Yosemite

Superlatives become commonplace after a while when travelling through this landscape. I did my best to see the place through Ansell Adams' eyes, helped by a local gallery of his pictures and the ubiquitous opportunity to buy associated gifts, but the scale and grandeur of the valley defied my camera. We just ooh-ed and ahh-ed along with all the other tourists.

Our night in a log (well, wooden anyway) cabin at Curry Village in Yosemite Park helped us appreciate the budget Best Western hotels we've generally been using along the way, though it was a treat to meet Ed, the golf-cart driving porter who helped us carry ALL our luggage from the car to the shed - er - cabin. We've cunningly arranged the luggage so only the overnight and valuable stuff needs to leave the car each day, but we hadn't counted on the Yosemite bears. Apparently they break into cars looking for food if so much as a handbag is left inside, so along came Ed to transport our pile of bags. He chatted away about the park, the bears, life in general and helped us feel at home.

We didn't see a bear and, despite my cruising the carpark this morning with my camera, I didn't see any cars broken into. We did see a squirrel.

Today we saw the biggest living things on Earth; giant sequoia trees. A magical afternoon walking in nature scented with wood smoke and pine, a lingering memory of sun rays slanting through the drifting smoke. The gift shop was closed; a sort of gift in itself. Speaking of records, we went from sea level to 9500 feet and back to 3000 feet over the course of yesterday, an ear-popping experience.

Tonight we are in small town America. Went to a local pizza place where I felt somewhat out of place. Sports memorabilia and insignia all over the walls, three giant screens showing three different sports channels, lots of baseball caps and beer bellies, surly service. Great pizza. Local Republican HQ prominently evident across the street. Is it just me ? After all, we're not from around here...

Lots of great chats with the kids about travelling, family, learning and education, feelings, communication, loyalty, experiences. We're learning a lot about each other.