Glorious Sequoia

We had a week back in New York after Panama. I found out I had passed the Foreign Service exam formally, but now have to wait 12 more weeks to find out if the rest of my application was good enough to move on. I started applying to some jobs in the public sector for which I am qualified (for instance, software developer for UN). If I can't get hired within that sector, I will go back to private sector. Can't sit on my hands for a year as I make my slow way through the Foreign Service process. But all of that is on hold for another week, as we are vacationing (again) in California...

We arrived on Saturday with Connie's parents, rented a car, and drove down to Orange County to meet up with my in-law's relatives (Uncle Joe - cousin twice removed, and his extended family). Everyone was there for Uncle Joe's son's wedding. We had an informal lunch with the family, visited Uncle Joe's impressive O.C. home and garden, checked into our not-so-impressive hotel, and made our way to Newport Beach for the wedding itself. There we met more family (including the couple, either of whom I did not know at all), drank, ate, and danced.

The next day we sent off Connie's parents to a seperate Chinese bus tour and made our own way northeast towards Kings Canyon & Sequoia National Parks. Or so I thought, until I realized I had mistakenly selected National Forest instead of National Park from the GPS Points-of-Interest menu. So a 6-hour drive turned into a 9-hour drive, including a speeding violation along the way, and a huge brunch at a Denny's. The park's Giant Forest of Sequoias and General Sherman (largest living tree by volume) were amazing. Wish we had more time but it was getting late already so we drove on to nearby Fresno for the night, stopping at Hooters for dinner.

Woke up early for another longish drive to Yosemite National Park. Yeah, we're park-hopping. After hearing so much about the park I found that Yosemite truly delivers. When the valley opens up before you as you drive east into the park, it's like a scene out of a fantasy movie. Granite cliffs, waterfalls, and a luscious-green valley floor. Breathtaking. We made a few stops along the way to snap some photos, got close to Bridalveil Fall (and got wet for all the effort). Did a few short hikes during the day, and in the evening went looking for bears based on a tip from a park ranger. The strategy is to drive along the valley floor looking for traffic jams caused by bear-oglers. Bear jams, as the ranger called them. We luckily happened on one at the right time and place and caught a yearling as it made its way across the drive, climb onto a fallen tree trunk and get busy tearing bark off in search of grubs. We had also seen deer and other smaller animals all over the place. A very rewarding experience.

Today we move onto more civilized pleasures in San Francisco...