Summer Road Trip Pics 2014

With all the craziness that happened before and after TMC, I never got around to posting pics of my summer vacation! This summer, for Independence Day, my parents, sister, and I sat out on a road trip!

Before this trip, I had visited 11 states. And, I'd only ever driven a car in two states - Oklahoma (obviously!) and Arkansas (my college roommate's wedding). Now, I've visited 13 states and driven in six states - OK, KS, CO, NM, TX, and AR! Colorado and New Mexico were new states for me to visit!

Highlights of the trip:
* Riding a 1905 carousel in Burlington, CO
* Visiting two state capitol buildings - Denver and Santa Fe
* Garden of the Gods was beautiful!
* Riding public transportation for the first time in my life
* Beautiful Scenery
* Experiencing the mountains for the first time!
* Precious time spent with family

I even made a nifty little map of the states I have visited to share with my students! You can make your own at http://www.visitedstatesmap.com/.

The pictures are in kind of a random order. Sorry about that!

Train in Dodge City

Carousel in Burlington, CO

Capitol Building in Denver, CO

I also rode on public transportation for the first time in my life! This is me on the 16th Street Mall Bus in Denver!

16th Street Mall Bus in Denver

We had to ride the bus in order to get to the Federal Reserve's Money Museum.

Federal Reserve Money Museum - Denver

On the bus ride back to the part of downtown Denver we started in, I had to stand up because there were so many people on the bus. I quickly found out why they give you little straps to hold on to!

16th Street Mall - Denver

Mail Service in Rural Colorado

This is a sign you don't see in Oklahoma!

Colorado Signage

Interesting Artwork in the Capitol in Santa Fe
This was made 100% out of recycled materials!

Cadillac Ranch in Amarillo, TX

Yes, I'm 24. And, yes, I still play on the playground equipment!

Playground in Kansas

Tokens to ride the carousel in Burlington, CO. 25 cents per ride!

Dome in Denver Capitol Building

Garden of the Gods - Colorado Springs, CO

Capitol in Santa Fe - The ONLY round capitol building in the US!

Blue Hole - Santa Rosa, NM

We drove down Historic Route 66 in Tucumcari, NM

An unexpected stop at the tire shop in Sayre, OK...

At the Big Well in Greensburg, KS

I was so excited to find math on my vacation. These pics are from the Big Well in Greensburg, KS!

Math!

More Math!

I'm not entirely sure who this cardboard cutout was, but I posed with him anyway in Dodge City, KS!

Rebecca - Dodge City, KS

We navigated the entire trip the old fashioned way. No GPS or smart phone. Paper maps all the way!

We drove up the far eastern side of Colorado, and it goes on like this for miles and miles and miles. We were the only car on the road for the most of this drive. Though, we did get stuck behind a few combines. SO much farmland! But, it was worth it because I got to ride the carousel in Burlington!

Far Eastern CO

Carousel - Burlington, CO

The carousel was beautifully restored! It's an older carousel, so it doesn't go up and down. But, it more than makes up for that with speed. It goes 12 mph! We were holding on for our dear lives! Plus - you can't beat the price of 25 cents per ride! I rode a zebra!

Carousel - Burlington, CO

My sister and me after our carousel ride!

Carousel - Burlington, CO

The carousel is housed in a dodecagon shaped building. How cool!

Carousel - Burlington, CO

Capitol Building - Denver

Navigating Downtown Denver

16th Street Mall Bus - Denver, CO

Federal Reserve Money Museum - Denver, CO

One of the exhibits inside the money museum let you design your own money. Yes, those are infinity symbols. I would have totally made a Pi-Bill, but that sadly wasn't a choice! I live in oil country, so I made sure to put an oil well on my money. And, we saw so many windmills on our trip. I'm from Oklahoma, so I made sure to put the OK flag on there. And, I studied Spanish in college. So, "dinero" was fitting. :)