Farewell trip in Maine
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After the rainy graduation, the weather had not been recovered, but our plan still went on. We were headed to John’s and Margaret’s to have the packed lunch that we got from Bowdoin. John then took us to the airport where we rented a car for our trip. We planned to go to Acadia, the most-visited national park in Maine, and then go to Bar Harbor. It was a little weird that Emma and I had never been to Acadia even though we had lived in Maine for four years. (Well, it makes sense if we deduct a year and a half that I was not in Maine.
May 29
We got the car in the late afternoon, so we decided to have dinner in Portland first. We went to a Korean restaurant named N-to-Tail. We ordered Korean fried chickens and bibimbap, and they were very flavourful! After that, we went to Bangor, which was not an exciting spot. However, since it was close to Portland, we decided to stay there for a night at Super 8.
May 30
We drove up to Acadia in the morning using about 2 hours since we booked a time slot to enter mount Cadillac at 9 AM. We didn’t hike up mount Cadillac because of the weather, but it was a nice view up there. After taking many pictures, we then went around the Park Loop Road, which stops at beautiful sight-seeing spots, namely, the sand beach, the thunder hole, and Jordan Pond. The thunder hole was named after the sound of the wave hitting the shore very loudly. We finished around drive around the park around 1 in the afternoon. We weren’t hungry that much, so we decided to stop at more spots– the Bass Harbor head lighthouse. It was a lovely old lighthouse, but it was not as gorgeous as the one in Portland.
After visiting the lighthouse, we finally got a bit hungry and went to have lunch in the downtown Bar Harbor at a restaurant named A Pony and a Dog (pretty weird name, huh?). We had (16) buffalo wings, fish and chips, and clam chowders! Well, chowders are served at pretty much every restaurant in Bar Harbor. The weather in the late afternoon did not quite cooperate, so we were headed to the Anchorage hotel right after that. We spent 2 hours watching the hunger games two until we got hungry again. (What a life :P) For the dinner, we ordered takeouts from Chinese Joy, a Chinese restaurant downtown. We also had a cup of ice cream while waiting for the takeouts. (Not the one in the picture. That one we had on the day after!)
May 31
On the last morning of our stay in Bar Harbor, we started our day at Cafe This Way. The line was surprisingly long, especially on a rainy day. The restaurant served coffee for those who are lining up, which is pretty nice of them! When we got out table, we ordered two benedict eggs and a blueberry pancake. The food was delicious and fully energized us.
We then took a walk downtown and headed to the bar island. One special thing about the bar island is that when the tide is low, people can walk to the island and enjoy the animals on the island. We also walked to the island, but by the time we went back, the tide was getting higher, and we had to take off our shoes to walk. After we enjoyed a little walk to the bar island, we went back downtown to have some ice cream and buy some souvenirs. We got Maine blueberry tea for John and Margaret, and I got one for myself as well.
On the way back to Brunswick, where we stored our luggage, we made another stop at the Giant’s stairs in the Bailey island. I thought I had been there twice already while that was the first time for Emma and Poy! The stairs were amazing and terrifying as always. The big waves that kept hitting the shores made us feel so fragile, but they were also satisfying to watch. And that was the end of our trip to Maine. Although it was raining every day, the sceneries was still incredible. I’m surely going back to Maine again!!
From July 1st to 6th, we embarked on a trip from Sacramento, driving over 2600 miles to explore five incredible National Parks across Nevada, California, and Oregon. Our adventure took us from the ancient bristlecone pines of Great Basin and the volcanic landscapes of Lassen to the brilliant blue waters of Crater Lake and the towering giants of the Redwoods. Along the way, we balanced raw wilderness hikes with unforgettable stops for local donuts in Portland, a coastal drive down the Pacific shoreline, and a wine tasting at a Tuscan castle in Napa Valley.
The Canadian Rockies had never truly been on our radar, not for lack of awareness, but simply because we never imagined we’d have the opportunity to visit Canada. That changed entirely when I was invited to the prestigious Women in Numbers workshop at the Banff International Research Station. Seizing the moment, we decided to turn this milestone trip into a grand adventure, arriving a few days early to explore not just Banff, but a stunning circuit of five neighboring national parks, including, Jasper, Yoho, Glacier, Mount Revelstoke, and Kootenay.
One of the most popular National Park routes that Poy and I hadn’t tackled yet was the Utah ‘Mighty Five.’ We’d heard nothing but non-stop hype from friends, and after checking off several harder-to-reach destinations, we decided it was finally time to go for it! We initially tried to squeeze in Great Basin National Park in Nevada, but a car shortage at the Las Vegas airport left us with an electric vehicle. As it turns out, there are no non-Tesla charging stations near Great Basin (aside from one incredibly slow charger), so we pivoted. We ended up focusing solely on the five Utah gems, which actually made for a much more relaxing, less rushed experience.
There are not many national parks that are ideal to visit in winter, except for those in the desert. For this Christmas trip, we chose three desert national parks, namely, Petrified Forest, Saguaro, and Joshua Tree. In addition to these, we also stopped by some of the most iconic landmarks in Arizona’s desert landscape, including Horseshoe Bend and Monument Valley. It was a dry, sandy, and breathtaking Christmas. One that turned out to be truly memorable for both of us.