October Shenanigans

So, this month I would be meeting the family of a fellow Peace Corps volunteer.  Kristin nearly completed the 12 weeks of PC training before she made the decision that it really was not for her.  She abruptly left Guyana in the spring of 2014.  Shortly after returning to her home state of Washington she decided life on earth was not for he either.  So many unanswered questions remain now in 2017!  After the tragic news, I became Facebook friend's with Kristin's mother, Julie. While completing service in Guyana, I learned that the family comes together every fall to walk the "Out of Darkness" walk in Seattle.  I promised Julie that I would join the family on that walk as soon as I returned from Guyana.  Well, I missed last year as I had just had back surgery, but I vowed to make it this year.  I found fellow Returned Peace Corps Volunteers (RPCV) Ashley Harrel from California and Chiedum Nwabuokei (Chi) of Seattle able to join me!  Here are the two of them participating in signing Kristin's board before the walk. 

Gratefully, it was a blue sky day with sun, albeit a bit chilly. It took place near the Space Needle which can seen through the trees full of autumn leaves.

Below: Me, Julie, Ashley, Katie (Ashley's sister) and Chi

After the walk we all met up for a get together at a lunch favorite of Julie's.  We had a good time getting to know each other after such a long time!

Mid afternoon I met up with folks I had not seen since their wedding in the 80's! 

Debbie and Wally picked me up and we toured the Chihuly Glass and Glass display. 

Below is a bit of the outdoor display of glass art at Chihuly Garden and Glass.  This is a remarkable exhibit that showcases the art of Dale Chihuly. 

 Indoor portion of the display. I just had to get in the picture proving I was present!

My personal favorite was a wooden boat filled with beautiful, dazzling baubles!

Or maybe it is this amazing ceiling!  Finding the eight cherubs looking down on us was fun. Pictures do not do the displays justice!

 Wally was intent on showing me as much as possible as I would leave the next day.  He showed me West Seattle and what do I think is notable?  The minion, of course!

Then on to another "Only in Seattle" sight....that of the FREMONT TROLL!  Google it! Lastly, just at sunset we visited Ballard Locks, located on the west end of Salmon Bay.  The locks provide a link for water travel between the saltwater of Puget Sound and the freshwater of the Ship Canal.  Then,  we were off to a lovely fish dinner.  I am grateful to all of the kind folks I encountered in Seattle during my brief stay. 

 

Debbie and Wally would drop me at the very well accommodated AIRBNB I had booked. I would get a good night's rest and be off to the Seattle Airport and head "North to Alaska" in the morning!

I flew into Anchorage and had a bit of a layover before I took a small Ravn Air flight to Kodiak Island.  No, I would not be hunting as 90% of the flight seemed to be doing.  I was off to see fellow Returned Peace Corps volunteer, Michelle Weekly!

It was chilly, not cold and I was expecting 40ish degrees during my stay.  But, SURPRISE!

I awoke the morning to 4" of snow!  Beautiful!!

A nice day to stay inside, tucked into a hammock (Guyanese style) with Drake...the cat.

This.  This really reminded me of the countless livestock on the roads of Guyana.  But, here I was in Alaska!  My last state to check off a bucket list!

At the beach...no, it was not balmy.  Yet, it was beautiful.

Out watching for bears.

YIKES!  Let me not startle one of these bears?  I was on a mission to see, but not this close!

We were fortunate to spend an afternoon at a house on the beach.  I had inadvertently locked Michelle's car WITH HER CARS KEYS INSIDE!  Luckily, we connected with a friend that was willing to go to Michelle's house and retrieve her spare, then drive the hour plus to rescue us! 

In the meantime, it was a relaxing and beautiful visit to a serene part of the island.

I was intrigued by the eagle feather collection in the window.  The US National Bird can be seen in abundance in Alaska.  I was quite amazed at the number of eagle nests being revealed in fall.  They were enormous!

One day was dedicated to a walk about Kodiak and museum hops to Alutiq Museum and Baranov Museum. The later was originally a Russian - American magazin, a former warhouse built between 1805 and 1808.  Below is the Holy Resurrection Church (Russian Orthodox), built in 1945. It replaces one which burned in 1943. However, Russian Orthodox were established on this property in the 1700's.

Behind me and Michelle is a skeleton of a 36 foot Gray Whale on display at

Kodiak National Wildlife Refuge.

I took a walk about Michelle's neighborhood and discovered a most interesting fence!

The day before leaving Kodiak, Michelle was just certain we would see bears.  We might just need to spend the entire day searching - like the hunters must.  She took me to a bridge where bears had been sighted recently and sure enough.  There was MAMA out in the water.  She laid in it.  She toyed with the salmon.  She watched out for her two cubs on the bank.  Eventually, she would trap a salmon, kill it and prepare it for the cubs.  She was so close that I could hear the salmon's bones collapse in her jaws.  The cubs made their way to MAMA and ate the oil laden skin.  Soon to follow would be the circling birds to pick off the rest of the meal. I met a photographer that takes AMAZING pictures.  This, I borrowed from sstone_images.  Go see his photos on Instagram!

Time for reflection from the hammock.  The views from Michelle's place were so lovely!

My mission complete, it was now time to return home.  Sights from the plane were curtained by clouds, yet once in a while I would get a peek of a glacier.  I will need to return to Alaska for a more comprehensive look around the state!

Home in time to get in costume for Halloween!