Whirlwind 5 weeks in NY

My weeks have been spent in Ithaca.  The quiet isolation of central New York (thank you, Colleen) is a welcome retreat as I adjust to life in my home country and state.  (Incidentally, the adjustment coming home is nearly as difficult as it was moving to Bulgaria in the first place.  Things are so fast, so big, so expensive.)  There is much to do here, yet, we haven't really had the time to take advantage of the wineries, the lakes, the gorges, the hiking.  Rebuilding my life from the ground up is all-consuming.  My days have been spent interviewing, apartment shopping, car shopping, researching, packing, moving, and trying to keep in touch with everyone.  In between all of that, we have spent every weekend driving back and forth to the city and its surrounding area to visit family and deal with my impending relocation.  There has been some house-elfing along the way, as well as school stuff.  Summer school at Cornell is rough on the students and their cheerleaders!  

Of course there has also been some eating...unfortunately for you, my gastronomic pleasure has not been documented in photographs.  I can tell you that there have been steaks, burgers, Chinese, pizza, Tex-Mex, ice cream from the Cornell Dairy Barn, Blueberry Mountain, and other local homemade places, Rox-made pecan pie, banana cream pie, chocolate chip cookies, and many other delicious treats.  

For my foodie friends, I did manage to remember to take pictures at our family shin-dig...Italian food galore!  

Family at the shin-dig:

And some 4th of July fun in the city:

As summer classes are winding down, my job is secured, my lease signed...we're starting to gear up for fun.  (I'm still hoping to get a car, get moved in, and take care of paperwork before this weekend; then the fun can begin.)  Thanks to Geoffrey and Cora, we have a relaxing week coming up as a reward for all of our hard work, followed by lots of adventure.  It may be the end of the summer, but it's the beginning of a whole new world...hang in there loyal readers...it will likely be the end of August before you see another update, but I promise, the wait will be worthwhile!

And don't forget...a certain blog author has a birthday coming up on August 29....