As the time to begin our trek back to the Midwest draws closer I find myself reflecting on all the things from the past seven and a half months. We have traveled over 10,000 miles and have seen and visited many incredible places and people. My heart is very full with gratitude for all the blessings that this adventure has brought to us. We’ve been doing a lot of reflecting together lately as well and we’re both so thankful that we started our adventure in the US and Canada. We have learned so much, especially about what you don’t need to cram in a Honda Civic just because it “fits,” and I couldn’t be more grateful for the practice it has given us. It also gave us the chance to see so many of our friends and family before we go abroad, which is priceless, because we know that will be fewer and farther between when we leave for six months in Europe on May 31st.
Since I last wrote we had a lovely week in Eugene visiting friends where I took some beautiful hikes. I hiked some of the Ridgeline trail starting at Blanton Ridge. I hiked up Mount Pisgah and visited the Arboretum. I also visited the Owen Rose Garden and walked along the river path. We truly enjoyed exploring the town eating, drinking and catching up with our old friends that we hadn’t seen in five years.
We also spent a wonderful week in Seattle with Dave’s cousin. We hadn’t seen her in about six year so it was special to have that time together and see her life in Seattle. I also reconnected with one of my teacher friends that was good for the soul. We went to Bainbridge Island with friends and visited some of the Trolls created by Danish environmental artist, Thomas Dambo, and they are a sight to behold. If you’re ever in the area I highly recommend checking them out! https://www.nwtrolls.org Apparently they are all over the world so we might have to continue the “hunt” when we go abroad. The one other day without rain I visited the beautiful Seahurst Park and got a spectacular view of the Puget Sound. I’m so thankful for the time we were able to spend in both places with friends and family.
We have been in Vancouver for two weeks and I am definitely going to be sad to leave. It has been fun during this adventure to think about where we could potentially see ourselves living someday, if we ever decide to not call Saint Paul home, and Vancouver is one hundred percent one of those places. We LOVE Canada! We have ever since we first spent time here together back in 2019 when we took our three week road trip out West. We had been to Toronto for a day, prior to that before we flew to Peru in 2018, and that was only for a day. In 2019 we were able to spend time in Banff and Canmore and then on our way home we drove the 1,431 miles across Canada to Winnipeg and then down into Minnesota from there. Since then we’ve been to Huntsville (Algonquin), Montreal, Quebec City and now Vancouver. We have enjoyed everywhere we’ve been in Canada. First of all it is absolutely spectacularly gorgeous! The water is some of the clearest water I have ever seen. The mountains are massive and seem to be everywhere you look. As you know, being from the Midwest where there are no mountains comparatively, their majesty is definitely not lost on me. Also, the food is delicious everywhere you go. Their food standards only rival Europe’s in my experience. It is high quality and locally grown pretty much everywhere you go down to the local bar. We actually were told at a place we stopped for lunch right after we crossed the border into Canada that salads weren’t available because the lettuce they use is not in season. Finally, the Canadian people are truly some of the friendliest people I have ever had the pleasure to interact with and that is true of every city we’ve visited!
Vancouver has been on the list of places I’ve wanted to visit since 2003. It has everything. Rivers, lakes, mountains, bike and walking paths, great food, bars, restaurants, parks, and history. It is an international city that honors its Indigenous Peoples everywhere you go, and most signs have both English and the Indigenous Dialect of the area. I am really going to miss it and I am so thankful we had the chance to visit and am so glad we had two weeks! All the things. During our time here I have done a lot of exploring. One of the first days I walked over 25,000 steps and saw and visited Science World, Olympic Park, False Creek, the sea wall, Granville Island, Sunset Beach, the Fabourg, Davie Street and West End neighborhoods. I also saw the cherry blossoms, Totem Poles and Brockton Point Lighthouse in Stanley Park. It was a full and wonderful day. The city, combined with the architecture, rivers and mountains, is truly spectacular. I also took a day and visited the Capilano Suspension Bridge and the Cleveland Dam where they have a fish hatchery. And did a road trip to Squamish to see the Stawamus Chief, Shannon Falls and to walk around the Squamish Estuary that offered a beautiful view of the seemingly 360 degrees of mountains.
Last weekend, for my 45th birthday, we went to Vancouver Island and I continued to be blown away by Canada’s beauty. The forecast was for rain Thursday and Saturday but on Friday, my actual birthday, the sun came out and there wasn’t a cloud in the sky. We took the day and drove the three hours over to the cute little town of Tofino from where we were staying in Nanaimo. It is hard to say what was more spectacular, Tofino and the beaches and parks in that area, or the drive to get there. We saw so many beautiful mountains and crystal clear lakes like Cameron and Kennedy that were as smooth as glass. It was a magical day and I felt very loved and cared for.
We leave Vancouver to begin the trip back to the Midwest on Saturday, only over 4,300 miles to go. We have to drive pretty far south to avoid mountains and snow so we have stops planned in Salt Lake City, UT, Omaha, NE and Oconomowoc, WI before we’re back in Saint Paul, MN on May 3rd. I am excited for the time we’ll be able to spend with family and friends before we go abroad. It will give us an opportunity to take care of our appointments, purge a ton of items that we’ve been hauling all over the US and Canada and sell the Civic, in case anyone is interested? 😉 And it will be another change from the life that we’ve been living for the past seven plus months. Luckily change is the only constant and we have had a lot of experience with it. All the things. I hope you know how much I appreciate you taking the time to read this. It really means a lot. Sending you love wherever you are!
