our final days brought us to grand teton and yellowstone national parks, both of which were extremely moving but would be even more so if the weather had been better and we had more time/energy. it even snowed briefly while we were in yellowstone. i was suprised by the number of stripped, fallen and burned trees in both parks. i suppose fires are an important part of nature, but the landscape seemed barren due, in part, to these giant toothpicks. it also seemed really eerie because of the vast number of geysers emitting gases into the biting wind. we walked up a path to the geyser basin and were completely enveloped in steam. it was odd and smelly, but a really cool feeling. we also enjoyed watching the waterfalls throughout the park and seeing the wildlife. that is, until a buffalo came within a few feet of the car and we decided that was a little too close for comfort. the parks were generally gorgeous but also quite strange. we had to remind ourselves the animals were real- this was reality- and that the steaming landscape wasn't a post-war zone, but a hotbed of geological activity.
idaho, wyoming and montana were otherwise uneventful. we did our last long day of driving from bozeman, mont. to ritzville, wa. the concert was totally worth the hefty ticket price. for music lovers out there, you'd like to know that i was really impressed with arcade fire, manu chao, gabriel teodros, mix master mike and electrelane. i would have loved to hear m.i.a. but she couldn't get her visa; bjork was brilliant but we only stayed for two songs because we were itching to finally get to seattle. i also wanted to actually hear/see mirah and grizzly bear, but other acts overpowered them big time. the long winters, ozomatli, neko case, and citizen cope were all pretty good too.
after making it to my house a few hours after the show, we all crashed for a good amount of time. it felt so comforting to be in my own bed again. luckily we were all enthusiastic enough to clean the car (inside and out!) and go around the city before eating a nice home-cooked meal and sorting through our 5000 photos from the trip that night. i was proud to show matt and laura my home and town, although a lot has changed since i've been here last. i will be home for another week, running errands and seeing friends, before leaving for boston on june 5. after that i plan on getting a job and exploring the city, then returning to school again until december. it feels like a relief to be home, but i can't imagine being here longer than that. this summer should be great!
here are some of my photos from yellowstone (before my batteries died) and from our fun in seattle day:
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