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Some trips turn out just perfect, along most, a thing or two don’t quite work out the way we wanted, and then, occasionally, there are the terrible ones. Considering the fact I usually travel solo I have been pretty lucky not to find myself in danger until an attempted theft on my way to Monument Valley.
It was around 8PM and dark, but I chose a major intersection to refuel and thought nothing of walking into the shop at the well lit gas station with my wallet in my hand. Pretty thoughtless you might say, but somehow I never felt in danger at gas stations and it became a habit to just grab my wallet. Although, in defense of my carefree habit, I don’t think taking my entire purse would have made me less appealing to the robbers.
Upon approaching the door to the shop, a girl who was standing there came closer showing me some hand made jewelry she was selling. I thanked and complemented her work but told her I wasn’t interested in buying any. After paying for the gas inside the shop (for some reason the pump refused to process my card, hence why I went inside) I walked back out. The girl with the jewelry approached me again. This time I registered some urgency in her tone and overall body language which made me walk on and just shake my head “no”. At the same time from the corner of my eye I saw a beefy man coming towards me. I turned my head and he was already in front of me reaching for my hand with the wallet. I jumped as high as I could to the side and growled at him in my best animal like sound, then in a split second dashed to the car. He didn’t follow me. I still had to pump gas and did so as quickly as I could. While fueling I caught the girl laughing at the guy, both standing by the store entrance.
This was at a big gas station, one with probably 10 or 12 pumps, where Rt 160 meets Rt 163 in Kayenta; on the other corner there was another major gas station, and some fast food place, it was as busy as it gets out there in the wild west. I can’t really explain how I reacted the way I did, I haven’t practiced for a situation like this, but luckily I left the guy stymied for a second, enough for me and my wallet to get away from him.
Feeling a bit rattled but also happy for getting away unharmed I headed on to Goulding’s Lodge, my hotel for the night, near Monument Valley. I had made a reservation in advance however when I got there they could not find it, but that was not the worst part. The guy checking me in started off by trying to blame me for my late arrival “because you got here so late, it looks like we might have given away all the rooms and…” “It’s not even 9PM, but it shouldn’t matter anyway, I made a reservation”, I interrupted, quite annoyed by his lack of professionalism. I showed them my confirmation email, but that didn’t suffice. They spent close to an hour searching their database for my reservation, not even once apologizing or offering me some water at least! Finally I was given a room, the dirtiest, dingiest room I ever had to stay in! I’ll admit I’m somewhat of a neat freak, but this was bellow any decent person’s standards. The furniture was old, dirty, in bad shape, towels so used they had turned grayish, ancient worn-out, pink and yellow mismatched sheets, filthy rug. I asked the front desk for another room, apparently they were fully booked. Exhausted after a long day of hiking and travel I tried to get some shut eye, only to be kept awake by the noise in the room next door. Around 1AM, I called the front desk asking them to do something about the people partying next door. An ill-disposed receptionist promised to send someone up, yet I heard no one come and the partying continued until close to 5AM, when it was time to get up anyway to catch the sunrise. At least that was monumental!
One thing Goulding’s has for them is the location, however considering the filth and the unprofessional staff I wouldn’t stay there again, nor would I recommend them to anyone. I don’t think I’d feel safe camping in that area by myself but if you are traveling with friends you are much better off setting up camp or sleeping in your car than at this dump. While checking out no one asked how my stay was, so I volunteered to inform them of my sleepless night and the difficult check in. All I got was a mumbled “sorry”, no “tell us more, this stuff never happens here, let’s look into it,” none of that. When a hospitality institution messes up this badly and they aren’t capable of an authentic sounding apology they should not be in business.
Ever the optimist, I wanted to put the dreadful night behind me, and immerse myself in the beauty of the landscape. I headed out to Monument Valley, where I was not so much greeted by an unwelcoming cashier, who took my $20, curtly handed me a pass and told me to go to the visitor center when I tried asking her a question. Never-mind, I told myself, I wasn’t going to allow a grumpy person to ruin my day. After being told it was safe to drive out in a regular car I proceeded to do so. Oh man, it was a big mistake! The road is not only unpaved, it is mostly rocky. They had crews out working on it but it was definitely not a road for a small car. After probably less than 2 miles I decided to play it safe and turned around, I was not going to risk a flat tire out in the middle of nowhere, especially when I have not met even one kind, helpful person in that area.
It was a long road trip so there were other landmarks I was looking forward to, nevertheless I was a bit disappointed to only see the historic buttes of Monument Valley from rather far. I do want to return, however I will research my options more and book a jeep tour to drive around the buttes, instead of trying to brave it in my own car.
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