12/30/16

Day 5

This has been an absolutely amazing week. I spent about 22hrs driving west through many places I have never seen before. I was able to catch up with family in Dallas and Tucson. I've seen movies, enjoyed amazing food, done plenty of rock climbing and wood splitting, and discovered the loving hospitality of people in the southwest.

Late last night I arrived into a city of almost 1.5 million people. My hopes were to spend the night in the parking lot of a 24hr park. Unsurprisingly, they had a parking restriction during the over night hours.

The solution came in the form of street side parking directly between the park and downtown. This was a perfect solution letting me check out the night life while not having to drive. Just before the sun came up, I got ready and moved my car over to the park to continue sleeping.

The bed is very comfortable, but the greatest creation is the cardboard cutouts for the windows. It provides a surprising amount of privacy for living in your car and is almost perfect at keeping light out.

Key things learned from staying in my car: learn yoga (especially if your car is fairly small, it can be a bit tricky to move around), find ear plugs for the noise (the airport was right next to me), and get used to potentially weird sleeping hours. Other than that, it was a great experience last night!

I spent the day walking around the park and checking out the museums. They had everything from gardens to photography and history. I got to see Joel Sartore's photo ark, read what the city is trying to do in educating kids on the importance of water, and found some amazing local restaurants. Unfortunately, the group I hoped to meet up with for dumpster diving has not gotten back to me. I may be on my own for that learning experience.

I hope everyone is having a great holiday season with their families!