Holiday laughs in Oz

Day 174 of the project,
Christmas Day in Apollo Bay, Australia

"You're sitting like you're a baller at some fancy hotel. Like this is the Ritz Carlton of Apollo Bay instead of the YHA and you are drinking a vintage champagne instead of quadruple X lager."

Her eyebrow arched and pinky shot out from the gaudy yellow can, posing for a ridiculous Instagram post. It was contagious and within seconds, we were both giggling uncontrollably. Not quite our signature silent hyena laugh, but enough to make my eyes tear up a little. It was a good release after a long meandering day on Australia's Great Ocean Road.

Behind the name

Day 65 of the project, 
somewhere between Bratislava and Budapest

In the United States, Gbur is not a typical last name. Its unusual combination of consonants and lack of vowels trouble the tongues of most English speakers. There is usually the inevitable pause while someone decides how to vocalize those four letters. I am used to it...after all, I have had thirty years of corrections, spelling examples and references to Zsa Zsa and Ava.

But what is in a name? Language? Ethnicity? Geography? Social class? It can be some, all or none of these. Above all, a family name conveys a history. An artifact of those who came before you and the foundations of those who will come after you. Some people are well versed in the background of their names--ties back to castles, crests and pride. Other histories have been buried in the shadows of war, poverty and xenophobia.

Looking for tomorrow's rainbow

Dia 38 del proyecto, 
Bilbao, Espana

It is true, that old expression, "when it rains, it pours." After just five amazing days on the Camino del Norte to Santiago de Compostela, my journey hit a bump. Actually, it was more like a massive wall. I'm still processing the full ramifications of it.

The way that yesterday started gave no indication of the misery ahead. It was a gorgeous walk from the tiny pueblo of Meakaur to the beautiful metropolis of Bilbao. I walked in the company of a delightful Englishman who has spent the last nine years living and working in Barcelona. A good pacer and great company, Gary and I reached the albergue before it opened and checked in. I decided to head into town to check email and see the famous Guggenheim museum.

However, after two days of no internet, I arrived to discover that my wonderful feline companion of the last ten years, Don Gato, had taken a turn for the worst. He has been struggling with illness off and on for the last few months. But I was not expecting the end to arrive so soon. Don Gato woke up on Wednesday morning blind, unable to smell and hard of hearing. Not wanting him to suffer further from the almost certain strokes and/or seizures, the agonizing decision was made to euthanize him.

Pause

7 days until the project begins

It never ceases to amaze me how fast time goes. Two weeks ago I was working a full time job; seven days ago I was visiting two of the biggest and (arguably) best U.S. national parks. Today I sit on a plane back to San Francisco. In exactly one week I will board another plane bound for South America.

Yet there are clear points when just for a moment the clock seems to stop. It's as if fate is giving us a chance to appreciate the present before it rushes into the past. The last two weeks have given me a rather large dose of those pauses and it has taken a while to fully absorb them.

Close encounters

10 days until the project begins

Conspiracy theorists believe first contact happened in the middle of the New Mexico desert. After a night drive across western Kansas, I've come to the conclusion they should consider adding a new set of coordinates to their list. 

Mountains and moose

15 days until the project begins

"I think we just passed a moose."

"Are you kidding? That was a deer. They don't have moose here and that animal was too skinny to be a moose." 

"It absolutely was a moose, and they do have them in Wyoming. Didn't you see the warning signs?"

It was a rather circuitous argument about a brown blur on the side of the road going through the Teton pass. My father and I had been in the car for about sixteen hours and still had another 30 minutes before we reached our destination in Teton Village. The silver lining was that the sun did not fully set until almost 10pm.