The other half of our trip was spent in and around Juneau checking out the places Emily used to hang out as a teenager. We saw a bunch of glaciers, ate the local cuisine, hiked through an abandoned mine site, went on an overnight backpack trip to a lake tucked up in the mountains, and had some good nights in the bars. The visit to Alaskan Brewing Company and resulting free samples was also quite good. In spite of the constant flow of tourists and the resulting tourist shops we had a wonderful time in Juneau.
At work I also ran into many an interesting sight. The killer robots that roamed the lab competed fiercely with the resident deer population for cuddliest creation. Occasional trips to the Mars Yard, the Vehicle Assembly Building, and other areas that make interns salivate filled in the gaps for the slow parts of the day.
Only a summer passed in California but I took every opportunity to push myself to see and do as much as I could with what time I had.
In total I visited 22 countries that year. Places as far-flung as Albania, Norway, Latvia, and Tunisia were stepping stones on the path of adventure. Whether it was drinking with Slobodan Milošević’s doppelganger in Kosovo, eating whale goulash in Norway, seeing Pope John Paul II’s body laid out in state in the Vatican, or riding camels across the Great Sand Seas of Tunisia, each time I stepped outside my door something new and exciting happened. The year overseas was an incredibly formative experience in my life.
Over the course of eleven days we hiked through some of the most beautiful country on earth. We toured two large alpine basins and paraded down a high river valley. The llamas accompanied us the whole way, not minding the loads that they bore on their backs full of our gear. Just like humans, llamas enjoy the great outdoors, too.
Come take a walk with me through the 12,000 foot wonderland of the Sierra Nevada Mountains.




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