Cruising from China to Alaska

On May 26th, my parents flew off to Beijing, China for three days before beginning a 23 day long cruise that stopped by many places in Japan, Korea, Russia, and Alaska before stopping in Vancouver and then flying home. I like to think that they boarded the plane throwing many a fearful glance back over their shoulder, wondering if their three children (all of us adults) would keep the house standing. They probably ran onto that plane thinking something along the lines of, "Yes! No bills! No work! No yelling at kids to clean up their damn messes! A month of new cultures and cuisine and people!" In reality it was probably a mix of those two plus some missing us.

Though really, if you were standing on the Great Wall of China, would you waste time wishing your lazy kids were there?! (Spoiler: they totally did.)

This is the entrance to the Summer Palace outside Beijing, China. The emperor and empress would come here in the summer to escape the heat. I wish I had a summer house like this.

Mom and Dad on the Qingtao pier in China.

How awesome is this decorative flower statue . . . thing? They paid the equivalent of $3 to enter Laodong Park and walk around. Probably only the red flowers are real and the yellow and pink are silk. This is in Dalian, China.

Beautiful

(On my parents 26-day cruise vacation from Beijing, China to Alaska to celebrate their 30th anniversary!)

This is a view of a beautifully restored ceiling of the Summer Palace, where the Emperor and Empress would retreat to stay cool in the summer as it was by a lake. It is just outside of Beijing, China.

This is the throne room area of the Summer Palace, where the Emperor and Empress would handle business. It was also beautifully restored, in time for the crowds from the Olympics.

This is the Temple of Heaven where the emperor came to pray once a year.

This is the beginning of a theme park-like area of Muroran, Japan. Cats used to be believed to be evil and the theme park is full of scarily funny cats. As everything was in Japanese my parents had a hard time describing the reason cats were so scary to us.

Wonderfully Odd

(On my parents 26-day cruise from Beijing, China to Alaska to celebrate their 30th wedding anniversary.)

Dad bought some fried gnocchi-like balls from a vendor on the pedestrian way in Dalian, China. There were filled with some kind of meat and apparently tasted good!

Walking up to the entrance of the Beomosa Temple in Busan, Korea. The lanterns carry prayers to the temple and are for the spring celebration coming up in the next few weeks. I love how colorful everything is there!

One of the ferocious looking guards to protect the Beomosa Temple in Busan, Korea. He is made of paper-mache! Isn't he wonderful?

Chillin' in Alaska and Vladistovok

(On my parents 26-day cruise vacation from Beijing, China to Alaska, to celebrate their 30th wedding anniversary!)

It poured rain in Vladistovok, Russia, the entire time my parents were there. But the architecture looks amazing! That is the train station, and I saw a picture of a department store that looks like our parliament.

Dad kayaking in Alaska, brr!

Mom and Dad enjoying the view in Alaska, looking happy (and cold.)

Happy

. . . because Mom and Dad called us from Alaska! For two and a half weeks all we had for communication was a few emails so it was exciting to hear their voices again. They are having a wonderful time on their 26 day trip from Beijing to Alaska.

We're doing well here too, bar a few arguments and if you ignore the mess. ^_- And the mess even isn't that bad--it's not any worse than it ever gets with Mom and Dad here, and we all recognize that we will spend a while cleaning before they arrive this Saturday night. It's been nice being in charge but I miss my padres.

Freedom . . .

. . . is having my mom's credit card while she and dad are on their 23 day long cruise from China to Alaska. Unfortunately I'm too terrified of my mom to use it for anything besides groceries. The downside to having a credit card since my parents are on the other side of the world is that all of a sudden I'm veeeery aware of exactly how fast the grass grows and thus needs to be mowed, how annoying it is to have to shepherd two eighteen-year-old, and how much mess three people can make in the house. The upside is I'm in chaaaaarge! Wheee!

Helping Mom Pack

. . . is exhausting work. His arm is flung out in protest. (On mom's new silk skirt.)

Does that match? Katie says yes, Oz says sleeeepy.

Oz wishes my mom and dad an awesome trip, reminds them to bring him some fish treats, and is now going to take a nap on this convenient pile of folded clothes.

Love you!

Resolved

Just turned down a cruise to Europe in favor of getting two AS degrees and being able to afford a couch for our future apartment. Currently in shock. Wondering if I made the right choice. Minutes after hanging up the phone with my aunt to tell her no, thank you, I had a screechy conversation with my mom and Quentin and Troy in which I questioned every part of that decision. Still feeling screechy and like I might pull out my hair.

New Katie Slogan:

I'd rather be in Rome.

Conflicted

Imagine coming home and discovering that you have been invited on a cruise to Europe. The cruise itself is paid for, you just have to pay half of the airfare, and you'd be going with people that you know and love. Sounds too good to pass up, right?

Gah, I don't know.

My aunt and her family have an extra bed in their cabin that I could take, which is so awesome. I've cruised with them a bunch before and always have a great time. And it's EUROPE! We'd be stopping in Gibraltar, Alicante, Barcelona, Marseille, Florence, and Rome, and spending four days in Rome after the cruise before flying home. I am dying to go.

BUT. (Always a but. Stupid buts.) I'm saving up to move out with Nick. We already feel poor, and I've stopped spending my money, and I'm plotting ways to make more money over the summer. This trip I would be paying about 450 for airfare, a hundred or two for souvenirs, and god knows how much for trip excursions. I figure I'm looking at about a thousand dollars, which is about three months rent. (EEK!) (Nick seconds this EEK, but in a more manly way.)

Everything else is totally working out--my work is so understanding (I think my supervisor would go instead of me if she could ^_^), my yoga instructor says I can just do some extra work on my own to make up for the missed classes, and my online classes I could do on the ship.

I did wake up this morning and suddenly remember that I have to take a microbiology final exam for my Incomplete in microbiology from last semester (when I was sick with IBS/nervous stomach/anxiety and fell behind) and that I would be missing that test. So I wouldn't get my AS degrees that I was planning on getting come May. (Come to think of it, I think I'd miss the whole stage walking/accepting my degrees altogether if I go. Jeez.)

I am conflicted. I want to go so, so bad. It's just really bad timing. I don't know what I'm going to do, and I have to decide by tonight.