Selfies with pink javelinas in uptown Sedona!

Ahhhhh – now we’re really getting into vacation time. Thursday and Friday were awesome, but we had to get up pretty early in the morning so that we could put our vacation plans into action. But Saturday, my friends, was time for relaxation…AND MORE ADVENTURE!!!! Although, when we woke up, we didn’t know exactly where the day would take us.

The first stop for me was at the spa, where I got an amazing custom facial. And it wasn’t just a regular facial (ok, get your mind out of the gutter!), but it was like a facial with bonus massages. While various goops were moisturizing my skin, the therapist massaged my arms, hands, shoulders, and then gave me a scalp massage so relaxing that I was just on the verge of sleep. Then, I went to get a long pedicure that included a hot stone massage for my feet and legs. I was so relaxed from my facial treatment that I just wanted to go back to the room and take a nap. But I suffered through my pedicure to the very end (ok, I’ll admit it – I can be a touch spoiled!). Seriously though, it was all very relaxing and I felt very pampered.

So now on to the good stuff that might interest you! We wandered up to Main Street for some lunch (meh) and walked around a bit. On our meanderings, we stopped in at a little tourism outfit that was giving great rates on SEDONA HELICOPTER TOURS!!! YESSSS!!! All the helicopter tours!!! We opted for the “Hog Wild” tour, which basically combined their two shorter tours into an hour-long flight. They even picked us up at our hotel and drove us to the airport and back. I knew that I wanted to see all the red rocks surrounding Sedona, and this is one of the best ways to do it! Are you ready for some pictures and another video clip? Here you go:

(with bonus helicopter blade blur)

The pictures don’t really capture how amazing the valley is, in terms of its colors and vastness. I guess to really get a flavor for what the ride was like, you should probably watch this video clip. We were able to get really close to the rock formations and swoop through the canyons, which was a little different from the Grand Canyon tour because at the Grand Canyon we had to stay above a certain elevation. But in Sedona, there were no regulations like that – my favorite parts of the flight were Secret Canyon and Boynton Canyon – we even saw some cliff dwelling ruins. I highly recommend seeing Sedona by helicopter!

Now, don’t get me wrong – I think the Grand Canyon is pretty friggin’ spectacular. And I also think it has definitely earned its place on the 7 Natural Wonders of the World list. I’m just saying, “grand” is kind of subjective, and it could be a perspective that some people might not necessarily agree with. I, however, am not one of those people.

Yay Grand Canyon!!! Bright and early, we headed northwest from Sedona up to the South Rim for our Valentine’s Day adventure. Chris had never seen the canyon before, but it was on his bucket list, so we wanted to do it right. And you know what that means…

HELICOPTER RIDE!!!

And neither of us had ever been on a helicopter, so that was a first for both of us. The most fantastic part of the ride was flying about 100′ over a flat expanse of Ponderosa pines, and then all of a sudden we were flying 100′ PLUS another few thousand feet above the ground! The helicopter stayed level, but of course, our stomachs dropped (along with our jaws). I managed to take some video of the flight, which also features me acting like a complete spaz (as per usual, so don’t be surprised):

(REALLY??? Out of all the screen shots that could’ve represented this clip, THIS picture was the one selected??? REALLY?????)

Me and Chris in the helicopter!

After the flight, we stopped off at some of the view points to take a look around from the ground (and to collect a few stamps for my National Parks passport, which I actually forgot at home – d’oh!). All of the views were spectacular, and they all looked something like this:

It is amazing how the brain can barely process the visual field of depth of the Grand Canyon – when you’re looking at that much space in front of you, it’s hard to believe that you’re not looking at a photograph or a painting. It hardly seems real! Of course, we had to take a gazillion pictures, even though they all kind of look the same, and a picture will rarely ever do the real thing any amount of justice. But I can show them all to you, just let me know if you want to see them (j/k!). I won’t torture you with all of them right now, but here are a couple of my favorites:

By the time we made it back to Sedona, the sun was on its way down and we were ready for our Valentine’s Day dinner (which was delicious – we both had the lobster). I hope that you had a pleasant VD experience, and are looking forward to hearing about the rest of our mini-vacation in Arizona! More to come soon…