After working long days and weeks in a high stress environment at the Tallahassee Board of REALTORS for the last 6 months I decided I needed a proper holiday before starting my vaca-umm, graduate program in Scotland. Conveniently, Erma was moving to Miami for a vaca-, I mean, internship, so I tagged along with her and we met some friends from Tallahassee down there.
It was nice to be in Latin America again.
For some reason I was surprised that Miami has a great beach.
Erma's only furniture consists of a couch she won't fit on and what was sold to her as a dresser, turned out to be a cabinet, and is now happy in its current role as a twin headboard. If you doubt the intensity of Miami's UV light checkout the couch cushion thats reversed.
The Venetian Pool was highly recommended by our friends from Miami. I was whistled twice for horseplay.
7-11 meets grain alcohol and Miami beach. The are more ways to walk out of here with a head/belly ache than you can shake a stick at.
When my time at sea level sadly came to an end I headed up to my second residence in Denver. Brendan welcomed me by insisting I meet him at half past five the morning after I arrived for a stroll up to 13 thousand feet by way of the Arapahoe peaks. My generous host Mike, and former co-ski-bum Nick joined us.
Brendan demonstrates the Major Kong technique of climbing.
The gang at roughly break #27.
A few days later I headed up to Red Rocks with the boys for a little open air cinema. Now Denver is right up there with Portland, when it comes to having a liberal-minded, indie type population so I would expect a good low-budget film or B movie. Such was not the case but I wasn't disappointed when I heard Highway to the Dangerzone six times. In addition to Tom Cruise's masterful performance as Maverick, the crowd put on a pretty good show: there were people dressed for volleyball-- complete with acid wash jeans and taped wrists-- and also a dozen or so in full flight suits.
Nick waits for the feature presentation: TOP GUN.
My final outing in the US was to be an epic three day climb up Gannett Peak-- the high point in Wyoming. Shamefully we failed to reach the top for no other reason than pure exhaustion. Our plan required a 16 mile hike in on day one, then to wake at 2 A.M. for another 10 miles to the summit and back to camp, and then 16 out. We managed day 1 and 3. It was still a magnificent trip and I think to the most remote place I have ever been.
Mike at the aptly named Photographer's Point.
I thought I had seen my last sandy beach for a while when I left Miami-- Not so!
I think the landscape of the Wind River Range is the prettiest I have seen.
Sure beats the flatlands.
I am in Edinburgh now. On the lookout for Neds.
My roommate, Atta, and I tried to take a (small) refrigerator on a bus today. They turned us away so we took a cab that was reluctant to have us.
I walked 4.5 miles yesterday to look at a used bike and it turned out to be something I wasn't really interested in but I didn't wan't to walk home so I bought it.
More stories to come...
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