People

I’m always a bit sad to leave grandma and the beautiful mountains of Montana, but it’s not too bad this time. I’m mainly thankful for the lovely days we had together. I drive south to Yellowstone and arrive there in the beginning of the afternoon. I enjoy seeing the bizons along the road again and the geysers. I drive to Old Faithful, the biggest geyser in the middle of the park, and arrive there just in time to see it irrupt. I like how the timing of my traveling is so often perfect.

The drive of today is pretty smooth. Some snow here and there, but no more storms. I make a stop at West Yellowstone, but I don’t go into the park, since several roads are still closed for the season. I drive further to Montana and arrive at my grandma’s house around six in the evening.
When she sees my car driving into the driveway, she waits on me with a big sign ‘Welcome Edwin’. I greet her with a big hug and am glad I made the 3000 mile drive all the way up here to Montana.

The days with Amy and Wes are very relaxed and we have a nice time together. I think they are the perfect example of real American kindness. We’ve been friends for several years and I can always stay at their house when I’m in the neighborhood. They treat me like family.

When I’m at the Hufford’s house, I’m always treated as one of the family. We hang around at the house, eat together, play games and just have a fun time. I take care of the supply of ice cream and also cook a meal here and there. Even though the two oldest girls of the family have moved out to their own house last year, they still stop by every day to spend time with their family. Everyone here is really close with each other and that’s very nice.

The days with grandma are always very relaxed, I’m quite at home at her place. In the mornings I work a few hours before she gets up and then we usually have breakfast together. Some days we go to the coffee place Vanilla Bean for breakfast, coffee or a game of Scrabble. Most evenings we watch our favorite comedy show ‘Last Man Standing’ until bedtime. The days fill themselves with several fun activities.

I wake up early, still feeling a bit tired from last night. Outside I can hear birds and squirrels around the tent. I go outside and break down my tent. Thankfully now at the third time I manage to pack the tent in one go. When the tent is in the bag I see a strip on the bottom of the back with the text “Remove to expand bag”. I laugh and wonder why I hadn’t noticed that before.

I wake up by the alarm at 5am, get dressed and drive to a local Starbucks to post a blog and check my e-mail. In the parking lot I enjoy my breakfast with a view of the mountains before I get go inside to get my coffee. There are friendly baristas and I talk with them for a while. One of the girls recommends me to go to Pikes Peak.

I hate goodbyes, I’m just not good at them. I know it’s better to talk positive, but that’s just as it is. This time it’s not me who travels around the world, but my sister who goes on an adventure. I find it awesome for her, but I’m receiving the other side of the coin I usually give to my family. Until now I had not fully realized how challenging it must be for them that I travel around the world almost every year. I usually just think about the adventure that’s ahead of me.