Archive: June 8th, 2008 (1)

May 24th

May 24th was the least eventful of the weekend really but still really busy and great. We got to sleep in on Saturday morning and then head out to a late breakfast with some of my friends from church. It was fun to just leave from breakfast and go straight to Sedona! I am so not used to being on vacation. The drive was nice and pretty uneventful. When we were almost to Sedona, I let Vasi take over the driving - the first time anyone else has driven my car for more than like 5 miles. We had some really good conversations, but unfortunately I wasn't humble enough to try to speak Romanian because English was just so much easier and less embarassing.
Vasi was impressed with Sedona, as I knew he would be. There really is such an unusual beauty there. It stopped raining while we were there but there were still some pretty threatening-looking clouds so we were afraid to go hiking up on the cliffs. We ended up just walking around downtown. We got ice cream and sat on a bench and talked about how strange it was for him to be sitting in Sedona, AZ like it wasn't a big deal. He'd dreamed of going to the Grand Canyon since he was a little boy and now it was finally becoming a reality. We also talked about the differences between Romanians and Americans. I really like thinking critically about being an American, and this is definitely something that Vasi brings out in me. Anyway, then we drove up to the Sedona airport, where there's an awesome view of the area. We sat in the car and waited for a downpour to stop, then got out and took some pictures before heading to Flagstaff. The drive from Sedona to Flagstaff was breathtaking, and Vasi said it reminded him of home. Once he said that, it reminded me of Romania, too, a connection I hadn't made before but which makes perfect sense - I have always loved that drive and it only fits that it resembles the Romanian countryside. He was also amazed that Arizona has forests, as many people are.
We met my friend Bekah in Flagstaff, and she was fantastic. She was so generous with her apartment and her food and her time and her money. She even treated us both to a really nice dinner at a cute restaurant in downtown Flag. Then Vasi treated Bekah and I to coffee at a great coffee shop. I certainly got the sweet end of the deal all around! After coffee, we just went back to her place and settled down for the night. We watched a movie to try to wind down and went to bed around 11, ready for our 4 hours of sleep before heading to the Canyon!