I'm sitting on a bus in Sogndal, getting ready to depart for Oslo. This is so surreal; I can't really believe that this summer is already drawing to a close. Jan was gracious enough to offer to drive me down to Sogndal, which meant I didn't have to leave quite so early in the afternoon and was also spared that twisty, nauseating, death-defying bus ride from Skjolden to Sogndal. Cody came along for the ride too, so I had some good company for the first leg of my travels. Now I've officially begun the 6,000+ mile, 33 hour journey to Oregon.

I bought a plane ticket earlier today from Oregon to Boston (where I'll catch a bus up to Maine) for a real good price; I'll be flying out of PDX a week from today. It was a little hard to officially give up on my original travel plans, but I know it was the right thing to do. It was real hard saying goodbye to everyone today - this summer has been full of goodbyes, but today's were particularly hard. It was like saying good bye to family members, which they really have become: Cody, Lars, Joshua, Adam, Renae, Lindsey, Cayley, Kelsey, Jenny, Darrell, Annette, and Dylan... they all mean a lot to me. And I can't even begin to mention the dozens of others I've gotten to know over the summer and have already had to say goodbye to: Jan, Karlis, Steve, Adam, Gill, Beth, Lidia, Tima, Vladik, Dasha, Ivan, Olav... it's too overwhelming right now to even think about. I'll be glad when I can finally bid farewell to goodbyes. And, the bus has started, which is my cue to stop writing and try and find my pain meds asap