Stuck at the Airport

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Our transition from the US back to the 3rd world has been interrupted by two events ... a 6-hour stopover in Miami (nice and spacious) and, in my desire to lighten my load, my tossing my laptop from great height onto a concrete floor. I now have to keep my hand firmly pressed on the space just above the keyboard in order to use it.

Jane also tells me that our flight into Quito gets in about an hour after our connecting flight to Lima. And our hotel in Lima has no record of our accommodation booking or our airport-to-hotel transfer. Well, wherever we go, there we are!

We are, of course, having a fabulous time, and have been blessed to spend time with family in London, family in Boston, family in Kennebunkport, Maine, and family in upstate New York.

Spring cleared the London smog sufficiently for us to enjoy a flight on the London Eye, where we enviously eyed the next capsule, where they were enjoying a succulent meal, and a romantic evening walk on Hampstead Heath with Jan, our gracious host.

We also had a wildly entertaining meal with all the family in the exclusive Soho club managed by my (Hilary's) nephew, Joe -- and lots more.

Over in the US of A, we were lucky to spend a wonderful couple of days painting the decking (and others) of Granite Point, the house that Jane's dad and partner, Susan, hope to live in at some point. Granite Point is on a gorgeous rocky promontory (did you guess?) just north of the quaint town of Kennebunkport.

And, boy, did we enjoy lots of yummy food, especially the feast that Billy (Jane's stepbrother) made for Jane's dad's birthday.

HIGHLIgHtS:

At the end of the day Hilary often asks me "What have been the highlights for you today?"
Our time with family was so full and wonderful and here are a few of the highlights for me of our time in Maine, Boston and Upper state New York.

My Family_ the players 😊

My Dad John and his partner of 20 plus years, Susan
My Brother John and His wife, Martha and their two children Lyle 15 and Emma almost 12
My two stepbrothers, Billy 33 and Fernando 38

I am proud and grateful to be part of this family of good hearted and spirited people creatively making their way in the world!

Maine and Boston:

*Seeing the deer in Dad's and Susan's back yard
*My hands in Maine soil, planting and weeding in my Dad's garden
*Painting the decks of Susan's 19th century beach house 'Granite
Point' in the hot sun with a cooling sea breeze
*A celebration of Dad's 78th birthday; brother Billy cooked a wonderful feast, brother Fernando was there. Intense political conversation and much laughter.
*Walking around the Kennebunkport coastline and finding ourselves going past the Bush residence!
*Stone and shingle houses and grand mansions dotting the coast and inland areas; built in the 17 and 1800's; the abundance, bigness and beauty; perfect lush lawns and gardens, stunning architecture, timelessness.
*A day adventuring thru the countryside with dad and finishing with a remarkable heavenly feast in a local resturant
*Visiting Susan's education program "Upward Bound" in Chelsea for low income kids and young adults to help finish highschool and attend college (University)

New York:

*Lyle's trombone concert; very moving music
*Evening feasts with all the family on the back deck
*Fireflies glowing in the humid evening of crickets and crescent moon
*Watching my brother John and Martha parent so lovingly and their hearts stretched by an unplanned fostering of Martha's nephew Morgan
* The train to New York city, The buzz of N.Y. and the Staten Island ferry. The Statue of Liberty: she made me cry; her energy as a symbol of freedom for all.
*Walking in the Rockefeller Estate; the New England woods, flowers, streams, chipmunks, sqirrels, tree frogs, turtles, cardinels, bluebirds, woodpeckers, the possibility of a cougar and the incredible abundance of wildlife of my home land!
*Precious time with Lyle and Emma, John and Martha, between school, dance classes and studying for exams, work, car pools and night meetings!
*A walk with Martha in the Sleepy Hollow cemetery, more incredible history dating back to the 1500's; Massive gravestones, mausaleums with Tiffany stained glass windows and marble tombs and pillared entrances......evidence of the Gilded age (1870's - 1890's) and subsequent boomtimes leading up to the Big Crash of 1920.
* Listening to my brother John joking about the fine thread of sanity or is it insanity, the futile attempt to control life, teenagers, work and the ever unpredictable quality of life on this planet

Thank you all for making us feel so welcome and including us in your busy lives.

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Photos

Jan -- our gracious host in London
Jane, Jan, and I went for a long long walk on Hampstead Heath, bringing back all sorts of memories for me of my childhood and youth in London.

What is it about overgrown gardens?
Still on Hampstead Heath on this gorgeous early summer evening.

London Eye of Course
We had to do it -- and it was fabulous. Even the security guard reminded me jokingly to remove my chainsaw from my backpack!

London Eye of Course 2
Can you guess what is in the background? It was really neat being a tourist in my own home town.

Dinner with the Rellies in Soho
Awesome food, awesome company.

People say there's a likeness
Hilary (on the right!) with nephew Joe.

Several generations
Jacky (Hilary's sis), Isca (Hilary's niece) and Isca's 3rd child.

Granite Point
And then, suddenly, we're in Kennebunkport, Maine (after a brief stop in Chelsea, Boston). This is the house Jane's dad and Susan hope to live in soon.

View from Granite Point
Jane painted most of the deck -- and lots inside, too (I did a bit, too). It was a welcome change to get to do something practical.

Another family likeness
Jane (on the right!) and her dad.

And yet more family likenesses
Jane's family sharing a meal at John and Martha's in Ossining (home of Singsing Jail) in upstate NY.

Typical (lovely) New England
A typical scene in and around Kennebunkport, Maine.

Typical (lovely) New England 2
A typical scene in and around Kennebunkport, Maine.

Wow, Brighton Pavilion in Maine
There are so many magnificent homes in New England -- and some outrageous ones, too.

Countryside in Upstate NY
Stunning country. What can I say?

Sleepy Hollow
Prompted by Marika's love of the film, we made a point to visit the real Sleepy Hollow (having not had a clue that it really existed)

Washington Irving's grave
The denouement of the fictional tale is set at the bridge in the real location of the Old Dutch Burying Ground in Sleepy Hollow. The characters of Ichabod Crane and Katrina Van Tassel may have been based on local residents known to the author. The character of Katrina is thought to have been based upon Eleanor Van Tassel Brush and her name comes from Eleanor's aunt Catriena Ecker Van Tessel.

Katrina's grave
The story is set circa 1790 in the Dutch settlement of Tarry Town, New York, in a secluded glen called Sleepy Hollow. It tells the story of Ichabod Crane, a priggish schoolmaster from Connecticut, who competes with Abraham "Brom Bones" Van Brunt, the town rowdy, for the hand of eighteen-year-old Katrina Van Tassel, daughter of a wealthy farmer. As Crane leaves a party at the Van Tassel home on an autumn night, he is pursued by the Headless Horseman, supposedly the ghost of a Hessian trooper who lost his head during "some nameless battle" of the American Revolutionary War and who "rides forth to the scene of battle in nightly quest of his head." Crane disappears from town, leaving Katrina to marry Brom Bones, who was "to look exceedingly knowing whenever the story of Ichabod was related."

The keeper of the Old Dutch Church
This old Dutch church was absolutely delightful in its brightness and simplicity. We think the "keeper" must be related to Washington Irving in some way as he was an inexhaustible (!!!) mine of information about the book, the characters, the legend, history, politics, you name it. That's why they call it Tarry Town.

Untitled
We got on the Staten Island ferry (which is FREE) to see the sights. Why do ferries seem to evoke such strong feelings?

New York, New York
Just like the Serengeti.

Playing in the fountains in Manhattan
I'm not sure how these kids managed the subway after playing here.

Can't get away from Croks
Croks are EVERYwhere!!! Cape Town, Nairobi, Arusha, London, Boston, NY, ...