Category: Pre-Trip

A bright and early start on Day 2 of our San Francisco Tour gets us to San Francisco from our nearby Fremont Crowne Plaza Hotel by 7:30. We are dropped off near China Town for breakfast. It’s typical San Francisco Spring weather: gray, drizzly skies and temps in the mid-60s. My first mission is to find some caffeine, which isn’t too hard since there are several cute cafes nestled below the tall sky rises. We have 90 minutes for breakfast, so I spend my last hour wandering around the financial district, people watching and snapping photos of the amazing architecture and cool statues and art. Our first official sightseeing excursion of the day is Lombard Street – famous for its steepness and pinpoint curves. Those of us who are up for it are encouraged to hike to the top and take in the breathtaking views. Anna and I accept the challenge and are greeted at the top of the   » Read More

Category: Pre-Trip

Everyone dreams about the big city, the Big Apple, Manhattan, the “city that never sleeps”—New York City.  I’ve been to NYC many times, I went to school in New York and my mom lives in Manhattan, but with a city so bustling and full of things to do, it was definitely a different experience to see it on a Tours4Fun tour.  I saw so many things that I didn’t have the time to see before—or didn’t even know existed! The intrepid Air and Space Museum was one of these.  I would have never thought to go to this museum before, but I was so glad I got a chance to explore on my T4F trip.  It’s a pretty huge museum full of vintage planes and artifacts.  It almost felt like you were stepping back in time, in an old air hangar filled with war planes, fighter jets, and army helicopters.  It was a mix between Top Gu   » Read More

Category: Pre-Trip

Bryce Canyon: home of the hoodoos.  If you don’t know what hoodoos are, then you are in exactly the same boat as me a couple months ago.  Actually, before this trip I had never even heard of Bryce Canyon (let the gasps of silence ensue). It’s funny actually, because it became one of my favorite places during our West Coast trip.  It was truly spectacular: one of those sights of nature that you just have to sit down for a moment to take it all in. Hoodoos are giant rock formations eroded from time.  The native americans believed that the hoodoos were actually spirits trapped in rock form, and that’s why many are given names that personify their rock shapes. It always amazes me that the forces of nature can create landscapes that look more like works of art.  In Bryce Canyon, for example, the giant hoodoo rock formations seem like something   » Read More

Category: Pre-Trip

Solvang, CADay 1 of our 3-Day San Francisco, Hearst Castle, Yosemite Tour!<br/>The bus picked us up from LA, and then the Travelers4Fun Team was off! First stop: Solvang, a Danish village nestled about an hour north of Santa Barbara. A sunny spring day was a perfect backdrop for the colorful red, green, and yellow buildings and charming, wood-thatched wind mills. Once off the bus our tour group quickly dispersed, each of us following our noses toward a medley of delicious scents coming from all directions. From freshly-baked, authentic Danish pastries, to chocolates made on the premises, to home-made ice cream shops on every corner, Solvang was a sugar-lover’s dream. <br/><br/>I personally couldn’t resist Ingeborg’s Handmade Danish Chocolates, their display of giant chocolate Easter bunnies was too enticing to pass up. Two friendly chocolate-makers were kind enou   » Read More

Category: Pre-Trip

I was lucky enough to take a trip to New Orleans this past week and see what it has to offer. It had always been one of the top places on my bucket list, as I’m sure it is for many others. The food, the music, the French influenced architecture, and of course, the rich history, bring people to this delectable melting pot of a city.   Although many warned me of the smothering August humidity, I seized my opportunity to go regardless of the temperature. Plus, it was no secret among my friends that I loved being blanketed by humidity, to their chagrins. We stepped off of the plane and taxied our way over to the French Quarter, only a half hour away. The small cobblestone streets and hidden alleyways alluded to the city’s age, which was built during a time where a horse and buggy were the main mode of transp   » Read More

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I Love The Smell of Rotten Eggs In the Morning

Category: Pre-Trip

So when I think of what the Yellowstone Hot Springs were going to be like, I thought of two things: rotten eggs and the movie Lake Placid.  If you didn’t know the sulfuric acid that the hot springs emit, give off the delicious odor of deviled eggs.  But fear ye not, the smell is bearable once you are distracted by the beautiful colors of the springs.  One thing to be clear about the hot springs before you visit Yellowstone is that you can’t go swimming in them.  Yes, there are many hot springs throughout the world that offer this divine activity, however the Yellowstone hot springs are a bit more volatile.  Reaching a whopping 160 degrees, these hot springs would surely cause more than a little burn; they might even melt your skin off!  So be sure to stay on the marked trails and admire nature’s dangerous beauty from afar. I was surprised by just how different each hot spring looked.  It seemed that each one had its own personality, color scheme, and vibe.  Some seemed serene and peaceful, while others seemed torment...

Volcanoes, and Goonies, and Bears, Oh My!

Category: Pre-Trip

So our trip starts on Wednesday and we’ve been planning all the details from what videos we’ll be creating, to what blogs we’ll be writing.  We are so excited to share our journey with you all, and can’t wait to get on the road already! I haven’t been to most of these places before so it will be a fresh point of view for everyone that’s curious about traveling to these destinations.  My dad always jokes that Yellowstone is the super volcano of the world and that it’s going to explode and kill us all.  So…wish us luck?  I think I’ve always thought of Yellowstone as a beautiful landscape that smells like rotten eggs.  But I think after the first couple doses of sulfuric acid I’ll be free to explore the natural scenery to its full extent.  Plus, who hasn’t had a secret desire to see Old Faithful?  I think I’m excited most about the famous “hoodoos” at Bryce Canyon National Park.  Hoodoos are natural rock figures that Bryce Canyon’s indigenous Paiute...

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