There's a bear over there, do you want to see it?

Hi, I'm back home! It was a great trip. There's no way I can tell everything that happened, so I am just going to list a few memories that stand out after being home for about 20 hours.

1. We saw a bear! It was not scary, which was surprising. At our campground in Yosemite, I was waving to another young woman whose campsite was across the road and she walked over with a camera and said, "There's a bear over there, so you want to see it?" D and I looked at each other and said, "Yes." We walked a few feet and down the road, ambling and snuffling, was a bear! It was big. It walked to the side for awhile and then walked away into the woods. A bear!

2. We hiked up big mountains in Yosemite. We estimate that we hiked about 29 miles in all. Everything was all vistas and cliffs and views. I'll try to remember to post some pictures.

3. I swam in a freezing cold alpine lake! It was after the third day of camping and I wanted to be clean, but the showers were closed. D and I stopped to put our feet in the lake, but it was very cold. Suddenly, I decided to just get in! I dunked myself under and swam for maybe 90 seconds. For a few hours, I felt very fresh and clean. (We found showers the next day.)

4. In other mammal-siting news, a marmot charged me.

5. Blue birds and sequoias.

6. Staying in San Fransisco with D's cousin and her boyfriend was great. They are both lovely and wonderful. I can be sort of a fussy house guest, and I was always comfortable and happy. We had great dinners and conversations, too. Thanks guys!

7. San Fransisco itself was beautiful, cool and windy and not summery at all. It's a city of sudden views-- lots of hills. We walked across the Golden Gate bridge, and through all kinds of neighborhoods. We walked so much I had to buy new, comfortable shoes.

8. And I drove in California! Along crazy mountain roads, even. Fearless me!

Okay, I'm surrounded by laundry and dishes and the cat wants attention. I'll continue the CA trip update soon!