South We Go: VA & NC

Nice sunny but long drive (7.5 hr) from VA to Boone, NC to see one of my best mates, Kelly. I met Kelly in Italy on a HS trip when we were 16 and we've been pen pals ever since On the way we saw the Foamhenge. This is my first time in NC. Blue ridge drive was nice, but Shenadoah NP was closed due to snow :(

Got to spend 2 nites in one place finally. But learning that organizing photos, making captions and blogging takes a few hours. I feel terrible that I don't get to chill with my friends in this short time we have.

We did a nice 4 mile hike and take some great Mt shots. Also got to see some Confederate flags, random huge crosses posted in hills. Kelly made a great chicken parm dinner with veggies and quinoa. At dinner, I learned that only 5 yrs ago NC allowed lottery gambling. I also learned that tattoos were illegal in SC till recently. Oh and that one can get insurance for body parts such as actresses doing so for the butts or models for their legs. So much I did not know :)

Wed 3/9 headed to Asheville. Got to stay with a girl I met over 3 years ago who stayed with me in PDX. She is a free spirited. It was a rainy day so we chilled with some of her friends talking about road trips. Due to weather, today, we decided to go to Nashville, TN for 2 nights and skip over Smokey Mts :( To view VA & NC pix, click here.

First 2 Days on the road: Learning the Ropes

Left NYC last Sat to DC. Only got to stay in DC for 1 night and a day. Have not been here since i was 17 and wanted to get a feel for the city. But it was a rainy day so we hit the National Gallery and National Air and Space Museum; most of which are free! The images taken in space of other planets were so amazing. I could not believe those were true images. So amazed, I did not take a photo of it :( I did experience that getting in, around, and out of DC is a nightmare via car. We stayed with my Kelly's friend Tiffany who I have not see since we met in FL 4 yrs ago. Was great to see her and appreciated her showing us around. Wish we had more time to stay but need to be in CO by 3.17 to meet up with some friends.

We took a nap in the jeep and tested out Greg's platform that he made. It works, just very crapped. Drove to Fredericksburg, VA (1 hr S. Of DC) to crash with college friend Tamika, who is in the air force and moved here from NJ 3 months ago. A quick visit, but good to see friends. Click here for DC pix.

Farewell NYC - hello Road Trip

Spent a full day in AC w/ dad (kind of a tradition) and my college friend Todd came with. Left at 6am, was back by midnight. Dad did well w/ roulette; even I walked away w/ $150 which is rare. Todd & I enjoyed some sun and cold wind on the boardwalk; had a nice conversation w/ an older kinda bum-like guy about how we waste food and should have a homeless food recycling program. There's also a cat project on the beach to spay/neuter strays..

I didn't mention this before but on my 2nd day in NYC, my dad's car was hit in NJ while he was at a stop sign. Dad walked away just fine, but totaled his Cadillac, which he got a good deal so he was not happy about this. So it was nice for him to have a good day in AC.

After AC, we drove to Philly as it is kind of on the way, to see my brother's house in progress. He's been fixing his first home for 2 yrs and it is a huge project. We went to a nice seafood/steak place called Captiol Grill. Awesome lobster bisque. We played Wii bowling while dad napped. Wish we could have stayed in Philly longer.

This week, I feel like i am all over the place juggling so many schedules; this will be a new lifestyle to adjust to. I got on my family's cell phone plan to save $$$, but miss the iphone and internet :( Greg, my travel partner, arrived on Mon from SC. We have not seen each other since Thanksgiving. We  discussed travel plans and tour around the cold, windy, sunny city.

My old job, AGPA, happened to have their huge conference this week here so not only did I see my former supervisors but a few members as well. I've been walking a few miles a day it seems taking pix of bldgs and even bldgs we use to live in. So many memories have been coming back, so much I have lived for 27 yrs here. But it's been sad seeing all the garbage blowing on the sidewalks. I've also noticed so many shopping stores. It's all we do here, such a high consumption city. But is that really keeping people happy?

Friday night was my farewelll party with all sorts of friends in attendance starting in midtown at my parent's apt. Was awesome seeing people coming from PA, VA, CT, etc. Sat morning we went to DC/VA area for 2 nights then continue to NC to see Kelly (friend from HS) in Boone and Spyce in Asheville. Click here for pix, Greg took some good ones from the party that I need to grab.

nyc week 1- I'm a tourist :)

First full week in NYC, the longest time I've been home since I moved in July 2006. Honey did great on her first flight in the cabin by my feet. She didn't need any downers and her bag was mess-free! Some things have not changed in NYC like people not waiting for u to exit the train as they push u back in, trains changing routes while on it, crowds everywhere at all times. It's been nice seeing a variety of old friends even some from grade school. Now I get to visit their children too. I still love walking around the city seeing random things to photograph; did a nice 3.5 walk with a friend that was randomly visiting from LA.

I'm having a hard time eating healthy as i want to eat my old favs like chinese food, pizza, mozzi sticks, and cannolis. It's also been hard being green here and seeing all the waste that goes on from rubbish on the floors that probably will end up in our drinking water and oceans, people not recycling and not having any options on the sidewalks to people not using reusable bags or cups. But I had some educational chats with friends (probably too much as I can't stop). Hopfully people's actions will slowly change and spread. We really need Malcolm Gladwell to write a book on this sociological and environmental issue :)

Just spent the weekend in PA, where my parents have a house. My brother (Pete) and his gf, Tiffany, met us there. It's been 3.5 yrs since my parents, bro, & myself have been together. Got to see stars from the outdoor hot tub. It was strange and fun seeing my stuff sprinkled throughout the house. I couldn't believe how much stuff I accumulated when I left PDX and now even more amazed in how much stuff I have.

More to come as week 2 in NYC begins shortly! Clear here for some city pix.

GO Vagabonding!

I will be flying to nyc the night of 2/20. Then 3/6, I will embark on a 6-8 month road trip with my Canadian friend, Greg. Honey will stay with my parents during that time. That's one of the hardest decisions that I have made. We going to Colorado for a few weeks and hope to meet up with Aya and Steve (from Japan). Steve and Greg plan to climb a mtg. Then we most likely will check out UT, WY, and MT.

We hope to be in Alaska by July for a month. Then head down through parts of Canada, including Banff.  Also hit up WA, OR, CA. Lots of fun, nature, camping, hiking, and national parks. We also might try woofing (work on a farm).

After the trip, not sure what's next. I love Portland but tired of the wet darkness. Been thinking about Colorado and Hawaii as next settlements, but who knows; I may want to keep on vagabonding. I am interested in SE Asia for at least 4 months and would love to live in Costa Rica for 3 months to work in ecotourism. 

Peace Corps is also another viable option. I'm not entirely sure about it b/c I want to focus on environmental work and PC can't guarantee that. Plus there's so much I want to see and do.

I have enjoyed my life in PDX for the past 4.5 years and I'm very thankful for the awesome friends I have made here. I have grown in many ways and I owe that to PDX!

More detail updates as they happen coming soon!

The Magic of Hawaii

Aloha! My recent Hawaii trip (1. big island-Kona and 2. Molokai) with my good friend Aya was magical. Traveling with Aya enhanced the adventure with her carefree spirit and enjoying every little moment. This was one of the best trips and it's hard to condense 9 awesome days in a blog, so bare with.

We couch surfed with a very thoughtful and helpful guy, Ivan. He lent us his camping gear and joined us last minute. We camped 2 nights on the big Island and did a 4 hr volcano crater hike. The power and inspiration on this island is unavoidable. We then made our way to a small hippie, clothing optional, beach where people were playing drums. The water was so thick and can tire one out easily. Aya felt that power within 10 mins but we made it to shore ok; she was just a bit shaken up.

After 2.5 days we flew to Molokai where we made a new friend on the plane, Kawika. His family let us stay for a nite on cots in their outside garage; we woke up to the sound of roosters and slept to the sound of a big dog snoring. We got a delicious home cooked seafood (octopus and god knows what else) dinner and woke up to homemade granola bars. We rode in the back of a pick up truck to see Helwa bay and the forest reserve. Great off roading expeirence.

Aya had a friend who took us fishing on a boat. We were fortunate to have dolphins swimming right besides us. I was able to lay down by the bow to take amazing pix. They also caught lobsters, which we ate by the beach watching the sunset and hearing cultural music being played. They taught us how to catch fish with a net. I was told my first throw was a perfect circle. Aya got to scale a fish with a seashell and I squeezed coconut shavings to make a cream to dip the yummy breadfruit.

After 4 wonderful days, we were back in Kona. Ivan, taught us how to surf. I got to stand on 2 small waves. Trying to stand was not as hard as I thought but staying up is tricky. My legs were a little shaky, but I was able to keep the balance for a little bit. It was the best sport I ever tried and would luv to get into it some more when I move out there in 1-2 years :)

Watching the stars sparkle at nite after seeing so many various sunsets while hearing the waves will be missed. The waves are so captivating, I can watch them for days. Ended the trip with driving to the top of Mauna Kea, 13,796 ft, which just got snow! Here for more pix.

Snow Camping at Mt. Hood

Just had my first experience camping in the snow at mt hood during Thanksgiving weekend. When my friend, Greg, and I developed this plan earlier in Nov, I didn't think it was a big deal. As it got colder and darker in Pdx, I started to worry a little. Co-workers and friends thought we were nuts and started to warn me, just added to my concerns. How will we keep our water and food from freezing? How will we cook and clean in the cold, dark? Can we make a fire? And more importantly I thought, how in the word am I going to pee in the woods in the cold night?

Well, thankfully we had two things going for us: 1. Greg has done this before, he's a tough Mt. guy and knew what to do, like level out the snow with a shovel before tenting. 2. He also had the gear. But I learned that a 0 deg sleeping bag doesn't mean u will be nice and toasty when it's 15 out. I still had to wear tons of layers. I stuffed my sleeping bag with some food, camera, and clothes to keep them warm. It was kinda hard to get a good night's sleep.

We got to snow shoe on 3 different trails in 3 days. At first, I thought my legs would be sore and tired, but it was not bad at all. One was a 5 mile loop around Trillium Lake; the other two were 3 miles out and back hikes. You actually get very warm snow shoeing even when it's flat. Once I had to take one of my extra leggings off during the hike. Me warm in winter, who knew.

We snow camped for two nights, which was just right. After that I looked forward to a warm shower, a real toilet, and laying down on something soft and warm. I'm glad I tried out my toughness on this small, local, accessible trip and glad Greg was there to guide me through it. The poor guy even had to shovel snow from one of the tires for an hr to fit a snow chain on it. Man what a hassle for him :( Thanks Greg!  Click here for more pix

Rose