I can hardly believe that I have been home an entire year! The way I know this is only because we go the beach every year. It is the highlight of my year; it’s better than Christmas. This year we went to Edisto Island. We stayed further down the island on the sound. It was different. More wildlife then I remember. There were no waves, which was kind of weird. We stayed in a funny house where the kitchen and den were on the top floor. We shared a duplex with Ball Family on the other side. We brought our boat [View Full Entry]

---

---

08:15hrs and the 16 hours are over, and the greyhound dumps me at what looks like a roadside shack. Welcome to charleston greyhound station..... A staggering 100m within the city limits and 8 miles from where I need to be. Taxi!! What a taxi driver tho.. A black ex navy ghanian Jew...oi vey what a mix. The NotsoHostel was right on the edge of downtown charleston and was a typical wood boarded wide verandered house. The nice people there let me dump my stuff and sleep before the check in time of 5pm, a sweaty 8 hours away. Yes charleston is [View Full Entry]

---

---

Wow, the past few weeks have gone by incredibly fast and I have just under 3 weeks left here before I move on again to my next big adventure before making my way back to Alaska (which is in itself another adventure). It's going to be a busy 3 weeks though as this weekend I take off for Wilmington, NC to see my cousin, go scuba diving on a couple wrecks *smile*, tour around the campus that I spent 5 months of my life at, and sit on the sunny beaches of North Carolina again. Then next weekend is my Advanced [View Full Entry]

---

---

Drove to Myrtle Beach, South Carolina and saw 14 Mini-Golf courses on the way into town. Checked into a motel, had dinner, then walked for a night walk on the beach. There was no occasion, but people were hanging out and setting off fireworks all up the beach. [View Full Entry]

---

---

On Wednesday, July 9th we left my mom's house in Greenville. The boys' were sad to leave the pool and Devin was especially sad to leave the good food. We have managed to eat food packed by mom for the past 1.5 days so Devin has not had to go back to eating ham slices out of a plastic bag:) We decided to go a bit north from Greenville yesterday and visit the Biltmore Estate in Asheville, NC. This would have been a more adult visit since we were touring the estate that George Vanderbilt built in the late 1800's. It [View Full Entry]

---

---

The countdown has begun. We have less than three months until we move. There is so much to do in that time. We have to get our visas, sell the house, figure out how we will do our banking abroad, have a yard sale, visit family and friends, to name just a few things. Once we are in China, we are going to use this blog to keep everyone abreast of our happenings and try to pass on the sights, sounds, smells, and personality of this ancient and immense country. - Frank Own only what you can carry with you; know [View Full Entry]

---

---

We arrived at my mothers' house in Greenville, SC on Sunday, July 6th in the mid afternoon. We drove from Roanoke, VA to Greenville with stops at the state welcome centers in hopes of a nice blue swimming pool... and we were not disappointed. Within a 1/2 hour of pulling into the driveway the boys had found all of the pool toys and were busy splashing around. In fact I don't think they got out of the pool until 7pm. We have had great food...mom's are great for that...BBQ'ed ribs, homemade whoopie pies, potato salad, cole slaw, etc. Devin had stated [View Full Entry]

---

---

We arrived a couple of days early in Greenvile, was great getting there before the crowds. Gave us an opportunity to have some down time and to check out the local sights and food. Pearl and Roy were the first to arrive had dinner with them at "Sticky Fingers" what an awesome place. Wonderful ribs and pulled pork. We couldn't believe Roy ate his whole dinner by himself and not sharing with Pearl ..... the manager was great stopped by to talk to us and when we were ready to leave he give us both a 6 pack of rib sauces. [View Full Entry]

---

---

Well, it is the day before our trip and I'm getting packed. The furry creature clinging to the sides of my face is about to go down the drain. I think I'm pretty much all set; now it's just a matter of pulling everything together. I called Lufthansa and they said that I can check my guitar case as a piece of luggage with no extra fees. Let's hope that that information is correct... Whatever, though, an extra $40 or something is worth not having to go a whole month without my guitar. We leave for Germany tomorrow out of Atlanta. [View Full Entry]

---

---

Tonight, since it was a nice day and the rain had finally stopped, my roommate Sarah and I went out walking to Columbia Hall to check on my car, over to the State House a few blocks away, around the Horseshoe, down by a little coffee and catering shop to snag a pic of Ingrid and Bogie, up to the building where we work, across to the library, and back to Rutledge Hall where we live (also on the horse shoe). I think the pictures kind of speak for themselves of the beauty of the South, but one that stood out [View Full Entry]

---

---