Elisa's Daily ScoopCousins Bid Farewell in IdahoHello, Hello!! Friday already and the last day of our Cousins Yellowstone Road Trip. Today we head out of West Yellowstone and Montana, through Idaho for a few stops and from there, the cousins will bid each other farewell until Tanya and I reunite in Prague at the end of June. My gang will head back to Jackson, Wyoming where we will spend the night. Our beloved cousins will continue their homeward bound road trippin' to Salt Lake City. We hadn't really factored in Idaho sights till recently. One of these will include Idaho Falls. Then, the other day, Kelsey suggested that we pay a visit to The Potato Museum, which she was familiarized with on "the Shaytards" reality Vlog. And so, with alittle creative road trip planning on Tanya's part, we'll be caravanning there as well! Can't wait to tell you all about it in tomorrow's blog! So...let me catch you up on yesterday's happenings...our third and final day in Yellowstone brought us to Old Faithful. The first stop we made was to the Fountain Paint Pots, another thermal springs area. This place was way cool! The weather yesterday was a bit chillier than it had been, and it was also cloudy and drizzling as we began our walk on the safety of the boardwalk. The steam was all around and produced a creepy mood. The girls were cold and didn't want to see "another paint pot". So we went back to the car, while Tanya and her gang enjoyed the views. The steam was all around and produced a creepy mood. The girls were cold and didn't want to see "another paint pot". So, I walked back to the car with them, while Tanya and her gang continued the walk all around the area. Thankfully the sun did make an appearance and the temps got warmer by the time we got to the Old Faithful Visitors center and the kids refrained from complaining. Through the glass back wall of the building Old Faithful was visible! It was very exciting to be staring our the window at the world famous natural attraction!! We had a few minutes to spare before Old Faithful was scheduled to erupt and so we all watched a documentary film, popped into the gift shop to stamp our Park passports. and walk around the Exhibit Hall. It was almost 2:38 and the geyser was about to erupt! We had a perfect view! As I photographed, Gianna captured it on video. There is 4000 to 6000 gallons of water that shoots up from Old Faithful during an eruption. Onward to our final destination for the day - Midway Geyser Basin. This area contains one of the most amazing and largest hot spring - the 3rd largest in the world, including the Grand Prismatic Spring, along its half-mile trail. This place was cool, creepy, amazing and strange, all at the same time. It was definitely one of my favorite places in Yellowstone! When we arrived, the sun was shining, but in the open area it was quite chilly and windy. The whole area was full of steam, blowing up from the hot earth and engulfing certain sections of the walkway. It was a bit intimidating walking along the trail, particularly where there were no rails, knowing it was impossible to walk off the boardwalk for fear of falling into the boiling hot earth that lay all around! The landscape of this area was so diverse. It was comprised of a plethora of colors and prismatic tones, cracks that spread all around, water flowing down the hilly areas, crater-like features all within the atmosphere of heavy, thick steam blowing all about. Walking through the blowing steam was a strange sensation of weird odors and wetness. Not to mention, it was very difficult to see ahead while walking on the narrow wood-planked trail! And that folks was the end of our visit to Yellowstone!! We said goodbye to this incredible National Park till our next visit. What a joy it was to be with Tanya, to make more memories together!! (Not to mention, all her hard work in planning out each day at Yellowstone!!) Getting back to our regular features her on T.C., I hope you didn't think that a little traveling would let us forget that today is also Foodie Friday! Please CLICK HERE to read my article about my recent pre-Opera dinner at The Leopard at des Artistes, in New York City, near Lincoln Center! I will talk to you tomorrow when I'm back in Jackson, to catch my flight back home to New York. Wishing you the start of a fabulous weekend! -E xoxo | Tanya's Daily ScoopOn the Road Again!Friday is here folks! The cousins will caravan until the museum in Blackfoot, Idaho, and then sadly we'll part and go our separate ways - Read Elisa's side to find out where she's going! And continue reading this column to find out where my group is heading! Yup after a week of the cousins touring together through three states (Wyoming/Idaho/Montana) and two National Parks (Grand Tetons/Yellowstone) the time to say good bye is only a few hours away. Boo (insert sad face). The next time I'll be seeing Elisa is in June (time to start counting down) when we meet in Prague for our Eastern European Trip! The next time the kids will see each other is in July, when the kids & Dave B fly into JFK to meet me (once I return from Europe). When Dave, Dominic & I will be heading to Cincinnati for the MLB All Star Game, and Cosette will be staying with Elisa and the girls (as she has little to no interest in coming to the All-Star game). It's also always so sad for me to leave a National Park, and this one especially. It's one of the most dynamic places on earth. Literally a living laboratory. With mud pots bubble, pop, and belch. And steam vents sizzle, hiss, and growl! Adios Yellowstone, until we meet again. Yesterday was another AWESOME day in the park! We saw things like the Fountain Paint Pots and Red Spouter - splashing it's muddy red waters in an ANGRY fashion! Learned much about the Hydrothermal and AMAZING features of Yellowstone at the Old Faithful Visitors Center, while we waited for the big eruption and where we watched a film and toured the educational exhibit. SEE our TOP 15 Facts About Yellowstone HERE We also crossed the Firehole River, caught glimpses of the very colorful Grand Prismatic Springs, and the beautiful Turquoise Pool. Then coming back to our rental I took the kiddos to the pool, then Dave took them to the playground, and finally Elisa met us at the Gym! What a Great Day!! Now, as for today there are a few things that I wanna mention: 1. A very special Travel book was released yesterday!!! 2. What's the haps for today... 3. It's FOODIE FRIDAY baby!! One thing that makes Today pretty darn special and exciting is that we are checkin' in with Kristin Lajeunesse, friend and new author of the just launched/released book titled WILL TRAVEL FOR (VEGAN) FOOD: A YOUNG WOMAN'S SOLO VAN DWELLING MISSION TO BREAK FREE, FIND FOOD, AND MAKE LOVE. Click HERE for Interview! In our first interview of 2015 we've got all the scoop in our 15 for '15!!! Read all about it HERE. Today is a very full day for us...not only will we be on the road for over 9hrs. Hitting cites such as Idaho Falls, Salt Lake City, and St George. And visiting places like the Idaho Potato Museum and the Utah State Capital! (Can you believe that in all the years that I've been coming on ski trips to the city that I've never been!!) We'll also be adding a passenger once we reach SLC - my friend Manny will be riding with us until we arrive to St George, Utah (at the south west corner of the state near the borders of Nevada and Arizona). Whew! Hope you have a GREAT day! See ya from St George tomorrow! -T |