A journey to see "The Angels"

Oregon was incredible! I was delighted to leave around 6 pm.  This way, unknowingly I would have the opportunity to pass by the magnificent mass of formed dirt they call Mount Shasta at DAWN! Ugh, the beauty is indescribable!

 

 

 

 This is a 360 view just past the marker for the Oregon trail.

Yes, those are camera straps! Film shots are coming soon.

After being in the sun all day I was completely exhausted.  I felt like sleeping as soon as I got in the car but the views kept me entertained and awake.

I landed in Sacramento around 1:30 am.

When I woke up it was 108 degrees outside! Mr. Pigglesworth was not having it. Piggie pool round two was necessary!  This time Emu-head decided he was going to join in.

After this, we scooped up all the cousins in Sacramento and spent a few hours at the river in Columa. Columa is big for it's GOLD and METEORITE! Yep, meteorite, dust that fell from a meteor when it crashed into the earth many miles away a just few months earlier.  Pretty cool, right?

The last surprise from this trip is that cousin Alisa would be joining my on my travels back to LA.  We packed the car said our goodbyes and left Sacramento around 9 pm.  This would put us back in LA around 3 am, except there was construction the whole way home.  We didn't arrive until 4 am.  I slept about three hours.  I was so happy to be back "home" on the couch at my friends' house. I couldn't wait to say good morning and start getting everything ready for an 11 am departure to begin my cross country/around the world trip the next day!

 My first task of the day would be to repack my three suitcases into one, small, lightweight backpack. (Thanks for your help cousin! You helped me keep my focus and I appreciated it.)  Second errand, to take Alisa and pick my mom up from the mechanic so mom can help me move my cars to her house for semi-permanent storage!

My mom and her second cousin, Alisa hadn't seen each other in almost 20 years! That's nuts!  So, I didn't tell my mom Alisa would be joining me. This way I could see the look on her face!  As my mom was introducing me to her mechanic, I said, "hi George. Nice to meet you.  This is my friend Alisa." I guess my mom didn't even see anyone else in the car.  My mom stooped into the car, her reaction was a little late because she had to realize it wasn't just my friend but her long lost cousin.  As soon as that clicked in her brain her mouth immediately dropped wide open and it was all hugs. Yes!! I did my part!

The three of us spent the rest of the day running my lame errands.  Going to the bank, buying one more ring to fake people into thinking I'm married while I'm on the road, picking my bike up and delivering it to a friend's house so they can use it while i'm gone and junk like that.

All and all a very successful two days!  Awesome times!

Sactown, Oregon and back down!

Things are moving right along. The plans to go see both my cousins and my brother are locked in! I'm headed to Sacramento for a few days then off to Oregon. I'm so excited to meet my gorgeous nieces, see my brother for the first time in about 14 years, meet his lovely lady, spend fourth of July by a river with my cousins and play with the rugrats before they're all grown up!

This independence day will be one I won't forget, as it is a celebration of my independence and a farewell celebration from my homeland.

It's been hard to try to divide my time and hang out with everyone one last time before my departure.  There are many people that I haven't had the chance to see yet. My time is becoming more and more limited. Last night I officially said "bye" to two of my closest friends who are flying to the midwest. The thought of not seeing them in a very long time saddens me. A few tears were shed. But!.. I have an awesome new hammock to relax in an think about how awesome they are on my trip! All I need to do now is get to a place with palm trees so it will be warm enough to use it!

 

Above one of my cousin's emu. He and his mom saved some eggs from being destroyed and rotated them every 6 or 8 hours in an incubator for weeks on end. They're such intriguing, wacky animals. 

I'm doing my best to wrap things up here in the states and be as prepared as possible. Saturday morning I bought a youth pass through STAtravel.com for $28. That's supposed to save me a ton of money on flights, hostels etc.. Hopefully it will come in handy.

Yesterday I finished house sitting and said bye to my temporary doggie. He's a smart dog and seemed pretty bummed that was I leaving.  We had become good friends.

I've been trying to narrow down my possessions. When I repacked all my stuff I went from backpack and two small suitcases down to a backpack and one small suitcase.  It's progress and I think this is a good way to take what I'll actually NEED and not everything I want to take. It will be weird only having ONE bag and nothing else. 

 

 These  are a couple maps to help describe how BIG this trip is going to be for me. Obviously, the places I've been are in pink. On the larger scale of things, I really HAVEN'T traveled! I can only imagine how much I will learn while I am gone and what a different perspective I will have.