Now that I've returned from my trip to the field (and gotten my baggage finally... a whole other story), I'm finally sitting down to catch up on blogs. I actually ate much better on the western slope than I thought I would. Unfortunately, I also didn't take as many pictures as I thought I would, but here's what I ended up with.
In Grand Junction, this was painted on an abandoned building behind our hotel. "Hope for the Western Slope". This helped set the tone for the rest of the trip, at least foodwise for me. Our first night in Grand Junction was a Sunday, so several of the restaurants I wanted to try were closed (welcome to small town USA!). Luckily, our hotel rooms had a microwave, so an Amy's black bean burrito was my dinner for the night. I was also able to make my own oatmeal in the morning (which I did all week) and brought some single servings of soy milk as well. 
Night 2 was a little rougher. We were in Green River, Utah. Ray's Tavern is a famous geologist's hang out (not sure why). See their sign bragging that it's the place for everyone? Everyone except vegans that is. They had a Boca burger on the menu, but it wasn't vegan and besides, they cooked it on the same grill as everything else. Bleh. So I ended up with an iceberg lettuce salad and a plain baked potato. Better than nothing I guess. This is where my snacks came in handy.
Night 3 we were in Moab, Utah. It probably wouldn't have been too tough to find a decent meal in this touristy town, but I was even luckier to meet up with a childhood friend who made me this tasty salad using local greens....
And veggie sushi filled with asparagus, mango, tofu, carrots, green onions, and arugula. Plus there was a big bowl of cherries and some coconut sorbet (mmmmm) for dessert. Thanks Meg for an amazing dinner and of course your company! 
Our final night we were back in Grand Junction at a local restaurant for the group dinner, il bistro Italiano. The chef was very sweet and made me a huge bowl of pasta with lots of veggies, a portobello mushroom with red sauce, and a salad. I ended up stuffed but somehow still had room for one of the oatmeal chocolate chip cookies I brought with me (Uncle Eddie's brand).
And here's one of the more scenic pictures I took in Colorado National Monument, with some storms brewing in the background. I love being out west, the scenery was amazing. But my stomach and dry eyes and skin are glad to be back home in Houston.
Vegan Toffee
6 hours ago
25 comments:
Welcome back, Amanda!!! Wow, what a trip you had - Colorado is an ESPECIALLY gorgeous place to visit, with such an impressive scenery.
I MUST hear about your baggage story - I'm intrigued!! :0)
You survived! hehe. That salad your friend made looks amazing, I must say. Glad to have you back!
Welcome home! I love the scenic photos.
Welcome back!!
Sorry to hear you had a tough time finding foods. Good thing Amy's is so versatile!!
Yuck... why do people assume that because it's a veggie burger that it's alright to cook it by meat? Gross!
Glad to see you survived off more than just plain ol' salads of lettuce and tomato (well, except for your meal at Ray's Tavern it seems...). The scenery looks beautiful as well!
Oooh, I think you got some great photos! Meg's dinner looks the best. I guess one iceberg salad out of the trip isn't too bad. Good thing your room had a microwave.
It's really hot here too, but we're still grilling tomorrow.
Haha I *knew* it was you that was searching for me ;o).
Welcome back from your trip-- the Colorado National Monument looks stunning. And what a sweet friend you have-- the salad and sushi look like a perfect vegan meal. I love mandarin oranges in salad.
Welcome back! The scenery from your trip looks stunning--but too bad about the food! I think I lost weight just reading your menus for the week ;) . The meal your friend made for you sounded lovely, though.
Welcome back! It looks like quite a trip. Was the geology hang-out fun despite the food? I always loved hanging out with the geology kids in undergrad, because they embraced their nerdiness and puns and didn't try to hide it. They were so much fun.
Glad you're back! Sucks about the food situation in the beginning, but it looks like you ended up faring okay. I've never thought about adding mango to sushi, but that sounds like a great idea!
Welcome back! I'm glad you managed to find a few things to eat. The meal by your friend looks tasty! Like you, I pack snacks all the time.
Glad you're back, and you do need to share your luggage story! (as someone who has often had luggage issues...it's fun to swap not so funny-funny stories!
Pretty lame having to survive on iceburg lettuce, but it's good to have friends like yours!
Thank goodness for packed snacks, eh? Sounds like all in all, you had a good trip. Sorry about the luggage situation. Knock wood, I've never had that happen to me. My mom did when she was coming home from Japan and it was weeks before she got her bags back.
Welcome back!
You're so lucky - it seems like 90% of your posts are about your trips! It's nice that you had a friend to meet up with and that she made sure you didn't starve. All the colors in the salad make it so beautiful, and I love those wooden-looking bowls! That sushi sounds really exciting too, especially the mango part. Your baggage story leaves me quite curious, though... I'd love to hear it too.
Glad you're back and that you survived your trip! It looks like you did okay for food, although I don't envy your iceberg salad and dry potato experience :(
It's cool that you've been to Falcon Field! I hope I got at least a somewhat likeness of it...
And yes, I almost did have a heart attack transporting that cake.
What beautiful scenery. I am so fascinated by your job as a geologist. Too bad you don't get to travel more often. I know the doldrum of office work.
Your friend Meg is so kind. What a wonderful and thoughtful meal she made for you. Yay for friends like her!
welcome back! i'm sorry you had some difficult time finding vegan goodies, though! i haven't been to Colorado yet, but your photos tell me that it's a beautiful place!
What a sweet friend to fix you such a lovely meal! Those pics are gorgeous.
Oh yay, you're back! Your friend is super awesome for making you such a tasty meal!
The photo from the Colorado National Monument is GORGEOUS!! So beautiful.
Haha you confused me for a minute, girl-- I was like, "Wait, Amanda has a test blog... is she starting a cookbook?" :o)
What a view! I hope you enjoyed it, but I'm also glad that you're back. :)
Stumbled on your blog..and it really rocks;) I am huge Louis L'amour fan and these snaps reminds me of the settings to most of his wild west capers:)
AMYS TO THE RESCUE!!! i must shes rescued me a couple of times too!!!
your pictures are beautiful.... i especially love the one in Colorado National Monument
Thanks for some terrific pics, welcome back, and I'm glad you could find delicious things to eat even if it was a sketchy at times.
We spent two weeks in Moab one year, with a group of rockhounds from Cal, at the AMFS annual show(American Federation of Mineral Societies). It's such a beautiful place.
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