Lake Mead at Hoover Dam. 
Zion National Park 
Zion National Park
By Jennifer Trend
From Dec. 20 to Dec. 24, my family and I took a road trip to Las Vegas, Nevada and St. George, Utah, where some of my family lives. It was an extended weekend full of early mornings and almost non-stop driving, but it was very fun and beautiful.
On Friday, we stopped at Las Vegas for the night and then headed to St. George early Saturday morning. While it was more country like, and nothing but bare plains for as far as the eye could see, it was very beautiful. After we crossed the border into Utah (where the welcome to Utah sign was graffitied onto a board), the plains became more hilly and turned into various shades of red. Dare I say that it reminded me of a savanna or badlands biome from Minecraft?
Saturday afternoon we went to Zion National Park, and it was honestly nothing like I’ve ever seen before. Something about the park makes you feel small, and that you might as well be the equivalent to an ant compared to the mountains (also, add to the fact that death is literally a breath away). It was insanely pretty and the amount of times that I almost slipped or was simply in awe of how close my lifeline could be cut was more than I can count on one hand.
Sunday, we said our goodbyes to our family and left for Vegas. After dropping off our stuff at the hotel, we went to the Hoover Dam (Why? For the simple fact that Percy Jackson went there, duh). It was interesting to see the dam and how it was built. I also took a photo with the angels that appeared in the books, so that was neat. After we got back to the hotel, we did absolutely nothing but lay in bed because we were so tired. But the pokemon on PokemonGO were beyond plentiful, and I think I caught more than 150 of them in a day. Insane, right?
Monday, my mom and I saw a professional showing of “The Nutcracker,” and while it was amazing, I do admit that I almost fell asleep. Something about the dance and the music was so lulling and peaceful. But everything from the dance, to the production and the costume designs were absolutely stunning.
Tuesday morning we came back home, exhausted and ready to celebrate Christmas, but I’m glad we took the trip. If you ever have the chance to go to Utah, I would definitely recommend going to Zion!
