Back in the U.S. of A.

This update was started mid-July in the lovely state of Delaware, the land of chicken and watermelon farms, where I (Michele) have been recuperating at my parents' house from 48 hours of delirium in travel. Kenneth has been resetting his own internal clock in Philadelphia, visiting with his good friends Dan and Kristen. In a few days we will eagerly head for Asheville, to reconnect with friends and clean out our storage unit... BUT you'll have to read through this entry to find out where we're moving to!!
A mere two weeks ago, our heroes were headed for a few hours' travel on the remarkable transit system of Melbourne, Australia. Our journey took us to the Yarra Valley, northeast of the city, a region reknown for vineyards and farmland. We were met at the bus station by our final wwoofing host, Ian Cuming, a farmer of kiwifruit and teacher of Rudolf Steiner's biodynamic agriculture. Our days with Ian consisted of pruning kiwi vines (the fruit had been harvested a few weeks prior), assisting in the sale of kiwifruit at two farmer's markets, and relaxing in the evenings around a toasty woodstove (I know that doesn't sound too appealing to those of you suffering from summer heat, but it was cold there!), entertained with conversations about Steiner's methods, Aussie sport, and all sorts of everyday stuff. At the end of our time with Ian, we spent half a day visiting the Steiner teacher training program outside of Melbourne. We were invited to tea with the teacher trainees, who asked us to stay and observe two classes: form drawing and craft (right up our collective alley!). Lunch was a delicious opportunity to sample from the school's biodynamic gardens. We met with two senior faculty at the school, asked and answered questions, and headed back to the city.
The time for making decisions was upon us. Would we return to the States, pack up our stuff, say a fond farewell to our friends and family, and spend the next three years halfway around the globe? After carefully weighing all the factors that are important to us, we came to the conclusion that while we would like to spend more time exploring Australia, we were sick and tired of traveling and wanted to GO HOME. The temptation of starting a new life in a new city in a new country in a new hemisphere was certainly appealing, but we had to confess to each other that we preferred the idea of living and attending school in.... California! Head west, young persons. We took the train right to the travel agency, booked our flight and left Melbourne the very next morning.

Now, on the very last day of July, we're here to report on various travels throughout the U.S. of A., both past and future. Kenneth joined me in Delaware for some time with my mom and stepdad Ted (and to experience his first authentic water ice, courtesy of Rita's). We then drove to central Virginia, to spend two nights with our friends Rain, Jon, and Jin in their rambling house outside Charlottesville. We arrived in Asheville in time for a timely dinner at Jack of the Woods pub, and left the next day after visiting with friends Jason and Liz. Off to Kentucky, to see Kenneth's family! Five days of siblings, parents, pooltime (at a converted quarry) left us eager to return to Asheville, where we are presently house- and dogsitting for friends Justin and Michelle. Good thing they're out of town, because we've trashed the house--going through our storage unit is an unwieldy affair! We promise we'll have it spic and span when they get back from Costa Rica... although we can't guarantee the dogs won't strew the house with more fluff from their bedding, while we're en route to the airport. Next on the agenda: we meet with a realtor tomorrow, to see if maybe, just maybe, we could afford a little house in Asheville to buy now and rent out while we're in school. It sure would be nice to have a place of our own to come home to.