Tuesday, October 17, 2006




Last weekend, Matt and I went on a last minute trip up to New Hampshire to see the fall foliage. It was sort of late in the season, but there were still lots of trees with bright leaves on them. It was gorgeous! It was a 2 and a half hour drive up to North Conway, but we didn't mind cause we were in Matt's new car. (I should say that I didn't mind...Matt was the one that had to do all the driving. We both love the car though...I highly recommend the Mazda Six!)

We stayed at a Bed and Breakfast that was really expensive cause it was a last minute booking. On Friday night I called a few places and everything was booked, and then the Whitney Inn said they had one room left so I took it...I should have waited cause when we got up there we saw tons of vacancies at little roadside motels. Our place was OK though, and it is always fun eating breakfast at a B and B.

It was lots of fun to drive around the valley, especially on Bear Notch Road and the Kancamagus Highway. We stopped and did little hikes along the way, and hiked Flume Gorge. It was really pretty hiking through the leaves. The light filters through them and the forest is bathed in a warm golden glow. Also, it is fun to hike when you can hear the leaves crunching underneath your shoes. Another good thing about Fall in New England is the weather...it changes a lot, and I always seem to be wearing the wrong thing for the tempurature, but on a good day the air is cold and crisp and it is perfectly clear and sunny. It was perfect hiking weather.

The food in the area was very good...in the afternoon we stopped at a place that made fresh apple cider donuts. Mmm...they were good but really oily. Matt liked it. There were roadstands everywhere selling pumpkins, squash and apples.

The only drawback was that things were expensive! The apples from the roadside stand cost more than apples at the grocery store near my house. So much for New Hampshire being cheap!

The leaves were nice and I am glad we went, but if I had to choose between a weekend at a B and B in Napa and a weekend at a B and B in New Hampshire, I would pick Napa. California still rules!

Saturday, October 14, 2006

A Few Updates

I haven't blogged for a long time....

Matt has got a really good job a couple of weeks ago. Two companies were actually fighting over him! It was amazing! It was a really hard choice for him (a start up versus an established company) but he ended up choosing Broadcom. They make chips that are used in various things, including the mp3 players that he used to make for RCA. It is a good job, but unfortunately it is in Andover so he had to buy a car. This week he bougth the cutest thing, a Mazda Six! It is silver and adorable. The other thing about his jobis that he will be spending 25 % of his time in Japan and Korea since one of his main accounts will be Toshiba. He has his first trip soon...I am just hoping that he is not gone for Halloween or for when his sister and her boyfriend are here to visit in two weeks.

I am in school and I like it but I am very busy. I got a job on a research project...basically I go around to poor elderly Chinese people in their home and take their weight and measurements and record everything they ate for the past 24 hours. This is going to be hard because I have to do all of this in Mandarin. We will see if it works out in the end...I haven't had my first home visit yet but I will let you know next week how it goes.

Other than that, Matt and I are off to North Conway, New Hampshire this weekend to see the Fall Foliage! I am very excited!

Atlanta



This is a funny picture of Matt and Ana...they look like little kids!



Last weekend Matt and I flew down to Atlanta to visit his sister Ana and her boyfriend Dave. Matt's older brother Sam was also visiting, so it was like a family reunion! We had a good time and we like Atlanta alot, especially the weather. It is a lot warmer there than it is here! It actually reminded me of California alot because it seemed permanently sunny and you have to drive everywhere and there is traffic.


The first night we went out to a good southern dinner and then went to hear some blues music. It was amazing...the musicians were really talented and they were just jamming, there didn't seem to be any preset plan of what they were going to do. People from the audience would get up and sing or play the washboard. It was a lot of fun. Poor Dave had to drive everyone around...it reminds me what it is like to be in a car city again!


The next day we went to brunch and lazed around all day and the day after that Ana took us to a state park. It was a beautiful hike, and Matt and Ana went swimming in the river. I admit, I thought it was too cold and didn't go in! I know, I am wimp...I guess I take after my Mom, she never used to swim when I was little. Of course, now she swims all the time, no problem. Maybe when I am older I will be able to withstand the cold better! I definitely not very similar to the Massey family...they seem to jump in the water anytime, anywhere.