An old friend in Kamloops, Canada

Friday morning, July 23, Young-il and I left the campsite before 6 am so that he could catch his flight back to Oakland. Then I went back, broke camp with the kids, and we headed east for Kamloops in central BC. First, however, we had to stop by a local farm and buy a couple of boxes of fresh blueberries. Mmm! Kamloops is half-way between Vancouver and Banff and is where an old friend of mine from Fuller days pastors a church.

It was good to see Harold again after 20+ years, get to know his wife, Charlene, better, and meet their three grown sons. Harold was a great support and and real friend to me when I went through a difficult period in my life; he has a real pastor's heart in caring for other people.

What an interesting time we had with them! We had bear meat for dinner--from a black bear that Harold had legally hunted and killed himself, cherries from their own cherry tree, grape juice from their own grapes, and lots of other homemade delicacies. In fact, most of their food they hunt, harvest, and preserve themselves. Charlene is also a musician--choral director, voice teacher, and pianist--and leads all of the music programs at the church, as well as a literacy program, among other things. Afterwards, Lisa and I commented to each other that we felt sorry for the boys. They are going to face major disappointment some day when they discover that women like their mother are one in a million.

We were sorry that we didn't get to attend a worship service with them and hear Harold preach but we did get to see the church building. After a warm send-off, we headed off for Banff: six hours to the east in neighboring Alberta.

Victoria, British Columbia

July 15, we met Young-il in Victoria, British Columbia. It was fun to see him after having been gone for a week. He flew up to join us in Victoria while we visited his parents who live there (Halmoni & Halaboji to Matthew: Grandma & Grandpa). Young-il visits them annually and, while I used to, Matthew and I haven't seen them for several years. It was good to see them again. They're now 85, still living in their own apartment, and still healthy.

I came away with a deeper respect for my parents-in-law, especially my mother-in-law. They are not sophisticated but are simple folks, yet there is much to learn from them. They give Young-il and me complete freedom and acceptance in the decisions we make and the things we do; there is never a word of criticism from them, just love and support. This is difficult for any parent to do but it is especially uncharacteristic of an Asian parent. Then they told us that every morning the first words they say to each other are, "I love you," rather than "Good morning," because one doesn't know if it will be a good morning or not but you do know that you love the other person. This is remarkable because people in Asian society don't say that to family members, especially people of their generation!

While in Victoria, I took Lisa and Matthew to a Butterfly Garden. Loved the warmth and humidity. Reminded me of Taiwan. Also went to the world famous Butchart Gardens. Saw a fireworks display there in the evening unlike any fireworks show I've ever seen before. This wasn't just fireworks; it was a light show/fireworks dance/fireworks exhibition set to music. The fireworks were set in various shapes and moved according to the music. Hard to explain but just awesome. Also saw the Parliament Building and other sights around time.

The highlight of our time there, aside from time with Young-il's parents was the last day when we went out on a boat to see orcas in the Sound between Vancouver Island and the mainland. Did we see orcas! We saw one after another, then a whole pod which was breaching not too far from our boat. Suddenly, 3 of the orcas in the pod broke off and headed our way. We watched in amazement as they swam directly under our boat and off into the distance. We were able to see their black and white markings as clearly as could be, that's how close they were to the surface as they swam beneath us. What a treat!

Victoria. Love the town. We finally said goodbye and left on July 22 on the ferry for Vancouver.

Cindy finally blogs

Cindy here. Finally! I've been writing a lovely blog in my head every day. Really. Just haven't had the internet access like we thought we would, especially the last week in Canada. But now we're in Helena, Montana and decided to stop at a library for a couple of hours on our way to Yellowstone just so that we could update our blog for our dear family and friends.

Wow, what to say. We're dumbfounded by the beauty of what we're seeing. I'm humbled that we should have the luxury of taking this amazing trip when there are so many poor in the world. As a Christian, I'm struck by the immense creativity and love of God in making a world so grand in scale and so breathtaking in detail. If I am thrilled to see the sheered mt. cliffs, glacial canyons, and volcanic lakes, how much more joy He must have had in watching the glaciers carve those cliffs and canyons and and the volcanoes create those lakes over the millions of years that it took. Talk about an artist enjoying his art!

Every part of our trip has been perfect thus far. We've had perfect weather: sunny, blue skies and warm temps, even in places known for rain. We had a little rain the other morning but not too bad. It cleared in time for us to break camp. We've been able to get a camp site every night except one; then we stayed in a motel. That's pretty amazing considering it's the peak tourist season in these major national parks. Driving has been easy with Lisa to help trade off. And our driving has been broken up by enough stops that it doesn't seem like we've done much driving at all. Drive 5-6 hours and spend a day at a destination. Lisa's been a huge help at setting up and breaking camp; I've really relied on her. Matthew has helped as much as a 10-year-old can, which is to say not as much as an 18-year-old would like. Everyone has gotten along very well.

The only problems we've had have been: insufficient internet access to update our blog and insufficient time to do these national parks justice. We feel like we're just sailing through them and wish we had more time so that we could actually do some hiking in them. But we have a schedule to keep . . . 99 days is just not enough time . . . sigh. . . .

But, all in all, I'm very thankful for how smoothly things have gone and that we're getting to do this. We are blessed.

I Made It Through Immigration!

Hey all!

Boy, it's been a long time since the last post, eh?

We have made it back into the States and are soaking up the sun at Glacier National Park in Montana. Internet connection is once again sporadic, but we promise to blog more in the next few days and walk you through the rest of Victoria, BC; Kamloops, BC; Banff and Jasper National Parks, AB; Lake Louise and Lake Morraine, AB; and now Glacier National Park, MT. My teaser? Bears, orcas, cute Canadians, canoeing, and the bluest water I have ever seen anywhere. :)

After Glacier comes Yellowstone, via Idaho. There is so much happening and we are meeting such incredible people!

Have to run, JUST MET THREE GUYS WHO DROVE HERE FROM MASSACHUSETTS!

--Lisa

What If...

Day 10-14: Friday to Monday, July 16-19, 2010

Sightseeing days: Victoria, BC, Canada

Features: Time with Uncle Young-il, Halmoni, and Halaboji; Victoria Butterfly Garden, The Butchart Gardens, Deuce Days (Antique Car Show), BC Parliament Building, The Empress Hotel, Downtown Victoria

Yesterday I expressed to my godfather, Young-il, my growing concern in regards to this trip. What if by the end, I become desensitized, and I become immune to the beauty in the everyday after seeing all these incredible sights around the States and Canada? What if after Rainier, after Butchart, Banff, Rushmore, everything else falls flat?

What can we realistically expect to take away from this trip?

And also, when is the next time we get to eat?

These are the deep thoughts ever looming in my mind.

As fascinating as the landscape and history have been (and don't forget the hours and hours of driving!), I think the people have intrigued me the most. From brief encounters, snippets of conversation, an exchange of words, we connect and we meet all kinds of people. This is the framework of communication: a deep, honest curiosity in the other.

Outside of Mt. St. Helens, we stopped for some homemade cobbler as a rare treat, and the two old men from whom we ordered were so spunky I could not help laughing with delight. Long story short, one of them tried to get me to "make a play" for his son and break him up from his girlfriend, one of the waitresses. He kept jutting his chin out at her when she walked by and grunting, "You can take her!" and winking. Of course, this was only after he listed off what classes his son was taking, how tall he was, how much he could bench, how much he would inherit when his father passed, and all sorts of strange tidbits. We were sorely tempted to stay for dinner, just for the conversation.

Side note: There is currently some sort of glitch with the SD card for one of the cameras and I am therefore currently unable to upload pictures.

Got to fly! Probably will not have computer access for a while, but keep reading and keep following!

In Which We Become Part of a Parade

Day 9: Thursday, July 15, 2010
Traveling day: Port Angeles, WA to Victoria, Canada
Feature of the Day: Dinner with Young-il and his parents

After a long night with rowdy neighbors at our campsite, we were up early the next morning and had packed everything and were ready to depart for the ferry by 8:30 AM. Impressive. Even though we showed up a good four hours early for the 12:40 PM ferry, we were already the third car in line, but at least we were on. The morning proved to be quite eventful, as one by one antique cars began pulling onto the dock to board the ferry with us to Victoria. Within the next couple hours, well over a hundred antique cars of all colors had congregated to cross with us. Their owners all wore letterman's jackets emblazoned with the name of their particular car club name, such as “Orange County Roadsters” or “LA Roadsters” (many were from California). It was the strangest thing. I had no idea these people organized themselves in such a manner, but I guess that makes sense. If you got it, flaunt it.

The ferry ride itself was uneventful, save for Cindy, Matthew, and I snacking on chili-cheese-covered popcorn, and then Matthew daring me to gulp down all the chili powder residue at the bottom of the bag. Well of course, I had to do it. No matter that we were in public, on a boat, and I was wearing a nice top and a white tank. I wound up with chili in my eye, powder all over my face, and a ten-year-old laughing in my face. Worth it.
Upside to riding the ferry with the antique cars? Getting to crash their parade through the city and wave at our adoring public.
Later in the day, we met up with Young-il, Cindy's husband, who flew up from the Bay. We also got to have dinner with his parents, whom I had never met before. All in all, a good day, if short on sleep. :)

[Insert Percy Jackson Comment Here]

Day 8: Wednesday, July 14, 2010

Sightseeing day: Olympic National Park

Night Accommodations: KOA in Port Angeles, WA

I woke up this morning and realized I was in Twilight country and promptly fought the urge to flee the state. Thankfully though, the weather has been unnaturally gorgeous—clear skies, warm days, lots of sun, and no rain thus far—so take that, Stephenie Meyer!

We did not do Olympic National Park justice at all. With next to no time, we were unable to explore all three of the park's distinct habitats—the rain forest, alpine glacial mountains, and the rugged coast. We did, however, traverse the alpine glacial mountains pretty well given our time frame.

For a park that I had never even heard of before, Olympic National Park is jaw-droppingly gorgeous. It embodies and conserves the most diverse portion of the Pacific Northwest, and harbors over twenty four distinct species of life that are not found anywhere else on Earth, including some endangered species such as the Roosevelt Elk.

At the Hurricane Ridge Visitor's Center, the deer are especially rampant and not at all afraid of people. We encountered one beautiful doe licking up anti-freeze that leaked out of a car in the parking lot, because the anti-freeze is sweet but is ultimately quite harmful to them. Matthew was particularly worried and tried scaring the deer away multiple times, but nothing could deter the deer from her prize. Finally, Cindy thought of rubbing dirt and asphalt into the fluid to smother the scent, so Matthew immediately ran over and began rubbing. Sure enough, the deer left the spot alone, but the damage was already done. That doe was left with a terrible stomachache.

We talked to the Ranger at the center, one Brian Doolittle, and he said deer licking up radiator fluid and the like was a daily occurrence. The deer come to these parts of the park because they have learned that proximity to people means food, either through direct feeding or careless leftovers. With people come cars, and the deer simply cannot help themselves. And deer are not the only species affected in such a way. Chipmunks, raccoons, and ravens are some of the others.

The subalpine region finally delivered the fields of wildflowers we were promised by our multiple guide books back near Mt. Rainier, which delighted Cindy. The blooms are so small and delicate, they reveal the fragility and endurance of life, even just below glacial levels. As we hiked, we were surrounded by more and more glacier-capped mountains, towering firs, and amazing vistas. At one point, we were able to have a 360-degree lookout and it was incredible.

The line between trees and grasses in such areas vacillates from season to season, depending on current conditions, so the landscape is always changing. Oftentimes trails are closed due to snow, even in July. Matthew and I indulged in a slush-ball fight on one large pile of snow. He won. I walked back to the car with wet pants. Bested by a ten-year-old. Again.