*so photos in this blog have been taken by a lot of different people, all of our mutual experiences, and shared with me. But yeah, just so you know.
I bet you thought that since I have successfully returned
from Benin, you wouldn’t have any more blogs coming from my fingers. But I
guess I have just come to love telling the stories of my adventures, and
happily for me, the adventures have not stopped!
There…
I would first like to jump back to my former home. I
hesitate in sharing this story, because I don’t want you to just chalk it up to
Benin being the backwards, superstitious place you always assumed it was. So
please, when you’re reading the following paragraphs, try to remember that
ignorance, fear, and superstition (even in forms present in America) can breed
a lot of terrible things.
I may have mentioned Corneille, Raili’s Beninese boyfriend,
in previous entries. He is a primary school teacher, and a really great guy. He
has been helpful to us personally (he helped coordinate some things for our
camp).
Recently, his entire life was burned to the ground. He was
caught up in a town’s eruption into a witchhunt.
Yes, you read that right a witchhunt. If you want a
first-hand account, this is a blog written by another volunteer, Raili and I’s
friend Ron: http://vraisvoyageurs.tumblr.com/post/100231535535/complications
. And I beg that you read this with an aim to understand (but not to ever
condone), rather than shrug it off as simply a backwards superstition.
In West Africa, you can see the drastic effects of global
warming. The desert is encroaching. The seasons are getting worse. There was
little rain this year. This means that people can’t go crops like they are used
to. They can’t grow enough to feed their families. Or enough to have extra
money. They can’t pay to treat medical conditions. Three children from the same
family die in the same week from grave malaria.
And people need someone to blame. This world doesn’t make
sense. In what world should your crops fail, your children die? And who is a
convenient person to blame? That woman. The woman with a car. And money. Women
shouldn’t have cars. Cars are luxuries for men. Why should this woman, an
outsider, have a car, when there are some men who can’t feed their families?
Because witch hunts, historically and today, are rooted in misogyny. A way to
restore order. Keep women down, in their proper place.
Months ago, right after the three children in one family
died, this woman was accused of being a witch, and she took that car and drove
to Ghana, to escape. She owned a group of houses/apartments, including the one
that our friend Corneille was living in. Everyone else there fled. They did not
want to live in a witch’s house. Corneille stayed, telling people that
questioned him that even if she was truly a witch, she wouldn’t want anyone to
know, so she would protect him.
I suppose he never imagined that some people would decide to
take matters into their own hands. More recently there was a cholera outbreak,
and people were more scared and frustrated. The king in town refused to call in
a traditional healer to find the witches and stop the cholera outbreak. He
understands the science behind the spread of the disease.
So the king’s house was burned down. The house and car owned
by this well-off woman was also burned. Corneille and Raili watched as the
entirety of Corneille’s physical possessions went up in flame. The military was
called in to restore order, and Raili and Ron have been removed from their
villages.
It really breaks my heart. I want to rage at these Beninese
for being so stupid, ignorant, hateful. For letting superstition get the best
of them. For directing their rage at innocent people. For targeting outsiders,
women, blaming them for their own failures and the failures of the environment
and really the global scene. We are responsible for global warming in America,
we are hurting their crops. The West has systematically under-developed Africa,
and the people there suffer in poverty. They can’t burn down the West in
retaliation. So they burn down the house of the woman that did a little better,
including the house of a man who does the incredible task of teaching the
community’s children.
But I beg of you to realize that we are not so different.
“Oh yes,” you might think, “we had our own witch problems. Hundreds of years
ago, in Salem, the most notable case.”
In 1953 The Crucible was published about the Salem Witch
Trials. But it wasn’t because the author, Arthur Miller was suddenly interested
in this historical event. It was because he saw a similar drama unfolding
before him. Only we were more advanced. We didn’t call it sorcery any more. We
called it communism.
And when you think about it, witch-hunts are just about
superstitions. They’re about restoring order in this tumultuous world. They are
about fighting something we don’t fully understand. Something that really only
exists in the abstract. They are ways of punishing people for not conforming. A
way of attacking outsiders or political enemies.
In the 1950s we engaged in a witch-hunt for communists.
Today we are hunting “terrorists”. And it can be just as life-ruining for
innocent people. Think about all the Arab-looking people (including those who
are not even remotely Arab at all) who have been physically attacked for
resembling something we fear. We try to chase out outsiders, who we feel have no
right to security when we don’t feel safe. There are a lot of hate crimes
against Arab-Americans, and even discrimination in airports or in interactions
with police, a feeling of not being welcome in many communities. It’s a way to
help us keep order. To protect ourselves from the “other”. And fight a force
that is really difficult to define and/or identify—be it sorcery, communism, or
terrorism.
So this is my plea to you. Don’t write off this story as simply
an African problem of ignorance. Be sad for the victims, hope and pray for
their recovery [and if you really want to, follow instructions on this page
(Raili’s blog: http://journeydujourbenin.blogspot.com/2014/10/help-us-rebuild.html
) to donate to this fund which will go to Corneille to help him start
rebuilding his life]. But also look around at our fear of the “other.” This can
have grave consequences is we let that fear and resentment build up against
certain groups of people. We need to take the time to sit down with others—even
outsiders—and just talk, share our lives. You start to realize that everyone is
human, and can’t be painted with a broad brush, based on their race or place of
origin or sex. It really breaks my heart where we still live in a world that
everyone can get so riled up against a supposed foe, not based on evidence, but
based on prejudice. We can all do better.
…And Back Again
Luna and I made it to America safe and sound. It was quite a
long journey, and poor Luna was very confused as to why she had to sit in a
carrier for over 24 hours. She didn’t have to be quarantined or anything; I
just had papers saying that she has her rabies shot. Though, it didn’t seem to
matter, as people hardly noticed that I was carrying a cat and not one person
even bothered to look at my papers for her. I hope that makes you feel safe.
Sadly, one of my suitcases did not make it to America, and
it is still missing. I kept hoping that it will show up, but at this point it
seems unlikely.
I had to stay behind and file a report for my missing bag,
and then I got shunted off into the extra-security checkpoint as I attempted to
leave Dulles (apparently randomly, but I suspect it had something to do with me
being out of the country for over two years). And, of course, though Dulles has
wifi, my phone refuses to work with it. So I am stuck with these extra delays,
and no way to call my poor mother, who is waiting for me at the exit. She
apparently talked to one of the airport information people, who helped by
suggesting that maybe I didn’t even make it onto the plane in Turkey. I finally
make it through moments before my mom goes into high-worrying mode.
My first bit of culture shock came when we went to get
drive-through food. We pulled up to the window, I looked down at Luna, and then
the next thing I knew, we were pulling away. “Wait, what?” I ask. “We already
paid AND got our food?” We had. Life in America is fast!
And just so everyone knows, I did in fact get all of my
first-day-back meals I wrote about earlier (bagel with cream cheese, cucumbers
and Sriracha; salad with ALL THE VEGGIES, and cheesy crab dip from The Main
Cup), though not necessarily in the exact order.
The following week was filled with a lot of family. My uncle
Ken flew in with Paula, all the way from Portland; my uncle Jeff flew in from
Atlanta; and my sister Jessica from Vail, Colorado. Then obviously, my
grandmothers and sister Danielle were already in the area. Jessica, Danielle,
Mom and I had some bonding nights with delicious mixed drinks and fun
conversation. The Saturday after my return, the whole family (including my
cousin Nikki and her family) was at my mom’s house. We started off with mimosas
in the morning, and then I got to have some of my delicious FIREFLY Sweet Tea
Vodka. Bob made excellent pulled pork and Jeff cooked peppers and pineapple on
the grill. We had shrimp from Weis, and my grandmother brought her pasta salad.
It was a very delicious day. I was so happy to be surrounded by my family and
be able to enjoy their company as well as incredible food.
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| Mimosas in the morning! |
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| Family Pic! |
Wednesday, I went over to Nanny’s house. I got to see her
and Todd, and she fixed an excellent meal involving a lot of fried shrimp,
fries, rolls, etc. It was another wonderful night.
It was really, really fantastic to see my family. With the
exception of Mom and Bob, I hadn’t seen anyone for over two years. Sure, I
shared my blogs with them, got occasional emails, plus had a few skype
sessions. But even those aren’t the same as actually seeing your family,
sitting down and joking, and just basking in the others presence. Of course,
this is even better when doing it with satisfying food, and pleasant drinks, so
basically you can simply feel ALL OF THE GOOD THINGS.
I also went up to New Jersey, where my friend Diane lives.
She’s had quite the past two years, including working an awesome job in New
York (HR for a nice hotel), until that became too much, and she decided to live
in Puerto Rico for a few months, before moving back to the Jersey Shore, where
she grew up, and starting her own business selling coffee. For over 100 days
straight, she worked her little stand on her own. When I got there, she was
getting ready to sell it; she just had to wait until the end of the month. She
joked about how she’s accomplished everything she ever wanted to (NY job and
life, living in the Caribbean, and owning her own business). So, now what?
I happened to be there for Rosh Hashanah, so I went with
Diane to her Dad’s house, where we had apples and honey (to symbolize a sweet
year), challah bread, and gefilte fish (my first time having that), and
delicious brisket. I kept my mouth closed whenever politics came up (Diane’s
family being NJ conservatives, and not at all in to Obama). When I mentioned
that I would be traveling to South Africa on Ethiopian Air, Diane’s grandfather
told me all about Haile Selassie, which I thought was very interesting.
The next day it was raining, which meant that Diane did not
have to work at her outside stand. Instead we relaxed a bit, before going to
the Pitbull & Enrique Inglesias concert in Madison Square garden. We stayed
with one of her friends in North Jersey, and took the bus into New York. The
concert was very fun, and then we got some New York pizza afterwards. I really
love my life.
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| At the Pitbull Concert |
So then I went back home, just in time to pack up for a
cross-country trip. I have two weddings to attend in October, one in Arizona,
and one in New Mexico. Since it seems silly to fly out twice, I just decided to
drive, and turn it into an epic roadtrip. And so it was. Here is the story of
that adventure:
ROADTRIP
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| My route, approximately |
Thursday, October 2nd – Sunday, October 5th
Home to Atlanta
At the very last minute, Diane decides to join me on this
roadtrip. She has just sold her coffee business, and is ready to get out of NJ.
The Jersey shore is awesome for summer, but not so much the rest of the year.
Additionally, she has some unfinished romantic business in Phoenix, AZ, where I
just so happen to be headed.
I have missed driving so much! I didn’t own a vehicle and
Benin (per PC policy), and besides, it would have been a nightmare to drive.
But oh how I have missed sitting in the drivers seat, switching the gears (I
have a manual transmission) with gusto, speeding, slowing, turning, all this
power literally in my hands. Blasting my favorite tunes, rolling down the
window and singing along. The bass booms, and I am free to drive away to pass
by beautiful scenery and stop by friends’ residences. I am the god of my
movements. Well, at least until there is traffic.
The drive to Atlanta is long, but not hard. It was really
nice to drive through the hills of Georgia, especially in the fall the leaves
are changing, and it was just beautiful. Even as I was driving, I was hit by
just how beautiful America is. We really do live in an incredible nation, with
all kinds of beautiful scenery.
I spent the weekend with my Uncle Jeff and Aunt Fran. Fran
made me some delicious sweet tea, and Jeff did some excellent cooking on the
grill. I got to have great conversations with both of them as well. I managed
to keep Jeff up until 1:30AM two nights in a row, just drinking and talking. I
think he only slightly regretted it. Perhaps the hangover wasn’t the best, but
I like to think that an enrapturing conversation with your niece makes it worth
it (IT BETTER!). I finally managed to return a book I’d borrowed from Jeff over
10 years ago. He had written it off as gone, but I finally remembered to bring
it. So we had somewhat nerdy session, just talking about books (especially
fantasy) and other things, and then a little about politics.
Ryan and Seun came over with Colin. Oh my, has he grown in
the past two years! He is an adorable kid, ready to bring you a beer, at his
father’s bidding. And full of questions! At night, he went to look up at the
sky, and was excited to see the moon. He kept shining his flashlight up into
the sky, and didn’t understand why this wasn’t helping him see the moon better.
I had to restrain myself from launching into an explanation that the moon is
actually a reflection of the sun’s light, and therefore, you don’t need to
shine any light on it, and in fact… well let’s just say this might have gone
over his head, and perhaps if I have kids one day, I’ll need to come up with
short and sweet, understandable answers.
Monday, October 6th
Atlanta to New Orleans
Today, Diane and I left bright and early from Atlanta. The
traffic is always horrible there, but luckily the direction we were heading
meant that we avoided most of it. Most of the trip to New Orleans was smooth
sailing, except for one part where we came to a complete stop due to an
accident up the road. We were only stopped for maybe a half an hour, during
which Diane decided to record us jamming to a song. In New Orleans, we stayed
with my friend Karien, who was also in Peace Corps Benin.
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| Diane and I in NOLA |
We went and had delicious Creole food and walked around
downtown New Orleans. It really is such a cool city! I love New Orleans chill
and friendly attitude. We walked around and got sweet beignets. Then we went
and got a daiquiri, got stopped by drag queens who just wanted to chat with us
and invite us to the show later. I love that it’s warm there, has French-esque
names, and wonderful greenery. Diane and I went out with Karien as well, and at
some point asked her if she wanted to go on a roadtrip with us. She agreed,
bought a plane ticket from Denver for two weeks later, and the next day left
with us.
Tuesday, October 7th
New Orleans to Austin
Before leaving, however, we went to get po-boys. Karien
informed me that in New Orleans the best food can be found in grocery stores. (I
thought this was weird at first, but then I remembered often getting friend
chicken, etc, from this gas station in Hagerstown.) We got 30-inch fried
catfish po-boys, and they were everything I ever dreamed of. While we were
waiting for the sandwich to be made, I had to resist from trying to buy
everything else there. So many fried things! Yumm!
Alas, I was able to tear myself away. We went back to
Karien’s house, then we started off on our roadtrip.
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| In the Car |
We took a route through the Bayou, which was fun. A lot of
our days was just driving, until we arrived in Austin, TX. Since we had started
a little later in the day, we got in kind of late. We stayed with some friend
of Karien’s from school. He happened to be in Peace Corps, but in South
America. We shared a bunch of stories from abroad, before going to bed.
Wednesday, October 8th
Austin to El Paso
Today was a very long drive. Diane was sad because she had
always wanted to go to Austin, and now we only had a few hours. But we did stop
downtown, got coffee at a cute coffee shop, and admired the city. Austin has a
really cool reputation, and I’m sad that both times I’ve been through, I’ve
only gotten a short glimpse.
As we were on the road that morning, Diane told us a little
story. She happened to wake up really, and as she was on her phone, realizing
the eclipse is happening. So she runs outside in her PJs, looking up at the
sky, trying to figure out where this is occurring in the sky. Then she looks
around, and realizes that productive people are actually up, either jogging, or
perhaps getting in their cars to go to work. So she must have looked like a
crazy person, but all she really wanted to see was a cool eclipse!
We moved onto other topics. One of the constant one was
always Ebola. Karien and I have recently returned from West Africa, so first of
all, we knew about the current outbreak before a lot of other people in the US,
but also, it is a topic that always rears its head when we mention our former
home. At this point, such a thing isn’t really bothering me, but it really
bothers Diane. Every time she mentions to a family member that I am back, they
always ask if I have Ebola. People tell her to make sure before meeting up with
me. But, oops, she got in a car with me to drive across the country.
The constant worry about Ebola did start bothering me as the
trip went on. After spending some time with one individual, and taking the time
to explain the realities of Ebola and how it was impossible for me to have it,
they messaged me later to confirm, that I truly didn’t have it. I initially
feelt insulted that they would think that if I even had a suspicion that I
might be incubating Ebola, my natural decision would be “Well, I should drive
across the country and see how far I get before I get to infect a bunch of
unsuspecting people in some random town in America,” and resisted the urge to
tell them to look at a damn map, and realize that they, as a Dallas resident
have been geographically closer to an Ebola patient than I ever was my entire
time in West Africa. I sent them a message, again, explaining the disease
further and pleading for them to spread the knowledge and not break out into
panic. I keep getting thing in my facebook newsfeed (and defriended another
person for spreading too much panicky stuff) about it. And I hate the theme is hardly
ever—at least among non-Peace Corps volunteers— “Oh my, THOUSANDS of Africans
have died, we should really do something,” but an “Oh no, we might have a few
people in the States come back with it, so we should protect ourselves.” I hate
the philosophy—whether it’s about Ebola, poverty, drugs, terrorism,
whatever—that we don’t care or that we shouldn’t focus on solving those
problems wherever they might exist in the world, but only we should make sure
that it doesn’t cross our borders. Where’s the empathy, the humanity? And
furthermore, I think it would be far more effective to root the problem out at
its cause, not just try to put up a fence. Or a dome, if we’re so worried about
air travel.
Then, of course, there are the crazy people that put out
conspiracy theories. The CDC is hiding the “facts” about Ebola (except, oh
wait, it’s their job to spread knowledge about diseases). Obama started Ebola.
ISIS terrorists will bring Ebola to the States. The craziness goes on. So we
decided to make up some of our own, more outrageous headlines, which got more
ridiculous as the drive went on.
We laughed a bit, and looked around at the scenery. My uncle
had warned me repeatedly that driving along I-10 (which we did, despite his
recommendation to never, ever, ever, take this route) was the most boring thing
you could do. But we were seeing a whole new scenery. Yes, everything was very
flat, but the skies looked so incredibly wide. The clouds were suspended in a
surreal fashion, it just looked so cool. Even though the ground was brown, and
the vegetation plain (mostly shrubs), it simply looked so different. We were
all enraptured, and definitely thought, hmm, your uncle is just ridiculous.
And we see a mountain (really a hill) jut up from the
ground. “Oooh…it looks so cool!” we all proclaim.
Then it takes three hours to reach that mountain (hill). And
it’s flat again. Until we see another mountain (hill) pop up in the distance.
In the end, I think the drive was overall striking. But
later I realized that I think coming from the east coast, so something we’re
really not used to, it was more novel. But when you’re driving back from the
West Coast, where you’re constantly seeing desert-esque scenes, or simply dry
landscapes, and get to view incredible, actual mountains, Texas and the like
can seem just so boring, especially when it extends for over 12 hours. But it
was a really great way to start out; the scenes ONLY got better from there!
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| At some rest stop in TX |
We stayed the night in El Paso. There, Karien had found us
some couchsurfing hosts. For those of you who don’t know what this is,
couchsurfing is basically a website where you can travel and stay with people
(presumably on their couch) for free. It sounds a little scary, but it’s not
really. According to Karien, the way things are set up mean that the
couchsurfing community insists on a laid-back attitude. A lot of people travel
this way, but are also expected to open up their house (if possible). And you
can always leave reviews. So Karien has a rule that she only stays with people
who have reviews. It is unfortunate that this has to be a rule; that you can’t
just trust people. But this is the world we live in. She reads through the
profiles to find people to sound cool, and the through the reviews to make sure
they aren’t crazy or anything. Karien has also hosted a bunch of people as
well, and just raves about every experience. You get to meet really cool, open,
chill people that you probably wouldn’t have met otherwise. So anyway, in El
Paso we stayed with three people, a brother, sister, and cousin. The sister
wasn’t around much (I think she was at work), but we went out and got drinks
and food with the two guys. We had a fun discussion before heading to bed, and
then the next day headed onward to Phoenix.
NICOLE’S WEDDING
Thursday October 9th – (the
morning of) Sunday October 12th
Phoenix, AZ
Today we drove up through a bit of New Mexico and then
Arizona. We were truly in the desert now. I dropped Diane off where she was
meeting her friend, then Karien off at another couchsurfer’s house. I then
drove to Nicole’s house. Nicole is my best friend from High School. She was a
year behind me in school, but we had some classes together (including strength
training). Her mom, Helen, also worked for my parents (and then I was under her
supervision when doing work for them), and I’ve dogsat for her multiple times.
Nicole and I have managed to keep in touch over the years, even though we have
lived in very different parts of the country/globe. And Helen tells me she will
always be ready to give me a glowing recommendation!
On the way to Nicole’s house, my GPS decides to fail me, in not believing that
her address is an actual place. I suspected that maybe this area where she
lives was built up after my GPS was made, but I’m not sure. So anyway, I had to
pull over, look up the address on my phone. Then my phone tells me it can’t
give me verbal directions, because I haven’t downloaded the verbal package yet.
Oh and also the signal isn’t the greatest. So I just sit there and try to
memorize the names, etc, and go for it. I made it to Nicole’s house, only after
a minor breakdown where I was on her street, but couldn’t actually read the
house numbers, and shouted to no one in particular, “AMERICA IS SUPPOSED TO BE
EASY!!!” (I’ve said this a lot since coming home)
However, once I actually made it into Nicole’s house, I got
to meet her fiancé and his best men, who happened to be making fajitas, and
life just got better from there! The fajitas were delicious. Then, on the bed
Nicole provided for me, there was a little package with goodies (water, mini
bottle of wine, candy, cookies, etc), and a nice note on the front thanking me
for coming to the wedding. I just had this moment of “Oh my god, this is what
it’s like to grow up! I will get to do cute things!”
Then I panicked a little about growing up and needing to be
responsible and not do whimsical things like couchsurf across the country. I’m
not sure though, I think you can remain open to people and adventure even when
you grow up; I don’t see why not!
I was asked by someone there how on earth I could manage to
take a month-long roadtrip, what with the costs and the not-working. I replied
that I had lived at home a few years ago and saved up a lot of money. He
replied, “I live at home! And I can’t figure out how to save!” So I felt better
about my life decisions. Granted, most of that aforementioned money is gone,
paying for this little thing called a Masters Degree, but the fact that I did
pay for it with only a tiny amount of student loans was awesome. Plus Peace
Corps gives a small readjustment allowance to help buy things like clothes that
are A) not covered in dirt, B) not full of holes, and C) somewhat in style, as
well as other things to help get you on your feet as you “readjust” to life in
America. I just feel proud of myself that I can have all these adventures,
while still being responsible financially (ISH).
The next day, Friday, we had a little bachelorette day.
Nothing too crazy, we just went and had lunch, and then got a mani/pedi. I
remember coming back to America and just being SO EXCITED to be clean and
pretty again. As in not being able to rub balls of dirt off my body, and
occasionally wearing makeup; being able to wear my hair down without it turning
into a sweaty mess. Now here I am, getting a pedicure (with the added bonus of
a massage chair). My feet are cleaned off, and in fact I think this is the
cleanest they’ve been in over two years. It was a really nice, relaxing day,
followed by a brief rehearsal for the wedding, and then a nice dinner at
Helen’s.
Helen is a born host, and of course had bottles of wine
everywhere. There was delicious salsa and guacamole with chips, and later we
were served salad, burger, and ALL of the good things. It was so delicious, and
I’m fairly certain I gained 10 pounds that night alone (so much for all the
weight I lost in Peace Corps.) I didn’t really know many people, except for
Nicole and Helen, her mother, and one girl Michelle, who I briefly met on a few
occasions through Nicole. But I ended up sitting at a table, chatting with some
other guests. Helen made a point to make sure everyone I was sitting next to
knew I was fresh back from the Peace Corps. She says she is just so impressed
with my work, and wants everyone else to be as well, I suppose. I was chatting
to one woman who actually had daughter who had spent time in Africa (I think in
the Peace Corps, but I can’t remember correctly). She told me that when I
talked about Africa and working in development, I just had that “glow.” I joke
that the “glow” might be the wine, but she responded, no, just look at your
face, your smile. You love talking about Africa, you are getting so excited
just talking about the work you did. You’ll definitely go back. And do even
more amazing things then you did last time.” I was really flattered by everyone
that I talked to.
Saturday was the big day. We woke and had breakfast, then
all the girls went to get their hair done. Finally, we headed to the wedding
venue. My room was the only one available, so I opened it up for all my fellow
bridesmaids. We put makeup on and what not, and then our dresses. After this we
headed to the room where Nicole would get ready. Her dress was there, and one
of her mom’s friends did her makeup. There were a bunch of pictures taken,
until finally it was go time.
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| Bride and Bridesmaids |
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| Me and Nicole |
It was bittersweet, because Nicole’s father, Jim, died three
years ago (about a year and a half after my dad). They placed a photo of Nicole
and Jim together, where he should have been sitting, and Nicole’s mom and
brother walked her down the aisle. It was very sweet, but I definitely teared
up (And again, when Nicole and Helen did a mother-daughter dance). The ceremony
was short, but very sweet. The couple looked very happy and in love, and that
was good to see.
Of course afterwards was a million more pictures, then we
had our grand entrance. Nicole wanted us each to dance. I, of course was
terrified to have all eyes on me while I’m freestyling a dance. Luckily another
bridesmaid felt the same way. So we decided that the three bridesmaids would
enter together. Then the two Maids of Honor and Best Men would enter as two
separate couples. This worked very well, and we just went for it. Later,
another wedding guest complimented us, saying that it really turned up the
energy in the room, and made the mood of the party much better. I had to admit
that it was none of my doing, but all Nicole’s idea!
The food was great, and Michelle’s mother was kind enough to
offer to grab drinks for the bridal party when she went up to the bar. All the
bridesmaids ordered Long Island Iced Teas, which I feel was a great start to
the night, even though they weren’t that strong.
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| Fun Photobooth Photo |
After dinner the dance party started. I was looking forward
to this. But the music was not my generation (think Michael Jackson and Prince,
etc). I wasn’t really sure how to dance to it. So I got another LIT, and sat
there drinking it, until one of the ladies I had talked with the previous night
dragged me onto the dance floor. I danced a lot, but sometimes I just really
couldn’t feel the songs. Then they put on the Wobble, my fav dance/hustle, and
it was off from there. I spent most of the rest of the night dancing. Then
there was a photo booth, where you could dress up in ridiculous costumes and
take pictures. I did that a few times with the bridal party, and then went back
to dancing, taking breaks during songs I knew less.
At 9:00PM, the bar stopped being an open bar, and turned to
cash-only. This is when I broke out my flask. However, by 9:15, I swear, half
of the guests were gone, and by 9:30, it was only the bridal party and really
close family and friends. I kind of laughed at that, and joked that apparently
people were only here for the free booze. But I think the timing was
intentional, to get people out so there were only a few left when the party
officially ended at 10:00PM. There was some after-party drinking and chatting
in someone’s hotel room, but I was tired and ended up just going to bed.
Sunday, Helen had a nice brunch, complete with an entire
huge beverage dispenser full of mimosas! The meal was wonderful again, and I
had fun chatting with more people. One lady, as I sat down said, “Oh look, here
is the dancer!” and I blushed, and
the other woman scolded me, saying, “Yes this same girl who thought she
couldn’t dance at first!” I just laughed and told them I just had to get into
it.
ON WITH THE ROADTRIP
Sunday, October 12th (Afternoon)
Phoenix to Flagstaff, AZ
At long last, it was time to say goodbye. I had another part
of my journey to get to, so I went and collected my stuff, from Nicole’s then
picked up Karien in downtown Phoenix. She had had a wonderful time hanging out
with the couchsurfing hosts. But now we were on to Flagstaff. We decided to
drive through Tonto National Forest, which was really beautiful. It was amazing
to see the changes as we rose in elevation. Phoenix is, of course, in a low,
flat area of the desert. So when we initially left it and headed into the
National Forest, it was all cactus and low shrubs, which was cool. But then we
kept climbing (Flagstaff is at about 7000ft above sea level), and we saw much
different vegetation, including evergreen trees and what not.
We got into Flagstaff after dark, and made dinner. Then our
host informed us that he had a hot tub and would we like to use it (of course).
So we sat around and relaxed, possibly for way to long. But we felt refreshed
and relaxed; ready for the next part of our adventure.
Monday, October 13th
Flagstaff to the Grand Canyon, to Tuba City
We got up early to leave, but also managed to stop in a
little coffee shop in Flagstaff. Our trek to the Grand Canyon commenced, after
a few wrong turns. I guess I forget what it’s like to think of seeing the Grand
Canyon for the first time (this is my third). Along the way, I kept being like,
oh let’s pull off and see this other thing; let’s stop at the visitor’s center,
yadda yadda, until Karien is finally just like, “PLEASE CAN WE JUST SEE THE
ACTUAL GRAND CANYON!” So we finally parked and headed towards it. And even the
third time; it’s still such an incredible view. Just this huge rut in the
ground of a size that I’m not sure one is ever able to comprehend. It just goes
on and on. And that place across the way (to the north) is actually a thousand
feet higher than where you’re standing. You can only just sit there and bask in
the grand majesty of it.
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| The only acceptable pose at the Grand Canyon |
It was also nice because there weren’t so many people there.
We did run into some French tourists and delighted in their expressions of “Magnifique!”
and “Incroyable!” I really love the French language. It’s so nice to hear. Oh
and then one guy said something along the lines of, “Well, at least if I fall,
my resting place will be beautiful.”
We stopped at multiple overlooks, and at one actually made
ourselves lunch. Then we just casually ate while looking out on one of the
Seven Natural Wonders of the World.
After admiring the view, and of course taking plenty of
pictures of us and this background, we headed off to where we’d be staying for
the night. It was Tuba City, inside of the Hopi Reservation. I chose that so
we’d have all day to get through the Grand Canyon, and not have to rush.
Finding the hotel was interesting because the one we were
looking for actually no longer existed (yeah, thanks Google Maps). We drove
around in circles for about 20 to 30 minutes before we accepted defeat. Then we
went on to another hotel I’d written down, where we easily found the place. Just
another GPS fail. Sigh. Maybe it’s time to invest in a new one.
Tuesday, October 14th
Painted Desert, Canyon de Chelly, Monument Valley
The next morning we got up early, since we had a long days
drive ahead of us. Now I had driven through the Painted Desert before, so I
planned on a different route. This took me more south, and I think I missed
some of the actual desert part. But along this route, we got to see Canyon de
Chelly. I had actually never heard of this National Monument before. But I
stumbled across it while planning the route, so we stopped there. The canyon
was cool, with rocks that had swirling patterns, and rocks that just dropped
down into the canyon floor. There was a really open surface on the bottom,
meaning plenty of room for people to have lived and farm there historically
(and today as well).
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| Painted Desert |
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| Top of Canyon de Chelly |
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| Looking down in Canyon de Chelly |
We continued on through Monument Valley, which is always incredible.
And then we wanted to go to the Four Corners. But Karien and I both happened to
be out of cash completely, and we couldn’t pay the entrance fee. So we simply continued
on to Durango, where we would be staying for the night.
There we met up with our cool couchsurfing host, who
promptly invited us to the open mike night she was hosting. She was a pretty
rad individual, and at this open-mike night played songs on the accordion that
she had actually written herself! Colorado seemed pretty cool; very clean and
everyone is outdoors-y. The bad part, however, is the terrible lack of
diversity. I think I saw one black person the entire time I was there, and he
simply looked like he had stumbled into the state accidentally.
Wednesday, October 15th
Canyon of the Ancients, Mesa Verde
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| Looking towards the mountains from Western Colorado |
Today we headed off to see two sites in the Southwest corner
of Colorado. The first was Canyon of the Ancients, which is only a national
monument (no “park” status). The visitor’s office (also the Anasazi Heritage
Center) was in a very random place, but it had a very interesting and
informative display. There were examples of many of the artifacts found in the
area, as well as a replica of the traditional kivas/pueblas used in the area.
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| View from the Vistor's Center |
The actual sites at Canyon of the Ancients are hard to find.
They are located down various dirt roads with helpful names such as “Co Road
P”, and that don’t necessarily stay in a straight line. There are parking
spaces and trails, as well as a few signs, but for the most part there were
just ruins that you could see. Some were very defined walls; others lumps of
rocks that had tumbled down. Many signs mentioned that to the “trained eye”
(say, an actual archeologist) these ruins would make a lot more sense.
Nevertheless, it was still an interesting experience. I marveled at how small
the rooms/houses were, and Karien pointed out that most likely the majority of
activities took place outside. With no technology, such as TVs and computers,
to keep you inside, why stay in the dark? And furthermore, it would take a lot
of effort to build huge homes by hand, so why not just throw up the necessary
shelter, and take the majority of activities outside?
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| One of the sites |
Next we headed to Mesa Verde. This park is more structured,
obviously. We go there a little late, and wouldn’t have been able to make the
actual guided hikes to some of the ruins. However, we drove along the routes to
the various sites. The drive itself was absolutely gorgeous! It is fall, so all
the leaves were turning and the colors were just amazing! We drove up to the
highest point of the park, which is where the fire tower is located. The view
was really great. We were cold, however, and thought back to just mere days before
when we were in the sunny, hot desert of Arizona. We also got to see many of
the sites, which were much more intact than those at Canyon of the Ancients.
Additionally, they just looked so cool being built into the side of cliffs
(well some of them, there were also ones just built normal, on flat ground).
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| Highest Point in Mesa Verde |
We eventually headed back to Durango as the sun was setting.
Our host’s friend brought over some vegetables from his farm, which we cooked
and ate, so that was pretty good!
Thursday, October 16th (Morning)
San Juan National Forest, Glenwood Canyon
My Uncle Ken has told me repeatedly that the drive north
from Durango through San Juan National Forest is one of the prettiest drives in
the entire country. I was finally was able to listen to his advice, and took
this route. It was indeed very gorgeous, and even more so this time of year! It
was cool to go up and down a bunch of mountains, and even into this little town
called Silverton, where we shuddered at the idea of being snowed in to the
point of having zero access to any food/modern conveniences, etc, so we moved
on before the snow could catch us.
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| One of the streams beside the road. Filled with Iron(?), giving it this color. |
After that we drove up towards Grand Junction, and then got
on I-70. We were able to drive through Glenwood Canyon, which according to
Wikipedia, people have “praised the engineering achievement required to build
the freeway through the narrow gorge while preserving the natural beauty of the
canyon”. I do agree, it was quite remarkable. We got to drive in the middle of
this gorgeous canyon, and even better it meant not having to really mess up our
gas mileage by going up and down over mountains.
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| Glenwood Canyon |
The other cool thing was that there is a bike path that
actually parallels (and by that I mean weaves back and forth under) the
highway. This trip has really inspired me to bike more. I’ve heard it’s such a
different way to see everything. You’re obviously going slower, so you see more
than just speeding by in a car. Obviously, it might take a lot longer to get
places, especially trying to cross large distances. But I wouldn’t even be
opposed to driving around to cool parks and then biking from there. I’m even
considering getting a fold-up bike that is easy to pack. But idk if it could
even be small enough to, say, take with me to foreign countries. So I’ll have
to think about that in conjunction with my life plans.
Thursday, October 16th – (the Morning of) Sunday, October 19th
Vail, CO
Finally, we made it into Vail, where my sister Jessica
lives. I was very excited to be able to see the life she’s made out here. She works
mostly for a fine-dining establishment. However, since this is the “off-season”
or as locals apparently call it, the “mud-season”, she is not currently
working. The first night we stayed in, while Karien made us a nice dinner (she
is a really amazing cook). The next day Jessica decided to take us on a hike.
Now, my mother and sister Danielle had visited over the summer, and there hike
ended with them surrendering to the high altitude and letting Jessica continue
on while they went back to the car and chatted until she returned.
So Jessica said that she had learned her lesson. Even though
the actual trail was relatively easy, it started at about 12,000ft. So, unless
you’re used to the altitude, it’s hard to hike. So instead, she took Karien and
I to a trail that was only at about 9,000ft and went up to about 10,000. There
were some hard inclines, where Jessica (who has been hiking 14ers all summer)
waited patiently at the top for us, but for the most part the trail was flat.
There was a bit of snow that we had to trudge through, much to Karien (the
southern Louisiana native)’s dismay. We made it to a beautiful little lake at
the end, which was nice. And with 3.7 miles each way, we felt pretty
accomplished and proud of ourselves!
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| Along the Path |
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| Jess and I at the Lake |
The next day we went into Vail Village, which is this nice
little spot in the center of Vail. It is all bricked, and mostly reserved for
pedestrians and buses. It strongly reminded me of the town of Whister, Canada,
which I guess makes sense, since they are both ski towns. We walked around a
bit and then went and had dinner at a French restaurant. It was very good,
including the wine. After this, we went back to Jessica’s apartment. We hung
out there a bit, pregamed, and then took the bus back into Vail Village.
Unfortunately, being the off season, not much was open. There was a cool
basement bar that we went to, and had fun chatting together, as well as playing
this dice game. One other bar was open, which was having a live singing
performance. I’m not really a fan of those (just let me vibe/shake to a DJ
spinning songs I know, thanks!) We ended up having a really fun night, and rode
the bus back, safe and sound to Jessica’s apartments. I think it’s so cool that
there is a free bus servicing this area. Jessica said that it was less frequent,
being the off-season, but it still wasn’t bad. I wish this was a more prominent
option everywhere. Safe traveling! Yay!
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| Vail Village |
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| Just beside Vail Village |
Sunday, October 19th – Tuesday, October 21st
Colorado Springs and Denver
Sunday we left Jessica’s place. Karien and I had grand plans
to get up and out nice and early, but they did not exactly work out. We were
quite sluggish come morning, and it took us a while to get out of bed, let
alone ready to leave. We set off east, and just outside of Denver, turned south
to go to Colorado Springs. Jessica had recommended the Garden of the Gods, a
state park. We had also considered driving up to the top of Pike’s Peak, but
given our time constraints, that was quite impossible.
Walking and driving around Garden of the Gods with many families
out for a relaxing Sunday, reminded me of the many Sundays spent in local parks
with my family. Although, I do have to say, “Sorry, Maryland, but you ain’t got
nothing on this park.” Okay, Maryland may have some cool things. But the
beautiful rocks, the landscape, the view of the Rockies. It was all really
incredible. Again, I found myself longing for a bike I could just pack up;
there were many cool looking trails, and it would be cool just to spend the day
pedaling around.
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| View of Pike's Peak from the Park |
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| Balanced Rock, one of the many cool formations |
Once we were done with perusing the park, we headed up back
to Denver, where we were staying with another nice Couchsurfing host. Monday we
went on a short tour of micro-breweries. Colorado is very into its
beer-brewing. Unfortunately, for those of you who don’t know me, I hate beer.
It is the worst. It is calories and bad taste and nothing else. However, when
in Rome, so I decided to try it out. At the first bar, I was informed that they
made “beer cocktails” which is basically beer and liquor together. I tried it
out, and it wasn’t really the worst thing ever. The flavored liquor covered up
some of the beer, but there was still a bit of that horrid aftertaste. But
after that, I just stuck with my mixed drinks.
Somehow Karien and I, the diehard feminists that we are, got
on the subject of street harassment. Our host—a male—seemed very intrigued by
this. He admitted to not really knowing much about it, or having witnessed it.
But we explained that it often happens when other men aren’t really looking or
at least noticing. We said the #yesallwomen have a story, and he said he would
ask his female friends if they did. Oftentimes women aren’t comfortable talking
about it. We’re told we’re crazy or overreacting, or simply not fun/cool. It’s
sometimes hard to get comfortable talking about it, even with other females.
But once those floodgates open, sometimes there’s not stopping them. Every
female has a story about when she was harassed, felt unsafe, or worse. I just
think it’s really important for us to increase awareness about this issue.
The next day I left Karien in Denver. It was a sad goodbye;
I really enjoyed traveling with her for the two weeks. I then drove down the
Albuquerque, NM.
NJC REUNION & Caitlin’s Wedding
Tuesday, October 21st (Night) – Sunday, October 26th
Albuquerque, Santa Fe, Taos, & Ghost Ranch (Abiquiu)
Three years ago when I ventured to Oklahoma to complete my
grad school program, I honestly didn’t expect to do many cool things or meet
many cool people. Oklahoma represented a flat, empty wasteland of dust and conservatism
that I would tolerate so that I might get a degree before heading off to my
grand adventure of Peace Corps. Even within a month, I realized how very wrong
I was. I managed to meet the most amazing group of people, who were mostly part
of the International Studies program, like me. There were students from all
over America and the world. All of us were smart and funny, and constantly in
Sarcasm Mode. We partied together, studied together, and took Oklahoma by
storm. We survived tornados (just barely). That was the year I really grew into
myself. Before I’d have acquaintances/friends and we’d hang out. I’d usually be
chill enough just to go with the flow. Most of my relationships didn’t survive
the tides of time, with pretty much the only exceptions being Nicole and Diane.
But here, in Oklahoma, I became so comfortable around this incredible, diverse
group of people. I even became known as the “glue that holds our dysfunctional
family together”, as I was often the planner of events, an unofficial social
chair if you will. Words cannot express my absolute love for every single
individual in that group of friends. We came to call ourselves the No Judgement
Circle (or the NJC). This was our mantra: to live and to love, and never to
judge each other. It was a beautiful school year, but then the majority of us
went on our own ways. I, of course went to Benin, three others eventually also
went into Peace Corps, just in different countries, some returned to their own
countries (Japan, South Korea, Mexico, etc), others studied abroad in various
places before returning to America and getting cool jobs/internships. But
ultimately, we haven’t all been together for 2.5 years. So our friend getting
married in New Mexico was our chance, at least for some of us, to have a
monumental reunion. For the sake of our cool jobs, I am going to use different
names in the following story.
It worked out that three other girls were able to fly in a
little early. I drove to the Albuquerque airport, and first picked up Casey.
There was a little miscommunication, and I think I almost got a ticket
from/possibly arrested by a transportation security person, but finally we were
together. We drove up to the cell phone waiting area, because there was only 30
minutes before the next person would arrive. We caught up on life, our own
Peace Corps experiences, and our return home. Next I picked up Leigh, and then
again returned to the cell phone waiting lot. Chatting again, 45 minutes later,
we picked up Kelly and then headed off to our hotel. At this point it was
almost midnight, but we were in no mood to sleep. So, instead we pulled out the
stash of alcohol I already had. I had a plain bottle of rum. But I was most
excited about FIREFLY APPLE PIE MOONSHINE. Just read that one again. Now, I love
Firefly. It is actually a brewery close to my college town of Charleston, South
Carolina. They are the original makers of Sweet Tea Vodka, which is basically
the best thing ever. And before, Casey would bring homemade Apple Pie Moonshine
back from her home, and share it with the NJC. So a week before, when I found
this Firefly Apple Pie, I became ecstatic, and purchased it right away. I only
opened it once I was reunited with my NJC friends.
We spent the next few hours talking and drinking. We
marveled over how in-step we seemed to be. It was as though those 2.5 years
never happened. We were always meant for each other, we knew it!
Around 3 in the morning we decided to call another friend,
Lacy, who would have already woken up in her Peace Corp country. The phone rang
and rang, until a confused voice answered “Hello?” (she didn’t have my number),
and four of us, in drunken unison, shouted, “LACY!!!!!!!!” There was a click,
and nothing more. Kelly was slightly worried about the hotel kicking us out for
being loud, but it was never a problem. Later Lacy informed us that she
happened to be in a meeting, one where—rare as this might be in Peace Corps—it
wasn’t actually appropriate to answer cell calls. But the phone was just
ringing and ringing until she finally told her colleagues that she had to
answer it. Her name blared out from the cell phone into the room, and her
service promptly dropped, leaving everyone staring at her in confusion as she
explained she had no idea who that was.
The next day we headed up to Santa Fe. We had a pleasant
picnic in the park, and then headed around to see the cool sites of the city.
We went to the Georgia O’Keefe (the artist) museum. It was only appropriate,
seeing as the wedding would be held at Ghost Ranch, Georgia O’Keefe’s former
home. There were a few videos and paintings, many of the New Mexico landscapes,
and others of flowers that looked suspiciously like vaginas.
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| Santa Fe |
After more city-exploring, we headed over to our
Couchsurfing-host’s house. She was a pharmacist and snowboarder recently moved
to Santa Fe. I made dinner for everyone, and we sat around to chat before
heading out for the evening. She took us to one bar, which had a basement area
with low ceilings and a semi-rude bartender who only accepted cash, but made me
a really delicious drink. By the end of the night, we ended up at this club,
which our host had never been to before. Since it was a Wednesday night, it was
pretty much empty, but that didn’t stop us from dancing exuberantly. In fact,
by the end of the night some manager had come to request that we pretty please
come back on the weekend, seeing as how we would definitely make it fun. He
even, at Leigh’s request, showed us a room that was currently being painted as
another dance area. We were sad to inform him that, in fact, we were leaving
Santa Fe the next day.
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| Out with the other NJC girls |
We headed to Taos, New Mexico. We had a few things we wanted
to see: the Puebla, Earthships, Hot Springs, Rio Grande Gorge Bridge, and the
town center. We didn’t get to see everything, unfortunately due to various
mishaps.
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| High Road to Taos |
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| High Road to Taos Notice how much the Vegetation has changed with the elevation! |
The main mishap was following Google maps, which for the
first time in my life let me down. The way that it told me to go led us to a
dip that was quite impassible. By the time we got turned around, it was getting
late, so we decided to leave the hot springs for the next day, and go instead
to the bridge. The Rio Grande Gorge bridge proclaims to be the second highest
bridge in the US Highway system. (The internet doesn’t always confirm this).
The actual pedestals on which the bridge is placed aren’t terribly far down,
place conveniently on a ledge. But the actual bottom is so far away, it makes
elk look like pebbles at the bottom. And while being enraptured by the beauty
of the canyon, and the terror of the drop, the most intriguing this was
actually a “STOP” sign that someone managed to place—perfectly upright—halfway
down an embankment that looked quite impassable.
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| Looking down from the Bridge |
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| Rio Grande Gorge Bridge |
The next day we got up and went to the Puebla. The Taos
Puebla is the oldest continually-inhabited Native American dwelling in North
America. It was really cool to see! Families hold onto their property, but
often have houses elsewhere. They come to the Puebla predominantly during the
summer for cultural and agricultural activities. There are some who live in the
Puebla year-round, involved in tourism, or often elders who are cared for by
the community at large. Our guide was a very nice environmental student, who
told us about the history of the Puebla and talked about his dreams of being
able to give back to his community in the future, specifically with the
knowledge gained by his degree.
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| The Puebla |
By the time we finished there, however, it was too late to
go to the hot springs or see the earthships. We were disappointed, but pleased
that we chose the Puebla out of all the options.
We headed off to Abiquiu, where the wedding would be. Along
the way we picked up another member, Ramon, who had just flown in. We didn’t
have a specific address, but Casey and I’s plan was just to put in a random
street, and then follow the signs once we got there. This, by the way, was a
terrible plan. We pull up into this area that is I believe the town center of
Abiquiu, but is very, very tiny. There are no signs for Ghost Ranch. Kelly
pulls up in her car beside us.
“So…that’s as far as the GPS goes,” says Casey.
Kelly gives us her no-nonsense look, and somehow manages to
pull something up on her phone (Casey and I didn’t have service). She takes
off, now with us following her.
Finally, we arrive at Ghost Ranch. Checking in, we are
delighted to discover that our lodging assignments allow our NJC group to
essentially have our own little house. There were two sleeping rooms, with a
living room in the middle. It was perfect!
The three other boys were still on their way at this point.
It was actually funny, because two of them (Florencio and Dick) knew each
other, but did not know the third one (Khalif) (Florencio and Dick had
graduated the semester before Khalif arrived). We were worried about them
meeting, but Khalif later said, that it just immediately clicked, like they had
known each other all along.
Of course this was a night to party, and we enjoyed some
more rum and the rest of my Firefly Apple Pie. Some girls that had done a
Fulbright with the bride, Cat, came by, asking for help opening their wine
bottles. The corkscrew just would move the cork. Casey pulled them out in one
deft move. At one point, Ramon, Casey, and Leigh were stargazing, and then we
decided to go on a drunken mini-hike, which, in case you were wondering, was a
terrible idea. Luckily no one got hurt, but later we scolded ourselves for our
ridiculousness. Finally, the rest of the boys arrived late at night, and we
engaged in more revelry, before heading to bed.
The following morning, we got up for breakfast, and then
decided to go on a hike. As we get to the start of the path, there is a gate.
“Maybe this isn’t the way,” someone suggests, so we try another way, which
doesn’t work. We walk back to the gate, stare at it, and discuss if we think
it’s possible to go under/over it. Finally someone simply reaches out and
pushes; it opens. “Come on everyone. We ALL have masters degrees…”
The hike wasn’t terribly strenuous, but we were dealing with
somewhat high altitudes. We had to stop occasionally along the 45-ish minute
hike, but we did make it to the top. The view was absolutely incredible. Some
people climbed out towards the edge for the thrill and a better view. After a
while, we decided to let the creative juices flow as we absorbed the nature around
us. We wanted to write Cat a wedding card, and we wanted it to be in true,
hilarious NJC form. So we decided to do an activity that Leigh often does with
her ESL students: the first person writes one line, then passes it to the
second person. The second person writes the second line, but then folds down
the first line before passing it on to the third person, and so on. This way,
only the immediately preceding line could be seen by the author. It turned out
really well, and we were very proud of ourselves; not only to have undertaken this
hike, but also to have created this fun- and love-filled letter.
This is a lot what I love about us. We might party hard at
times, but we also always get our acts together, and take care of what we need
to. We are all laid back; we had absolutely no drama over this weekend. We all
did pretty well in grad school while we were there. We get up and hike; some of
us just spent a few days seeing the culture and beauty of New Mexico. We all
have (or are looking for in Casey and I’s case of recently returning from the
Peace Corps: are looking for) jobs that will (hopefully) allow us to make a
difference in the world. Who said saving the world can’t involve plenty of fun?
The wedding was very beautiful. It was set up on a little
hill that looked out over all of Ghost Ranch. In the distance, we could see a
mountain that Georgia O’Keefe had painted, I believe multiple times. The
officiate was a long-time friend of Cat’s family, and he seemed to have pretty
thoroughly vetted the groom as well. He gave a long, but humorous speech filled
with fabulous anecdotes about both parties, including one where the groom gave
Cat the Heimlich maneuver in the middle of a restaurant.
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| A classy picture in the spot where Cat got married |
Afterwards was, of course, the reception. We took some time
preceding it to return to our house, and grab our wedding gift, which was a
basket filled with each of our signature booze choices (I, for example, gave
Firefly Sweet Tea Vodka, a company I believe now owes me some sort of money for
mentioning them so many times in this blog). The food at the reception was
really fabulous (fajitas), and after all the toasts, we were told there were
two areas; one for more modern music and dancing, and the other for a more
relaxing/chatting atmosphere. So, of course, we headed over to the dancing
area, where we immediately started requesting—err demanding—songs and boogieing
the night away.
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| This basically explains the night |
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| Me with the Bride |
Cat told us the next day that we received praise from
another wedding guest for just making the atmosphere so “relaxed” and getting
people into dancing. I also hope they enjoyed watching when I convinced
everyone—for no reason at all—to run around in a dancing circle surrounding Cat
while we all clapped. It was quite fun. Along with the other wedding guests we
managed to drink the wedding out of booze, and Cat informed us the next day
that there was a moment when people on the dance floor were passing around a
bottle of what they thought was champagne, but was actually grape juice, or
“sparkling” cider. I decided that it was a really great idea to actually run
all the way back to our “house” and grab the rest of the drinks, along with
mixers, and bring them back for everyone. It was a really, really fun night. We
all made it back to the house eventually, along with some new friends that we
made, and just sat around outside for a while before heading to bed. What a
successful weekend!
The next day, of course, brought the goodbyes. They happened
one-by-one as flights left or people drove off. Finally Ramon, Casey, and I
began the drive back to Stillwater. I was really grateful that Ramon actually
knows how to drive a manual transmission, so for the first time on this trip, I
was able to be a passenger! That was very nice. We made it into Stillwater
late, since we had lingered so long, trying hard to not actually leave our
friends.
The Journey Home
Monday, October 27th – Thursday, October 30th
Stillwater, OK
We stayed with another NJC member, Marla, who is still in
Stillwater. She is doing a PhD with something that apparently involves
suspending viruses, whatever that means. The point is, she is super-smart, and
we always admire her. She was planning on coming to the wedding, but
last-minute another person in her lab had a family emergency, and they were all
preparing for a big presentation, so she had to stay. I was happy that we got
to pass through Stillwater and see her, however!
Monday, we got up and lounged around, until another NJC
member, Carl, who lives in Tulsa, arrived. We went to a little Mexican
restaurant, and started our day off with chips, queso, and margaritas. I met up
with another friend while the rest of the party went to good ole’ Stonewall,
our favorite bar in Stillwater. A few hours later, I met up with Ramon, Casey,
and Carl. They were enjoying another round. Eventually we called Donna, who is
the advisor for our program. Despite being sick with food poisoning, Donna
hauled herself over to Stonewall. She informed us that there has been no group
of students quite like us, and brought us gifts, such as pens, highlighters,
and usb-drives-on-cards. She sat and chatted with us for a while, and we
informed her how much we appreciated her. She really is great. She just makes
things happen, such as getting all of us signed up for the appropriate classes,
even when we’re spread out all over the world, and don’t really know what we’re
doing.
 |
| At Stonewall, with our Advisor |
The next day I had a meeting with the advisor for my
creative component (basically a thesis, but less stringent). I have the survey
that I did in Benin, but I actually need to work on getting it entered into a
statistics software, analyzing it, plus reading up on my topic. Ahh…time is
just slipping away! I think we had a good meeting though.
Casey and I then decided to make dinner for our wonderful
host, Marla. It was nothing terribly hard, just some pizza and garlic bread.
But it was yummy! I have missed having basically any food I want just a short
drive away. Yay, America! We just sat around and talked that night, nothing too
crazy.
Wednesday Casey and I decided to take a walk around Boomer
Lake. It was a really nice day, and walking made us feel like we were actually
accomplishing something. Then we went to Tulsa that night to hang out with
Ramon and Carl. Once again, we had excellent Mexican food out. Then we just
came back to Ramon’s home for a nice evening hanging out. Plus, we got to see
the girlfriends of the two boys, which was nice. They are both really, really
cool women, as far as I can tell.
Thursday was the day we had been looking forward to.
Thursday nights were always the best nights during grad school: Techno-Beatdown
at Stonewall. Basically just techno music blaring, people dancing however they
want, even on tables, and fun all around. We met Marla and some of her other
friends there. Casey and I decided to buy a round for everyone, which was easy,
because the special only costs $2.50 (an outrageous 50-cent increase from when
we were here two years ago). As we were heading inside, we heard one of Marla’s
friends say, “You’re friends seem cool!” Later, when another friend mentioned
that we were really fun, Marla replied, “You have no idea!” Another successful
night of dancing.
Friday, October 31st – Sunday, November 2nd
Stillwater à Kansas City à Indianapolis à Home
At last it was time to say goodbye to Stillwater. Now I had
three days of driving ahead of me, and not exactly the fun kind. Casey and I
drove up to her home in Kansas City. I got to see her mom again and meet the
cat she brought back from her Peace Corps country. It was very hard to say the
final NJC goodbye, and head out the next day.
EVEN WORSE there was frost on my car! I was so sad. I’ve
been living in West Africa, then I was in hot Arizona. Colorado might have been
a little cold, but it was at least sunny all the time. New Mexico was slightly
chilly. But Frost? FROST! Ugh. I’m not looking forward to snow at all!
Saturday night, I stayed with a fellow Peace Corps
volunteer. She was kind enough to offer her home up, and her parents invited me
to a dinner with their friends. The meal was so, so, so good, and the company
was fun. Katie, the fellow PCV, and I completed a very thorough Third Goal Activity
(for those of you who don’t know, Peace Corps has 3 official goals; and the
third one is to share our host country’s culture with Americans). We talked a
lot about our experiences, both how they were the same in some instances, and
very different, since Katie lived in the South, and I was in the North. We also
debated heatedly with one gentleman about the proper way to go about
development, and the West’s continued role in under-developing Africa. Though
we disagreed, the debate was nice. Eventually the other guests stopped us, but
at the end of the night, the hosts told me they were glad to have someone over
that could hold their own against this particular friend of theirs.
Finally, Sunday, I completed my journey. In total, it was
only the third day of driving all by myself this entire trip! It was a long,
tiring day, but I blared my music and sang to myself for hours, so it worked
out well. I arrived at my Grandmother’s to have my Stepdad, Bob’s bday dinner.
Then, finally, I made it home to a very lonely cat, who was very ecstatic to
see me back.
So in conclusion: 31 days, 7,643 miles, 20 states, a
thousand of pictures, tons of memories. What a great way to start life back in
America! Now back to the business of finding a way to put money in that bank
account, instead of just taking it out…
THE FUTURE
I expect in the next few months to only be doing boring
things like work, which no one needs/want to read about. But stay tuned at the
end of January, I will be recounting my two-week adventure in South Africa!
