Day #5 Transitions, Kindness of Strangers, Artists Point

Day #5 began at Grant Village in Yellowstone.

We were all noticing that the transition glasses that mom, Art and I wore turned really, really dark when we were outside. It then took a LONG time for it to return to normal when we were back indoors or in the Kia rental minivan.

Actually we're thinking that the Kia minivan windows might not block UVs because our glasses would stay dark unlike when we're in our Honda or Prius at home in Hawaii.

I wish we'd brought our second pair of non transition glasses to Yellowstone so that mom and Art could have seen the true colors of the Park's natural wonders without the extra dark tinting. We couldn't understand why the transitions turned much darker than when we wear them in Hawaii.


Today was an incredible day highlighted by the kindness of strangers everywhere we went. I guess we shouldn't have to be surprised by people being so nice, but having such wonderful people all around us made our vacation such an amazing experience.

All the wait staff at the restaurants were accommodating and friendly, filling us with warmth and making us feel welcome.

Aside from the staff who are supposed to be kind, the other park visitors were equally helpful and friendly. This was one of the restaurants where someone from another table saw Art taking our photo and came over to offer to take our photo so everyone could be in the picture.


On the way to Artists Point, we could see beautiful snow patterns on the lake.


We couldn't understand why traffic was so slow until we saw this bison walking in our lane. We all eventually had to carefully pass him. He wasn't following the speed limit.


This is the famous Artists Point. Someone offered to take our photo again.


This is the photo that everybody takes whenever they come to Yellowstone.


The Grand Canyon of Yellowstone was really spectacular. Mom and Auntie Grace were captivated by the colors of the rocks and soil around us.

When we arrived at our next destination where we'd be spending the night, we were told that dining facilities were all by reservation and completely booked. The only place open was a park diner. When we got there, all the stools were packed tight. It was especially difficult because we had a big party. We therefore ordered take-out sandwiches and walked around the store while they were making our order.

What a surprise when the server came to hunt us down to tell us that he found a way for us all to sit and there should just be a short wait because some people were finishing up.

When we got there, the other diners all saw our problem and just moved down to accommodate us. They then sent over a menu and started chatting. This fellow turned out to have a similar military service background as Art.


Mom and Auntie Grace tried pulled pork sandwiches for the first time and really enjoyed it. They couldn't get over how kind everybody was.


Lake Yellowstone Hotel was the most expensive of the national park hotels we stayed at. I imagine you're paying more for the history than the amenities.

Or perhaps it's for the view. As expensive as our room was, we had a view of the parking lot instead of the lake. I shudder to think what a lake view would have cost. Sigh... Oh well.