Manhattan, Vermont, family, one less tooth

Greetings from Fairfield, Connecticut!

I hope all has been well back home over the holidays. Most of you I did not have the chance to speak with just before I left. The little things just sort of piled up at the last minute, and I felt quite busy there for a while.

Many of you might also be asking why I am writing from Fairfield, CT and not the Gambia. I actually flew with my girlfriend, Megan, to see her folks for the holidays. We had a red eye flight (11:59pm 24Dec07) from Seattle to JFK in NY city where we were picked up by her dad and taken to their home in Fairfield, about an hour from the airport. Unfortunately, the seats on most airplanes aren't designed for tall people, so I wasn't able to sleep a wink, but after breakfast and a quick chat, Megan and I slept soundly for most of the day (10-4 or so).

Christmas day was fairly low key. We did end up going over to see some of Megan's family friends during the evening; folks she really only has the chance to see once a year at best. A couple of days later on the 27th, I had a wisdom tooth pulled (fun!). I knew that the tooth had a gigantic cavity and that it needed to be removed before I went to Gambia, but my procrastination went a little too far this time around. After being unsuccessful at finding an appointment in Olympia before the 24th, I was able to get one with an oral surgeon in Fairfield. Fortunately, the resulting pain has been minimal, and the only downside is that the hole in my jaw has been very difficult to clean out, but nothing seems to be hurting that bad. The biggest risk that I run is getting a local infection where the tooth was previously, so I must be adamant at keeping the area clean.

The next day, Megan and I took the local train into Manhattan (downtown NY city). Wall to wall people, car horns every 3 seconds, sirens, you name it. There might as well not even be crosswalk signs! Jaywalking at it's finest is alive in Manhattan! A slow walk in Central Park provided a bit of respite, but wow! After experiencing Manhattan, I think I could live in Seattle, which is contrary to my previous beliefs. I still wouldn't want to live there necessarily, especially after living in the sticks for the past year. Although theoretically, it would make a lot of sense for me to live Seattle, considering that's where all of my musical teachers live. One thing that has caught me by surprise is the cost of public transit out here. Why the options might be more plentiful, it is a lot more expensive, and local bus transit is practically nonexistent, at least in Fairfield, a town of 60k.

On the 29th, the extended family came from North Carolina and Long Island. We had wonderful food, and nice visits. Most of the family was quite interested in my upcoming travels to Gambia, and had many questions about the kora. The following day, we went to Providence, RI to see Megan's friend Ansley and had some wonderful Brazilian cuisine for dinner. I also had the chance to see her undergrad alma matter- Providence College. Yesterday, Megan and I drove up to Bennington, Vermont and spent the evening after driving up U.S. highway 7 (a very scenic byway) through the graceful, rolling deciduous forests of western Connecticut and Massachusetts. Most of Massachusetts and Vermont are under a thick blanket of snow, and we had the pleasure of driving through a snowstorm on the way back to Fairfield today. We're glad we left Bennington before the worst hit...otherwise we might've been stuck. Although, the locals seem to deal with the snow quite well. Most of the sidewalks had been blown clean, and the roads were bare pavement. Bennington is a small, charming little town surrounded by the Green Mountains (foothills in comparison to the Olympics or Cascades). There is something attractive to me about places in the hills where it snows a lot during winter. The only downside to Bennington is that it is home to an Energizer Battery making factory, which has supposedly left a fairly substantial residue of the chemicals TCE and PCE on some of the surrounding residences (we read this in today's morning newspaper). It is close to the Appalachian Trail though, which runs from Georgia all the way up through Maine...would be incredible to hike this during the fall, as most of the trees out here are deciduous. The battery factory threw both of us off. You'd think something like this would be located in a more industrialized area, rather than in the middle of a small, quaint town in the hills of southwestern Vermont. Hmmm....

The other thing worth mentioning is the houses- in Vermont, Connecticut, Mass, are all old! Most of the houses built in Megan's neighborhood were built in the 20's. That's standard! A fair amount of country homes we have driven by were built in the 18, even 1700's! A lot of covered bridges out here too. Seems like just about every town has one. I can't quite figure that one out.

Megan heads back to Olympia in a couple of days, and I will be staying with her folks until the 7th, which is when I head to Gambia. I am all packed and ready to go. The only major event from here is that I have a follow up visit with the oral surgeon on the 4th to have my stitches removed. At any rate, I am having a wonderful time here on the other coast, and I hope that you all have had a wonderful holiday, and I will talk with you again soon.

Until next time...

Warmest Regards,
Sean