Country 30 - USA, Alaska

19th - 27th February 2019

With a 6am flight we said goodbye to Seattle and made our way north to Anchorage. The flight was non eventful which was great so we could get some rest along the way. As we started to descend the clouds cleared making way for the breathtaking scenery that would be just the tip of the iceberg of what we would see during our time in Alaska. There aren't many ways you can prepare yourself for well below zero temperatures and we didn't but we soon learnt the art of layering.



We had organised a self guided tour for 10 days in Alaska which meant our itinerary, including hotel, car hire, transfers & tours, were all pre organised leaving us with the freedom of independent travel. We spent our first night in Anchorage to get ourselves set up after a long day of traveling and the following morning we picked up our hire car. We followed the Turnagain Inlet coast line, which is surrounded by ice and snow covered mountains, to a small mountainside village called Girdwood where we stayed at a fabulous 5 star resort built in the 1980s. The Alyeska Resort is just heaven and strategically placed at the base of a ski mountain with chairlift access available inside the resort.

After how much we loved snowmobiling in Lake Tahoe, we were keen to give it another go. We decided to book a standard 3 hour tour and ended up with 2 guides, who were a lovely young couple guiding for the first time on their own, using us as their guinea pigs which we were totally ok with. With the sun out, snow falling and a decent few feet of snow already on the ground, we followed the trails that took us to an open field next to a gorgeous little stream. By popular vote, we decided to cross the stream and found ourselves on trails even the guides hadn't traveled on before and uncovered abandoned cabins & vehicles. After a stop next to a larger creek for a well needed hot chocolate, we followed the forest trails to an open field next to the highway where we were able to see what the machines could really do.

Then the snow set it. It was absolutely magical. The snow got so heavy that we had a full whiteout. It became nearly impossible to see where the sky met the ground, changes in terrain or simply a few meters in front of you. What a thrill! Towards the end of our tour the whiteout claimed it's first victim and I successfully crashed the mobile when I couldn't see the small ridge I had to climb. Now these machines are approx 200kg so having it fall on you should hurt but luckily I had about 6 feet of snow below me so I simply sunk into the snow and wriggled my way out while the guide had to come over and get her back upright. Struggling to dig myself out of hole I found myself in, I had to use the side of the snowmobile to pull myself up and out. I was back on the machine for less than a minute when I stacked it again so once I climbed back out we decided to call it a day as the snow storm was only getting heavier while the visibility worse. The heat in the truck was a blessing while the guides loaded the snowmobiles onto the trailer and we then headed back into Girdwood.

We spent that evening and the following day exploring the township of Girdwood and enjoying the outdoor fire pit while the snow continued to fall. We headed back to Anchorage, dropped off our hire car before a quiet night in for our early start the next day. Before the sun came up we were dropped off at the train station checking in for our 11 hour rail journey through the remote back country of Alaska. As we boarded the Denali Star, a retro old train, we settled in for our ride to Fairbanks. The journey was long but we were kept entertained with the regular moose sightings and beautiful scenery especially when going through the mountain range near Denali National Park. The train had to stop at one stage of the journey to entice a moose to get off the tracks. It took a good few minutes to get him to move and then it was full steam ahead.

After a long day of travel we spent the night in Fairbanks before getting a transfer to the remote resort of Chena Hot Springs. Built around a permanent thermal hot spring, this unique resort has its own dog sled kennels, airstrip and ice museum complete with an ice bar. The springs are glorious, even if getting out of the water in -20 degrees is a bit painful. We ventured around the grounds and found being nestled in a valley provided a beautiful backdrop from every angle. The resort is isolated from the outside world with Fairbanks approx 1.5 hour drive away. We watched a plane take off, walked around the ice museum and checked out their gift shop. Before we knew it, it was time for dinner and a quick rest before the main reason for us being in Chena Hot Springs began.

Aurora Borealis. Bucket list. Done. We did a 5 hour late night tour to see the lights. After a 25 min bumpy drive up the mountain in a snowcat, we finally arrived to the middle of nowhere and were greeted by a giant heated teepee. As we spent most of the next 5 hours outside in -27 degrees searching for the northern lights, with a windchill of -40 degrees, that heated teepee was a god send and helped put feeling back into my fingers and toes. We were lucky to see the lights for the last 2 hours on the mountain. And it was magical. The sky wasn't as clear as it could have been but as both Caleb and myself have wanted to see them for as long as we could remember we were stoked to be able to tick another lifelong goal off the list. They called it a night around 3am so we loaded back into the snowcats and after a nice hot shower back in our room I was alseep before my head hit the pillow.

After a swim in the hot springs, sadly it came time to say goodbye to the Alaskan wilderness. As we took a day long train trip up to Fairbanks, this time around we were back on a plane and headed back to Anchorage for our last night before saying goodbye to the US. We decided to splurge a little and had dinner at Benihana which was conveniently located next door to our hotel With a flick of a raw egg, flames that seemed to touch the ceiling and the mouthwatering seafood, it was the best way to close our American chapter of this epic honeymoon.

Travel tip - we loved the freedom of a self guided itinerary. Everything is organised you just have to stay on schedule! Highly recommend for somewhere like Alaska.

Travel tip - there are many once in a lifetime experiences to be had up here (snowmobiling, arctic circle flight, northern lights, wild animal safaris, dog sledding) so be prepared with a little extra spending money so you can make the most out of your trip as you most likely won't be back

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Country 30 - USA road trip week 6

10th - 18th February 2019

As Caleb & I begrudgingly left Las Vegas, we were all too aware that our epic USA road trip was quickly nearing it's end. The next stop on our 9000km journey was the majestic scenery of Death Valley.  The national park straddles both California and Nevada making it a very popular scenic drive between LA and Vegas. Most opt to do the drive in a mustang convertible however even though it may look like summer with the clear blue skies & shining sun,  it was hovering just above freezing for most of the day. 



Famous for a number of landmarks, we first visited Zabrieski Point (pictured above), an erosional landscape composed of sediments from Furnace Creek Lake which dried up 5 millions years ago. As a result the rocks show colors of yellow, orange and reds. Next up was the Devil's Golf Course (pictured left) - a large crystallized salt pan on the floor of Death Vally aptly named after a National Park guide book stated that 'only the devil could play golf' on it's rough textured surface.




Of all the places we visited in the park, Badwater Salt Flats were my favorite. Located 86 meters below sea level the basin is the lowest point in North America. Consisting of a small spring-fed pool of 'bad water' next to the road, the accumulated salts of the surrounding basin make it undrinkable thus giving it the name. It is truly amazing how Mother Nature runs her course and creates these honeycomb shapes (pictured at the bottom of blog) in the salt as far as the eye can see. The salt flats are about a kilometer from the road making the walk out there an introduction to the main attraction while dodging salt mounds along the way.

As our day came to an end we raced against the sunset making our way up to Dante's View to see the Valley from every angle. It was a busy view point at that time of day with everyone out with their cameras and tripods trying to get the best shot. It was zero degrees when we got up there and as soon as the sun dropped behind one of the mountain peaks, the temp dropped to well below zero. Sitting in the warmth of the car while Caleb got a couple of photos, I watched the masses run for their lives towards their cars to escape the cold. It was really funny as most were in shorts and hoodies & not even remotely prepared for the temps that were happening.

The next day we had officially left all warmth behind. Passing through the other side of Death Valley into California we passed by Scotty's Castle and the Sand Dunes, having to leave them for next time. Once we cleared the mountain pass, we found ourselves crossing another small valley right in the middle of a dust storm. It was like driving through an apocalypse. By the time we realised what we were driving through, navigating the road as we cold no longer see it, we completely forgot to get our cameras out. It was a surreal experience that's for sure. But that wasn't the only thing the drive had planned for us that day. Then, not 2 hours later, we were crossing a mountain pass that had snowed so heavily that the road simply disappeared for miles at a time. It was the first snow we'd seen on our honeymoon. Finally.

We had booked to stay at Lake Tahoe for 4 nights and what a great idea that was. We were in a winter wonderland and absolutely loving it. We were in a 2 bedroom penthouse with a fire place and huge icicles hanging from our balcony ceiling. We wondered around the property and found the outdoor pools (heated of course), frozen creeks and knee deep snow covering the general areas with a pathway carved for us to walk on. The staff at the hotel mentioned a local casino so of course Caleb found a poker game to play in. While I stayed at the apartment with a home cooked meal and the fire burning, hubby was out taking the locals money.





The main highlight of our time in Tahoe was snowmobiling! We had skied in New Zealand and rode my brother's jetski at Christmas a few years ago so combine them both together and you get a snowmobile machine. We felt pretty confident as we'd also driven ATVs a number of times so we put our hands up to be at the front of the pack instead of being stuck behind people who had never done anything like this before. We braved -16C with a -30C wind chill as we climbed Spooner Summit, just under 3000m above sea level. The guide made a couple of stops along the way to give us a chance to check out the amazing scenery. The views were incredible and we got a birds eye view of Lake Tahoe itself.

Back in the car we drove through more forests and mountain ranges as we made our way into Oregon. During our drive we came across the gem of the drive that was the Lassen National Forest. In summer the entire place is open for campers. Every side road is closed in the winter but it's still a sight to behold in the snow with it's massive pine trees and untouched wilderness. The following day we passed through Crater Lake National Park which was just an beautiful as we continued to head north west towards our final destination.

And just like that we were finally in Seattle! And of course it was raining. Nothing new for the Pacific North West. That didn't stop us though as we headed over to the Space Needle. Now in true fashion it was cold & miserable with cloud cover and rain so the views weren't the best they could be but it was still a great way for Caleb to see the city for the first time. And it still didn't stop me from standing on the see through glass floor 500 feet in the air.



Our final stop of our epic USA road trip was the Boeing Factory and Future of Flight in Everett. We took a 3 hour guided tour through the main factory for Boeing where they pump out planes like it is going out of style. There were so many numbers thrown at the group on this tour a couple stood out to us and made our jaws drop. If we walked in off the street tomorrow and ordered their cheapest plane it would set us back $296 million USD. And we would get it in 7 years when they got around to making it. But we wouldn't have engines so we'd have to throw in another $40-$50 million each if we want our plane to fly and then we'd have to think about the interior fit out. They don't make a plane until they get a deposited order and they still have a major backlog so we have time to save up the deposit.

They are militant about secrets getting out so there was absolutely no photography allowed on tour. The photos featured are courtesy of Boeing's website. We remained up in the rafters looking down on the production line as we viewed different stages of construction. They have 35,000 employees working 24/7 and even though the factory is one of the largest standalone buildings in the world, it's simply not big enough for the orders they need to fill.  Interesting to note that different parts of the planes are made in different countries around the world. Boeing has it's own designed plane - the Dreamlifter - which is used to transport certain parts made elsewhere to the Boeing facility for assembly. In one word this place is incredible.

The time had finally arrived to say goodbye to our chariot and prepare for our next adventure. What an amazing drive and experience it has been during all of these weeks thinking back to when we started way back in sunny Miami. The friends we've seen along the way have made this trip so memorable and the hospitality we've received has made any homesickness vanish for a short time. There are so many places still to see in the US and we've been tracking the states visited in our Been App to keep track. We've already talked about an East Coast roadie for next time!

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Country 30 - USA road trip week 5

3rd - 9th February 2019

Viva Las Vegas! We were staying just off the strip & had a courtesy shuttle to and from Harrah's Casino which was perfect for us. It was finally Superbowl weekend and Caleb was decked out in his Ram gear ready for the game. We had friends we'd met last year in town so we caught up with them at Harrah's and headed to the bar for a pre game drink & ended up playing some video slots (poker screen at each bar seat). You can't go anywhere or do anything that doesn't offer the chance to gamble in some way, shape or form. The game came and went and it wasn't a happy outcome so we brushed that aside and hit the slots.

As part of our stay package we received free show tickets and chose to go and see Mystere, Cirque Du Soleil at Treasure Island Casino. Mystere is the very first Cirque show and still runs nightly to this day. This. Show. Was. Amazing. I shouldn't be surprised though as we went to see Ka, another Cirque Du Soleil show, last year and it was just as jaw dropping. There were acrobatics, trampolines, dancing, people swinging from the roof and so much more. I think I held my breathe for most of the show. One of the major stand outs for us was the duo on the green dome who exhibited ridiculous strength for their act. Once they started, the guy in the air never touched the ground while changing positions at least 20 times. Like I said it was just amazing. Caleb had seen the show a few years ago and said it was still just as incredible as it was the first time.

We caught up with our friends again over the weekend and they introduced us to our new obsession. Sharknado slots! Apparently there are only 7 on the strip and Caesars Palace Casino has 2 of them. Now it's not about the actual show. I've seen in total about 10 mins of the Sharknado 'franchise' and it is as ridiculous as it sounds. BUT the game is so much fun. It's interactive, loud and so over the top it's funny. And like any machine it likes to take your donations. Once we'd had our fun we eventually stumbled across other machines like the Big Bang Theory, Anchorman and 007. We won some and we lost some but all in all it was a lot of fun.







Another perk of our resort is that we received a dinner voucher to a place of our choice during our stay. We checked the list and decided we'd give Gordan Ramsey's Pub & Grill at Caesar's Palace a go. It did not disappoint. One of the best short ribs I've ever had. After dinner we had another show lined up to see Anthony Cool's Experience at Paris Casino. It's a hypnotist show with a very funny comedic element. It was small and intimate and I tried my hardest to get Caleb to volunteer but to no avail. We laughed our pants off and soaked up the lights of the strip on our way home.

As we said goodbye to our friends they gave us a parting gift - tickets to the Penn & Teller show at the Rio. It was a dream come true for Caleb to see these guys perform live. Looking at their billboards around town I only recognised Penn from his time on Friends as a salesman selling Joey an encyclopedia. I didn't really know what I was in for but what a surprise! These guys performed a comedy magic show to a full house. Teller is the magician and is mute during all performances. So Penn speaks the whole show and of course gets the audience involved and blows your mind with some impossible tricks. Best part was meeting them both after the show in the foyer for a quick intro and a selfie. Such down to earth guys who have been performing together for over 40 years.

As our time in Vegas was quickly coming to an end, Caleb wanted to show me the locals' Vegas. As I'd only ever stayed on the strip he took us to Fremont Street. It was like a hidden gem! With flashing lights, street entertainers and open aired street bars this was a smaller version of what Vegas is known for and a locals paradise. The vibe here is so much different to the strip I was so glad we came here. We hit up the Golden Nugget Casino to play some of the fun slot machines before I left Caleb behind to play in the poker room.



If he had a choice Las Vegas would be our holiday destination every year he just loves it that much. And I have to say it is a pretty cool city to visit & play. We are planning to come back in a couple of months so we'll be seeing you again soon Vegas!

Travelers tip - You don't have to stay right on the strip as it can be very expensive. Hotel's like ours offer free shuttles to and from a central location.     

Travelers tip - Try and at least catch 1 Cirque Du Soleil show & Penn and Teller if you're up for a laugh. There are multiple shows running simultaneously so there's plenty to chose from.

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Country 30 - USA road trip week 4

27th January - 2nd February 2019

We are still in the desert. It's getting cold enough for a couple of layers. And Caleb has the man flu.

Our last couple of days in Phoenix were spent relaxing and catching up with Daryl and Leah while hubby recuperates and tries to fend off a wicked cough. Little man Harry kept him entertained as did a large sectional couch, flat screen TV and Red Dead Redemption 2. I was able to get him outside the house in small doses but our friends didn't seem to mind the downtime at home and the boys definitely didn't mind channeling their youth and playing the playstation for hours on end. As with our time with friends in Louisiana it was so great seeing friendly faces and having the comforts of home for a short time.

But there is no rest for the wicked! We packed the bags back into the car and we were off. Before we reached our next planned destination of Viva Las Vegas, we decided to make an over night stop in the jaw dropping Monument Valley. This place is unparalleled in natural beauty. We stayed at the View Hotel run by the local native tribe and gives you some spectacular views of the entire park. There are roads through the park which we drove to view different monuments and land marks that make this place so famous.As we watched the sun go down, along with the temperature we decided to call it a night.





As we left the hotel, that straddles the Utah & Arizona border, we drove about 20kms into Utah just to find the iconic spot from the Forrest Gump movie. We found it and it was totally worth the drive and straddling the middle of the road to get the perfect shot! Sadly Caleb lost his Pop just before we got to the Valley and in talking with his mum, she reminded him of his great love for the old John Wayne movies, especially the ones based in Monument Valley. Being able to come here less than a week of losing such a great man was Caleb's way of being able to say goodbye to him without being able to be home with the rest of the family. This one is for you Pop Craine.

As we watched the magnificent silhouettes of Monument Valley fade in the rear vision mirror we headed north west through the Virgin River Gorge towards the bright lights of Las Vegas. Even though Caleb was still down and out with the man flu no one could wipe the smile off his face as he was back to his happy place. We had our own apartment for the next 10 days and I was excited to finally have my own kitchen, do the washing and have the facilities of a great resort. Caleb set off to the tables the first change he got and I was more than happy to stay 'home'. While he was dusting off his poker skills, I relished in the mundane tasks of grocery shopping. I know I'm going to regret saying that when we eventually head home! The resort has a cinema, gym and pools with hot tubs. I'm set.

As we settled in and wrapped up week 4 we have a busy week 5 planned as we soak up the city lights!

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Country 30 - USA road trip week 3

20th - 26th January 2019

We're in Dallas and it's the run up to the Super Bowl. Football fever is officially in town! And no one takes football more seriously than the Texans. To start our 3rd week off we were invited to an all American football house party to watch the decider between the LA rams and the New Orleans Saints. Now I'm the first to tell anyone that I am not that huge of a sports fan. I'm not the one crying in the corner or yelling at the TV.  But I can hold my own through a game of NRL, NFL, AFL or cricket when needed. And today it was needed.



Through a mutual friend we met in Las Vegas last year, we scored an invite to the Texan football party. Complete with a fire pit outside, beer kegs, indoor and outdoor bar areas, a buffet of food and a pour your own margarita fountain - our afternoon was set. Our new friends who welcomed us into their home were fellow LA Rams supporters so we were in the right place.  It was a fun game with great home atmosphere and to top it off the Rams won in overtime to score a ticket to the Superbowl keeping the hubby and the host very happy. We had the best time and met so many new people who loved our accent and wanted to know everything about Australia.

It was time to say goodbye to Texas as we started our longest drive yet heading west once again towards New Mexico. Completely out of the way but a must see for Caleb, we took a detour that covered the entirety of West Texas just to visit a town called Odessa made famous by the hight school football team the Permian Odessa Panthers and subject of the movie Friday Night Lights. After seeing the stadium and the town we continued our 9 hour journey which was as dull and flat as you can imagine. The only thing breaking up the landscape were the massive wind farms and the secluded mini-oil derricks along the straight and narrow highway. Just to show how 'in the middle of nowhere' we were, we had tumbleweeds blowing across the road just like the movies.

The long drive was worth it because we  finally made it to Roswell! Home of the alien crash all those years ago. Being the fourth largest city in New Mexico, we were pleasantly surprised with how big this place really is. Of course the whole premise of the city is based around aliens. They have their alien street lights, UFO McDonald's, alien museums and the huge Dunkin Donut alien is just the best. Today I was in my element. For so long I've wanted to visit and just see what it's all about. We visited the UFO museum and read affidavits of the locals back when the crash happened, old new paper clippings, saw 'artifacts' & of course read all about the US military cover ups. All in all I thought it was done quite well. Caleb, the self proclaimed logical one, thought it was just like stepping inside the mind of a conspiracy theorist. Whether you believe it or not (and our household is much divided on this topic) Roswell is definitely worth the visit and the experience.

As we headed to our next planned destination, we decided to break up the drive and spend a night somewhere. Looking at the map there were a lot of scattered towns between us and Phoenix so based on the name alone, we decided to make our stop in a town called Truth or Consequences or T or C as the locals call it. Fun fact: Originally named Hot Springs, the city changed it's name to T or C, the title of a popular radio program. In March 1950, the host of the radio quiz show Truth or Consequences announced that he would air the program on it's 10th anniversary from the first town that renamed itself after the show and well Hot Springs won the honor and officially changed it's name on March 31, 1950.

Now there's not much to do in town but they are famous for their hot springs go figure. In googling things to do near by, Caleb made the fun discovery of Spaceport America - the worlds first commercial spaceport for private travel. We were really excited to see this and as we traveled the 50km outside of town it was official - we were in the middle of nowhere once again. Built in 2011 for Virgin Galactic and SpaceX for their commercial trips to space, after a test flight crashed in 2014 and SpaceX moving base to somewhere in Texas, this site is now pretty much empty and useless. Their website hasn't been updated in years and their info centre in T or C is opened by the library staff and left vacant each day. When we arrived we saw a very bored security guard, a model of the Virgin Galactic spacecraft and the spaceport off in the distance. Such a shame and waste considering there is no concrete timeline on if this port will ever be used in the future.

That evening we finally made it to Phoenix where we caught up with our good Aussie friends Daryl and Leah whose wedding we attending in Las Vegas last year. We were greeted by their little man Harry with a wave and a smile and we were glad to call their home ours for the next couple of days. They played perfect tour guides and on the first day took us for a drive down to Tombstone. Historic town of Wyatt Earp, Doc Holliday and the Gunfight of the O.K. Corral we were standing on the streets of a real life western movie. Our day started off at the Tombstone brewery. After the boys enjoyed a paddle each we walked into the centre of town. As we neared the main street it's like walking through a time warp as we swapped cars for horse drawn carriages and asphalt for dirt.

As we strolled down the street we passed saloons, shops and the site of the O.K Coral gun fight. The town has been very well preserved in keeping it's 1800's charm and history. We walked past live reenactments of cowboys hanging out on the street in preparation for the live O.K Corral gunfight showdown. They were in such perfect character as you walked past them in the street I had to do a double take as you felt like you'd been transported back in time. After lunch we headed back to the brewery a couple of blocks away from the main part of town where we were transported back to real time with cars on the road once again. Such an awesome place, set up so well to really make you feel like you are in the town of Tombstone, 1881.

To cap off week 3 of the road trip, we celebrated Australia Day in Phoenix with our fellow Aussies. In true American style, Daryl took us to a shooting range. We met up with 2 of his friends who bought their own fire power and drove out to the park preserve to secure our spot. As it was the weekend and one half of the preserve was closed, it was busy with fellow shooters trying to find a safe place to shot not to mention sharing the area with ATV riders who race around on the dirt tracks. With the table set up, guns of all sizes and amo laid out and the cool desert breeze in the air there was nothing left to do than to put the earmuffs on and go for gold. Not many targets were hit but all in all it was a fun way to spend the morning.

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Country 30 - USA road trip week 2

13th - 19th January 2019

We were fortunate enough to have a few days with our friends in Louisiana and as I mentioned in my last blog post we had a home for the first time in 6 months and it was bliss. It's funny how much you can miss the comforts of home like laundry, cooking and just lazing on the coach watching Netflix. Well Jayne opened her home to us and it was very welcome. Nicole had been in Houston visiting family while we were in New Orleans so we finally got to see her when she got home and catch up as we hadn't seen her since our wedding.

During our time in Lafayette we were lucky to see Hunter perform a couple of shows while we were in town. We were the novelty Australians at each show which I hope helped him get a few more people through the door. During our stay Hunter and Nicole showed us around their town making sure we tried the local Po-Boys which were delicious! We caught up on a couple of TV shows that we had missed since the start of our honeymoon and got into the Black Mirror bandersnatch craze.

The highlight would have to be our visit to the Tabasco Factory. Nicole's mum, who recently retired, was a VP for the company so Nicole had the connections to get us a VIP tour of the factory floor which was very informative and cool to see. With our hairnets and the boys with their beardnets a family friend took us through the factory and showed us everything from bottling the sauce, to the labeling, shipping orders and the domestic and international warehouses. I'd only ever done a brewery tour so it was really cool to see how such an iconic product is manufactured. After the tour we enjoyed lunch & then visited the Tabasco shop where I picked up a yummy Tabasco/balsamic combo and we all got to try some of the hottest options Tabasco offers followed by Tabasco soda!

Before we knew it it was time to leave our friends and continue our way west. We first met Hunter and Nicole in March on a cruise, a year later they were at our March wedding and now we were here another year after that. We are on track to see these guys on a yearly basis! We had such a fun time and really enjoyed seeing them and their town. A massive thanks to mumma Jayne for her generous hospitality and putting up with us all hogging her couch for a few days.



Next stop was Houston, Texas. Our main reason for stopping in Houston was to visit the Johnson Space Centre. By now we had the space bug and wanted to do and see anything NASA related. We visited during the Trump government shut down which meant the Centre was being run on skeleton staff but they worked hard to make sure their guests still had an enjoyable time. As the heart of NASA and Space Exploration everything goes through Houston. They may launch in Florida but here is where the magic, and science, lives. The highlight for me was visiting the White Flight Control Room (WFCR). A training room currently, this control room trains the staff who work in the actual control room that is used for launches and talks directly to the International Space Station. The WFCR will be the live control room when the Orion missions to Mars are launched in the 2030's & 2040's.


We then visited rocket park where the Saturn V is located. Saturn V is the tallest, heaviest and most powerful rocket ever flown. NASA used Saturn V rockets during the Apollo missions to send Americans to the moon. Beside the massive structure, each Apollo mission has a dedicated memorial with a short story on the mission and a crew write up. It's a very nice way to honor those who flew in the Apollo missions and of course to celebrate landing on the Moon.





We were fortunate to walk through the Space Vehicle Mock up Facility where again there was skeleton staff on so not much happening but we were able to see mock ups of pods and rovers that are currently being tested for the Orion program. The staff that were there were trialling a live size robot and testing commands like walk to door, pick up bag and open door. Pretty cool to see the robot in action.






Our last thing on our to do list at the Centre was the Space Shuttle Independence. Just like Space Shuttle Atlantis, Independence was bought home mounted to the Boeing NASA 905 which in its lifetime carried space shuttles 223 times over 42 years. A replica of Independence sits atop of the plane today and you can walk through the body of the plane to see what modifications had to be made to support such weight. The body was basically gutted sans 6 seats of first class to accommodate the crew removing the rest to make her as light as possible. We then walked through the shuttle to see just how much space the crew would have had for the journey. And let me tell you it wasn't a lot.

With a renewed space exploration fascination, we were on the road again heading north to Dallas. First stop on the list was the AT&T stadium home of the Dallas Cowboys of course. We got ourselves VIP tour tickets and got a behind the scenes look at the $1.3 billion stadium and the world's largest big screen. With access to the teams locker room, cheerleaders locker room, owners box, members seating and corporate boxes it was a very impressive stadium for the money spent. Best part was being on the field and in the end zone imagining what a crowd of 80.000+ would sound like.

As we wrap up week 2 of our road trip we get closer to Super Bowl weekend. With a LA Ram's (Caleb's team) game just a round the corner to see if they make the Superbowl week 3 of this trip will start off with a bang! 

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