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Ohio

So for the last month I have been rotating in Toledo, Ohio doing an NICU rotation. This was my first time spending any time in the midwest which, as you can imagine, is quite different than California or New York. Toledo is one of the cities in the midwest that was once great and grand but fell post-industrial revolution. It is slowly recovering, but there are remnants of some pretty amazing architecture all around – you just have to avoid the sketchy neighborhoods. I took the fancy camera out during a run in one of the Wilderness Metroparks and on a walk around my neighborhood. Just wanted to share a snapshot of the beauty of Ohio.

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Kenya: Giraffes, Elephants, and a Recap

Hey There!

So I returned from Kenya about a month ago and since then it has been a “hit the ground running” situation. Life went back to its typical warp speed and I have been traveling around like crazy. I finally got back around to sorting through my pictures from Africa and wanted to post some of the ones I didn’t get a chance to post. Also, on my last day in Africa I spent the day in Nairobi visiting the Elephant orphanage and the Giraffe center where I got to touch and kiss the most adorable baby elephants and giraffes. It was so much fun!!! I took only like a thousand pictures of elephants and giraffes, so I will try not to bore you with all of them, but I can’t help but include many!

Kenya was such a great trip for me. It was incredibly hard at first, but as I would have expected, as soon as I was on the Pediatric ward I was completely in my element. It was challenging as my last day in the hospital was quite somber as many of our sick patients passed away, causing me to leave Tenwek with a heavy heart. But God always has bigger things in mind. The trip was a great chance to see options for what I can do and to allow me to take on responsibility and try on what it feels like to be the “in-charge” physician. Plus, I have lots of great stories to use in my interviews now about cool things I am doing in this world. I will continue to pray for Tenwek and the people still there. I am not sure what God has in store, but I wouldn’t be surprised if I find myself back there one day.

 

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London and Paris

Earlier this summer, Tyler and I traveled with his whole family to London and Paris. It was an amazing week! It was so nice to spend so much time with his family and doing so while exploring new countries is by far my favorite. I even got to celebrate my 25th birthday in Paris – Tyler may never top that! Be warned, this post has tons of photos!

Here are some snapshots from London. Top things we did: Buckingham Palace, The London Eye, St. Paul’s Cathedral, Westminster Abbey, Big Ben, and saw Wicked! There is so much of London we didn’t even touch, but I will save that for next time. Seeing the inside of the Palace was really neat since it is only open for a very limited time every year.

Next up, Paris. I fell in love from the moment we got off the train. Every last inch of this city is beautiful. Every street felt like it was from a movie; I could have wandered around random streets for days. To me, Paris was so much bigger and more beautiful than anywhere I have been. We went to the Louvre, saw the Arc de Triumph, the Eiffle Tower (of course, and went up at night), saw Notre Dame, and ate macaroons from Laduree. I cannot wait to come back and see so much more!

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Summer Sporting Events

One of our close friends, Kelsie is from Trinidad. We met her in Grenada and she is doing clinical rotations here in Brooklyn as well. We have made it our mission to make sure she experiences some of the best parts of American culture. And (especially if you ask Tyler) that equals sports!!!

We went to a Brooklyn Cyclones (Mets A squad) game earlier this month at Coney Island.

And last night we went to a preseason NY Giants game. Kelsie’s dad is a big NFL fan but she hates the cold, so preseason was the way to go for her. Tyler and I momentarily dropped our Pittsburgh allegiances to cheer the Giants on.

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Fall Foliage Road Trip

Adventures are our favorite!

Backdating this post a few months (currently writing from the middle of the Polar Vortex!), we had such a fun trip and an amazing introduction to a season non-existent in both Grenada and California that I just had to share.

We took a road trip through the Hudson River Valley just north of the city. We started the day with craft coffee and delicious breakfast and then spent a few hours driving through trees painted the most beautiful colors. It was sunny, bright blue skies, and the perfect crisp, chill fall air that I personally love the most. After some adventures, hiking, leave stomping, and my need to collect a leave in every color to take home – we stopped for beer and cheese plates as all date day afternoons should comprise of.

100,000 Miles!

Tyler and the Escape100,000

Later that day, after our afternoon pitstop – we hit a pretty big milestone! We hit the 100,000 mile mark on the ol’ Escape! It was such a fun moment (even more so for Tyler) and was documented with way more pictures than ever need to be taken of one car. But, we are excited to think of all the many more adventures this car will likely take us on.

Just a fun filled day with my favorite guy! Not often we get to take whole days together in the midst of our crazy schedules, so it is always a treat!

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Our Summer Canadian Road Trip

This summer to celebrate the end of my Step 1 studying, as a belated Part 2 to our anniversary, and a fun summer getaway – Tyler and I road-tripped from NYC to Quebec City to Montreal and back.

We hit Quebec first, a very french part of Canada. We stayed at the most charming B&B on a lake and enjoyed slow mornings, french food, hiking, and exploring the most beautiful city I have ever seen in all of North America. We fell in love with the city and were in awe of how beautiful it was. The city was immaculately maintained and the buildings were stupendous.

After 3 days there, we went to Montreal to enjoy some city life. We stayed at a B&B closer to the more happening parts of the city. We got to hit an art museum, travel into downtown, and we even got to watch the USA’s entry in a fireworks competition. Honestly, we spent a ton of time relaxing and just slowing down. Life was a tad busy for us. And since we love driving so much, coursing through upstate NY, Vermont, New Hampshire and the country roads of Canada was so relaxing. And we saw so many adorable little towns and homes and old churches.

We enjoyed Quebec City more since Montreal was a little too much like NYC for a vacation, so we have definitely added it to our list to go back to. Maybe in the winter when the scenery is white and crisp.

I will keep the words short and sweet and let the pictures do most of the talking!