Less business oriented than a lot of Americans. Also more open-minded and chill in general.
The snakes and spiders are kind of fascinating to me but not sure if that is a common occurrence or just stuff you see on social media.
Also, there seems to be a ton of the country that I never see discussed (although I never seek it out). I imagine it is really inhospitable.
Idk if any of this is accurate.
I would love to visit one day even though the flight times seem brutal.
Feb 8, 2024
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The southwest is my home and I didn’t learn to fully appreciate its unique beauty and culture for what it is until I left.
The wide open skies and horizons that seem to go on forever and the sunsets that come with that are breathtaking. The sparseness of the landscape is soothing to the spirit; the lack of humidity is wonderful for the lungs. The rock formations are insane. If you’re the kind of person who loves sunlight you’re in luck. And few things are better than the smell and splendor of desert rain.
Some areas like where I grew up can be incredibly isolated geographically and culturally from other parts of the US, where the nearest large (American) city is three to eight hours‘ driving distance away, surrounded with nothing but empty desert.
I would say the southwest starts in Marfa, Texas (highly recommend) and extends into SoCal, with the furthest north parts being in lower Utah and Colorado. New Mexico and El Paso have some of the best Mexican food in the country. The national and state parks are gorgeous. I don’t claim Arizona, especially since it’s become infested with Californians. Every city I have visited in Arizona has been the worst place I’ve ever been.
The environment and climate are hostile to human plant and animal life in a lot of ways (including urban planning in most major cities in the area) and the people can be suspicious of strangers and outsiders, brusque and unfriendly. The legacy of centuries of colonization, occupation, gunslinging outlaws, and war casts an inescapably dark feeling over the land. I admire the southwest because it’s an area where everything and everyone must fight to exist; it fosters resilience and self sufficiency like nothing else.
Sep 20, 2024
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Lol I think it’s clear here how obsessed I am with this region. I’m particularly a fan of Flagstaff, AZ and northern New Mexico, but I also really like Tucson.
Seems like the perfect place to spend this length of time in since I could imagine the isolation, distance from international airports, and politics of the surrounding areas would get trying longterm. But for this length of time, you’ll have all the hikes in the world, amazing food, art scenes, and the healing power of the desert!
Mar 22, 2024
Last post about this, I promise! I just would've never visited South Dakota had my friends not invited me along on this random lil trip, so I want to share what I've learned with you.
You can fly into Rapid City and visit the otherworldly national park Badlands, the Black Hills, colossal monuments like Mount Rushmore + the Crazy Horse Memorial, huge mountains + thousands of bison in Custer State Park, tiny casinos in the old cowboy town of Deadwood, and you can even cross over into Wyoming to see Devil's Tower.
None of these places are more than an hour-ish drive from each other! And you'll see a lot of variety in terrain along the way.
We visited during the April shoulder season and basically had it all to ourselves. The days before and after our trip were a nice 65-70 degrees & sunny, but as soon as we arrived temps dipped into the low 40s...oh well, it's better than the summer when it all gets crazy hot & crowded. Hotels are cheap & pretty nice. Go somewhere else if you're a food motivated traveler, you'll be mostly eating burgers cooked by the bartender.
Anyways, highly recommend visiting this special place.
I'll be sharing some film shots from the trip on this IG account.
@tyler
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Feb 7, 2025
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i’m just kinda like this
Jun 19, 2024