Idaho...again

It’s been weird during the pandemic not to travel. Traveling for work or vacation had become second nature to me and to all of the sudden stop was strange. I thought I might get stir crazy but it didn’t really happen. It was the first time in over thirty years that I would spend more than 12 months without an international flight. It was time for my horrendous carbon footprint to have a break. I’m hoping, in all honesty, that I’ll look back at the pandemic as a turning point in my life when I began to reel in my travel and allow it to taper off. It’s not that I don’t like to travel anymore, I just think that the past 15-20 years has been a bit excessive.

Last year I had planned a trip to the US in late March. It was a rather infamous time to have a booking as international travel began its nosedive. I was still confident that I might travel as of February but by early March things were not looking good. In the end, it wasn’t possible and KLM issued me a voucher.

I’ve been sitting on that voucher ever since. However a few months ago I realized that it was scheduled to expire in December and I was at risk of losing it. At the same time we were thinking about my mother-in-law Yvonne’s upcoming return trip to the US. After not much reflection, it seemed to us that it would be best used to accompany her on her journey. It’s not that we felt that she would be unable to travel alone. She’s quite capable for an 80-year-old. But we knew that it would make it considerably easier. I have access to some travel privileges that tend to streamline the process considerably. It’s that travel is far more confusing than it was several years ago. It just seemed to make sense that I could use my ticket to travel with her and then carry on to have some bonus time with my family.

* * *

at the airport

After having spent a wonderful month with us in Kenya, my Yvonne sadly said tearful farewells to her daughter and granddaughters. We took the late-night Uber to the airport and navigated our way through security and Covid screening. Eventually we were in the business lounge with a moment to catch our breath before boarding. It’s hard to say but it’s possibly the last time she’ll see Kenya.

* * *

Towards the end of 2019, just prior to the beginning of the pandemic, we bought some property in central Idaho. The land is in a mountain valley near where some of my family live. There is a house located on the property that is unfinished. Apparently the previous owner died during construction and the family paid someone to button up the house, sealing it in to protect it from the elements while they put it up for sale. It was good that they did given that it was up for sale for a couple years before we bought it and, the combination of the pandemic and the boom in construction in the state, it has meant that it remains unfinished.  

The main reason for the ticket that I purchased in March 2020 was to see if I could get the work moving on the house. As that failed miserably, the other objective of this trip was to see if I could finally get things moving on finishing the construction. I had recently had some interested from some contractors, something that has been rather rare of late given the massive construction boom in the nation’s leading housing market.

After Yvonne and I separated, I carried on to Boise. I arrived alone with no fanfare. It’s been many years since I’ve traveled to Idaho by myself. I picked up my bags and located my rental car. I tuned it to NPR and headed to my sister’s where I would stay for a couple of days.

* * *

With the exception of occasional short trips to NY for work, this was my first fall in the US for about 17 years. I have to say, it was quite special to see the colors and feel the cool autumn air.

East Boise in the autumn

Boise’s nickname is the City of Trees. The moniker was provided by early French trappers who gave it the name which essentially means “wooded”. Given the city’s location in the northwest corner of the state’s massive desert area, this may seem odd. There are many cities in the US that possess far more trees. In fact it was more the contrast to its surrounding environment that made the wooded Boise River valley so impressive. As irrigation has enabled an enormous expansion of the city’s footprint, there are far more trees now than there was when the early settlers arrived. Thus it’s still growing into its nickname.

* * *

Within less than 24 hours of landing in the country, I was whisked off to a football game at the stadium of my alma mater. I was quite excited, actually, given that it’s been so long. It’s become a massive business as compared to when I was a student back in the late 1980s. The stadium is much larger and the team is far more competitive. In spite of the thrill of being back to a game for the first time in many years, there was the concern about attending a massive super-spreader event in the middle of a pandemic, particularly in a state that has a large percentage of the population who are fans of football more than public health. From the time we arrived I sensed that it was going to be tough to avoid the germs of my orange-clad fellow spectators. As if to anticipate a pandemic, however, my sister and brother-in-law’s season tickets were at the top row, with no one cheering/breathing in our direction. The good news is that I never contracted Covid. The bad news is that our team struggled to find the end zone.

Freak Alley

On day two I did a nice bike ride with my sister around the city. We’re pretty tight so it was fun just to hang out. The city’s changed SO much, in many ways for the better. Seeing it on a warm, colorful autumn day probably added to the beauty.

* * *

southern Idaho fall colors

Soon I was headed south to see my parents. I always enjoy the pilgrimage to the area where I was born. As I mentioned in a previous blog entry, it’s not the most fascinating place in the world but for me it’s just a really nice place to chill. I wouldn’t be there long, however, so I would do a bit less relaxing than I normally would. One thing that we did was take a wonderful drive to what we used to call the “South Hills”. In fact the area is really a part of the Sawtooth National Forest. I spent a lot of time there when I was young given how accessible it was. I think the ski area was about 25 minutes from my parents’ house.

moose sighting

This drive took us more less straight south into the hills which are located just north of the Nevada border. We then took a road angling west, up and over a pass and back down into the valley. I’d been on most of it before but not for many years. The colors were stunning. Not long after we passed the ski area, we happened upon a moose. I’ve seen moose in Idaho but never in this area. It was kind of a thrill, to be honest. Soon after we saw several deer – less of a thrill but still cool.

I did a few chores and hung out with my parents, including catching a couple of football games on TV – reminiscent of what we used to do back in the day. Otherwise, there wasn’t a lot of time for much else.

* * *

lonely, unfinished house

After my two days was up, I then headed north to McCall. Except for road construction, it was a beautiful four-hour drive. Plan A was to check out our unfinished house and meet with at least one contractor. Plan B was to hang out with family. Mission accomplished on both fronts, though the former doesn’t seem to be bearing much fruit yet.

One evening was particularly special where three of my siblings and I all had dinner together with no one else. Sadly, my oldest sister was unable to be there but having the four of us was a very rare treat. It was such a nice evening and we realize that not all families are as tight as we are. Never want to take that for granted.

That weekend we had more family come up to join us. It was a packed house and a lot of fun. One thing that I hadn’t realized is how much Halloween has become such a big event. My sister had loads of decorations, gift bags, steaks on the grill, etc. Rare that I can be a part of it but glad I was.

One other surprisingly enjoyable activity was hitting the local watering holes with my brother. I’m not much of a drinker but I enjoy getting to know the locals and hearing their stories. I suppose I was surprised how interested they were about what I do and where I live.

* * *

The final leg brought me back to Boise where I would hang out with my family there, including my sis who missed the sibling dinner in McCall. I would do my last-minute shopping, pack and bid my farewells. It was a really great trip but I was getting anxious to see my wife and daughters. Thankfully the trip went smoothly and after about 30 hours, I reached our door – and the very sweet welcome signs.