Daddy-Daughter Vacation, Day Three, Part One

Going through photos and blogging has made me realize just how much my dad and I did each day!

This day was no exception to our jam-packed vacation, which is why I'm splitting it in two parts as well.

Day three of our trip began by driving through Monument Valley, still on the Navajo Indian Reservation.

Monument Valley

Early on we began seeing these little huts on the side of the road with signs for jewelry.

My dad was all about giving me an authentic experience, so we pulled off to one of the first ones and took a gander at the little shop.

Let me tell you, this handmade jewelry was absolutely stunning.

The Navajo couple we talked to at the first stop were so nice. It really was fun to stop and shop :)

We stopped at four or five of these different huts throughout the entire day.

My dad was getting tired of it, I think, but I was on a hunt to find the perfect turquoise ring.

  

I think the worst and the best part about this vacation was that every minute we spent driving we had something to look at. Whether it was a stunning monument in Monument Valley, these odd little cacti that lined the sides of the road and spotted the landscape, or a canyon that made me anxious to see the one we call Grand, I never tired of looking out my window. The downside to which is that I could never spend much time sleeping or reading in the car :)

We eventually stumbled upon Navajo National Monument.

Instead of trying to explain it, here's a description directly from the website...

"The prehistoric Puebloan Ancestors built Tsegi Phase villages within the natural sandstone alcoves of our canyons. The resilient Ancestral Puebloans paved the way for current Native American groups in the Southwest region. These villages, which date from AD 1250 to 1300, thrill all who visit with original architectural elements such as roof beams, masonary walls, rock art, and hand and foot holds."

Just to the left of the shadow in the alcove you can see the dwellings.

Pretty dang cool.

This trip just kept getting better.

Believe it or not, these little huts above are how the Puebloan Indians "bathed."

They would go into these huts, cover them, and then lay in there to sweat all of the dirt out of their skin. Then they would wipe off the dirt, or, if lucky enough, rinse it off with a what water they had.

Sounds like a modern-day sauna.

After our history lesson at Navajo we kept venturing on to the Grand Canyon.

We came to the incredible Navajo Bridge over the Colorado River.

Navajo Bridge on the right, pedestrian bridge on the left

It was a blazing 104 degrees, in direct sunlight, standing over water.

I could hardly stand it, but we dealt with it for a bit in order to watch some people floating down the river.

Later on we drove further down the Colorado and ate lunch on the banks of the river by the company that sets people off on those 16 day trips.

This nice stroll under the Navajo was probably the most leisurely time those people had, compared to the rapids they'd experience later :)

I never would have guessed that the rest of the day would bring more incredible sights and a complete change of atmosphere.