Home in Alaska, at last! -- June 29, 2009

I don't know just how I feel about being back home. I can't quite adjust to the idea that the Peace Corps experience is really finished, and I can see why some people volunteer again and go for repeat commitments. I'm reluctant to unpack boxes from storage, with the underlying fear that I might sooner or later have to pack things up again. Besides, I seem to have become much less fond of "stuff" and would like to avoid the accumulation of possessions, in fact I hope to keep the rooms mostly empty. I wonder how long that will last?

I did post pictures in a photo album of the drive up through Canada to Alaska, so you can enjoy the trip on your computer. That is, if your internet connection is fast. Temporarily I only have a dial-up connection and it is unbearably slow, so I can't even look at them myself. http://picasaweb.google.com/kristinalaska But I'm glad that at least I can get email. In the Yukon, I saw a black bear alongside the highway, and of course there were moose after I got into Alaska. I never saw any caribou this time. I took a side trip to Skagway, and included some pictures of that famous Klondike gold mining town.

It was very hot in Las Vegas, and as expected got cooler as I drove northward. I only had a couple of days with sporatic rain on the whole journey (probably because I carried an umbrella all the way from Romania!). It's partly sunny here in Alaska now, and just warm enough not to need a jacket or sweater. It's true what they say about the shock of finding so many choices in American stores, and it's just too overwhelming for me to shop for more than a few minutes. Fortunately I don't want much, anyway. I still feel exhausted.

Of course in my town there are tourists galore, since this area has the best salmon fishing that can be found anywhere. Unbelievably there was a squirrel living in my empty house when I got here! Fortunately there was no food or much of anything else that it could destroy. My son Peter from Germany is here now for his commercial salmon fishing season. He got his boat into the water yesterday and has already gone out with his deckhand into Cook Inlet. I hope they have a good year.

And I hope you all have a wonderful summer, too! Happy Independence Day on the 4th of July!

More family photos -- June 21, 2009

Now I am in Canada, taking advantage of a good internet connection to post some pictures. Later this week I'll add some photos of the drive, although I've been too busy driving to get many. Once you get on this road, you tend to keep going, since you know that you have more than 2000 miles to go before you finally stop. Cheyenne has been a dream to travel with, so cooperative and sweet. She goes potty where I tell her and sleeps quietly all night long. I think she's not even shedding so much, and might be losing some of that blubber. I was upset that I lost my cellphone yesterday, but maybe it's fate that I can only seem to keep them for a year at a time. I hope that's the worst thing that happens on this journey.

I stopped in Seattle to visit my nieces Lisa and Leslie, here I am with them, and a great photo of Lisa's family.

After Seattle, I visited my cousin Robin on Whidbey Island, here he is with his son Nathan:

Here I am with my daughter Dara and her kids in Bend --

Family Visits -- June 15, 2009

Okay, by request from friends who read this web journal, I have labeled the photos of my kids and grandchildren on this page! Of course there are many more pictures in the web albums for each family. I know that some of you will be amused to know that when I was leaving Munich for the United States, I miscalculated the connections and was too late for the flight! Now you have proof positive that I'm getting old and senile! Well, not exactly, since I also screwed up pretty well when I was younger, and I can say that I never missed a plane before in my life (and hope I never do it again!). After a day of bustling hither and yon and sitting on hold on the phone for hours, I managed to rebook a flight for three days later. After the airline assured me I must pay for another ticket, I managed to get an amazing deal on another ticket to Las Vegas, and surprise of surprises, a few days later they emailed me that they would refund my first ticket, less a rebooking fee! Heaven must bless us dummies! Somehow I even took that misstep in stride without undue panic, it was just another detour on the always-unpredictable trail of journeying. I must be a vagabond at heart, because this life of travel suits me just fine.

The past month has rushed by, it's hard to believe that since leaving Turkey I have seen so much. After visiting Pam near London and having a great week with Gloria and Sonny in the Calabria area of southern Italy and even part of Sicily, I was able to visit Verona and spend a few days in Venice. I love that city and took lots of great pictures. You may have already enjoyed the photo albums for those places. Even with the challenge of navigating the many confusing narrow walkways and tiny plazas in Venice, I can imagine living there for a while to really settle into the pulse of daily life in a neighborhood. Thanks to all my friends who wrote to say how much they love the pictures of my travels and enthusiastically encouraged me to continue writing this journal so they could come along with me.

I took the overnight train to Munich, Germany, for a week with my youngest son Peter and his children Miriam, Zarah, and Janek. I was so happy to see my three beautiful grandchildren all healthy and thriving, especially Zarah who is recovering well from her nearly-fatal illness last year, gradually adapting to the loss of her foot. She is doing very well with her prosthetic foot, as long as she gets frequent rests. I am so proud of her, and so grateful. There pictures below and many great photos in the online album for Peter.

I finally arrived in the United States on May 31, the first time I had set foot on American soil since leaving for the Peace Corps in February 2007. It was wonderful to see the smiling faces of my son Grey and granddaughter Lorin at the Las Vegas airport as soon as I got through customs! I thoroughly enjoyed a peaceful week with them, and it was a nice surprise that he took the entire time off from work to spend with me, wanting to do anything possible to make my stay perfect. Together we scoured the market for a good used Subaru for me to drive back to Alaska, and although we were both surprised that there were so few available, I did find one. I think it'll work out fine, and at Gloria's request I am posting a photo of Cheyenne settled in the back.

I was relieved that my golden retriever Cheyenne recognized me and is still the same sweet and cooperative dog as ever, but I was surprised to see how fat she had gotten. I guess we will both be dieting and exercising in the months to come. There are many photos in the online album for Grey. He told me that their yellow lab Rosie was crying for hours after we left for good, and I know she’ll really miss Cheyenne. Fortunately my dog still loves to travel and adapted easily to being on the road again. Of course she's still shedding constantly so I will be battling dog hair every day. Leaving Vegas I made the long drive to the Oregon coast to see dear friends Jo and David on the Oregon coast, sleeping in their comfy van with Cheyenne. While in Gold Beach I bought a new collar and leash for her, so I guess we are bonding again. She had fun playing with their yellow lab Emma, but was clearly the alpha older lady and Emma treated her with great respect.

Next stop, Central Oregon for a week to see my daughter Dara and her family in Bend, stopping on the way to see my uncle Ed and aunt Kathy in Corvallis. I am staying at Ed and Kathy's house on the Metolius River near Sisters, and it is peaceful and beautiful. I hope to be part of their extended family in the future and stay here again. Grandkids Gus and Vivian are so funny, they make us laugh every minute! We even attended the national rodeo event in Sisters, and my little grandkids are excited to compete in it themselves someday. Soon I will be on the road again, heading back to Alaska on the long drive through Canada. I will stop along the way to see friends and relatives, hoping to arrive in Anchorage before the end of June.

Here are the seven grandchildren I visited this month, in order by age (I did not see my oldest grandson Mikey, who is in San Diego and is nearly 20 now!):

And some more photos of my kids and their families, in the order I visited them:

And here are my very special friends Jo and David in Gold Beach, Oregon... thanks to them for the wonderful visit and all their great moral support over these many years!