but an actual regular, normal 'you can also hold it in your hand' shower. Oh, and just like the whole Arizona seemed to be -- Sheraton decor was so Qalian! Seriously, Arizonan houses could have been placed in Khal!
We went to the movies in both states, to watch Shrek 3 and Pirates of the Caribbean 3 (squeee!), and then Shrek 3 again. *grins* (Since we'll go to the Pirates again in -here-, to get the subtitles. <.<) We also went to Dixie Stampede in Tennessee. I don't have words to describe any of it. ...let's just say that it was the defining culture shock moment. *nods* The culture shock factor was screaming higher in Tennessee anyway, Arizona felt more 'normal' to me, despite it looking like Qalia.
We had had all great plans about botanical gardens and zoos for Arizona, but after we realized we'd just DIE outdoors, we did the random picnic and shopping in Sedona (thanks Ali for driving! <3) and visited the Heard Museum, which was pretty impressive in its open guilt-tripness. I'm a Finn, I approved. I don't know why, but when Finnish kids play cowboys and indians, the indians are always the heroes. That, and I like museums. ^__^ Ohoh, we also visited the local Native American Casino briefly. Didn't gamble, just wanted to see it.
Generally in both places we were really just hanging out with friends, which was the main reason for the trip anyway. ^__^ Was so much fun to finally meet people I hadn't met before -- and meet dabbit again, of course. And always so sad to leave. ; ;
Oh, and I spotted at least ten bunnies in Arizona! And one of them came to the roadside to look at me o.o when we left for the airport. I swear it flopped its ear goodbye. *nods sagely*
...now if I could just revive the chibis from all that Chibichanga! they did...
<3