Friday, July 14, 2017

Time to go

Who won the wager?

Some of the reactions when we said that we were going to work at a youth camp were across the board. Wagers were placed on how long we would last. Four weeks would be the winner. Did we fail? Heck no! It was a good stop on the journey to meet some nice people and
crazy boys. Who would have thought that a youth camp with healthy boys would be such a petri dish? By the third week, there were outbreaks of two different viruses. I opted for the respiratory strain and ended up with a pretty bad case of bronchitis. When I could no longer talk because I couldn't breath, it was time to throw in the towel.
 
The camp owner was understanding and had a backup nurse ready to go and take over.
 
Once we realized it was time to head out, we had to do some fancy foot work. Finding campsites in July and August in the places we wanted to visit is a little more tricky.  
 Before getting sick, we made a visit to Old Orchard Beach to dip our toes into the Atlantic Ocean. I have no idea how the Mainers that were swimming tolerated the cold lobster water.
We woke early and decided to hit the road and head further east. As we drove by Bucksport, we crossed the Penobscot Narrows Bridge with an observatory in the left tower.

 The campgrounds on Mt Desert Island near Acadia National Park were expensive and booked except for Bar Harbor Campground which does not take reservations. You show up and see what's available, if there is anything. We were willing to take a dry camping site if we had to but lucked out with full hookup with shade trees and a not so bad price with all the blueberries a person can pick and eat included.
 Our campground neighbor gave us some tips on where to buy lobster and scallops at a good price to prepare for ourselves. There are actually two places near the campground that deliver lobster dinners. Where do we begin? How about a nap?
 The camp host that we visited with while he cleaned our firepit brought a load of firewood from another site he had just cleaned in case we might want to use it. What nice people!

Was it a bad choice to work at a youth camp clear across the country? No way, well other than the breathing thing. There were times when the influx of injured or sick boys was overwhelming. Mike stepped up and gave me a hand cleaning injured feet and toes or whatever I needed. It was quite an experience.
 
Now, what to do with all those blueberries and lobster.


Cuenca, Ecuador

An Expat Destination The morning after returning to Quito we boarded an hour-long flight to Cuenca. Driving up the winding roads would have ...