Someone once asked me why do I like to travel and what places I like to visit. My answer was that I love seeing nature because in their sights you see the beauty of our creator. It doesn’t matter what you call our creator, Allah, God, Lord or anything else, what matters to me is that in some places his presence is undeniable. It is there for those who ponder and observe.
Since I became Muslim I started to “slow” down and really take in life like we take a deep breath. Once I started doing this I became more in love with life. I recently visited the Grand Canyon and it is definitely one of those places where you are just awed by its magic. I am so glad we didn’t give up on the 8 hours’ drive (return) from Vegas to the grand Canyon. I always wanted to visit this place. It is actually one of the few places I really wanted to visit in the USA, the other being Hawaii and Miami because of the CSI Miami series. Who doesn’t love Horatio? I know I can be sad too ;).We did have a joke with my husband about how long we will spend looking at the Canyon. As I actually spent less than 5 minutes at the Eiffel Tower. So we thought that we would give it 10 minutes max and then drive another 4 hours back.
I really didn’t know what to expect. I usually try not to imagine or read too much information before I visit a place because then we create this image in our head and we can be disappointed. If you don’t know what to expect you can be pleasantly surprised most of the times.
Once you step into the Canyon you are just mesmerised. It is like “WOW” it feels so unreal and so beautiful. It took this places millions of years to be created which shows us how young we are in comparison to the world. It is totally humbling.
Within the National Park you have to pay for your entrance which is a one off fee of $25 per car and then you are free to drive around. The Park itself has lodges, a mini market, a bank and postal office and I really wish I could have stayed the night there but all lodges were fully booked. They are actually booked most of the year and if you want one you will need to book months in advance, especially if you want one for a good price.
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Trail to the Canyon
As we had a car we drove around the edges of the Canyon and every time the view was magnificent. The roads are good and you can just spend your time in the Park enjoying the view, there were many campers, caravans and even more tourists just enjoying the views. We stayed there until sunrise so I think we spent about 4-5 hours there. We also prayed in the Canyon and it was an amazing feeling. I wish I was more prepared as they did have an option for hiking and exploring the Canyon which I would love to do next time. I would love to come back when I have kids with one of these big caravans and just go around and explore. There is something beautiful and peaceful about this place that cannot be put into words.If you are thinking of visiting then stop thinking and just do it, you will not be disappointed. If you want to spend $1000 you can also get a helicopter ride above the Canyon which I am sure it will be a great experience too.
