This is Happening

Posted by Kelsey Parsons on July 27, 2011 · 1 Comment

I’m back from B.C. and a lot has happened in the last week.

For one, it turns out I’m going to Kenya instead of South Africa. My flights have been changed (for a significant fee), but it’s for the best.

Instead of one safari, I’m going on two. They are both camping safaris where I will have to put up my own tent every night. I have never put up a tent. I have never been to Africa. I have never camped in the desert. I have never traveled by myself. I’m traveling to challenge myself, and this segment of the trip should definitely do just that.

Too bad there will be no outlets in the African desert, because my shiny new Ipad 2 is officially in the mail! It’ll be in my sweaty little palms by the end of the week. I also bought the BookBook case for the Ipad, which looks like an old book. The smart thieves won’t be fooled, but hopefully the dumb ones will. I bought the overly-expensive case with my handy Amazon gift card, which I received as part of a promotion from AirTreks when I purchased my RTW ticket from them (RTW=”round the world”).

I also climbed a mountain last week! I survived the Grouse Grind. Yes, I got the shirt. My hands were muddy, my thighs were burning and my shirt was soaked, but it felt great. I took plenty of breaks and ended up with a time of 1:35. I was quite happy with myself.

From Vancouver I traveled to Whistler, where I confronted chilly temperatures and vast amounts of mountain bikers. I took the “Peak2Peak” gondola between Whistler and Blackcomb mountains, and took the chair lift down Blackcomb, almost freezing to death in the process (note: don’t wear flip-flops on a chair lift in cold temperatures). On the way, I spotted five bears and a deer. It sounds very majestic, but two of the bears were chilling out within a fenced area surrounding a bike ramp. I thought it was an exhibit, but it turns out they were wild bears who hopped the fence to get to the delicious vegetation within the inclosure. Show-offs.

Last week also entailed getting semi-lost in downtown Vancouver. I walked from Gas Town to Granville Street at an hour when wandering is looked down upon and ended up making a lot of people angry. I almost used the “my ancestors are explorers!” excuse, but decided against it*.

*My family history is quite eventful. I’ll post about that later.

In other news, I shopped a little on Robson Street, ate a lot of Asian cuisine, played with some dogs, hugged Cayley goodbye (we meet again in India!), and got infected with a little Yellow Fever. I also partied with some Vancouverites and attempted to show them how us East “Coast”ers do it. This may have involved having a stranger suck a shot from between my legs. Not as sexual as it sounds, just as awkward.

My next plane trip will be to Amsterdam to start-off my trip “around the world,” and I couldn’t be more excited/terrified. Less than a month!

Until next time, Vancouver. I know you’re sad to see me leave, but stop raining. It’s just getting embarrassing.