What I Did for My Summer Vacation

Apparently, I missed the four days of fall that Laramie had, and I came back just in time for the beginning of winter.

Lucky me.

So. My summer vacation.

The thing(s) I packed last-minute that were genius

My long skirt and my sweater.

Seriously. Brilliant me.

What I packed that was completely unnecessary

My swimsuit. I kid you not. I'm kind of sad about that, looking back.

Best place

Prince Edward Island. If I ever get married, that's where I want to honeymoon. And if I never get married, I'm going back anyway.

Worst place

New Brunswick. There are tree-dense places, and then there's New Brunswick. It was like driving through a country of giant broccoli. Desolate, dense, unpopulated broccoli.

Best food

Cheese steaks from the Philly 'burbs. I'm probably not supposed to admit that; I'm probably supposed to say that Pat's was the best, and as far as true Philly experiences go, it was great, but the sandwiches from Westgate rocked. Rocked!

Also, blueberry pancakes in Maine, whether they were at a pancake feed at the public landing in Camden or at Jordan's in Bar Harbor. Maine has dang good blueberries, and the people there make dang good pancakes with them.

Near-disappointment

After the craziness I went through to renew my passport, the guy at the U.S./Canadian border didn't stamp it. And he laughed when I sent it back to him and asked him to stamp it. Apparently I'm odd. Odd with a stamped passport.

Near-disappointment No. 2

Being told I was going to have to stay in Atlanta - at my own "discounted" expense - because Surly AirTran Ticket Counter Chick said they wouldn't hold the Atlanta-Denver flight for the 60 or so passengers who were delayed arriving in Atlanta because of its freakish weather. I cried. I pleaded. I bargained. I went through the crazy-long line twice. I gave up, went through security and told my sob story to a manager ... who promptly said: "No problem. They're holding the flight anyway" and changed my ticket then and there. Surly AirTran Ticket Counter Chick in Charlotte gets a customer service FAIL. Everyone else associated with AirTran gets a WIN.

Awesome moments

1. Crossing the Confederation Bridge, arriving on PEI and realizing that we were there!

2. The "Anne" wigs at the Anne of Green Gables Store in Charlottetown. Those pictures will be framed and displayed with red-headed pride. And the moment when Amber, in trying to get a local's recommendation for where to go, mentioned that she'd heard that the Cavendish beaches were "the bomb," and the store clerk had no idea what she was talking about.

2a. THE OCEAN!! I hadn't seen the ocean since I was 17, and I greeted it like a long-unseen friend. We communed. It was priceless.

3. Greenwich. The marsh beyond the forest was simultaneously the most beautiful and most terrible place I've ever seen. I can't describe it. I'll never be able to. It's a personal thing - each of us felt it, and none of us could explain it. Even though there were three of us, we each felt utterly alone, utterly insignificant, utterly in awe. And speaking it - acknowledging it - didn't lessen that feeling. Very possibly a spritual place in the sense that it made you examine yourself, your place in the world, and it made you realize how very, very small and fleeting each of us is. Lucy Maud Montgomery once wrote that God created Prince Edward Island for His own enjoyment, and we concluded that she must have been looking out over this place when she wrote that. It's a place that only God could thoroughly enjoy without the vast, overwhelming feeling of insignificance that comes with being a human in the midst of such a place.

4. The beach at Greenwich. After meandering through the marshy wilderness, we crested the sand dunes ... to be greeted by a deserted beach with steely, pounding surf, a ruffling breeze, the softest sand in the world, and a beautiful setting sun. And we had it to ourselves. You can't plan something like that, and saying that you "enjoyed" it is an insulting understatement. But adequate words fail me right now, so ... we enjoyed it. To the nth degree. That will always be our sunset on our beach.

5. Taxis! Go ahead. Laugh. But I hadn't been in a taxi since I was in Jerusalem when I was 19. And we rode taxi after taxi in D.C. I loved it. I felt very chic.

6. Meeting Doug Hecox. Rawlins native Doug lives and works in DC but writes a weekly column for our paper, which I get to proofread and which is usually a highlight of my week. Doug met Amber and me for lunch, and it was nice to finally put a face and a personality to a byline and a Facebook page.

7. The 'Rocky Steps' with Holly. I can't remember the last time I watched a 'Rocky' movie (or which one it was), but the scene at the art museum steps in Philly is a classic, even if you've never seen the movie. So we went. And it was a fantastic view of the city.

8. Pat's in South Philly. And watching Geno's across the way.

9. Me, on a VIP list. It rocked. Check that one off my bucket list.

10. I got to hold hands with a fella in the rain, and as silly as that sounds, it was great.

11. Getting to meet a great friend's great fella.

Upon arriving back in Dever

I hugged my car. I'm not joking. I hugged it for being there, for starting and for not getting broken into while I was gone.

Upon arriving in Wyoming

Rain. Then fog. Then snow. And more fog. I almost turned around to fly back to the South. This is not the way I'd planned to end summer, but I definitely knew I was back in Wyoming.

Upon arriving in Laramie

I hugged my bed and thanked it for not being an air mattress. I also hugged my pillows. And I didn't regret stepping on the scale as much as I'd feared I would. And I almost hugged my toothbrush. Those travel things are a sorry excuse. I missed Laramie's water, too, oddly enough. Strange thing to miss, I think.

What I won't miss

The bugs. I was eaten alive during this whole trip, up and down the East Coast. Mosquitoes. Ants. You name it, it bit me, and my body very clearly doesn't like these East Coast critters, because I didn't just get little red bites - I got angry, huge, red welts on my arms and legs (and face - my face!).

And living out of a suitcase. One suitcase for 17 days, as proud as I am of that accomplishment, gets old. Very old. But I did it.

What I will (and already do) miss

My brother and his wife. My friends. Not working. Traveling. Meeting new people. Not having to drive. I spent 17 days not touching a steering wheel. It was fantastic.

I feel bad for admitting it

But for the first time ever, I was glad the economy's in the tank, because a) I got all my flights, car rental, train tickets, hotel, and gas for this trip for right around $1,000 and b) because as popular as PEI is, with fewer people traveling, it felt like a much more personal trip, since we weren't tripping over hundreds of other "Anne" pilgrims. Fewer tourists everywhere.

I also chalk that up to my new discovery: That September the awesomest time of year to travel, hands down. May is a close second, but you run the risk that some schools got out early and people are flocking to the good spots with you. September is cooler than summer, and it's the end of the traditional tourist season, so a lot of things may be discounted from their higher summer prices. September is the school year 'round the country, so there are very few cranky, screaming kids; very few haggard, harassed parents; very few obnoxious, view-stealing people shoving you out of the way so their kids can have an "educational experience." September, you rock.