I am from San Francisco but my university is in Washington DC (American University), so I decided to have some fun roadtripping my prius back and forth. I have done four cross country roadtrips in total, and this is the journey of my last one!
I and my friend first drove from DC to Asheville. It is a sweet little art town in North Carolina surrounded by beautiful nature. We took a drive along the Blue Ridge Mountains, pictured above. We spent our next day exploring the nearby waterfalls. The picture below is at Triple Falls.
Our next stop was New Orleans, where we ate sweet beignets and listen to some jazz music. We strolled around the French Quarter, then checked out the Garden District, where there seemed to be thriving local life.
We then headed over to Houston, Texas to drop in on some of my relatives. We ate delicious southern food and played all night with my baby cousins. Our next stop was Carlsbad Caverns in New Mexico. This place is AMAZING. It is the fifth largest chamber in North America, and we spent one hour walking 750 FEET DOWN into the chamber! The chamber at the bottom is huge, and feels otherwordly.
Our next stop was Sedona, AZ, which was my favorite of the trip. It is known for its energy vortexes, which are places in nature where the earth is exceptionally alive with energy. The first picture was taken at Cathedral Rock Vortex, which is an energy vortex of the feminine energy. The second picture is taken at the seven sacred pools, which are not a vortex but do represent the seven chakras.
Our final destination was home, and I couldn’t be happier to be back in the beautiful Bay Area! The last picture is on top of Mount Tamalpais, at a local favorite spot for watching the sunset with a view of San Francisco and the Pacific Ocean.
A few roadtrip tips
Get a hybrid. We spent a total of $250 for gas split between two people
Try out airbnbs. In many cases they were cheaper than hostels and we met amazing owners.
Get off the main highway – because they all look the same
Download some audiobooks, TED talks, and sweet music
Thank you for reading.