Living Abroad

I have had several conversations with our leaders here about long term positions. Obviously it wouldn't be in the immediate future, but it is of interest to me. Which, of course, probably scares some of my friends and family. I think it would actually be very cool to be here in 2008. Then I could go to the Olympics. I would like to study Mandarin first because having little ability to communicate is tough.

Last night, we went to have another hair wash and massage. We went to a different salon that was staffed of mostly men with kind of punk haircuts of various colors. There were a series of mirrors in the middle that had a chair on either side, making a station. I sat at a station that was on the other side of a man getting a hair cut. I recall when we walked in and sat down this man seemed a little agitated about something. My stylist started in sudsing my hair and all of a sudden I hear the man on the other side yell. He gets up, knocks a glass of water to the floor, kicks the electrical surge on the floor and continues swearing up and down. It was, at this point, quite evident that he was swearing although we had no idea what about. It seems like there is a lot of agitated speaking here on a daily basis, but that is more my interpretation of the tone. This was the first time, I actually saw someone throw a public fit and get a little violent. After our washing, we were standing outside waiting for someone in our party and one of the stylists stepped onto the sidewalk without looking and caused a bicyclist to kareen into a parked motorcycle. Her bike got entwined with the reflector of the motorcycle and the salon personnel had to get some tools to cut her loose. Fortunately for me, their bad luck did not come my way and I had another excellent massage. After that, I went for a facial. Grand total for the evening - $4. I think the last and only facial I got was about $90 in the United States. Its definitely worth getting it all done here.

Next post - Xi'an, I hope. Ciao.

The Count Down

We are nearing the end of our teaching time. There is only one full day of teaching left and then we have a carnival and on Friday the final performance. While I have entertained thoughts of returning here (to China) someday to teach and also learn Mandarin, I am quite ready to be done with teaching. My attitude has helped make it easy, but I would certainly do things much differently if I were to teach for an extended period of time. While I tolerate a certain level of chaos, noise and "misbehavior" that is probably more than my peers, I think for a longer period of time, more strictness and control would be required for my sanity.

Last night after picking up some things for the carnival and some gifts, I went into the hotel dining room and it was empty. I ordered rice and eggplant, because I can only order about 3 things in Chinese. One of the waitresses came up to me while I was waiting for my food and wanted to talk to me in Chinese. I hated that I couldn't communicate with her. She brought over a piece of paper and wrote several questions in English and we spoke very broken English for a bit and she attempted to teach me some Chinese. I remember none of it this morning, but feel like if I were to stay here longer and if I had more background (some lessons perhaps) I could probably at the very least learn survival Mandarin. I am quite interested to see if my local community college offers classes since I am finally at the point that I might actually add some new hobbies in my life.

This morning it was raining and so my walking/running buddy and I walked up and down the hallways and stairs in the hotel for some exercise. The staff there must have thought we looked quite ridiculous. But at this point the local establishments and the hotel staff must be used to large groups of women (there are only three men in the group) coming to get massages, hair washes, food, etc. and not being able to communicate except with gestures and a few choice phrases. I think someone actually coined the phrase "Spanchinglish" to describe what we now all speak. That might be considered offensive. Maybe Chispanglish is better.

It is customary that students give you gifts here, so I have received a lot of nice gifts from my students - fans, silks, wall hangings - however, I will have to decide what goes and what stays in the hotel or buy another suitcase because I don't have enough room. I was one of about three people who packed very light. It will be interesting to see how much in overage charges we end up paying as a group.

My thoughts reflect my mind at the moment. As things wrap up, I am kind of here and there and not really anywhere at any time in particular. I am guessing this may be one of my last posts until we reach Beijing. The next two days will certainly be busy and then we may or may not have access in Xi'an. I miss friends and family and am certainly looking forward to seeing them in a little over a week.

Ciao.

Pampering

I was told it sounded like I wasn't having much fun based on my blog postings. Well, that isn't at all true. This is by far one of the most interesting experiences traveling I have had. First, because of its ease - everything is done for you. Which is both enjoyable and taxing at times because we move, move, move on our tour days. The students are wonderful and like students anywhere, are eager to learn and know about where you come from and what you like to do. The people are extremely accomodating and friendly. Apart from the stares and pointing and the desire to have a picture taken here and there with some random person, they are never rude and typically very friendly. They are also very eager to share and want us to know what a rich culture and history China has - which is certainly without a doubt. I think it would be very difficult to travel here without more of the language. Often, our hosts will write down places to go for us to give to taxis. I suppose I haven't really had a chance to sit down and write this stuff because I have been focusing on what is different.

It was pointed out to me that "students are students." Our stereotypes of the quiet students are probably based on the same reasons that students who are second language learrners in our own classrooms are often quiet. When placed in a group of peers or with someone who speaks their language, of course they are going to be more energetic and talkative because of their comfort level.

Yesterday we visited the Masoleum of Dr. Sun Yat Sen at Purple Mountain. It was breathtaking. You climb 392 steps to the top - 1 step for each of the 392 million people who were living in China at the time of its construction. There are several platforms in between each series of steps with grand gray stone buildings and bright blue tile roofs. When you get to the top, you see Dr. Sun Yat Sen's tomb. Everyone circles around, cramming through one door and out the same to get a glimpse of the father of democratic China's tomb.

After the masoleum we went to a tomb of the Ming dynasty, the last remaining structure of their rule, and to a pagoda that lay beyond it. The pagoda was seven stories tall and had a spiral staircase all the way up. But the view form the top was beautiful. Our lunch following was dim sum. Many people didn't enjoy it, but there were some great little dishes. As usual, there were things I didn't like. The sausage stuffed snail shell made me a little wary. The vegetable steamed bun was delicious. In the morning they have what I like to call little balls of sticky sweet dough. They have seasame seeds and are crispy on the outside and the inside is the soft doughy substance - which I forget the name of. Overall, I have enjoyed the food, but miss raw vegetables. I could go for some crunchy carrots...mmm, carrots.

We returned to the shopping district where we took the boat ride a previous night. (I think I forgot to post about that... We went down to the Confucious temple and temple area and went into the temple and then took a boat ride down the river. Every year they have a lantern festival, but year round you can see lanterns and the whole area is lit up with different animals shapes. I'll post pictures someday.) It was time to shop again! At this point many of the stores are beginning to look the same. I wandered around with three other people from the group - it is a pretty amazing group of teachers, by the way - and we went from alleyway to alleyway, from store to store. You really can only look at so many silks, pieces of jade/fake jade, cut paper art, tea sets, fans, stamps and what not before it all just sort of blends together. Plus, I am not much of a shopper. In Shanghai, I bought a gorgeous silk wrap and I have yet to see anything like it again. It made me wish I had bought two. I am waiting untill Xian and Beijing to blow the rest of my wad because I have yet to see anything unique after this many days here. Fortunately, the group I was with was more into the wandering/exploring part than the buying, and, of course,a mandatory cold beer stop.

I have to speak to my hair washing experience. I cannot believe that no one has come to the states with this concept and made a lot of money. You walk into a salon where about ten or so staff are milling around. At the time, there wasn't another client in the salon. I motioned that I wanted a hair wash and they babbled a bunch of stuff in Chinese. I pretended to understand and motioned some more. (At this point, I can ask how much, say its too expensive or I want or don't want, and order white rice and sauteed eggplant or hot and sour soup.) I was draped with a robe (a la salon style) and instructed to sit in the chair. She then placed shampoo on my scalp and squirted it with water. In a circular motion and while massaging my scalp and head, she lathered my hair. The massage and lathering lasted about 20 minutes. Then they take you over to rinse, condition and rinse again - massaging all the while. You return to the chair and they massage your head some more, then your temples, then your neck, your back, your shoulders, arms, fingers...this lasts another 20 odd minutes. It was pure lujo. Oh and it costs about a $2.50. (That was with a tip.) I think tomorrow I will get the $8 massage that was rated by another group member as one of top two or three massages she's had in her life. (A trusted source on the matter.) Quite an endorsement.

It is a little difficult to relay all my experiences here, and, in part, because of the pace we keep I haven't fully processed everything. A lot of what I write is in a paper journal and then I turn some of that into postings. When I get home I will be updating with pictures and historical info, but for now its just raw experience. So stay tuned. Rest assured, this has been a fabulous experience and, with words of wisdom and some guidelines, I would recommend it to many. Hopefully, everyone can pool their advice and I can post it for any future participants. There are certainly things I think we all wish we had known before embarking, mostly to have packed better.

The Old System

Yesterday we had a "staff" meeting. Our coordinator had met with our Chinese teachers to hear their concerns about what and how we were teaching. Some of their concerns included our not playing enough games with them, not singing enough songs, making input more comprehensible, and wanting more about American life.

In response to some of the concerns (this is where I get to complain), I didn't come here to play games. Sorry. Not part of my teaching style and I don't feel that is a worthwhile activity for a two week intensive English program. Sure, we have academic trivia games, but I am not going to teach them to play card games or Monopoly during class. I continue to teach academic content using a lot of the GLAD strategies. (See: www.projectglad.com for more info) The goals of the program here were never clearly articulated, so until they are, I do what I know best. We have learned two content-related songs already. I figured that didn't complaint didn't apply to me.

As a result of this meeting, we were given the go-ahead to "rat" on the Chinese teachers. Apparently, when they don't like what we are doing, they go directly to their supervisor to "tell on us." Its the old communist system where everybody tells on everyone else. So, when several teachers said that their Chinese teachers left the room during class time, we were told we could write down their names and they would be reprimanded. It was all kind of amusing. In the end, as one person said, "None of it really matters anyway." After 12 odd days of teaching, one can only expect so much.

The behavior issues are probably the most challenging. Any stereotypes about Chinese children you may have had, you can toss them out the window. The students in my class are only partially respectful, but I am one of the lucky ones. My rewards system and signals seem to do the trick, but there is really no way you can discipline the students. If they chose not to listen or do what is asked of them, you can pretty much expect a battle will ensue. There are no parents to call home or consequences. My way of giving the students choices has been effective, but that is much more difficult at the lower grades (I am teaching 4/5, now, remember - a blessing in disguise,) where they have limited language. It will certainly help anyone who wants to participate in this program to know that you need to be prepared to establish some rules and discipline, because it doesn't exist. The students are not always respectful of their teacher, or their classmates and they are extremely loud. It is honestly the loudest student population I have ever worked with. All of these things probably have a lot to do with status. It seems there is a recurring theme all over the world - that sense of entitlement. The students here are not too far behind their American counterparts in that respect. Not at all what I expected.

It seems the rain has begun and I seriously hope we don't get trapped at school due to flooding. My friends in Puerto Vallarta probably have it worse, but it dumped all night and pretty much all day. That won't stop us from going to the shopping center tonight. I have been going to be really early because I got my typical travel cold and have been trying to fight it. Today, after a bowl of hot and sour soup last night (pronounced: swan la tongue,) I feel a lot better and am ready to go shop again.

A day and a half more of teaching until our rest day. We will have taught seven days straight by Friday. Then we teach Sunday to Thursday and have a final performance on Friday. After that, its off to Xian and Beijing. Ciao!

Toilets

Peeing in the forest is better.

For those of you world travels you are probably more than familiar with the Turkish toilet - that delightful hole in the ground you must squat over. All of the facilities are that way. I wonder if people ever get tired of peeing on their feet. The trick seems to be to hit the water hole just right, but honestly I don't need that splashing up on me either. I wish I had a picture I could upload, because its a true delight for anyone who hasn't experienced it. Fortunately, the hotel at the hotel is a sit down. Pure luxury. You also need to be sure to carry your own TP because there is none. And just like in Mexico, throw the wad in the trash when you finish. It leads to excessively stinky bathrooms and slippery floors from who knows what. (Or rather you do know what, but chose to not think about it.)

Honestly, I don't care how wasteful we are, I like my stuff to go down the train and come out in a treatment plant. Like anything, you, of course, get used to it and it is hardly the most difficult thing with world travel.

On another note, yesterday we had a calligraphy lesson. My work needs exactly that, more work. A calligraphy student that was nationally known (and also from the school) gave a demonstration and offered to make each of us a banner with calligraphy. Seemed like an awful lot of work. We agreed she needs a nice gift of calligraphy brushes.

Later, we had dinner in a place that had no English - menus or people - and had to navigate that. It was great fun. The waitresses were so helpful and giggling the entire time. On the walk home we saw ballroom dancing in the park. There were some pretty exceptional dancers and it was a treat to watch.

Time to Rest

I went for a run this morning around the lake near the hotel - it was unbearably humid at 6 am - and after one lap, I returned my body a bit sapped by the humidity and allergies. Anyone who thought I might actually lose weight on this trip is sadly mistaken. I eat three very large meals each day - I try to stick to veggies and soup - and the exercise I get is walking up and down the steps everyday to two different classrooms or the walking around town. Most of the food is very oily, which I am not used to, and there isn't a whole lot of fresh vegetables. I miss salad. We did manage to solve to the coffee problem, which was a bit of hilarity. Another woman from Chicago and I were desperately craving coffee (yes, my parents did tell me to bring it) and in Hangzhou we actually located a Starbucks where I had a cup of coffee even though it was 10 o'clock at night - I wanted it bad. It never occurred to me until spotting the second Starbucks in downtown Nanjing (near the WalMart) to buy a press and some coffee there. The other woman was smarter. At 6:30 yesterday morning she called me up to her room with a surprise of French pressed coffee. Its really the little things. I am typically pretty adaptable when I travel, but I have also always travelled to places that have coffee.

Our school days are utterly intense. We start at 8:30, which is actually a reasonable time for me, but are on the bus at 7:40. My morning flies by, but the afternoon group is a little more challenging and kind of drags. In the states, I have a lot of picture cards, realia, books, etc. and it is very easy to ad-lib. I have managed pretty well, but it is certainnly an exhausting day. The morning group is from 8:30 to 11:15. We break for two hours for lunch and the students eat and take a nap during that time. We have scheduled Chinese lessons during our lunch break, but I was craving contact with friends and family and decided to skip it. I am not really sure how much I will learn in forty minutes a day and there really isn't other time to use the computers or do lesson plans. We got here on Friday, started planning for a few hours, attended a celebration in our honor and started school on Saturday. No rest for the weary. We have taught three days already and will teach until Friday, break Saturday and begin again for Sun-Fri. I guarantee no a single teacher in the U.S. would survive a teacher's lifestyle at this school. The teachers work from 7:30a.m. into the night and sleep in a teacher dormitory here six-seven days a week. I think if I had to see my students six days a week, I might not stay in teaching very long. Talk about burn-out. In the evening, we are on our own, but last night I could barely function, so I took a nap, got up to finish my lesson plans, watched a little T.V. and fell asleep at 9:30.

There was this competition on T.V. that I found quite interesting. A line of about 20 kids, standing shoulder to shoulder, loops their arms around each other. Their ankles are all tied together, all the way down the row, so that unless you are on the end you are connected to a person on both sides. On your mark, get set, go. They ran as fast as they can, then collapse on mat after crossing the finish line. They are timed, whichever team is the fastest, wins. The kids were probably 10 to 13 years old. Very interesting. After that I found re-runs of the new Sci-Fi series Battlestar Galactica - which I had become addicted to through another friend.

So those are the mundane details of my settled in life here. I think I will go in search of an accupuncturist tonight, as my allergies are getting bad and someone suggested I try that.

The first days

It is somewhat difficult to put into words everything that I have seen or has happened. I wrote accounts in my paper journal, but this is the first time I have been able to write an account. Our first day of touring was in Shanghai. The shopping frenzy set in quickly and after touring Bund Street, we made our way to the shopping district. Shanghai is a city of contradictions. According to our very affable tour guide, Henry, 99% of people who live within the Ring - a street that runs in a ring around the city - are wealthy. A 2-bedroom condo within the ring of approximately 300 square feet cost about $260,000 (dollars). You can't actually own the land, you lease it for 70 years. A new buyer takes over that lease. I asked if there was much appreciation of housing based on that model and the government apparently controls appreciation. Need to do a little more economic research to figure that one out. Average yearly salary is about 3-4000 dollars. As Henry said, "that's so crazy." Yes. Shanghai is a mesh of old and new. Out of our hotel window you could see down into the older area - dilapidated buildings with roofs made of corrugated metal, terra-cota tiles and plastic tarps. It is a mix of new cars and bicycles, poverty and wealth, youthful fashion and old garbs of gray and blue, and fantastic new buildings with crumbling old ones. After a morning of shopping and sight-seeing, we went to a Jade museum, which also doubled as a wholesaler of jade jewelry. We were given a lesson as to how to recognize quality jade from the cheap stuff. I spotted a bracelet that I liked and was quoted $275 (assume dollars every time), I politely told her that was too much money and then the bargaining began. I managed to convince her $100 dollars and then decided (probably rudely on my part) that I didn't like it that much after all and was slightly skeptical of such a quick jump in price. If worth $175 less, why not another $50 less, or even $75 less. She chased me around the store and kept asking how much for the remainder of our time there and eventually I engaged in converstation with others and attempted to ignore her.

After a whirlwind tour of Shanghai we travelled by bus to Hangzhou. After another family-style meal of way too much food, we made our way to the hotel. The first day in Hangzhou included a boat tour, a tour of a tea plantation and a visit to the silk factory. The tea plantation was set in the green hills outside of Hangzhou. We had a lesson in tasting tea and tea etiquette and then we offered the opportunity to buy some. I was noticing a trend. They were very good about positioning us in places where we had lots of opportunities to buy things. Judging by my fellow travelers in the group, this was more than welcome. I, however, am cheap and have strange associations of guilt in making decisions to buy things, so my purchases were limited.

The silk factory, while interesting, was a little disappointing. We learned and watched how the process of taking the silk cocoon from the worm and turning it into thread. A Chinese woman, who looked to be 80 years old, worked at a bowed sort of loom, soaking silk cocoons and then stretching them over an arced piece of bamboo. She made seven layers, that then were stretched out by four other women into a quilt-sized shape. A hundred of these layers were streched to form a quilt. We were told that it would also include a demonstration of the dying process, but shopping for silk blankets and quilts so ensued and that never happened. Anyone who knows me, knows I am hardly a shopper, so by this time of day, I felt quite worn out. About half the group was energized by the shopping activity at this point and the other half drooled at the thought of stretching out over silk sheets, pillows and blankets piled generously, for a nap. While our expenses are being covered, it was ammusing at how many opportunities we were given to spend, spend, spend. After a dinner, family-style and of copious quantities, we headed back to the hotel.

The next day in Hangzhou we travelled to a pagoda, called the Six Harmonies Pagoda. Energized at the thought of climbing seven flights of stairs - lots of walking and hot, humid temperatures, but my body craves strenuous exercise - I purchased a ticket to go up into the pagoda. Upon reaching the fourth floor, the stairs suddenly stopped and I looped round and round for their continuation. The views were spectacular, but that was the end of the climb. Lush, green hills rose up behind it and the river and city stretched out below it. Needing a little alone time, after descending the stairs, I did a quick solo tour of the bonsai garden and miniature pagodas garden. Attempting to take my own picture in front of one of them I was immdediately surrounded by mosquitoes. Surprisely, they seemed to have little interest in me. I had decided when told about the mosquitoes that Asian mosquitoes wouldn't like me. I suffer from their voracious appetite in California and figured that I had to have a break on some continent. Seems like so far, so good. After the pagoda we visited a Temple. The temple was spectacular, but I want to save that for another post.

We left the temple and drove to Nanjing, where I will spend the next 14 days. We were told our schedule for school late last night and this morning arrived at the school for planning. I will have to save my impressions of the school for another time. But I will say one thing, some things are ever present. I arrived intending to work with first graders, but a teacher needed to move to a four/five combo from first, so I graciously (yeah, that's me - hardly) agreed to jump grades. So, we proceed from here. Keep checking in!

The Day Before

Sometimes you have too many details to attend to and the little, yet important ones, are overlooked. Flight? Check. Passport and visa? Check. Materials? Check. Clothes? Check. ATM card? Hmm. Last night after dinner with friends, I reached into my pocket for my ATM card only to find money, license, and lint. Oh, jeez! Panic sort of sets in and then you realize as the food coma clears and the details of the earlier part of the evening are recalled. Put ATM card in machine. Told machine to give me money. Took money out. Walked away. Yes, truly. I figured the ATM ate the card and hopefully before any one else took notice, but when I checked with the bank today, someone actually withdrew a hundred dollars. I suppose I am lucky that it wasn't more money, as there is probably nothing I can do to recover it. The bank did say I might be able to file a claim, but I am hardly hopeful for that. It feels pretty creepy knowing that someone actually does have my card. And to that person: you suck. Not enough integrity to take the card out, look for the owner and then respectfully turn it in or discard it. Nope. They suck.

So you get traveller's checks, cancel everything, and hope you don't need any more money or can use a credit card. Delightful, really. If the worst thing that happens is being robbed a hundred bucks and losing an ATM card between now and August, then things are pretty good. I always do those mental checks because I am quite notorious when it comes to misplacing and forgetting things. My students are very good at finding scissors or tape buried under 2 feet of papers while I sit there racking my brain "Has anyone seen my scissors?" Aye, maestra. Yo se donde estan. "Yes, of course, those little memories have the ability to imprint about 200 times as much as my aging, feeble brain does." That must be it.

We received our final itinerary this morning and its a little hard to believe that I am actually going. Activities will include a boat ride in Hangzhou, a tea plantation visit, shopping in the silk market, visiting the Great Wall, the Terra-Cota Soldiers and Dr. Sun Yat Sen's mausoleum. So keep checking in because I hope to be able to continue to post pictures and reflections of my trip.

Attitude? Check.

Yolla Bolly/Mendocino National Forest

A reasonable way to spend a national holiday, in my mind, is to enjoy some of our scenic national landscape. A friend and I decided to tackle the Yolla Bolly-Middle Eel Wilderness, near the Mendocino National Forest. After much internet research, we discovered several people had hiked the Ides Cove Loop Trail. We drove to a town called Paskenta (the eastern side of the wilderness area), which was basically the ranger station, a store, and a few ranch-like homes amid the rolling golden California hills and majestic oaks. There was some concern that the trail and wilderness area might be closed due to forest fires. The ranger station gave us the proceed-at-your-own-risk.

Arriving late Friday night, we did the typical roadside camp out and planned to hike out early in the morning. We started at the Ides Cove Loop trailhead. The trailhead began at about 6200' in a dry alpine forest. A quarter of a mile or so from the trailhead is a sign that directs hikers to either Burnt Camp or Square and Long lakes. We were quite foolishly mapless and relying on accounts from other hikers who had posted on the internet. One source claimed that the left path sent them down the mountain and back up. Lesson learned, however, follow the signs. Believing our "guide" we took the right path to Burnt camp, despite intuitively feeling this was the wrong way. We hiked along an alpine ridge that fortunately, despite the baking sun, had some breezes. We descended into the forest, which provided respite from the mid-day sun. After descending about 800 feet and arriving at Burnt Camp, we realized we were most definitely too low. Some exploration and consulting of the internet "guides" led to our decision to go up. The climb was about 800' over a half mile or so and intense. The mid-day sun at our backs and loose slopes ahead made for a strenuous climb. At the top, we encountered the first sign of other humans, a fire-fighter, who directed us to our destination at Long Lake. Our route looped us under Square Lake and up onto the ridge one over from Long Lake. The fire-fighter said the next ridge over from Long Lake was where the major fire burns and that it was unlikely it would reach us. Reassured of our route and that we wouldn't have to flee from a fire in the middle of the night, we proceeded. The trail crossed a meadow, lush and green with alpine springs, from the continuously melting snow pack. Above it rose 8000' Mt. Linn, still with some snow on her otherwise brown and barren sides. Over the next ride, snow-fed springs fed into our destination of Long Lake. We climbed the short distance to her banks. Then, we scouted potential camp areas and settled in for a well-earned lunch. After deciding where to set up camp, it was necessary to evaluate the lake's fishing potential. Initially, it looked quite disappointing, but the afternoon sun soon revealed a half dozen or so large brown trout. Several quick casts did not go unrewarded. A nice sized trout took the bait and was released back. We spent the rest of the light hours exploring our surroundings, but planned to do more fishing in the evening.

The next morning after landing an enormous trout, and also returning it to the icy Long Lake waters, we headed to the alpine meadow with the intent to summit Mt. Linn. Climbing up snow pack and skeet covered mountains, we ascended about 1800' and sumitted Mt. Linn. In the distance we could see the fires, a ridge over from Long Lake. Mt. Shasta, Mt. Lassen and what we believed to be the Trinity Alps could also be seen off in the distance. We became a little concerned about the forest fire slowly approaching and decided to check in with another group we saw over at Square Lake. There was no word from the CDF to the neighboring lake folk and so our next venture was to head over the ridge and check the fire for ourselves. We climbed past alpine meadows, through fir forests, over a snow field and across a series of shadeless ridges until we saw the path of the 100-acre fire. Again assured that we were out of harm's way, we proceeded back to the camp for some swimming and more fishing.

The next day we headed out via the Ides Cove Loop trail, past Square Lake this time and its neighboring emerald alpine meadow. All too quickly we were back to the car. Instead of returning through Paskenta and back to I5, we decided to try crossing Mendocino Pass and go through Covelo to Hwy 101. The landscape never ceased to be spectacular. In Willits we stopped for dinner at a Mexican restaurant, at the far end of the old town. For the second time, I was impressed by my combo choice of pollo asado taco and enchilada. It was fresh, delicious and authentic - muy casera - and a perfect end to a weekend in the wilderness.