This summer I was lucky enough to get to go home for a few solid weeks of R & R.
I was home last Christmas for a brief period of time, but most of my trip was marred by an unpleasant Dengue Fever recurrence. Spending NYE in the ER- I don’t recommend it to anyone. This time around I made sure I didn’t get sick, and spent every minute of it with friends and family, eating shopping or drinking. The irony of living on a tropical island and vacationing in the United States isn’t lost on me, I promise.
It was so nice to be back home in Portland. River floating, bar-hopping, shopping, and movie-watching were just some of the many activities I was eager to partake in. A lot of Starbucks was consumed too, let me tell you. I was occasionally overwhelmed by the amount of people I encountered and often mistakenly believed I recognized people when I actually didn’t. I think this is a symptom of living on an island with 10 other Americans and knowing all of them pretty well. My logic was something like- Surely I know someone in this massive group of people my age here in the airport/at the bar/in line for ice cream.
Highlights from my vacation included side-trips to San Francisco and Seattle. On our drive South, we spent the night with Gma in Klamath Falls. I was hoping to see Gpa and hand-deliver the breadfruit chips my host-family had sent his way, but he was out working on a forest fire. Grandma made some delicious food, and of course spoiled us with lots of goodies before sending us on our way.
In San Francisco, Kate, my dad and I attended Outside Lands Music and Arts Festival. We got to see some amazing performances including Red Hot Chili Peppers, Paul McCartney, Vampire Weekend, Fishbone, Phoenix, and others. We also spent a few hours cruising around the city and taking pictures at the Palace of Fine Arts. I was even able to snag breakfast one morning with my friends Vince and Donna!
Within 8 hours of getting back to Portland from San Francisco, I was Seattle-bound. Muscle memory has engrained the Portland-Eugene route in my head from my University of Oregon days, so I had a little laugh when I realized I was actually on I-5 SB instead of NB. Oops. In Seattle I got to meet up with an old high school friend, (what? It’s been 5 years already?) and talk about her exciting move to the Pacific Northwest. I also spent some much needed time with my bestie Lindsay at her old stomping grounds right off the UW campus. Fellow ducks: skip the next 3 sentences. Interestingly enough, UW was actually the main reason for my Seattle trip. I’ve been looking into graduate schools lately and as it turns out, they have a pretty nice MPA program up there. It was no Eugene, but overall a nice visit.
Before I knew it, it was time to head back to Micronesia. See you next summer, Portlandia!
It was so nice to be back home in Portland. River floating, bar-hopping, shopping, and movie-watching were just some of the many activities I was eager to partake in. A lot of Starbucks was consumed too, let me tell you. I was occasionally overwhelmed by the amount of people I encountered and often mistakenly believed I recognized people when I actually didn’t. I think this is a symptom of living on an island with 10 other Americans and knowing all of them pretty well. My logic was something like- Surely I know someone in this massive group of people my age here in the airport/at the bar/in line for ice cream.
Highlights from my vacation included side-trips to San Francisco and Seattle. On our drive South, we spent the night with Gma in Klamath Falls. I was hoping to see Gpa and hand-deliver the breadfruit chips my host-family had sent his way, but he was out working on a forest fire. Grandma made some delicious food, and of course spoiled us with lots of goodies before sending us on our way.
In San Francisco, Kate, my dad and I attended Outside Lands Music and Arts Festival. We got to see some amazing performances including Red Hot Chili Peppers, Paul McCartney, Vampire Weekend, Fishbone, Phoenix, and others. We also spent a few hours cruising around the city and taking pictures at the Palace of Fine Arts. I was even able to snag breakfast one morning with my friends Vince and Donna!
Within 8 hours of getting back to Portland from San Francisco, I was Seattle-bound. Muscle memory has engrained the Portland-Eugene route in my head from my University of Oregon days, so I had a little laugh when I realized I was actually on I-5 SB instead of NB. Oops. In Seattle I got to meet up with an old high school friend, (what? It’s been 5 years already?) and talk about her exciting move to the Pacific Northwest. I also spent some much needed time with my bestie Lindsay at her old stomping grounds right off the UW campus. Fellow ducks: skip the next 3 sentences. Interestingly enough, UW was actually the main reason for my Seattle trip. I’ve been looking into graduate schools lately and as it turns out, they have a pretty nice MPA program up there. It was no Eugene, but overall a nice visit.
Before I knew it, it was time to head back to Micronesia. See you next summer, Portlandia!