In 1998, the family when on a road trip to Yellowstone National Park. My mom decided to bring a notebook and pen to document and log the trip. We all thought it was such a lame idea…until now.
12 years later, Van found the log and emailed it to us. I was tearing up from laughter! Best part is, we still all have the same jerky personalities we did back then! I had to blog about it to keep it somewhere I can go back to read it anytime!
Please enjoy:
4105 miles to yellowstone national park
SATURDAY, 7/25/98[mom]
5:15 am: passed Victorville
5:57: barstow
7:00: stop @ restroom CA state line. I become driver until 9am.
9:00: Virgin river canyon is so beautiful. My children are finally wake up and make noise in the car
Thi is asking people for using deodorant. I wonder why? Bao and Van are responding for Thi’s needs
9:51: Bao’s farting
9:52: reaching Utah state line
10:16: Van said Bao’s feet is stinky. oh! Tha explain why dady’s keep rolling down the car window
Oh! We missed Ba Noi, Co 6 & our Mickey!
10:26: 1st rest area @ Utah[bao]
10:33: Mom is sleepy
10:39: Dad announced that we will be @ Salt Lake City for about 4 o clock, and that we would stay to play for an hour or so
10:41: I finished writing that (the above)[mom]
if we want to colorado, 70 freeway will take us to Denver. We decide to stay on 15 to salt lake[van]
12:03 pm: stopped at view area to take pictures. Chi hai drives
12:06: mom yells because Bao spills capri sun
12:11: 149 miles until salt lake
12:45: mom discovers her legs are tan from sitting in the passenger seat. Dad is looking for Utah lake, even if we passed it 10 minutes ago
12:47: Chi 2 needs to pee… only trees available
1:00: Chi Hai PEES! YAY!!!
1:15: reached Nephi
1:17: 77 miles from Salt Lake
1:20: Van starts to eat candy
1:23: Van finishes 2 pieces
1:27: Van finishes her third piece
1:34: Girl in blue car pisses off Chi 2
1:37: we see corn fields… everyone except for mom
1:50: passed Utah lake
1:53: we pass another corn field. mom sees it this time
1:57: lehl natural museum, exit 282
2:30: reached salt lake city. got gas @ chevron pump #5 ($18.25)[chi hai]
3:29 FINALLY got out of salt lake! Bought rice at vietnamese grocery (bac lieu)
3:35: mom sticks half a wab up van’s nose!
3:51: passed hill aerospace museum
3:55: mom found taco bell. dad plans to drive 6 hours to Madison (Idaho falls) and spend the night there. Approx. 1 hour drive to yellowstone.
4:15: idaho borderline
6:47: rexburg, Idaho
7:12: decided to spend the night @ Super 8 ($64, 4 adults). Discover we forgot the food!
9:26: ate dinner, rice &chickenSUNDAY, 7/26/98
8:04 am: Thi and MOm eats FREE breakfast @ super 8 motel
[mom]
I & my husband, we walk around the roxburg (nice little town). We stopped at albertson to get spam and broccolli[chi hai]
8:05 am: dad is out of the bathroom (start time 7:30)[van]
8:34: got gas ($13.25)
9:05: reached Targhee National Park
9:58: arrived @ yellowstone national par
12:21 pm: leaves norris going to mammothMONDAY
[chi hai]
8:30 am: back at YS
12:49: leaving old faithful, heading towards west thumb
1:09: still on way to west thumb, raining w/ thunder
2:05: yellowstone hotel[bao]
4:47: heading back to old faithful because we screwed up the first time
4:48: mom sings vietnamese song as if she’s on the john
5:08: “ngua o” finally comes on, never mind mom liked… its a different song.
5:35: arrived at old faithful. battery aint all charged yet
6:19: back in the car. got GREAT footage of old faithful (because of the wonderful “direktah”, Bao Ngo)[mom]
van’s getting sick. poor girl! all of the time get car sick all times!
Thi’s driving.[bao]
6:56: just got out of yucky road
7:00: lewlis lake “oooo its beautiful” -mom; “lon hon perris lake, con!” -dad
7:03: family realizes that we missed lewis lake, that was beautiful and lon hon perris lake, con
7:04: {gasp} “OH MY GOD!” family finds “mystery falls”. being the fob like tourists we are, we bust out the cameras… again.
7:14: I (Bao) decide that as soon as we get home, i’m running away. i can’t take the harrassment from mom.
7:15: mom accuses family of harrassing her. “Your dad too! (sob… sob…) and you too! and chi hai too! and chi ba too! (sob… sob…)”
7:16: family laughs at mom’s emmy award dramatic scene, then changes the subject and forgets about it
7:19: mom finally realizes that she has a crazy family. no… just crazy children
7:23: chi hai compliments my pitch perfect talent. we reach south entrance, good bye yellowstone!
7:25: chi hai decides to turn around so i can record a stupid sign that sates the obvious. “Leaving yellowstone national park”
7:42: jackson lake. “you know, like michael jackson” -chi hai
7:48: mom makes sure that i don’t step on her bananas
7:49: mom announces that she is a wonderful woman, while chi hai points out a wonderful hole in her shirt. she thinks its because mom didn’t use deodorant
7:50: mom & chi hai come to a final conclusion that mom’s wonderful hole and deadly pungent odor is the reason why chi ba is sick. GOOD THINKING!
7:53: chi hai takes the wheel away from dad, while mom tries to convince us that a crowd of people from afar are fascinated and came to see the wonderful hole in her shirt.
7:55: jackson is 34 miles away
8:00: out of grand reton
8:04: arrived at mooseheead ranch
8:14: it starts to rain.. again!
8:16: buffalo crosses road
8:27: we REALLY left grand reton. the first time was a bluff, sorry…
8:31: arrive @ jackson. family searches for a mcdonalds
spent night @ montpelier, Idaho (best western $66)TUESDAY
7:07: mom sees cow and claims tis a moose. but we are all happy because we’re heading home!
7:14: we don’t know why or how, but we’ve arrived at paris. (Paris, Idaho). Pop. 197 persons
7:25: stopped at bear lake
7:28: still waiting…
7:37: we stopped waiting and are currently following a pilot car
7:42: arrived at UTAH!
7:53: chi hai, chi ba, and i take a nap.[mom]
7:56: garden city with bear lake. wrap around, scenic overlook. 1 mile. entering logan canyon. beautiful beaver creek
8:10: thi, van, and bao sleeping. so quiet! pass tongo canyon
8:16: rick spring
8:19: stop for construction
8:33: lake bonnerville with lots of fishermen! upper seconds dam
8:36: leaving cache national forest
8:40: arrived beautiful large city. i wonder what is the city’s name
8:56: again entering cache national forest
9:07: change freeway to 15
9:09: entering freeway 15
thi is planned that we will exit 335 to go to antelope island
9:36: exit 335[bao]
10:31: family decides to leave antelope island and we feel that it is a waste of seven bucks![mom]
10:45: thi’s admiring the island special smell of bird shit
we are heading out of the island heading to freeway 15 for food[bao]
11:45: we just exited “the fun dome” in murray, utah
11:58: chi hai cheats while playing corn pops game
12:02: leaving salt lake heading towards vegas. dad driving; mom reading
12:15: we play green car bingo (chi ba gets badly hurt from the game
12:19: scores: game 1 (bao 5, chi hai 4) game 2 (chi hai 5, bao 1)
12:26: we stop at KFC to get some grub[mom]
2:30: stop at rest area. bao produced 3 pounds of waste from her digestive system. YUCK!
Van is driving now. my husband try to sleep! I found out of he is a fatso
3:02: I miss Mickey![chi hai]
3:12: Dad & Bao telling jokes. “why is pres. washington less valued than lincoln?” -dad; answer: cuz lincoln’s on a 5 and washington’s on a 1 dollar bill
howver, Bao says Washignton’s on a quarter and Lincoln’s on a penny.
3:14: dad is laughing at a bad joke.
3:15: Thi’s ears popped
3:24: Van manuvers us thru a tornado!! Good job, Van!
3:52: cedar city, Utah
4:36: Van’s our hero. Stupid u-haul almost ran us over!
4:41: arizona! yay!
5:00: virgin river is muddy!
5:05: Van’s a butt!! “O! Its hot outside!” “O! There’s like a dead bird right there!” -Van
5:07: NEVADA!!!
5:33: Mom wants to know if Van wants to stop at Vegas and go “strip”
5:35: Dad decided we are not going to pee for the next 2 hours
5:37: Byron, Nevada
5:38: Van is excited because there is a new buffett at Circus, Circus[mom]
6:36: through Las Vegas, Thi become our driver now. Wow! Van had driven for 4 hours!
7:00: California border line
7:05: prime valley elevation: 3,000.
7:10: rest area 15 miles away. Baker 37 miles. Barstow 99 miles.
7:22: rest area. dad’s driving now.
7:34: barstow 73 miles.
7:40: world tallest thermometer read 110
7:44: open mouth contest. Thi is a loser.
7:56: victorville 77 miles
8:05: rest area (pass by)
8:16: Mickey look alike contest. Bao won.
What’s time we will be arrived home, guessing contest:
Bao: 9:55
Thi: 10:12
Van: 10:05
Ma: 10:20
8:21: pass throguh CA agricultural inspecton
8:30: arrived barstow. too dark, cannot write anymore
9:20 leaving san bernadino forrest
9:30: ontario mills
We will never know who won the arriving home guessing game!