After seemingly-weeks of negotiation, Ivi has relented enough to allow publication of a few photos that show her visage. These photo examples — beach, soccer match, national parks, weekend trips — were made by some of her fellow students and friends at the University of Ghana between January – May 2014. Consult with Ivi for details.
Well, we knew the first leg was successful. Email confirmation just before bedtime told us that Ivi had touched down in Amsterdam. She reported a quick flight due to a good amount of sleep, but was taken aback a bit by the cold Amsterdam weather.
The next morning, early, we set the GPS for SeaTac and set forth. As usual, between driving shifts, I passed my time practicing the ill-advised art of windshield photography.
First stop was Trader Joe’s to pick up anticipated treats for our arriving passenger, followed by a quick motel check-in, then we board the shuttle to Delta to await the arrival of Flight 152.
Lots of other electrons were killed during the agonizing wait, but those photographs will wait for another time. Instead, we cut to the chase with Ivi’s appearance, about 45 minutes after touchdown. Then more time to await the shuttle, and finally back to the motel where we open the TJ stash and in the first interruption to the flood of conversation over the past hour, Ivi seizes upon a Luna bar and more.
At the motel, we inspect the Chromebook, Ghanaian fabric and beads, and barrage our visitor with questions. Ate goodies from Trader Joes’ acquired earlier and discussed all the usual catch-up stuff. By about 7pm, Kim had nodded off, and Ivi went silent about half an hour later. I finally capitulated at 8pm because I could no longer maintain a Wi-Fi connection, had no reading material and TV in the same room with sleepers was not an option.
Awaking promptly at 5am, I decided to suss out the motel and environs leaving our sleepers to their own internal clocks. Outside, I found a very cool and gray day. Walked through a fine cemetery with Japanese-style gardens and water features in one area, then hit the sidewalks, and mostly observed the traffic. (I must report that few vehicles of interest were spotted. Today, no Porsches were to be seen, although on the incoming trip up the freeway, two Boxsters and as for the 911 family, a 930 Turbo and a 997. Other than a 370Z, an RX8, an early 3-series, mostly the only sightings were the usual BMWs and assorted Mercedes. Moving along now. )
Leaving Seattle …
On our way down the road, we stop at one of those fruit & antique barns. Ivi and Kim stock up on fresh fruit, I visit the mens’ room which turns out to be festooned with a dozen or so prints commemorating the Lewis & Clark expedition (and also features a Xcelerator hand dryer that is sufficiently powerful to deform your skin), and then we explore the upper reaches of the building which is crammed to overflowing with … stuff. On our way out, Ivi makes a valiant photographic attempt through the rear window to document an antique tractor.
Now there is nothing to do but drive. Homeward bound.
And, finally, Charlie welcomes Ivi home …
Africa, of course, is on our minds these days. So tonight we tried something a bit different and simply did a search on Netflix for everything that matched the keyword, “Africa”. The most promising search result seemed to be a film called “An African Election”. And it turned out to be a documentary of the 2008 Ghanaian presidential elections. Highly recommended, even for those who may not be tuned into Ivi’s current adventure there. Here is the trailer for that fascinating film:
Btw, I heard three distinctly different pronunciations by different Ghanaians in the film of the name of the Ghana capital, Accra (where Ivi is living now).
So it appears to be rather warm and doesn’t dip much at night.
Oh, oh. Found these in the back of the car upon returning from Seattle …
Ivi is nearly ready to go. And in the meantime, there’s her new Africa cookbook (lower right).
Goodbye Portland.
Unsuccessful in finding parking around the zoo or Washington Park, we move up to Pittock Mansion where the parking is nearly as bad. We find that the structures are being renovated so we hike the dense, verdant grounds, take in some views and watch the many visitors and tourists. Kim takes a couple of photographs.
Off to Farmers’ Market on a city block of the downtown PSU campus. Chilly morning. Spent hours there, sampling cheeses, pastries, juices, unidentifiables, you name it. Had the best tart, ever. Great signage, plenty of people watching, lots of music. Rampant color, gurgling with activity. Came back with cheese, sprouts, other stuff, as much as we could carry. Ivi says that she and her friends often go there for an a la carte walking breakfast.
Stocking Ivi’s kitchen from home and Trader Joe’s. Exploring around campus; Ivi shows us secret areas and paths. Hanging out and plotting the next move. Everywhere is green and lush and as private as you want.
Back to school for Ivi. We depart late morning Saturday, check into a motel, hit Trader Joe’s to stock up Ivi’s kitchen. Dorm move-in is Sunday morning, and then it is homeward bound, first stopping at another T.J.’s to equip our own larder, driving until late afternoon.
