Tag: #meetup

Happy Fourth of July 2018 USA!!!

This is what I woke to today in Puyallup. What a stunning view in the backyard of where I am staying.

I spent Independence Day afternoon in a place I found on my Meetup app. Tom and Peggy have a property with a pool in Puyallup Washington. Fascinating that they advertise their address on the Meetup App for the whole world to see. I decided to go because it was only 8 minutes from where I was staying although driving here it looked like it was in the middle of the bush.

Lovely people. Thank you for your kind hospitality everyone.

Throughout the day the sound of fireworks being let off in homes and streets everywhere brought back fun memories of our childhood cracker nights. Wish they would bring them back in Australia.

When night fell the show started. It is so exciting. I don’t know where to look. There are fireworks at the front of the house, at the back of the house, upstairs you can see fireworks out on the horizon and I am as excited as Sydney NYE. Perhaps more excited because it is just people and their neighbours putting on this great show. 2 hours so far and it isn’t easing up. Not bad considering it is illegal to discharge fireworks in many of these housing areas. What a fun community coming together entertaining everyone!!

Neighbours fireworks

Fireworks on the horizon

Maryland

12 May 2018

My second time to embarrass myself with authority occurred as I crossed the border to Maryland. I had entered a stop in my GPS for a visitors centre so I could buy a fridge magnet.

When it directed me to the NSA Visitors Centre I knew Siri got it wrong. I drove up to the security and said, “oops. I am in the wrong place”. The cute guard said, “perhaps it might be the right place”. I said “I don’t think so unless you sell fridge magnets”. Yes. I know what you are all thinking. I am lucky I wasn’t arrested for stupidity. He asked me for my identification and if I knew anyone at NSA. I said I did but he was based in Hawaii now (sorry Paul but I didn’t give him your name). I was quite nervous but trying not to laugh at the same time at how stupid I must have looked. The guard just said politely “Mam. Please make a Uturn to the left to exit”. I have heard of people being questioned for hours when taking a wrong turn. I must have looked genuinely stupid. I did get my magnet just before I crossed the border to Delaware at a petrol station.

After my NSA excitement I found my airbnb, I was exhausted from driving from Pennsylvania and was going to have a rest. I was going through Meet up app and found a ballooning festival (Howard County Ballooning Festival) 50 minutes away. I contacted the host Dakota, confirmed the address, got changed and arrived at the festival 1 hour after I checked into my airbnb.

I met Dakota, Chas, James and their lovely friends.

I missed the hotdog eating competition and an hour after I got there, an announcement was made that the balloon glow was cancelled as a storm was coming through. This was the best photo I got of any of the balloons.

I was disappointed but I felt for all the children who were looking forward to the hot air balloons. It was a 3 day festival, free, but parking was $US20 each day and by looking at many of the people the parking would have been a lot of money for them, as it was for my limited budget. I didn’t return the next day as it rained all day.

Straight after the festival I found a salsa Meetup 45 minutes away. I arrived at Mr Mambo Salsa but was told by someone in the carpark that there was no dancing there ( I later found out I was on the wrong side of the building). I checked the Meetup and went to an alternate address 45 minutes the other way. I love when I cross borders my phone GPS announces “Welcome to …” in this case it was Virginia. I just drove 4 hours in the morning from Pennsylvania to Maryland and then all of a sudden I am in Washington DC crossing over to Virginia. I love this country!!

Arriving at the salsa venue I find out it is the wrong place and salsa was on where I was at previously. I know most of you would give up and go back to your accommodation ( mine was 40 minutes away) but it was Saturday night and I hadn’t danced since the cruise 3 weeks ago!! I went back to the previous venue and found salsa and bachatta!!

I got my fix of dancing and a pic with Mr Mambo

I got my fix for dancing but I do miss my Sydney dance venues and partners.

Seligman/Williams/Flagstaff Arizona

14 March 2018

I just drove 1,600 km (1,000 miles) in 7 days.

First stop today was another Route 66 Historical area, Seligman including the Road Kill Cafe OK Saloon.

Then on to Williams where the scenery changed and the weather was very cool and windy. Williams is known as the gateway of the Grand Canyon and another historical Route 66 town.

Flagstaff is 40 minutes away and at 2106 metres (6190 feet) the temperature changed dramatically from Bullshead City’s 30 C (86F) to 0 C (32F). The landscape is pine trees and snow topped mountains. I arrived at 5:00pm and as I did not have any daylight for exploring I went on Meet Ups and found a trivia night on at the Uptown Pub. Met some lovely people and were impressed with coming 1st at half time but then it deteriorated and we came 8/12.

Tomorrow Grand Canyon.