Fernweh Family

07/01/2024

Day 3: Bryce Canyon- We started our day with a fabulous e-bike tour which was a first for most of us. I think I want to get one now! The canyon is stunning, maybe even more so than the Grand Canyon in my opinion. Great tour guide Drew. Did you know that Ponderosa pines smell like vanilla or butterscotch? It's true! We went back up again this evening to take pics at sunset and got some great group pictures with our silly girls.

Día 3: Bryce Canyon: comenzamos nuestro día con un fabuloso recorrido en bicicleta eléctrica que fue el primero para la mayoría de nosotros. ¡Creo que quiero conseguir una ahora! El cañón es impresionante, quizás incluso más que el Gran Cañón en mi opinión. Gran guía turístico Drew. ¿Sabías que los pinos ponderosa huelen a vainilla o caramelo? ¡Es cierto! Volvimos a subir esta tarde para tomar fotos al atardecer y tomamos algunas fotos grupales geniales con nuestras hijas payasas.

06/30/2024

People: Don't be an as***le and tell someone taking an e-Bike tour that they are cheating simply because you voluntarily chose to ride a traditional bike. It's crass and I really wanted to kick you off your bike. Not all of us have the same abilities. One in our group recently had partial knee replacement and my left knee has been crap for 25 years. It got us outside when we probably wouldn't have gone otherwise.

06/30/2024

Day 2: Boise to Bryce Canyon. Long day on the road with an afternoon stop in Salt Lake City at the aquarium. The pool was closed by the time we reached the resort tonight so our teens were majorly bummed.

Día 2: Boise a Bryce Canyon. Un largo día de viaje con una visita por la tarde al acuario de Salt Lake City. La piscina estaba cerrada cuando llegamos al resort esta noche, por lo que nuestras adolescentes estaban muy desanimadas.

06/29/2024

Day 1: Bend to Boise with my battle buddy Jaclyn and her teen Sydney. We're off on a road trip to Bryce Canyon and Zion National Parks. Our last trip was 5 years ago!

06/06/2024

Earlier this week, the Biden Administration issued an executive order further limiting human beings’ right to seek protection at the US-México border. As an organization working with asylum seekers at the border, we see firsthand the devastating consequences, and the avoidable loss of life, that these restrictive border policies produce.

Biden’s executive order effectively closes down the border and shuts off access to asylum to those who are forced to cross between ports of entry, based upon an arbitrary number and not actually tied to the processing capacity of US Customs and Border Protection and the Border Patrol.

What the Biden Administration ignores is that asylum seekers wouldn’t be forced to take dangerous routes, putting their lives at risk, if CBP processed asylum seekers upon arrival at US ports of entry, without requiring them to wait in the world’s most dangerous cities for months while they attempt to navigate a complicated, glitchy, smartphone app that is available in only 3 languages, & makes no accommodations for persons with disabilities, life-threatening illnesses, or those otherwise at immediate risk of harm or death.

Al Otro Lado’s Executive Director Erika Pinheiro shared the following statement:

Biden's executive order is a clear violation of both federal & international law protecting the rights of refugees to seek safety at our borders. Similar policies enacted by Trump demonstrated that this order will fail to deter asylum seekers; rather, it will only cause suffering & death, as legitimate refugees will be unable to access protection. Despite claims that this order will ‘shut down the border,’ it could take weeks or months for the Department of Homeland Security to effectuate some removals, which could overwhelm Border Patrol's capacity & lead to further chaos.

In 2020, Biden campaigned on a promise to rebuild the US asylum system & enact more humane immigration policies but instead has dehumanized & criminalized migrants in an attempt to score political points. It is unlikely that this move will help Biden gain additional votes; instead, it will only further alienate his base & incite violence against immigrant communities. When we talk about the border, we can't forget that policies that restrict access to asylum affect vulnerable people & can cost them their lives.

We will not sit by while politicians play games with migrants’ lives. Thank you for being a part of this fight and standing in solidarity with all of those impacted by inhumane and deadly border policies. We are grateful for your partnership and support.

In solidarity,

The Al Otro Lado Team

12/19/2023

Day 14-15: Vy Nattåg 94 Overnight Train
Our bad luck with European trains continues. We boarded our train and found our private sleeping compartment. Since we only reserved two of the three beds, it was possible that a stranger would be joining us. Thankfully, we had the cabin to ourselves. We were advised that due to bad weather, we'd have to get off the train in Boden and switch to another train with open seating at 5:44am. The app says that another train derailed yesterday, nothing about bad weather. This totally defeated the point of taking an overnight train with beds for sleeping. They also said they're not our alarm clock so we're responsible for waking up and getting off at the right stop. I don't sleep well when I have an important alarm so now I must wake up at 5:15am instead of 8am. The room itself was fine, José was delighted to find the shower facility, and we walked down to the diner carriage to play a game before retiring to our room for the rest of the evening. I caught a faint glimpse of the Northern Lights out the window around 4:41am.

Día 14-15: Tren nocturno Vy Nattåg 94
Nuestra mala suerte con los trenes europeos continúa. Subimos al tren y encontramos el compartimento privado para dormir. Como solo reservamos dos de las tres camas, era posible que un extraño se uniera a nosotros. Afortunadamente, teníamos la cabaña para nosotros solos. Nos avisaron que debido al mal clima, tendríamos que bajar del tren en Boden y cambiar a otro tren con asientos libres a las 5:44 am. La aplicación dice que ayer descarriló otro tren, nada que ver con el clima. Esto anuló totalmente el sentido de tomar un tren nocturno con camas para dormir. También dijeron que no son nuestro despertador, por lo que somos responsables de despertarnos y bajarnos en la parada correcta. Nunca duermo bien cuando tengo una alarma importante, así que ahora debo despertarme a las 5:15 a. m. en lugar de a las 8 a. m. La habitación estaba bien, José estaba feliz de encontrar las duchas y caminamos hasta el vagón restaurante para jugar un juego antes de retirarnos a nuestra habitación para el resto de la noche. Vi levemente la aurora boreal por la ventana a las 4:41am.

12/17/2023

And here it is in all its glory!! A dream come true after so many years ❤️🥶

12/17/2023

Learning something new every day! I always thought caribou and reindeer were distinctly different animals. Nope, I have eaten reindeer growing up, sorry Rudolph! Reindeer is the main protein in the dishes served here.

What's the Difference: Reindeer vs. Caribou

12/17/2023

Day 14: Stockholm, Sweden
We enjoyed a lovely Swedish style breakfast in our hotel and then headed out with the intention of doing a statue walk. The hotel had mini cards with different ideas of things to do. We took the tram back to Central Station and dropped the bags off at a Bounce location which only charged 5€ per bag per day whereas the baggage storage in the station was about 69SEK ($6.90) per hour! We checked out the Christmas Market which didn't have any mugs but I bought a few small gifts. Then we had a nice lunch. I had Swedish meatballs and José grilled reindeer. We explored as much as we could while there was still light which meant it was dark by 3:30pm. Back to the station to wait for our overnight train.

Día 14: Estocolmo, Suecia
Disfrutamos de un delicioso desayuno estilo sueco en nuestro hotel y luego salimos con la intención de hacer una caminata por las estatuas. El hotel tenía mini tarjetas con diferentes ideas de cosas que hacer. Tomamos el tranvía de regreso a la Estación Central y dejamos las maletas en una ubicación de Bounce que solo cobraba 5€ por maleta por día, mientras que el almacenamiento de equipaje en la estación costaba alrededor de 69 SEK ($6,90) por hora! Visitamos el mercado navideño, que no tenía tazas, pero compré algunos pequeños obsequios. Luego tuvimos un buen almuerzo. Comí albóndigas suecas y reno a la parrilla para José. Exploramos todo lo que pudimos mientras todavía había luz, lo que significaba que estaba oscuro a las 3:30 p.m. Regreso a la estación para esperar nuestro tren nocturno.

12/17/2023

Day 13: Düsseldorf, Germany to Stockholm, Sweden
We didn't have much time to run errands today and wash our laundry before our flight. Michael took us to the Haribo Factory Store so I could stock up on candy for us and gifts for others. We grabbed a quick lunch where my traditional plate was not as expected 😭 The flight to Stockholm was uneventful except security scanned my boots and coat three times while I did there in my socks. Our hotel room is cute and just right for the two of us. We walked around in the evening to finish my steps and find something for dinner.

Día 13: Düsseldorf, Alemania a Estocolmo, Suecia
No tuvimos mucho tiempo para hacer recados hoy y lavar la ropa antes de nuestro vuelo. Michael nos llevó a la tienda Haribo Factory Store para que yo pudiera abastecerme de dulces para nosotros y regalos para los demás. Tomamos un almuerzo rápido donde mi plato tradicional no era el esperado. El vuelo a Estocolmo transcurrió sin incidentes, excepto que la seguridad escaneó mis botas y mi abrigo tres veces mientras estaba allí en calcetines. Nuestra habitación de hotel es linda y perfecta para nosotros dos. Caminamos por la noche para terminar mis pasos y encontrar algo para cenar.

12/17/2023

Day 12 Special Edition Santa Pauli, Hamburg
Saint Pauli is the Red Light District/LGBTQIA+ neighborhood of Hamburg. We stayed at the Superbude Hostel here and finished our visit at their Christmas Market which did not disappoint. Europeans are much more laid back about sexuality than Americans are and we saw lots of children with their parents here. I bought several things to take home. The v***a toffee was quite tasty and I love this unique mug for the collection.

Día 12 Edición Especial Santa Pauli, Hamburgo
Saint Pauli es el Barrio Rojo/barrio LGBTQIA+ de Hamburgo. Nos alojamos aquí en el Superbude Hostel y terminamos nuestra visita en su mercado navideño, que no nos decepcionó. Los europeos son mucho más relajados respecto a la sexualidad que los estadounidenses y vimos a muchos niños con sus padres aquí. Compré varias cosas para llevarme a casa. El caramelo de v***a estaba bastante rico y me encanta esta taza única para la colección.

12/17/2023

Day 12: Hamburg, Germany
Ssh, don't tell Vienna but we "might" have fallen in love with Hamburg. In just a few hours, we feel so excited about being here and we'll definitely be returning for a much longer visit. We had the typical European breakfast buffet in the hostel for 14€ and then headed out with Janine who was able to get away for a couple hours this morning aka afternoon. We found three of the Christmas Markets and one of them deserves its own special post! Unfortunately, we had to hurry to catch our 7:45pm train back to Düsseldorf.

Día 12: Hamburgo, Alemania
Ssh, no se lo digas a Viena, pero "podríamos" habernos enamorado de Hamburgo. En tan solo unas horas, nos sentimos muy emocionados de estar aquí y definitivamente regresaremos para una visita mucho más larga. Tomamos el típico desayuno buffet europeo en el albergue por 14€ y luego salimos con Janine, quien pudo escaparse un par de horas esta mañana o tarde. ¡Encontramos tres de los Mercados Navideños y uno de ellos merece su propia publicación especial! Desgraciadamente, tuvimos que darnos prisa para subir el tren de las 19:45 de vuelta a Düsseldorf.