I’m Over Here Now

On February 25, I left my home of two months in Chiang Mai, Thailand and returned to the United States to spend some time with family.

Last year, when I left Seoul at the end of my two-year visa, it took me about a month to recover from the time change. This time, coming from Thailand to Los Angeles (a 15-hour difference) it took about two weeks, which aligns with what I’ve read: about a day per hour of time change.

I think it took longer last time because I had been away for So Long…plus, I was a little depressed at having to leave Korea (why can’tI just stay, Korea? I love you so!).

Travel Day: Side Quest in Taipei

On my flight from Thailand to CA, I had a little side adventure. I have friends from Korean language school that live in Taipei, Taiwan. I reached out to them when I realized I was going to have an eight-hour layover in Taipei, and we arranged to meet up!

They met me at the airport with a giant milk bubble tea and entire evening planned. We went to a local Chinese restaurant (very different from American Chinese food), where I mostly just trusted them and ate whatever showed up. Then a walk to a dessert spot where we had mochi, a warm almond milk soup with a fried dipping stick, and a peanut-based dessert with flaky pastry.

After that, we drove up to an overlook of the city, had hot drinks in like a fire lookout style cafe, and caught up until it was time for me to head back to the airport.

It was genuinely fun, and I was proud of myself for not canceling (as I am generally apt to do). It felt very jet-settery of me to have friends in other countries to meet up with on, literally, a fly-by.

My Return to the US

Much of the first week back was spent catching up with my niece, nephew, and great niece…their dog and two new kittens…and sleeping. Lots and lots of sleeping.

By the weekend I was feeling just alive enough to start joining in some family activities. We ate out a lot, which is always fun…went to some school-related sporting events, ran errands with my niece. I spent a lot of time just relaxing and reading, which was very nice.

One of my dreams for retirement was being able to read as much as I wanted…so I am truly Living The Dream, ha ha.

The first wake-up. I’m not in Kansas anymore.

They have an extremely prolific lemon tree in their backyard. The flowers were just blooming and made the yard smell so sweet.

I found a cafe close enough to walk to, so when everyone else was working I take myself out to breakfast.

High Tea at Huntington Botanical Gardens

On a pleasant Sunday afternoon we went to tea at the Huntington Library. First we visited the gift shop to check out the Jelly Cat collection for my great-niece. Of course we left with a darling new soft bunny. The tea was lovely; a nice variety of finger sandwiches and desserts…there was something for everyone.

And after tea a short walk around the kitchen and Japanese gardens.

I never get tired of a mountain view.

Italian Day

My nephew is very fond of his Italian mother’s tomato sauce, so he invited her to come for the day (she lives about an hour away) and teach my niece and great-niece her tomato sauce magic. The dining table was festooned with a red white and green table runner, there were Italian-themed tattoos and funny glasses to choose from, and a book of fun Italian facts. I took notes as the chef instructed her students, and then we all enjoyed dinner with the family sauce over ravioli, garlic bread, and plenty of Italian pastries.

It was a fun family day.

A Side Trip to Central California

I forget the name….maybe Half Dome?

On Monday, March 9, I set out on a little side trip up to Central California to stay the week with another cousin. While the plane would have been faster (although with the current state of TSA pre-check, who knows), I opted to take the scenic route, and took the Amtrak bus from Union Station, Los Angeles to Bakersfield, CA, where I got on the train to Turlock.

I haven’t been to Union Station or ridden Amtrak in many many years – maybe close to 40. When I was younger and my mother and I would spend summers in Los Angeles with family, we always took Amtrak from NYC to Los Angeles. It was a 3-day trip; overnight from NYC to Chicago in a sleeper car, then two nights in coach seats from Chicago to Union Station. When I was really young, it was rough to be on a train for three days, but as I got a little older I came to enjoy the relaxation of it. My mother would buy me books, comic books, and puzzles and games. We’d play cards and spend hours just looking out the window. Meals in the dining car were served on white linen tablecloths with heavy train silver and porters dressed formally.

So it was a very sentimental revisit to Union Station.

I had a nice visit with my cousin. We mostly took it easy, having meals with her children and grand-children.

One day we drove up (up? down? I’m so not well versed in Central California geography) to Yosemite Park, where I have never been. It was a lovely, scenic drive with suburban streets turning into farmland, then green rolling hills, then rockier mountains. We had a nice lunch at the big lodge restaurant in the park, then visited some waterfalls…then it was time to drive home.

Union Station is a really lovely historic building…and they’ve added a lot ot it since I was last there, like this pleasant courtyard area,

Poppy Super Bloom

One day my niece, great-niece and I drove up to Antelope Valley in Lancaster, CA to see the poppy superbloom. It was another lovely scenic drive…at the end of which we stopped at several spots to see and take pictures with orange poppies, purple lupines, and yellow daisies. We didn’t actually go into the preserve because by the time we got there, there was a long line just waiting to get into the parking lot. But we found several other good side-of-the-roads spots to stop and admire the nature.

Pet-Sitting

While my niece, et al, went to Hawaii for 10 days I was left at home to take care of the animals. Last year it was Blue the Dalmatian and some tropical fish. This year there were also two new kittens – Cocoa and Cosmo, or, as I prefer to call them, Flash and Dave. They are the mellowest kittens I’ve even known. They’re about 6 months old now and just…limp. Ha. In a good way. Pick them up and they’re just limp in your arms. Set them down wherever you want them – sofa, bed, etc, and they just limply lay there. Not in a “is there something wrong with them” way, they’re just…compliant.

Blue

Cocoa/Flash

Cosmo/Dave

Pasadena Bungalow Heaven

I’d been craving the “big as your head” cinnamon rolls from Pie’n’Burger in Pasadena…so I headed there one morning. And as long as I was out that way, I drove past my cousin’s house (remember the one that burned down in the CA fires?).

It’s so random where the fire hit and where it didn’t. Driving down the street leading to theirs, you’d never know anything had happened. Then you turn the corner onto their street…and the corner house and theirs (next door), just gone. And no other visible damage til you get to the end of the block. There’s a lot of construction going on in the area…but the new construction will not have the mellow charm of the original homes – mostly Spanish style homes built in the 30s.

Then I found my way to Pasadena Bungalow Heaven, just a few blocks from her house. I have always loved this area. Craftsman style bungalows are my favorite type of home architechure. I drove around a couple blocks, admiring and photographing these sweet homes (yes, I’m that creepy person that takes pictures of starngers’ homes). From many previous years I’d had a lot of printed photographs of many of these houses, but they’d not made the cut when I was getting rid of belongings to move to Korea. So it’s nice to have to some pictures back again.

Descanso Japanese Garden

My two favorite garden types are English perennial gardens and Japanese gardens…and I look for good examples of each wherever I go. It’s harder to find nice perennial gardens in the hot climates of the American west or south and the Asian countries I’ve visited. But I can usually find a Japanese garden wherever I go.

Descanso Gardens is a really lovely botanical garden in La Canada Flintridge, CA. I haven’t been in a really long time, so it was nice to spend a morning there in the peaceful Japanese garden. One thing they do well is seating. That’s my new bar for everywhere I go, ha ha, is there plentiful seating?? The more seating there is (especially shaded), the longer I can walk and stay. So I went from bench to bench, admiring each area – koi ponds, meditation garden, hidden pathways along brightly blooming azalea bushes. And finished up on a shaded bench in front of a large pond with ducks and turtles…and just read my book for awhile, enjoying the chatter of children chasing the ducks, and friends catching up on life stories.

Doesn’t this look like a Monet painting??

Brady Bunch House

Shortly after the Los Angeles City Council designated the Brady Bunch house as a historic landmark, I drove by to see it.  Of course when I got there, there were people standing in the driveway chatting, so I took  my picture quickly and left.

Moving On

On April 2, a few days after their return from vacation, I was back to the airport for my flight to Florida, to spend a couple months with Katie. Florida time is usually pretty quiet, but I’ll check in again when there’s something to share.

I now feel like my time in the US is “vacation,” as it’s easier, more convenient, and I can just relax at home. Interesting.

Hope y’all are well.

PS: I spent A Lot of Time while in CA trying to get my email notifications sorted out…to no avail. So I’m trying something different this time, and just sending a link to the new post myself to the emails on the subscribed list. We’ll see if that’s a good work-around…and if I can remember to do it each time I post something! So it won’t be fancy, it’ll just look like a regular email til I see if it works…and then I can make it nicer for next time.

Post Views: 412