Smokey Mountains 2024

 Long time no Blog! I guess a little thing called COVID happened : \

We've had a few trips since the Arizona 2020 trip. 2021: many car rides to Rochester and Scarsdale, first COVID flight on July 4th to Gloucester. 2022: Boston, DC, Gloucester, Chicago, French Lick. 2023: Park City Utah, Stinson Beach CA, Austin TX.

First trip of 2024 was a 5d trek to Gatlinburg and the Smokey Mountains. We drove down on 3/30 and stopped by Lexington, KY for a break. But the break ended up being a 4.4 mile hike at Raven Run Sanctuary! Ended up doing a hodgepodge of red, green, and blue walking trails to reach Silver Falls.  Passed a few beds of wildflowers too. Beautiful weather (sunny, 70s) but unfortunately, we dressed and packed for a long car ride, not a lengthy trek into the wilderness, and certain members of the party got a little hot, hungry, and grumpy. Made it to our awesome cabin ("Treehouse Lodge") just outside Gatlinburg before sunset, and the kids jumped onto Cato's treehouse:

A quick pasta dinner and leftover pizza and then early (ish) bedtime to anticipate Smokey Mountain adventures ahead.

Sunday 3/31 (5.5 miles)

After breakfast at the cabin we drove to Grotto Falls leaving from the Trillium Gap trailhead. Rockstar parking (only 1/4 wheels were sticking out onto the road, I'll take it). Moderately difficult, but only 3 miles and fresh mountain air to boost our energy. The Falls themselves were spectacular, with a cave behind them to allow passage behind the falls. Saya may have left her hiking stick on the other side "accidentally" and may have had to go back and forth behind the falls a few times ;)

But wait! That's not all. After eating leftover for lunch at the cabin, we decided it was just too nice of a day to stay indoors. We ended up going to Mynatt Park and experiencing our first (of many) river rock jumping adventures. These monkey-bears are such good climbers!

We found an amazing Thai restaurant (The Baht) for take out dinner and despite the moderately spicy food the whole family gobbled the drunken noodles, sticky rice, green curry, and Wok vegetables. 

Monday 4/1 (7.2 miles)

On day 2 we pulled the veteran move to have an early breakfast in the car on the way to Anakeesta in downtown Gatlinburg. The kids braved a chairlift in windy/rainy conditions to make it to the top of the mountain where Firefly village was awaiting.

We explored Vista Gardens, Treehouse climbs, Birdhouse bouncing, and more. View from the top of the Tower:

Oh, and I had my first cup of coffee for the trip ;)

Came down the mountain for lunch at ... Subway! Walked around Gatlinburg a bit, got some bear prints from a local Art gallery, indulged in candied apples, and then did another afternoon hike to another rock scramble.

Dinner was Jyo's famous 10min tortilla soup (yum!) followed by attacking a half-galloon of vanilla ice cream to celebrate Aku's half birthday :)

Tuesday 4/2 (7.2 miles)

Left the cabin bright and early to get to the Huskey Branch Falls via Little River Trail. Another moderate hike but very gentle incline. Aku regaled me with a comprehensive overview of Magnus Kingdom of Chess for about 45 min nonstop... And then it was on to renditions of "NYTimes Digits" for the rest of the hike. 

The big falls were a little anticlimactic, but there was a perfect river-rock scramble near the end.

This was a tough hike...kids got puckered out near the end.

Came home to discover that the fridge in the cabin broke, and all the food was spoiled (including the remains of the half gallon tub...should have just finished it on Monday!). They sent a mini-fridge delivered that night and reimbursed a new instacart order to make up for it. Dinner was 10min cabin chole that was delicious, and we played our first game of Wingspan, a new Patel family favorite! Beautiful pictures, fun facts about birds, mildly competitive with lots of individual personal goals to achieve. Pretty perfect for our crowd :)

Wednesday 4/3 (6.3 miles)

Coldest day by far. After enduring a storm overnight, the temperature dropped to the 30s-40s (from 70s!) and it was drizzling when we departed in the morning. But we were (mostly) prepared, with layers of weatherproofing. Decided to tackle the Alum Cave trail, knowing that it would be rainy/cold but moderately crowded. It was most definitely rainy and cold, and not crowded at all. The kids were real troopers, with only moderate complaining (ok, maybe more than moderate). Note: no need for hiking sticks when it's that cold; wear more layers than you think you need; consider hand warmers; cotton mittens get cold when wet. Pretty views up to the cave, but not much time to enjoy them as any stoppage resulted in feeling more complaints...

Planned to reward ourselves with Subway for lunch again, but the line was out the door and down the block, so stumbled upon this gem (Whole Earth Cafe). Delicious, quick meal (lentil burgers, wraps, salads...and tea/coffee!). Spent the rest of the afternoon relaxing at home and preparing for our trip back home.

Thursday 4/4

And that was the end of our short (but sweet!) trip to the Smokies! Left bright and early on 4/4 to avoid the traffic, a quick stop for lunch in Lexington KY (Squire's Corner Kitchen; lovely hole-in-the-wall vegan friendly spot), and back home for a relaxing dinner of daal-baath-rotli-shak :)

Arizona trip February 2020

Hello!

This might be our last posting for a while...what with the travel restrictions from COVID-19. We have April, May, and July trips planned...but let's see what happens...

Arizona was a two part trip. For the first four days, we rented a house with P's college friends, who came from Hawaii, LA, New York, and Indianapolis (us).

It turns out, having three kids under 6 years old means that viruses love our household. Similar to India trip (Nov 2017 - Liyu got gastro the night before our trip out there) and Palm Springs trip (Feb 2018 - Saya got food poisoning on day 2), we were not in the best shape going into this trip. P had flu the week before, and Saya got diagnosed with an ear infection the day before our flight out.

¯\_(ツ)_/¯

Baka and Darshana saved us. We were cranky, tired, and sick, and likely looked a mess, when we alighted. We had a few hours to kill before the rental house was available, so we crashed at Arizona home for a few hours and got some nice time with the kids, got yummy food, and refreshed a bit.

We made it to the rental house. Here is a pic of the shibens as we make our first (of many) grocery runs for a house full of 9 adults and 8 kids:



The house was gorgeous. More than 10 bedrooms, plenty of bathrooms, indoor space to run around, a huge yard with a putting green, bocce court, grilling deck, and pool (and hut tub!). More space than we needed, but perhaps at the next reunion in 4 years we'll have a bigger group (missed you Kleins and other Birnbaums!).

Day 2 was low key and relaxing. Saya stayed home with Aku and Jyoti, and the rest of us went to a nearby playground to run off steam. Thanks to Uncle Cliff and Uncle Andrew for keeping the kids occupied with various antics :)



Day 3. Saya asks all the older kids to read Dory Fantasmagory to her. No one obliges. But it's a really fun book, she says. No one obliges. She convinces Jyoti to read it, but whispers "read it right here in the middle of the floor where everyone can see us." Because, she knows that it's a fun book. And the other kids, once they hear it, will want to listen too. Is this little 4 year old a little too smart at times?



Rest of day is a fun day out. Go to Pizzeria Bianco for lunch. Go to the Children's Museum because someone gave Brooke 14 free tickets yesterday (nice!). Come home and have a nice grill out. Delicious veggies (eggplant, zuccini, portabellas), veggie burgers for us and hot dogs and burgers for other folks. Lounging in the pool (and hot tub!) afterwards.

                 

Day 4. More relaxing day spent mainly in the house. Uncle Cliff goes on trial for "stealing the last potato chips." Judge Uncle Andrew presides. There does not appear to be a prosecutor, but the gaggle of children on the bunk bed is making the accusations and have put Uncle Cliff in "jail" underneath the blankets and pillows. Harold is the defense attorney. After a fair and impartial trial, Cliff is found guilty of eating the last potato chips, but not guilty of the more severe offense of stealing the bag of chips. Judge Uncle Andrew sentences him to time served and a judicial order to buy new potato chips for all the children to share.

The kids get a baby sitter (Paige -- thanks Baka and Darshana!) and the adults get a night out at a really good Mexican restaurant Barrio Cafe.

Day 5. Leave the reunion and head over to see Ananya didi and Samin bhai! Baka and Darshana have always been, and continue to be, so warm and accommodating. Aku gets a huge crib to himself and we take over the casita. Liyu and Sayu get to do bedtime with didi and bhai. Baka doing an overnight 24hr, so we miss him.

Day 6. Baka's back! And has the day off to spend with us. Shenanigans all around!

Day 7. JyoE birthday! Happy birday pardy. Barre Class with Darshana while Baka and I take the kids on a hike. Note everyone's style.

        

Aku loves the ball on the slide game :)

We get Samin bhai and Ananya didi early from school and go out to yummy spinach pizza at Spinato's. We go to a horse show where we learn that none of us is any good at judging horses. But we have lemonade, popcorn, and smoothies, so it's all good.

Then home for a Jyo-picked (and Darshana-provided) dinner of Korean Bo Bim Bap. Dharti foi (and her acupuncture needles) comes for a visit too!


Fun times with friends and family.



Back to Indy on Feb 22 after a great lunch of grilled Beyond burgers. And then bhajia when it starts raining, because that's what we do! :) Until next time, Arizona family!

Iceland Trip, July 28 2019 - Aug 3 2019

Hi all!

Apologies for the long delay between posts...we had three kids in between ;).

I will try to do a better job keeping up to date! But here is a pictorial story of our adventures with our dear friends, the Hollinses (Dan, Molly, Reuben and Izzy) to Iceland this past summer.

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Saturday July 27 - Sunday July 28.

It starts at...Foi-Fi's "compartment" in Jersey City! Dada and Dadi were out of town, so...we took our three car seats and Uber/Lyft'ed our way from LaGuardia to Foi-Fi's place. Rather seamlessly, it turns out. Phew, that was a relief. Here is the view from the top! It was so nice to just have a relaxing morning instead of trying to fly out that morning and make the connection.



Then we met up with our friends, at Newark Airport. Iceland Air was very pleasant, providing a kids kit with fresh (glacial) water, coloring books, and of course (given the 12-18 hours of sunlight...), eye patches! Saya has hers on upside down, naturally :)



Oh. And. I used to have a beard. 🧔 When in Iceland...do as the Icelandic do?



The kids were great on the plane. Adjusted beautifully to the time zone difference, slept a bit, and woke up in time for our 5am arrival to Reykjavic. First stop, the Viking Museum! What an amazing stop. A full breakfast/lunch buffet for us, and -- a real Viking Ship, replica of a ship Leif Eriksson sailed in, which was actually sailed by scientists/historians/adventurers to commemorate the millennial anniversary of the original voyage. And now Saya captains the ship :)



Hiking around outside the museum:



And if that weren't enough for one day...the kids then walked almost 3 miles around Reykjavik, including to this outdoor sculpture on the coast.



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Monday July 29.

We decide, with a little encouragement from the Hollinses, to drive to the Snaefellsbaer penninsula in Western Iceland. What a great choice! Kids were great in the car, and lots of scenic vistas just driving along the highway. Then a 5 mile (!) hike along the coast to a cozy little coffee shop for refreshments.



But wait! We're not done with the day! A trip to singing caves, and then a (retrospectively very treacherous) climb up a waterfall bed where Saya sings in triumph.

Phew, what a day. So proud of the kids for all their great hiking, their sunny dispositions, and their amazing energy.

Aku paku is exhausted after this. Sleeps like...a baby...



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Tuesday July 30.

Low key day for us. We travel to Vik and then Vestmannaeyjar by ferry. We discover several things. Amulya has inherited the "don't like boats" gene. Saya seems ok. Akash may be in between. But the island is absolutely gorgeous. Mountain wildflowers are so vivid!



We have a little scare when our SUV gets stuck at the tip of the island with 80 mph biting winds. It won't turn on! A friendly tour guide gives us a jump, and we make it safely back to the hotel. I find a mechanic who has diagnosed the problem within 30 seconds -- the connection to the battery is loose, likely from repeated driving over gravel, whose vibrations often loosen these connections. We're all patched up (for free!), and in compensation Blue Car rental gives us back a day of rental charges.

Tired, a bit stressed, we do what we do...go for a walk (3 miles today!). Charming streets, kids in tow, and we run into a pizza place for dinner...that has amazing Vegan pizza! Pitsugerdin. We try to give Aku his blended favorites (applesauce! with cinnamon! with strawberries? with pear and kale??). But, being the enterprising and relentless Paku bear...he decides he wants his first, real, solid, from-momma's-plate, food will be straight up cheese pizza. Ahmnamnamnam. Look at that smile. Welcome to the Patel family, little one :)



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Wednesday July 31.

We attempt a hike up the volcano, but are turned away when the winds hit 80mph again and a local asks us if we're really going to attempt the climb with our kids. Er...no, we're not. What a silly idea.

A stop over at a Fort, then visiting Beluga whales, then back to Vik on the ferry. It takes a bit of coaxing (we can't stay here for ever, Liyu. our flight takes off from the mainland and here we are stuck on an island. it's only half an hour. we'll give you treats [after we're on the other side].) and then some drugs (ahhh...Dramamine), but we make it back to the mainland.

Brave Liyu, we're proud of all the kids yet again.

From there we go to Fludir to spend a few days in the Golden Circle. Beautiful view from right outside our cabin:





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Thursday August 1.

Exploring the Golden Circle! Gulfoss waterfall:



Famed geyser at, um...Geysir:

A more peaceful and isolated waterfall at Faxi, Blaskogabyggdt:



Iceland has never seen a floss quite like this. :)

4 miles, 10,083 steps with the kids. Amazing. Ended the day with a trip to Fridheimar Farms, an organic greenhouse that grows...tomatoes. Lots of 'em! Delicious tomato soup, unlimited fresh bread, what more could we want!



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Friday August 2.

Thingvellir National Park, where two intercontinental tectonic plates meet!



Went for a hike around the Park, and found the Althing, where Iceland's first parliament met.


Crystal clear glacial lake waters (apparently millennia-old):







And...dinner at a Farm-to-table restaurant, Efstidalur. We went there for the ice cream, but stayed for dinner! Dessert before dinner!? Why not, it's the last full day we'll have in Iceland on vacation :)



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Saturday August 3.

Kandlikar-Patel clan goes to Kerid crater (site of a prior volcanic eruption; now the lake at the crater has fish/marine life that has been in an isolated ecosystem for a thousand years).

But...as if that's not enough hiking, we make it to Hveragerdi for another hike to a local waterfalls...



...and more Vegan pizza at Olverk. Hey, we're actually eating pretty well this trip!

We meet up with Dan, Molly, Reuben and Izzy at the airport, where luggage check in is a bit of a hassle (some bags go here! Others go there! No, wait, the car seats go there!). But we make it onto the plane, get our Iceland Air kids kits again, and are happy and excited to be coming home. We make the mistake of not doing Mobile Passport at EWR (2 hours of waiting at customs!!!) but Dada and Dadi are patiently waiting to bring us home, then drop us back off the next morning to come back to Indy.

It was exhausting, and exhilarating! 2.5 mi, 4.4 mi, 4.9 mi, 3.1 mi, 4.6 mi, 3.7 mi, 5.5 mi, 4.4 mi. The kids were great. What a lovely trip. :)