The Pantengliopolis House of Phat

AP, Hopi and I took off for a two week climbing road trip in late August/early September. We took the new van, all kitted out as a mobile home, and did a big loop through Arcata, the redwood forests, Tahoe, Mammoth, Yosemite, Reno and back up through eastern CA, Oregon and Crater Lake. It was delightful and one of the best trips we’ve had in a while. Lots of good climbing, good swimming and good times.

Took me a while to sort through these — two weeks on the road will give you a lot of pictures. There are a ton in this album, but I’ve tried to trim it down to give the flavor of the trip. I’ve probably not trimmed it quite enough…

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Today we drove three hours outside of Dhaka to a rural community endemic for kala-azar, a fatal parasitic disease spread by sandflies. I was excited to get out of the city but I have one word to say about the drive out there and back… HORROR. TERROR. LIFE FLASHING BEFORE EYES. Continue reading →

It’s the end of our third day in Bangladesh and so far, we have only traveled around Dhaka city. This is not a small feat. After being out and about today for ten hours, I can still hear the sound of car horns echoing in my brain while I type this all tucked away in my hotel room. I yearn for a moment of quiet. Continue reading →

I looked at my itinerary for this trip and apparently I am flying around the world with a 6 day lay-over in Bangladesh. Continue reading →

Anastasia, Andy and Mica did a little exploration in the Olympics last weekend, while I stayed home to clean the house and do homework. Hmmm… something’s wrong here. Pictures of their ski of Mt. Ellinor below. Pictures of my efforts to de-moldify the house later.
For Linda

The Scene

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Since the Jersey family gave me a drill press for Christmas, I figured I should detail the first time I put it to use. My new ski bindings needed mounting et voila, fun project ensued.
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Becky’s birthday creation this year was a celebration of her engagement with Pete and their trip along the John Muir trail in California. First picture is the culinary representation of the ring that Pete fashioned out of a glacier lily, the rest are of the edible Sierra Nevada.

Engagement Olive Glacier Lily Ring

Rice Krispy Nevada

It was easy to navigate the Muir because they followed the dots of icing.

The gang watches Becky decipher the cake-puzzle.

Mica’s Monkeys from Marcus Engley on Vimeo.

I got the best night sleep at the weird hotel in Bariadi despite the lack of water, the loud TV, the thumping bass, the lack of a mosquito net, and the smell of diesel. It was blissful. After an egg, a slice of bread, and some tea, we were off to Matonga, a fair sized village about a 2 hour drive from Bariadi. Continue reading →

I just sat down to write today’s post when my friend knocked on my door to deliver me a bucket of water to shower with. We are in a village called Bariadi, southwest of the Serengeti Park, at the ‘upscale’ motel. So upscale that they don’t provide bednets in the room because it would make them look unsophisticated. Continue reading →