Doug and I recently returned to the States for a visit. We had not planned to return until October, when Doug is scheduled to take his Pediatric Boards, so we frequently referred to this trip as our ‘bonus trip.’ It had been over a year since we were on U.S. soil, and while there was some ‘culture shock,’ let’s be real; we lived in the U.S. for 31 years and have only lived in Swaziland for one. It’s hard to forget what those 31 years were like, so the shock was short-lived. Happiness quickly took its place as the primary sentiment. I was a bit surprised how happy I was to be back, to be honest. I love living in Swaziland and have had nothing but a positive adventure, but I guess it just goes to show that home is home and that your family and friends are where it’s at. AND, this is coming from the girl who technically visited Doug’s family and friends; but, really, after 7 years of hanging around I’d like to think they are my family/friends now, too.
Our trip started with a bit of travel drama; which is probably to be expected when attempting to fly to the opposite side of the world. We made it from Johannesburg to London and then to Boston without a hitch, but our flight from Boston to Bar Harbor was cancelled due to weather. The unfortunate part of this was that it wasn’t cancelled for 5 hours, so we didn’t end up making alternative travel plans until about 8:00pm. And, after 36 hours of travel, 8:00pm was not an ideal time to rent a car and to drive 5 hours. Fortunately, there were a couple of other people eager to rent a car and to make the drive to Bar Harbor that night, so we joined forces with Terry (lawyer from New York who was trying to join his family for vacation), Judy (from England, trying to join her husband in Bar Harbor whom she hadn’t seen since May), and Charlie (17 month old who goes wherever Judy goes) and rented a Toyota Camry with a car seat! Needless to say, Judy couldn’t drive on the right side of the road and Doug and I had been up for nearly 2 days, so we shared the cost of the rental in exchange for Terry to be our chauffeur! Thankfully, we made it safe and sound at 3:05am. Ugh. The silver lining was that the hotel had given away our room and therefore upgraded us to an ‘oceanfront suite.’ Rough. And, did I mention that Judy’s husband was the captain of the yacht that was docked at our hotel?
Terry (our good Samaritan chauffeur)
Doug and Charlie at Hertz
The yacht
Friday morning we woke-up bright and early (for some unknown reason) and went hiking in Acadia National Park after breakfast. The hotel, the town, the park, the ocean – everything – was really beautiful.
Bar Harbor Regency Hotel
Stone House (where our suite was located and both the rehearsal dinner and brunch were hosted)
Pool House
The weather was perfect, too, as it wasn’t hot/sticky due to the northern location. Neal, Berke, Liza, Matty, Kristin, Doug and I hiked to the top of Dorr Mountain. It was really fun to catch-up with everyone and to get some exercise after so many hours being cooped up in transit.
Acadia National Park visitor's center
Happy hikers
It was like nature's stairmaster
Taking a photo break
The final stretch was pretty steep on the open rock face
Doug, Berke and I at the top
View of the Porcupine Islands
The highlight of the outing though, for me, was the lobster roll I had at the roadside restaurant. Heaven on a hotdog bun.
Lobster goodness
Friday night was the rehearsal dinner at The Stone House, which was on the property of the Bar Harbor Regency Hotel, where we were all staying. It was a lobster feast and once again, I was in heaven. The boys gave an entertaining speech in the form of the game, ‘I Never’ and roasted Katzen (mostly) and Lisa as a way of showing their love for the happy couple.
Some shots from the rehearsal dinner
Rainbow, sailboat and rays of sun
Morgan, Neal, Katzen, Preston, Liza, Taylor and Chris
Martin and Krystal (engaged to be married in October on Captiva Island, FL)
Bride and groom
The infamous 'Bethesda Cult' (minus Preston)
Bibs
The roast
Saying something heartfelt
On Saturday, we rented bicycles and went biking on the old, carriage trails surrounding Bar Harbor. It was another beautiful day and Doug and I even survived riding a tandem.
Doug, Kristin, Neal, Berke and Matty
Gorgeous lake
Saturday night was the wedding and reception at the Bar Harbor Club. It was a beautiful evening for an outdoor wedding and with great food, company and dancing the night was really fun. The only two little incidents included a pint of beer getting knocked off the bar and onto my dress and a certain walk home that ended with my foot being shut in the car door. Okay, that’s a lie, but it might as well have been at that point.
Bar Harbor Club
Chuppa
Rabbi and the Minister
Groomsmen
Flower girls
Bride (Lisa) and her father coming down the aisle
Vows
Cocktail hour
Reception
On Sunday, most folks flew home to return to work, but since Doug and I were on vacation, we stayed an extra day in Bar Harbor and had the bride/groom all to ourselves! There was a lot of napping off hangovers by the pool, but eventually we rallied and went on a sunset sea kayaking tour around the Porcupine Islands. One of the unique things about Bar Harbor is how extreme the tide changes. Within a matter of a few hours, the tide rises/falls between 6-8 feet. So, when we started the kayaking trip, this is what the beach looked like (below) and when we finished, it was completely covered by the ocean.
The Newlyweds and the Blanks go kayaking!
I'm so bossy...
Beach, pre-tide rolling in
On the open water
Katzen and Lisa
Our group at sunset
On Monday, Doug and I rented a car and drove to Boston to visit with one of my nearest/dearest friends, Adam and his wife Cheryl. Since we were flying through Boston to D.C. we simply pushed our flight back by one day so that we could spend one night with them and catch-up in person. Adam and Cheryl have two beautiful children, Sophia and Garrett. Sophia was a little shy to start, but by about 20 minutes in she was showing us her corvette, changing into her tutu, and inviting us up to see her room. After an awesome Mexican dinner we called it a night.
Garrett
Tutu-clad and in the kitchen
Family photo (sans Garrett)
Tuesday morning Doug and I flew to Washington, D.C. to spend the remainder of the week and our vacation with his family. We stayed with his Dad, Howard, and also visited with his Mom (Leta) and his sister (Kara) and her family. Kara loaned us her three girls for the day on Wednesday, so Doug , Howard and I took the girls to the pool, the park, 7 Eleven and back to the pool. With a lunch break, 30 minutes of the video, ‘Annie,’ and baths before dinner it was a crazy day. Kara’s girls are Ava, 4 and Hannah, 5 and her fiancé, Marco’s daughter is Anika, 6 so we were run ragged by three little girls. I’m still singing the rhymes they repeated ALL day long. Leta joined us at the pool in the afternoon and stayed on for dinner, so it was a true Blank Family day.
Ava, Anika and Hannah
Ava
The girls named Uncle Doug the 'sea monster'
Hannah
Uncle Doug and his nieces
At the park
At the end of the night, the girls put on a 'performance' and Marco provided the music while Howard served as the audience
The performance...
On Thursday we spent the majority of the day with Leta, including a euphoric trip to Target and a delicious sushi lunch. Shamefully, two of the things I miss most in Swaziland.
On Friday morning we squeezed in brunch with Doug’s Aunt Phyllis before heading to the airport. And, in between all of these visits, we managed to run in some of our favorite D.C. places like the Cabin John Trail and the Canal Walk. We got into such a rhythm with family, friends and favorite dining and running spots that Doug actually said that he wants to move back to D.C. someday. That’s when I knew that it was time to fly home. Doug, contemplating living without the surf for good??? Nuts-o. P.S. Nic, you guys need to get your tushies to SoCal in the next four years or I’m guessing that we’ll be headed to the east coast. Double nuts-o.
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