East Coast Family Vacation 2012

It is like my Auntie Connie always says "All journeys have secret destinations of which the traveler is unaware", and this past August, perhaps the neatest thing for me to observe and experience on our amazing three week journey through New York, New England, and Eastern Canadia was how, although we occupied the same space and places, the journey and what we all took away from the trip, aside from many shared moments and thoughts, were very different and unique to every individual on the journey.  There was grand adventure, great food, better conversations, moments of suspense, awe, and intrigue.  At no less than four distinct occurrences can I remember being afraid for my life; and although we set out on this grand voyage as a merry band of travellers, those of us who did made it back were changed by the journey and can only reflect upon the people we once were before the adventure as though pale faded memories of a forgotten time long past. We became more than we once were, and our former selves appear as though a foggy shadow compared to the vivid detail of sound character that we had become.  We flew on planes, travelled by train, taxi, moped, jet ski, foot, bus, trolley, subway, ship, boat, ferry, bicycle, motor car, wheelchair, escalator, and were even ferried from harm's way to safety by the Great Eagles of Manwe in a very Dues ex Machina-esque way when it seemed as though all hope was lost and we were doomed.  In retrospect, it seemed such a convenient way to travel that after the trip we asked ourselves why we did not travel by way of eagle everywhere, but that is a conversation for another time.  We swam, ran, danced, sang (well, I sang), had lobster dinners, hiked, laughed, cried, joked, played games, made memories and took photos.  Photos that I intend to put up here in due time, but for now, there is a video below of some of the highlights of the trip. I must be honest though, while the above is true, there is one falsehood that I would like to point out.  My Auntie Connie, as far as I know, has never said "All journeys have secret destinations of which the traveler is unaware".  In fact that doesn't even sound like her (she swears and curses a lot more).  It was in fact coined by Martin Buber and I found it on one of those sites that list inspirational travel quotes that people frequently visit when they feel overwhelmed and decide the best course of action is to run away from their problems.  Aside from that one minor detail though, everything else can be considered an accurate account of how events had actually transpired as like all great travellers, I have seen more than I remember, and remember more than I have seen.  Please enjoy...

 

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