España

My first trip to Spain, we decided to extend our family visit and take a week in Spain. We left rainy Manchester and flew south to the sunny Mediterranean coastal town of Malaga, a favorite of UK Tourists I'm told. It is the low season so no crowds and we were greeted with awesome weather. We took a long walk along the beach with parakeets, seagulls, sanderlings and many other birds. People here are chill and we passed many out for a walk, cycling, or watching the sunset. We walked an hour into town and found a lovely outdoor tapas restaurant Krakan. We sampled some savory dishes and walked home. The night was just beginning for the locals but it was our bedtime!

Viaje de Enero

Also known as 'The Greg Abroad'. Joyce left Jan 7 to UK to celebrate Auntie Ruth's 90th birthday. She landed the next day in Manchester, met her brother Malcolm, and boarded the train to Settle, UK and was able to see cousins, cousins once and twice removed, brothers Malcolm and Alastair, and of course Dan and Ruth. A great reunion!

I left the following Wednesday evening for an overnight to Manchester where Malcolm met me and assisted me navigating the railways to get on a train bound for Skipton. I was met by Alastair and driven to their mother Mary's cute apartment for a bit of curry before retiring. I greeted Mary who stayed in bed. Then onto Abbey Hotel in Skipton.

We were there to celebrate Alastair's 60th birthday arranged at the downtown church in Bradford by Sharon. An amazing 7 course Chinese meal served up by Anthony, the churche's cook attended by Joyce's brother Charlie, Gilly, their fine young ladies Ana and Eliza (in nursing school) who came down from Glasgow. Also cousin Rob, niece Esther and her wife Lucy, and a number of Alastair and Sharon's good friends some of whom we met at Esther's wedding last May.

I got slaughtered by Joyce and Mary at scrabble. Fascinating the brain: Mary can't remember what we talked about 5 seconds ago but is unbeatable in scrabble!

Joyce and I took walks in famed Saltaire along the canals that to this day carry canal boats through a system of locks all across England. In our May visit, AJ bought a cheap bike at a thrift store and road the bike paths along the canals 50+ miles to Manchester Airport, sleeping in a park one night and at an Airbnb another and gifted the bike to an Airport worker before departure. Cafe's, birds, Englishmen with their dogs, light rain and often sunshine accompanied us. It was good to reconnect with family and to discuss the uncertain future as Mary stays longer in bed each day.

She didn't attend the feast at the church but really enjoyed herself especially with her grandchildren at Alastair's afterward for cake, tea and some fun party games!

Sock was new to us but really fun: 2 long socks are filled with about 20 trinkets (golf tee, dice, wooden cubes of different colors, a monopoly house, a small lens, a lens shaped piece of stone, thin wooden pieces shaped as a pig, a foot, a clover, a marble, and a plectrum. What's that you ask? A guitar pick—a new word to me! This and a few other such bits and bobs. We divide into 2 teams, a spinner to select what the target is and sometimes to select the non-dominant hand, and the race is on the stuff the hand into the sock of goodies and be the first to emerge with the correct item. Greg's team beat Joyce's but we were all winners in the fun being had!

Another new word: hob! I was surprised that after 35 years of marriage to a Scot I didn't recall ever hearing the word, 'hon' until this visit. It means stove or stovetop. Mary's has ben turned off to avoid accidents and she gets a daily meal from the clubhouse. She can make tea and otherwise doesn't eat much.

Hob was heard a second time when I was given a tour of Esther's cool new camper van (which has a sink and a one burner hob!) as well as a pop up top, a fridge, turn around front seats etc. Hoping for many fun adventures for her!

We took the train to Manchester, dinner at the hotel joined by Malcolm, and prepared for our flight to Malaga, Spain the next morning. We leave with some uncertainties not knowing when we'll be back, nor whether we will see Mary again.
Greg

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Steinbeck’s California



Up next, a long beautiful drive to the coast.  AJ and I listened to and discussed the music assembled on the play list and enjoyed one another's company.  A stop at a farm market to pick up the locale's delicious fruitYo and some street tacos we proceeded past Salinas and Monterey en route to Pfeiffer Bi Sur State Park Campground.

The iconic high cliffs overlooking the blue Pacific Ocean such a draw!  

We stayed in a nice, wooded campsite.  Got a chance to use the bikes on a beautiful ride down the coast. Going up and down the cliffs was a challenge for the old man of the group with several false summits to negotiate.  After cresting we flew down to sea level and had a snack at Partington Cove, watching magic happen as waves spouted through holes and channels in the rock. 

The trip back was made possible (for me) by switching with AJ to Joyce's too small but electric bike.  It was still work!  It was made just possible with some battery juice which conveniently ran out just before cresting.  A brief break at the Henry Miller library (Steinbeck only one of a band of area authors) where we picked up Miller's 'Tropic of Cancer' and Steinbecks 'To an Unknown God'. We stopped for lunch at Nepenthe and coasted back to our campground.  Later we went into Monterey and saw Cannery Row, a public statue commemorating that work, Sea Otters in the Bay, and had a celebratory seafood dinner on the coast.  

Greg

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AJ and Yosemite

AJ flew into Reno to stay with a high school friend and we arranged to meet up outside Carson City for the next (and among the most fantastic) legs of the journey—Yosemite and Big Sur coast. Yosemite was a late add to the docket and I didn't have reservations. We stopped en route at stark Mono Lake which concentrates salts and has unique insect and bird like that tolerate the geologic oddity.

AJ and Yosemite

AJ flew into Reno to stay with a high school friend and we arranged to meet up outside Carson City for the next (and among the most fantastic) legs of the journey—Yosemite and Big Sur coast. Yosemite was a late add to the docket and I didn't have reservations. We stopped en route at stark Mono Lake which concentrates salts and has unique insect and bird like that tolerate the geologic oddity.


We proceeded to just outside the east entrance to Yosemite and checked out Ellery Lake campground. Greeted by Fred, an amiable and stone deaf camp host, he suggested site 11 walking us to it. It was THE BEST site in one of the loveliest campgrounds backed by Ellery lake and stunning sheer glacier-carved cliffs. JACKPOT!

It's been awhile!

 I'm on a plane headed to UK for my brother-in-law's 60th birthday in Bradford, England.  I will be joining Joyce who left a week ago to attned her Aunt Ruth's 90th birthday party which I was unable to attend.  I arranged a trip following the celebrations to visit Spain and our good friend Mike Kelley now living in Madrid.  We'll start at Malaga on the Mediterranean coast, make our way north via Granada and the al Hambra, and then onto Madrid.  I'm currently reading for the first time Don Quixote, so am looking forward to tilting swords at some windmills!

People have asked me to finish my blog, so I will use this time to catch you all up.

It looks like I left you all in California, with my good friend Omar and his wonderful family.  He and his oldest daughter, Rania, met me again at the Del Valle park and we did a bit of touring, packed up and headed to Omar's home in Tracy, CA.  He had generously allowed me to park Humsafar in front of his house so I could head out on my only departure from the journey.  After breakfast the next morning, I headed to SFO to get on a flight to Detroit to see mom and dad, and to attend the wedding of my nephew David Birchall to his lovely fiancé, Alex outside of Toledo, Ohio. 

Roasting Marshmallows with Omar and the girls! 

On the road again!

After catching up with the Fam, including my older sister Sue who notably donated one of her kidneys to me in 2019 (without which this journey would not have been possible!! ❤️), I return to San Francisco airport, and ultimately to Tracy, CA to again see Omar and to pick up Humsafar to resume my journey, now over 3 quarters done.

Omar and Margie were excellent hosts! Omar, while watching over the trailer, noticed an ant trail and found they had invaded the trailer! He was too kind and cleaned up the mess putting ant repellant everywhere. The trailer was in tip top shape and I was able to stay the night, have breakfast the next morning, and off I went to S Lake Tahoe where, you guessed it, Tim and Natalie live!

We have visited them over the years and it was great to see their place again! Driving up I was again excited and energized in the beautiful cool mountain air! I stayed in their (5 Star for sure!) Hosted —— bedroom and was able to glean some tips that I was able to pass onto Kateri who is starting to Airbnb her guest house. I worked as usual Tuesday and Wednesday downstairs and we had dinner with friends one night.

The next night I had contacted Bruce and Kim. I met them earlier in the trip when camping at ————-. I had struck up a conversation and I showed them videos of the cute river otters I had seen that morning. Passing by my trailer later, while I was working, they had invited me to their site for a happy hour. Over drinks I learned they were both retired (she from UCLA Foundation work, and he from engineering, and split time between LA, S Lake Tahoe, and the road. They invited Tim, Natalie and I for a nice boat ride on Lake Tahoe that evening (Emerald Bay). I was glad they could meet with each other and perhaps make new friends I the area!