We lost my (Judy’s) beloved nephew Avi Weisblatt last Thursday. No words can express what a loss this is to the world and to the people who knew him. He was an amazing, beautiful, religious, musical, curious, brilliant, very spiritual person, who always seemed to see the good in everything and acknowledge it. He had been suffering from spinal cancer for the last 3 years. He leaves behind a beautiful wife and two beautiful daughters, his twin brother and 3 sisters, two loving parents, in-laws, aunts, uncles, grandparents and cousins, in addition to his many friends and his community in Psagot and Beit Shemesh. Baruch Dayan Emet. Rest in peace, sweet Avi, and be free from illness and pain. May everyone strive to make the world a better place in your memory.
Having been trying to write but have had no reliable internet for the past few days. So I can’t even see what my other family members are writing…but I’ll try to keep this short and descriptive, then add the pics later when I upload everything.
We had a very fun short visit to Elko. We all tried on cowboy boots and I even found a pair that fit! Leather soles for dancing, super comfortable for walking around. I broke them in attending an art fair in Elko with Dalia.
Art in the parkSophie’s first impression of slot machines, at a hotel/casino where we stopped to get Starbucks. Quite overwhelming!
Then we made our way to Reno, where we visited Claire, a very sweet relative of Noel’s, and walked on the river walk in the center of town. What a great, groovy place!
Art is everywhere in Reno
Later in the afternoon we made it to Portola, CA, to visit Claire’s daughter Laura and her husband Chris. They are amazing and wonderful. I had only met Laura and Claire once before, at Noel’s cousin Clea’s bat mitzvah a long time ago, so it was a joy getting to know them better, make food and music with them and appreciate their beautiful home in the woods.
Laura and Chris, Noel’s amazing cousins. It was so hard to leave them–they really felt like home.
The next day we drove through Yosemite, stopping at some great lookouts, including one of Half Dome.
We made it to our cute little lodge “Yosemite Bug” and got out early the following day to hike the Vernal Falls and part of the Yosemite Falls. Stunning area, absolutely spectacular!
View of Vernal Falls from the trailNot the easiest hike, but we made it!View of Yosemite Falls after hiking the “lower” trailGirls making cairnsView of Yosemite falls
Now we are in San Francisco staying with my old and dear friend Diana and her daughter Lila for a few days. We plan to show the girls the city and see other relatives and friends while here. Noel and Dalia will be celebrating their birthdays (62 & 16, respectively) on Friday, and we plan to attend a rap concert that evening (Dalia’s choice).
Tiny cars are everywhereArt is everywhere in San Francisco, too!Noel and Dalia playing frisbee in Delores ParkSophie meeting kindred spirits in Delores Park
On a sadder note, I just learned yesterday that my dear nephew Avi’s cancer has spread. Please keep him in your thoughts and prayers. His Hebrew name is Avraham Daniel ben Devora Tova. Thanks.
After Elko we had a wonderful visit with cousins Laura and Chris in Portola CA followed by two amazing days in Yosemite. We’ll write about those experiences and add lots of pix in the next few days, because we now have 4 days to rest and explore the SF bay area while staying with our dear friend Diana. Some of you may remember Diana as the tall beauty in the red dress who sang at our wedding nearly 19 years ago. We are thrilled to have this time to stay in one place for several days, slow down just a bit, and enjoy the cool climate and all the fun and wonderful things to see and do here. We have some plans already and are scheduling meet-ups with cousins and friends.
Hallelujah! 4000 miles and almost three weeks from the start, we are roughly at the midpoint of our travels. The car has performed perfectly and we are all getting along and all tremendously giddy with enjoyment and gratitude for the opportunity.
View from our window in SF Mission district
Dalia has embraced map-reading and helping with navigation – very necessary as the parks and remote areas often have no cell phone or wifi services. She is also very engaged with seeking out places to visit and things to do, while remaining flexible when plans need to adjust to reality.
We arrived in Elko and found our hotel, right across the street from a Boot Barn. We tried on some fancy (and expensive) authentic cowboy boots and my mom bought some ankle boots for dancing. It was so fun, and the people there taught us how to pronounce Nevada like a true local. (Neh-vaaaah-duh, NOT neh-voh-dah). I’m excited for tomorrow because we might get to visit an art fair in the park before we leave for Portolla, California. We might also go to a ghost town, Virginia City, near Reno. Looking forward to more adventures in new places!
Today we drove from Yellowstone to Elko, Nevada. We drove through Idaho and found a Bosnian café to eat lunch, where my parents sang Bosnian and Macedonian songs and the people working there joined in! They loved it and were so happy and grateful to share some of their culture. It was an amazing, unexpected experience. I can always count on my family to bring their music wherever we go.
This park is stunning! Stunning, I tell you! Highlights for me were amazing views of rivers and lakes, mountains, waterfalls, steaming and spurting pools and geysers all over the place, and the great variety of flora and fauna. I love the park’s policy of forbidding visitors to pick the wildflowers. I also appreciated the sustainable, earth-friendly policies of the parks, lodges, and local businesses. We even had a divided garbage receptacle in our lodge room, separating recyclables from compostables from landfill things.
Being this close to nature reminds us how fragile the ecology is. Signs posted near some of the sulphurous mud volcanoes told how they used to spurt out high streams like Old Faithful, but because of recent earthquakes, they only burble and boil. When we were in the Badlands of South Dakota, we were told that they didn’t exist 500,000 years ago and probably won’t exist in another 500,000–they are eroded at the rate of about one inch every year. In Yellowstone, we saw majestic forests of different sorts of pine trees, then whole fields that had been burnt, as well as combinations thereof, where new growth was regenerating among old and burnt trees.
We entered Yellowstone from Montana – the northeast entry. The mountains were gorgeous with snow beside the road at Beartooth pass at just under 11,000 feet. We were delayed by a herd of bison lazily crossing – got to see them up close. We stayed two nights in a beautiful lodge in Canyon Villlage at about 8,000 feet. Everyone is healthy and very impressed by the geology, wildlife, and wildness here. No cell or wifi service in much of the park, roads are narrow without guardrails, max speed limit 45.
Yestrday we explored the southern loop (rivers, lakes, geyser fields, mud pots, paint pots, wildflowers, and views of the Tetons and the Apsarora mountains. In Yellowstone we’ve seen bison, deer, elk chipmunks, some interesting birds, but no bears so far. Previously we saw prairie dogs, bighorn sheep, and longhorn cattle. The weather here has cooperated with just a few showers and beautiful cool temps. Saw Old Faithful erupt at 7:08 pm as predicted, in the rain along with a small crowd of 200 or so, then went on to view sunset just before 9pm at Norris geyser field. Great day!!!
This morning we depart West via Idaho a stopover in Elko. NV, on the way to Portola, CA. Today’s drive is 450 miles or well over 8 hours.
If we don’t post Yellowstone pix right away we beg your understanding – we’re focused on great days packed with sightseeing plus no wifi and limited cell phone service.
