a little bit of catch up: Home Leave 2012

I am in Bishkek. but dont have many photos yet (just some of the dirty house i moved into...i took them to document the state of this place so i wont be expected to leave it spotless at the end of my tour as was expected and enforced at the last post). but that is another story.

i wanted to acknowledge my home leave in Portland. i had a great time visiting family and friends. got to catch up with my favorite NP colleagues/friends - that is a highlight for my visit home. Spend some time in Whistler (photos below) and in LA with my long time bud Julie. In Seattle to see my house, my brother and another good friend and his family. i fit a lot in. once again, i could fill this entry with photos of Portland, but you can just do a google search for better photos than i would take. also you can look at my blog entry from last summer...i visited about the same places.

but i did want to share some photos of Whistler, BC. this continues to be one of my favorite places on earth. i am not a resort type person, but Whistler Village is really nice. the huge mountains in the back drop and the great weather help. most people think of it as a winter spot, but i think summer is just as good. lots of hiking and outdoor activities.

Otto in Olympic park. This was such a great space. build for the 2010 Olympics.  We were there during the summer Olympics and they had 2 large screens showing the games throughout the day, so you could sit in the grass being bathed by the sun and watch amazing athletes.

Joffrey Lakes hike. highly recommended. it is a huge glacier in the middle (sorry the pictures can't be made larger). it is about an hour drive out of Whistler past Pemberton. Well worth the effort - actually a pretty easy hike (as long as you are not an 11 year old!!)

Top of Squamish.

I will work on getting photos of Bishkek by next weekend. This is an amazing and beautiful...and very developed...city. There are coffee shops, grocery stores (many open 24 hours), taxis, shopping malls, great restaurants. This is easy compared to Ouaga. We still miss it though. We haven't even been here 2 weeks and already went on a white water rafting trip this weekend. life is good!