Holidays 2007

Holidays 2007



Ok, so now that I've morphed this into a "Family Life Blog", I guess I can shamelessly put in some photos of various events, which though technically aren't travel, are a part of our life.


Thanksgiving this year, we did at the RB Inn. Really enjoyed just taking it easy this time, not having to cook or clean or otherwise take care of stuff.



Our traditional "Christmas Eve Eve" party was held at our house this year, and had a bunch of the great people that we've collected over the years, but didn't have room for everyone that we normally invite, since a small place. Much fun as always.

Hong Kong Business Trip Late Oct

Dave did a one week business trip to Hong Kong to attend the HK Electronics Show and China Trade shows that were there that week. I'd been to Hong Kong several times, and it definitely feels different now that it's under Chinese control, though not bad - just different. They call it "One Country, Two Systems" with regard to the Hong Kong Special Authoritative Region (what used to be Hong Kong).

I took a half day tour of things after having powered through the show, and saw some of the standard sights there.


Nice, fast trip. Also, found a new friend for flights - Ambien. Major help with jet lag, just don't get hooked!

October 2007

Though not technically a trip, one of the cute things in October was watching Delilah at her "Fall Festival" recital. Yup, she's cute alright... :)

Barbara and I have been considering going to "Burning Man", and found out from a friend that they were have a "Decomp" event in the Borego Desert area, so we got tickets, and off we went. It is only a fraction the size of Burning Man (only a few hundred people attending, versus like 35 thousand at Burning Man), but still a fun festival. Above, Barbara and I on an "art car" boat, and below some friends, new and old.
Really enjoyed the event, and have decided to make this the year of the festivals.

Hawaii - Sept 2007

Hawaii


We have one of those timeshare things. Seemed like a good idea at the time, but as the years pass, it is less and less of a good idea. We got this week in Hawaii - wow, a week in Hawaii!!!... so it turns out, that it's on the big island, at the far tip (only a few miles from the southern most point in the US), about half way between the only two real cities on the island - Hilo on the East cost, and Kona on the West. Basically it's a 90 minute drive to anything.


The place didn't have AC, was still a half mile from the beach (golf course in the way). It was also a single bedroom unit, with no separation to the area with the sofa - and the sofa had what felt like straw for padding in the matress, so we ended up putting Delilah in the closet to sleep - which see actually did fine with, but good the maid didn't ask...



The beach was also a "volcanic rock" beach, so can't walk bear foot. Finally, turns out on this south shore, there is a cold water upwelling, so the beaches here are almost as cold as San Diego... Humph. There were some turtles which were neat, and there was also a shallow tidal pool that was warmed by the sun to an almost acceptable temp, but still less than "paradise".


We went to Volcano National Park, and chased after illusive lava flows. We saw a bunch of beautiful vistas, but the lava had flowed so far outside of the park, that by the time we got to about where it was, it was already dark, and after walking half a mile only by small flashlight to get to the site, we were still far from actual Lava glow, so missed that as well. Rats!

We decided to abandon the time share a day early, and did a Luau and stayed in the big city of Kona the last night, which was the way we should have done it in the first place... We did get some good snorkeling in, and lived what little bit of night life they have to offer there, prior to rolling up the streets.

The Big Isle is pretty, but rustic. We definitely prefer Maui, but are glad that we were able to have this experience to add to the list...

The ongoing blog...

Ok, so I've decided to include some of our trips and adventures beyond just the big trip of last year, but to make this our on-going life-trip blog. After all, life is in fact just a series of little trips, that make up The Big Trip... Obviously, these will be dated off from the events, but I'll try to get it right...

The final leg - July 15th through 20th

The night of July 14th, stayed in Boston Bar, 15th in Golden, and in between we drove... Western Canada in the Summer is hot - upper nineties and above in places. It is also heavily blighted by the pine bark beatles which have decimated the pine forests there. Long drives along a picturesque river, with little in between the sparse towns, and two train tracks winding the whole way along. Saw many trains with engines on both ends - push-me-pull-me style. Saw the famous figure 8 rail road tunnel which was interesting as well, which crosses over itself several times to give a less steep ascent up the hill.


The 16th was the day that the trip was all about - we went drove up to Lake Louise and another lake nearby to oggle at the beauty there, then on to Banff for a tour of the town, and a taste of Cow's Ice cream, which the Wiley family thinks is the best Ice Cream ever. That night, skirting Calgary, and stayed in High River area.

The 17th, we headed back across the boarder to the US, and skirted around the South side of Glacier (our RV is too large to fit through the Highway To The Sun), and then entered on the West side of the park, and met up with my brother Mark who had driven there from the cruise to take some time to write. After Delilah took a dip in the lake there, we got together with him, chatted for a while, ate some more ice cream (I've had more ice cream on this trip than I think any other time in my life), and then said good by, and headed out to our KOA just outside of Glacier. Was a nice campground, which would have been nicer if a) it weren't raining, and b) if Delilah hadn't left the water running in the sink in thebathroom, which of course flooded the carpet, and required several hours of lifting the plastic carpet cover, stomping on towels, drying the towels, and starting over. At least Delilah helped with the "Towel Dancing". When we put the towels in the drier, we found that they actually serve a dinner at this KOA - a nice BBQ'd chicken, with corn and beans, which Delilah and I gobbled up. Unfortunately the internet access was blinky, so the game night that I was hoping to play ended abruptly. C'est la vie...

On the 18th we started out to get to some of our other relatives in Idaho, but I didn't realize just how far it was (had originally estimated time on the assumption that we would have driven after seeing Glacier) so ended up being a full day of driving. We made it to about a hundred miles shy of our destination, when I gave up, and we did the Hotel thing for the night.

On the 19th, we drove into Jerome area to meet with Hank, Norma and Claudia (mom's brother and family), and had a nice chat, and lunch there, then hopped back in the RV, and we were off to Beaver, Utah for a late night camping episode (the last night).

Finally, on the 20th after a very long, short night (long on lack of sleep for various reasons, short in actual sleep hours), we got up about 6:30 AM and hit the road with both Delilah and Mom still in bed. Drove through Vegas, and stopped at The Mad Greek in Baker for a good lunch (some of the best road food that we had on the trip - they had Shwarma which is a favorite of mine). Turns out that "Bun Boy" is no longer, bought out by "Bob's Big Boy" which oddly, I had thought went away years ago, but appears to be making a revival. They still have the Bun Boy Hotel and teh Worlds Tallest Thermometer there. Driving on, through traffic in LA, and got in to Escondido to drop off the parents about 5:30. Called Kim on the way out of town about stopping off to pick up the keys, and she invited Delilah and I for dinner at their place which was fun. Then finally, home. Home.

Home. The house was empty, since Barbara was at a Bachelorette party for the night, and was funny sleeping alone, after having slept with Delilah or Barbara next to me for so long. In the morning, D and I cleaned up the RV some, started the "decompression" laundry, food removal, etc, did a Costco run, etc, trying to get back in to a "semi-normal" lifestyle again. I will start back to work on Monday.

So the total trip - 17,478 miles, almost 4 months, 3 tires, 5 provinces, 45 states. Cat survived, Delilah loved it, Barbara actually is traveled out, and I am satisfied and joyful to have had this possibility realized.

So, anyone want to buy an RV? :)

On to the Cruise, and off again - July 7th through 15th

The cruise departed from Seattle, Washington. We were on the Golden Princess, took the 7 day cruise. As a very quick overview - it was a GREAT cruise, a nice ship (though admitedly large), fabulous food, and had some remarkable destinations. I would strongly recommend this cruise.

First day was at sea, cruising. Found out about their kid program, and enrolled D in it, which she really enjoyed. Got a little fetter, eating some excelent food, and did the "formal dinner" thing to Barbara's particular delight.

Second day - Juneau, Alaska. We did a tour of the Mendenhall Glacier, a Salmon Hatchery and ended at a Salmon Bake. The Glacier isn't accessible from the observation point - you have to take either a helicopter, dog sled or jet boat to get there - all of which were outside of our budget... So, we observed from a distance at the remarkable beauty of a really BIG chunk of really OLD ice, played with some of the floating ice bergs that used to be part of it, and moved on to the hatchery. Very interesting tour - they actually raise the fish from fry there to about 2 years of age, then put them in an open mesh net near their stream fed fish ladder, and the fish program for that particular chemical combination of that stream - unique in all the world. They are then released to the wild, and many of them after a few years return to river, smell the stream, and then climb up their ladder to the home of their birth - ready to spawn, and soon therafter get zapped, and canned or otherwise prepped for somebodies dinner. Speaking of dinner - the salmon bake was great, they baked it over a pit BBQ, with a nice sauce, and all the trimmings.
Third day - Skagway, Alaska. We went into the town for a few hours, and tried to avoid all the jewelry stores there. Were able to find a bookstore, and an internet connection for a few minutes. Then, back to the pier for a really frustrating running back and fourth between two trains - one of which we were told wasn't the right train, but ended up being the correct one after all, and met up with the rest of the family for a really fun train ride up into the hills overlooking Skagway called the "White Pass Scenic Rail". Some great views of the mountains, waterways and forests, and actually crossed momentarily into Canada at the top of the pass, prior to heading back down the hill. Along the way we saw a small bear.
Fourth day - Tracy Arm Fjord, Alaska (Scenic Cruising). During the night, the ship had been navigated into the Tracy Arm Fjord, and we awakened to the gentle thumping of icebergs against the hull... Truly beautiful, many different shades from silvery white, to a very deep blue. We were blessed with overcast skies, which cuts much of the IR, and lets the blue really shine through - the captain actually said that there were some colors that even he hadn't seen before (I bet he says that to all the cruisers :) ). We also saw some Orcas, including one jump out of the water, some seals, and a number of arctic turns.

Fifth day -Ketchikan, Alaska. We did the Rainforest Tour there, and remarkably didn't get rained on (I think this was the first day that it didn't rain on the cruise for at least a small part of the day). Had a nice walk through the forest with our guide, and saw some bald eagles and some slugs in the wild, and an owl and reindeer in the pens there. That evening, the second formal dinner, which we were able to convince some of our relatives to join us for. Cruising is truly an exhibit of excess, debauchery, etc. Where else can you get all you can eat lobster, also get a beef wellington, and the veggies off a third entre... Have I mentioned that the food was excellent?

Sixth day - Victoria, British Columbia. We got in in the evening, and took a city tour, followed by a tour of Butchart Gardens - which we decided that we will definitely need to return to, to spend more than the two hours there. Could be a full day thing. Very nice. Return trip was a little worisome, since the transmission on the bus sounded like it was about to fall out, but we made it back ok, on the ship for the last bit of packing.

Back to Seattle (on the 14th), Washington, and off the boat. Early dis-embarkation and a combination of requirements (including Barbara flying home, and my parents joining Delilah and I for the reminder of the trip) made for a bit of confusion, but was it was easier than getting on. Got all parties collected, and tried to find a brunch place to have a final meal with Barbara before she flew off, but found our selves in airport central with the only options being - Arriving flights, Departing flights and Parking... Ended up having to kick B off prematurely, but she did get home ok.

From there, Delilah, my Mom and Dad and I drove into Canada. Mom had picked up a bug that she has spent most of her time trying to recover from, and the rest of us spent the rest of the day watching the Canadian landscape - which has unfortunately been hugely blighted by the pine bark beetles, which have wiped out high percentages of entire forests. It is also surprisingly hot in British Columbia at this time of year - the thermostat at the RV part read 89 degrees which was a few degrees cooler than it had been. I spent a while reconfiguring the RV for the new passenger reality (mom sleeping in the third bed, sheets on the back bed, clothing in the bags for laundering soon, etc), and we had a simple dinner of sandwiches which was a joyfully simple repast as a break from cruising food. Barbara claims that she will be doing a cleanse - we'll have to check in and see.

On the 15th, just more driving, but slowly getting into the Canadian Rockies, so the temp has dropped a bit. Tonight was able to do the laundry, get an internet connection (thus), and play part of "Sound of Music" DVD for the parents and Delilah. Somehow ended up being late again, but hopefully Delilah will sleep amply.

Tomorrow in to the Yoho National Park, Lake Louise, Banf and area. Should be very nice. If all goes well, we will meet up with my Brother on Tuesday (two days hence) in Glacier on the US side for a while, as he will be in a cabin there for part of the week to contemplate and write. He actually spent time there as an 'intern' or whatever you call a preacher in training :), so it's got a lot of great memories for him.

More later.