Going home

... And now... it's time to go home....

The girls took me to Boston...

Said quick goodbyes, and jumped out with my luggage.

At Boston Logan Airport

Goodbyes suck.

6 hours later....

A friend posted later that leaving is not the hardest part... it is the memories of moments that continually pop up after.  In all the trips that I have been on, this has been so true, and coming home is like coming down from an exhilarating high.... Reality is slow and your home has continued on, without any consideration for all that you just experienced.  

I have never gotten so close to a group of people so quickly in my life.  I had so many wonderful experiences this summer, I am sure that I will be retelling great memories for a long while.

Camp: West Coast to East Coast

Found a moose toy from last year, so I decided to take him with me.  

Here we are in Santa Ana, CA at the John Wayne Airport.

Just waiting....

And here we are having a drink in the Dallas Fort Worth Airport.  Tejas.

And here, we caught the score to the Kings game, then ran to our next stop at Chicago O'Hare Airport.

Then finally, here we are in Boston, at 1am Eastern Time.... Just waiting for my bags, and praying they all made it through.  

Camp and New England: The people I met this summer

This was an amazing summer, and I met a ton of amazing people, and saw a large part of the country.  I will never forget my time with them, and I am confident we will see each other again.

The thing reinforced to me, was the fact that everyone has a story, and no one is all that they seem to be.  I saw American Ivy League students, pass judgement on those who did not speak fluent English, and stupidly assuming that they were less intelligent. In fact, they were probably the smartest ones at the camp.  A medical student, environmental engineer, Viola player (not sure what you call them), internal business student, ping pong champion, etc. Actually many East European students, who were hired as the "help" in USA camps for the summer, as reflected the same experiences...  The counselors, especially American counselors, kept away from them. Its a pity for them really.

I know this is common everywhere, but it never fails to astound me.

The stories of the locals that worked with and for the camp also captivated me.  No one talked much to them either, but they could care less really.  

I met people from all around Europe, and the East Coast... I was one of the only West Coast folk there.  There were some working at a school in Cali, but they are not natives.  It amazes me how different the East Coast is from the West Coast, and how the general culture can vary from town to town.  Even the accents change.

Also, and I say this with no intention to offend, but I have honestly never been around so many high upper-middle class, and upper class people in my life.  Ivy League Schools are such a far thought for those in my area, and boarding schools were some mythical place that kings and heirs to financial dynasties are sent away to.

Above all, I realized, that for living in such a large and diverse part of the USA, I really knew nothing of the world.  Small town mindset is not limited to small towns apparently.  There are people out there who honestly never struggled financially a day in their life... and there are a lot of them. Some people think eating Taco Bell, and making 'burritos' at home signifies that they embrace the Latino culture (they even asked me if I spoke Mexican).  There is also a whole other culture and way of living, that I haven't a clue about.  I still don't know what Squash is (not the food, but apparently a sport?).  I just found out what Lacrosse is... Rowing is not a big sport out here, etc. etc.

The 2013 Staff

Best people to travel with.  Ever.

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...

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.