I don't know about you, but my father is quite excited about planning another family vacation this summer. Who doesn't love a roadtrip? The last few years he's been in a bucket-list mentality: "If we don't go see the Grand Canyon now, then we'll just put it off and never do it." We all nod and go along, and then surprisingly end up on quite the adventure. (We now call this the #freemanadventure.) This year, we're heading to Grand Teton Park, so more on that next month. However, last year we spent an epic week in Arizona... so here are some of the must-sees for all the summer roadtrippers out there:

1. Arcosanti. This place gives me hope for the future. It's a community surrounding the idea of arcology (architecture + ecology) built over the past few decades by thousands of volunteers. It's a little oasis in the desert and artist haven... Arcosanti is worth stopping by if your driving North from Phoenix.

2. Sedona. This is a magical place. As anyone who has been will tell you. You can happen upon a mysterious vortex, which is a spot where the Earth's magnetism is thought to have special properties. You can hike and stroll throughout the day, enjoy the shops and cafes, and catch some amazing sunsets. Sunset at Bell Rock Vortex pictured below. PS I woke up like this.

3. Red Rock State Park. While in Sedona, you can hop out into several hiking trails in Red Rock State Park, and you'll basically feel like a badass. I really don't know how people don't die climbing up these things. There are no rails, and you're often climbing up on all fours. It feels like a choose-your-own-adventure, if you're into those types of things. I'm glad we didn't lose someone over the edge and were able to find a nice watering hole to jump into after.

4. Grand Canyon- South Rim. Yeah yeah, this is definitely the first thing you'll think about hitting up in AZ, right? Well the Grand Canyon is pretty grand. And though you may have seen millions of pictures of it, you've got to see it and climb all over it for yourself. It makes you want to put your hands out in reaction of the grandeur of it all! If you're just driving through, the South Rim has all sorts of trails, walkways, and viewpoints for any level or duration of stay.

5. Antelope Canyon. After spending a few days in Sedona, we headed up to Page, AZ to yes another part of that big hole in the ground we were checking out above. You must check out Antelope Canyon. It's in a Navajo Nation Park, so you'll need to make arrangements with a guide in order to have have access to it. We went to Upper Antelope Canyon, and they're careful about how many people they let in at one time. Our guide was awesome, it was picturesque, and we had a pretty sweet ride there.

6. Glen Canyon. Page, AZ may be the smallest town ever. Just a warning. There's not much night life, or food after 9pm for the matter. We spent the day on the first 15 mile stretch of the Colorado River in Glen Canyon. The boys were in heaven hearing the history of it all, and we rafted along the inside of the Grand Canyon's walls that rose thousands of feet on our sides...talk about a different perspective! Oh and we met 12 new friends that were motorcycling across the country. (We didn't make it to Havasu Falls like Meg did. Sad face.)

7. Horseshoe Bend. To finish out the day on the Colorado River, you must get the view of the sun going down above it. We rafted through that bend, and we made the trek out to see it. To get to the viewpoint from where you park your car, it feels like you're walking into a desert-y horizon. I'd have to say people were a little crazy about getting a good photo and were so close the edge that I got nauseous looking at them. One dude put his wife on a leash!

8. Jerome, AZ. I'd have to admit exploring Jerome is a bit depressing. It's an old mining town that is stuck in a time warp, because people don't really live there anymore once that industry ran its course. It's worth stopping in for lunch to see what a ghost town looks like.

9. Montezuma Castle National Monument. If you're super into history, or your mother is, this stop will appease you. A castle hundreds of years old on the side of a mountain! Montezuma is a quick stop and worth seeing with your own eyes.

10. Poolside. Before you hop back on the plane (or car) you owe yourself a day by the pool. Especially if you find yourself in Phoenix during the summer...it is hot as balls. Your phone can't even handle it. You can relax from your hiking days, stay cool, and prepare yourself for your trip back to reality. For us- that would mean heading back to the East coast. Like a Girlboss. (if you didn't read it last year, get with it.)

notes:

- this was my first adventure with a GoPro & and we may have had fun with it :)

- there are plenty of other things to do in Arizona (now I know!) so this list is merely what we encountered upon our bucket-list-driven-path

- family vacations aren't the worst, but i do recommend finding activities so you don't kill each other

Oh, do I have Big Sur dreams. I've been lucky enough to tag on an extra day or so in this part of heaven the last few years when traveling for work. It served as a sort of "spring break" and I didn't get one this year!! Thus, my wanderlust is hitting me a little harder than ever.

The perfect day would include some wandering around scenic Highway 1 (perhaps hopping out for some tree hugging and hiking down to McWay Falls)...

...and then finding our way to Pfeiffer Beach with a bottle of local wine to enjoy the last few hours of sunshine breathing in the fresh air, watching the surfers, and digging all sorts of beach vibes. Harmonicas are helpful too.

This beach in particular is pretty f-ing magical. I mean, there's purple sand. Yes, purple. And the locals are pretty awesome too. When I was there last spring with a good friend, we were invited over for dinner by a man we met on the beach who lived in a house his father built in the 1960s on the cliff above. Actually he lived in his own house next to it that he built complete with a long outdoor dinner table and open air fireplace. We sat with him and some friends and exchanged stories while he cooked us a homemade meal (his friend from Spain made paella from scratch), we climbed on top of his green roof which was full of kale he was growing along the perimeter (dreams!), we checked out his green building next door where he was designing furniture but also allowed the space to be used for local yoga retreats... I mean you wouldn't believe all of it if I told you! Oh yes and there may have been a natural hot tub that we all swam in during which I saw at least 5 shooting stars. Magic, I say! We learned that our new friend recently moved back home to Big Sur after leaving a prestigious tech career in San Francisco - making a choice to find meaning in a simpler life. Instead of spending the rest of his life designing software and logos for Apple or Google (which one I don't remember...they're the same, right?), he wanted to make something that mattered to him. He wanted to get his hands dirty and get back to actually creating. I was basically drooling while listening to his story; Big Sur has always been one of those fantastical places I imagine quitting my NYC life for. How could anyone complain waking up and falling asleep in a place like this? It's green, it's beautiful, it's grounded. I mean it is the definition of a good quality of life.

I did return to NYC as planned, and went back to the grind. However, it was such a breath of fresh air to taste a different pace of life and mentality. What a dream it was to walk on purple sand and tell stories about what we dream of creating with our lives around a camp fire. We're due to taste that again soon, right? In the meantime, we've got Wednesdays.

notes:

- pfeiffer beach is a little bit hidden, and they only allow a certain amount of people in at the same time. we checked out other people's directions and pointers on yelp, and they were pretty helpful! we knew we wanted to see the sunset, so we got there several hours before to hang out and brought layers.

- i really wanted to go to the hot springs, but it's pretty expensive to go. however, they do have public hours for $30 from 1am-3am here that seem like quite the experience. our local friends said they used to sneak in there all the time as teenagers. even though we didn't make it here last time, we still got lucky with a natural hot spring under the moonlight with shooting stars!