Orford, NH: Lakeview

Stopped to take a look at the beautiful view through the office window.  :)

Camp: Homesickness

The kids have come, and we are exhausted.  There is frustration, homesickness, and confusion... the sort that I guess comes with this kind of work. Camp work, and others like it, is not traditional work, and we sometimes work 12+ hours a day- it just comes with the territory.

I have only been here for about a week and a half, I seriously miss my life back in Cali.... but at the same time, I love the way the world has opened for me.  The head of the camp said that homesickness is really peer sickness, as in the kid (or person being homesick) is missing the support and comfort of their peers at home, and I think that might be it more than anything.  We have been extracted from our normal lives, in countries around the world, and have been implanted into this little camp in the middle of the New Hampshire forest; void of  any phone reception, and allowed limited internet use.  We eat, sleep, play, work, etc. with these same people, and will be doing so for the entire summer.  It is an interesting experience really.

For me, it is definitely more peer sickness than anything else:
 -  No one knows who Madea is.  In fact, every time I ask, they think I am speaking a         different language.
 -  The english/aussy dudes are constantly saying things like "cheers" in place of words that I normally use, like "thanks".
 -  They think 30 minutes is equivalent to extremely heavy traffic.
 - etc, etc.


I am doing alright though, everything is just so very different.

             

Hanover, NH... take one

Spent a whole day in this little town.  It is the home town of Dartmouth University and is a very small town. The bus picked us up from camp, and dropped us off for a full day of fun.... and if the town were a bit larger, fun could have been stretched to fill the entire day.  It is definitely a cute town though.  

We ate brunch/breakfast at a delicious diner called Lou's....  The diner has been around since the 1940's, and was delicious.  

Hanover, NH

Warren, NH: Warren Town Hall

We partied here, with the locals, and a country rock band.   View the larger map, and drag the yellow guy, and see the street view.... So many of the foreign staff said this was the epitome of an American epic night.... complete with a yellow school bus and red party cups.  The town itself, I personally think, was a wonder in itself.



View Larger Map

Orford, NH: The Camp

Camp Moosilauke, Orford, New Hampshire

The camp has been around since 1904, is an all boys camp, and caters to a higher end population.  Its an old-school, camp...

Languages...

Sitting in the airport, people watching/ just listening....  Most of the workers at the airport, and many of the flyers speak a language that I have never heard, and with almost as much frequency, maybe even more, as the spanish language is heard in Los Angeles.  It sometimes sound likes a little french, but then goes into something else entirely.  Doing a general search on languages in Boston, it looks like it may be French-Creole.

We encountered the creole language in New Orleans, and I understand it is a main language of many of the Caribbean countries, including Haiti.  It seems like many of those speaking it hear may fall under that category, speaking perhaps Haitian Creole, or Kreyól. The roots of this language, and how it is connected to Cajun life is absolutely fascinating...

What's the big deal on this?  Nothing really, just an observation.  In California, we are used to a certain level of diversity, but are naturally limited by that as well.  So encountering a new level of diversity is just something neat.

Flying to Boston

Flew to Boston today, and am currently in the airport, waiting for morning to come.....

LAX!!!!!!!!

TSA here, sure was grumpy.... except for the last guy who checked my bag, the others were just not people persons.... one refused to talk to anyone, the other just yelled.  It was a bit funny though, to tell the truth.  So many grumpy people in one place, weirdly made everyone else crack jokes, and laugh it off.

While waiting to get into this line, we got to do some people watching, and saw lots of people who looked familiar, but couldn't pinpoint, and saw a couple stars we could make out; Including Rick Springfield and the dad from American Pie.... then lots of doppledangers and funny looking people, all together made people watching fun at LAX.

BOSTON!!!!!!!!!!!

Such a small airport in comparison to LAX, and trying to find a place to chill, is rough.... but got it!!

True to my overly hyper-self, I took a lot of pictures of the views from the airplane.... it is beautiful from above!

Here are some of the photos

The full set--> CLICK HERE!!!!

Finally, Videos!!!!

Taking off- the lense is very dirty.  Sorry 'bout that!



Lightning clouds from the airplane....we went through a storm that shook the plane a bit.  The captain'sort of warning and explanation beforehand, made it worse, mentally.

Long Beach Bike Path

Went for a bike ride with my Dad today, along a path we've been riding since I was little.

The official name of the path is the San Gabriel River Bike Path, and it starts in Whittier, and ends at Seal Beach. [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/San_Gabriel_River_bicycle_path]  I think that it may actually go up farther. [http://www.labikepaths.com/bike-paths/upper-san-gabriel-river-trails/]  Maybe one day we'll follow it all the way up.  ;)

 

Watch a cycler's video: