I'll try to keep it relatively concise. Illustrations available in the form of assorted photos on facebook.
On my flight from Fairbanks to Juneau (via Anchorage), I sat next you an Aussie on a wander, who in the course of more general conversation, told me about the hostel where she was staying that night. This proved highly serendipitous, as the ferry departure was pushed from 2 AM which would have meant spending some hours at the port waiting, to 9 AM, which meant that I managed to find and secure a place at the hostel of lore. I ended up taking a walk around town with this erstwhile friend, who was staying a bit longer in Juneau before continuing on her way.
The next morning, some other ferry riders in a similar situation to me gave me a lift to the port, where after a bit of waiting, we boarded. I highly recommend the Inside Passage ferry on the Alaska Marine Highway System (AMHS), either in a cabin or in lounge chairs in the solarium, but will include a caveat: unlike airplanes, where there are 5000 announcements regarding boarding and whatnot, you'd better be paying attention on the ferry and in the docks, because they aren't particularly concerned over whether or not a particular passenger is on board. They keep to a schedule, which they announce, but there's nowhere near the degree of handholding that happens in the airport.
The Inside Passage is GORGEOUS, and varies just enough that 3 days just starts to get old. On my boat, the Columbia, there were 2 enclosed viewing decks, a movie theatre with the same 4 movies every day, a deli/cafe place, and a restaurant. Also showers and laundry facilities for the solarium guests, without their own in-cabin bathrooms. It's a place to hang out and chat with fellow passengers (nothing else to do!), which led to a couple music circle nights, card games, and conversations, including some with a recent college grad named Aaron (not sure how he spelled it, actually), and his friend/mentor, who'd just been on a kayaking adventure in SE Alaska, and who gave me a ride from Bellingham to Seattle!
In Seattle, I made arrangements for my forthcoming rail tickets, secured a few legs, and connected with Jenn, a friend from college, who graciously hosted me for the several days I had in town. We went swing dancing, had indian food, where I spoke with the waitress in Spanish, wandered around Pike Place Market and Seattle Center where we were surprised by the revelries of Seattle Pride! I had a couple week days where I was on my own for a few hours, but aprovechar'd the time (that means 'took advantage of') by visiting the Space Needle, Childrens' Science Museum, EMP Museum (my favorite- pop culture, movie costumes and props, music stuff), a tour of the harbor, some fabulous views of Mt Ranier, aquarium, and a pass by the famous Seattle Library! I also got to catch up with a handful of other college friends who live/d there :-)
Once I left Seattle, about 24 hours saw me in Sacramento, where David (more Prin! there was a lot of Prin reunioning in this part of the trip) picked me up from the train station. I got to have dinner with Miranda, a friend from Peace Corps, and saw Ivy and Andrew for a couple days, which involved more swing dancing, because more swing dancing is happy. On my last full day in Sac, David and I went white water rafting for my first time, on the American River, with an entertaining - and capable- guide, and a group of 4 women who ranged from yearly rafters, to one other 1st timer. It was great fun!
From Sac, I went to San Francisco for a couple days, where I stayed with a cousin, Betty, and her husband, when I wasn't wandering around the city essentially at random. I've got to say, San Francisco was my favorite city of those I visited, in terms of itself.
I flew from SF to San Diego for several days with my grandmother, and went to the beach, ran on the beach of my own volition, wandered in Old Town, and she and I went to some music venues, and it was a generally lovely time! We also went sailing with another couple of friends, and Skip, our enthusiastic captain.
From there, I boarded a train to LA, where after a brief reunion with Joe (yes, more Prin), I set out on the Southwest Chief, scheduled for a 2 day trip from LA to Chicago, whence I'd end up in Cincinnati as a surprise for my mom's birthday. That part ended up happening, as well as it could, but on the way, the train broke and we had a 4 hour delay in Raton, NM - oh, Raton!- which ended up with the train running 9 hours late. However, there were some fabulous people on board, and there was an impromptu drum/music circle in Raton, so it had some good stories. In a side note, just because, there was also a drug bust in my train car, but didn't lead to any increase in the delays, so that's OK! Instead of going to Chicago to transfer, those who were to make my connection were put on a bus in Galesburg to pick up the train in Indianapolis, no, Cincinnati, no, Indy...but I ended up in Cincinnati a mere 45 minutes after the train was scheduled to be there...after giving the driver instructions on how to get to the terminal. Yay!
A week and a half or so in Cincinnati held 2 birthdays, Korean food, kayaking, running, shopping, crafting, all sorts of fun stuff, and then I was off to College Station, TX, via Washington DC and New Orleans! More trains. They're rather limited by their tracks, but quite comfortable.
DC saw more Prin friends, with whom I stayed, catching up, and walks around the iconic spots. NOLA saw a Peace Corps friend, and her friend who put me up for the nearly 12 hours I was in that city- I really need to actually visit that place sometime! And about another day saw me in Texas, where on an hour layover in Houston, I ended up leaving early and meeting my friend Mollie, for a few days of moving her, her husband, and her dog, from an apartment to a very cute duplex! Then I flew back to Cincinnati for a Month And A Half!
Cincinnati held Cincy LX, a weekend of swing dancing til 5 AM on two nights, dancers from this eastern-part-of-the-Midwest, and hosting 3 fun dancers up from Tennessee! After recovering, I ran at least 5 days a week, caught up with Cincinnati friends, and started getting into job searching!
But then September came, and it was time to bus to Omaha via Chicago (6$ - go Megabus!) staying with a Prin friend in Chicago, for Cowtown Jamborama, a Lindy hop workshop weekend, and another week of hanging out and enjoying the company of Omaha friends. Then off to Colorado for my cousin Kelsey's wedding (perfect!) where I reconnected with the Little Dragon, my charge in Alaska, who Remembered Me! Then were several days of checking out Denver, to which I'm about ready to move, and driving through the mountains with my parents to Glenwood Springs, Delta, Ouray, Grand Mesa, Black Mesa, and more! We saw rain, fog/clouds, heat, cold, sun- every kind of weather, and completely unbeatable scenery.
Sated for the time being with topography, I went to Florida, where I am given to understand by my host and Prin friend Andrew (different Andrew from Sacramento) that there is none. We whooshed through all 4 parks over 2 days, with 2 visits to Epcot, went to a wetlands wildlife preserve, to the beach, and there was good times had by all.
And now, I'm back in Cincinnati, fairly permanently for the forseeable future, except for 1 little week-long trip to NYW next week, for a career conference ;-)
