We did it. We went on our first ever family vacation. Going to Palestine two summers ago doesn’t count because…well… it just doesn’t.
The goal was to spend one day and one night in each location. Ever since we first got married, Rami has been talking to me about how beautiful Yosemite is and how I have to see it. We tried making reservations during the summer but they were completely sold out. Eid came at an opportune time for travel. The weather was still nice, school was in session [read: no crowds], and off season prices had kicked in.
I’ve lived in California my entire life and I can’t believe I have never been to Yosemite. It’s gorgeous. It’s only 3 and half hours away. A dose of Dramamine is in order for that last hour though. We Rami decided it would be more fun to stay in a tent cabin. As in, no real walls, no electricity, no real locks. After seeing it in person, I’ll take Curry Village over Homekeeping Camp any day.
Ain’t she a beauty? Check out the inside. It was actually a lot of fun. Freezing in the morning, but fun. The bathrooms were surprisingly very clean. The pizza from the Pizza Deck was amazing. We had little squirrels running under out feet the entire time we ate. One even hopped onto a table by Maysoon’s stroller and tried sniffing at her. The park is huge on stressing the issue about not feeding the animals or leaving any trash or food behind. “Let the wildlife be wild” was the slogan. Bear boxes are all over the park. All garbage must be put into the mailbox style cans. Any scented products must be put into your box outside of the tent. Nothing is allowed to stay in the car. They even recommend taking car seats out. So everything in the box: food, toiletries, diapers and wipes. Diapers and wipes cannot be in the tent. I have a baby people. Can’t I just leave one diaper and one wipe?? Nope. So in the middle of the night, Rami had to risk his life to wild, hungry bears in the dead of night to grab a diaper and wipes from our bear box. Luckily he made it back into the cabin alive. He had to do it all over again to send out the dirty diaper.
The first day we got there we walked around on some of the trails. That’s really all there is to do when you have little kids. The park was pretty dry from the summer, so seeing Yosemite Falls wasn’t as incredible as it could have been. The massive mountains of granite we’re absolutely breathtaking. They’re something you must see in person. Pictures can never do them justice.
That right there people, is a king snake. And I, the idiot, walked right up to it and took a picture. You’d think I never watched an episode of “When Animals Attack.” As we were walking along a path I saw it a few yards away. It was my first time (and hopefully last time) seeing a wild snake.
We took the Valley Floor Tour the day we left. It was nice but Jenin got bored and cranky after 15 minutes. The tour lasts 2 hours. So you can imagine how enjoyable that was for us.
Tunnel View and El Capitan
Yosemite was gorgeous. We’re planning another trip there for the spring. Can’t wait!
Next up… Tahoe.
