D-Day Invasion- "Strange"-ly Imminent!! TRIP REPORT IS UP!!

[KatMark]

Leisa, I know I've missed you, but I hope that you and the family have a SAFE, uneventful trip and that the vacation is wonderful. We will miss you.

 

[If U Had Wings]

Hope you have a great trip!!

 

[Lady Lallie]

Have a wonderful trip!!

 

[OhioDisneyLover]

Safe and happy travels!

 

[Sleepingbooty]

Summer brings the shepherds to the high mountain grazing lands. They actually DO live in yurts or tents!!

Or old boxcars?

This must be the water wienie of which you speak!

Darn it, I didn't get to wish you Bon Voyage! Well, I'm sure you will have a great time. And we'll hold down the fort while your gone. We'll miss you!

 

[Tinkerbellarella]

Well, I guess I have a couple weeks to catch up on the, oh I don't know, 400+ pages of the previous two threads!



Ok, not so secretly, I'm looking forward to it. Safe travels Liesa!

Hi maroo!

 

[kimmylaj]

hi, i am herehooray for part3

 

[Minnie&Nana]

Shoot, missed a final goodbye, but sure glad to read they are on their way! I'm sure Liesa must have mentioned how long it will take them to reach their destination, but I missed it - anyone remember? Sure wish they didn't have to sleep on the side of the road. I will feel so much better in a few months when they are back in the U.S. safe and sound!
Thinking of you all, Liesa! Godspeed and have fun!!

 

[MAGICFOR2]

Oops, missed the send off. I'm hoping things are going well for them!

MILLIE! Miss You! Sounds like lots of excitement - looking forward to you coming back - enjoy your company, and spend lots of time with that boy - he'll be a man too soon!

 

[jenbear123]

Sorry to have missed you! I hope you have safe travels!

Gee, it saddens me when I see horses outside North America. They are always so skinny and undernourished looking

Those water "banana" (at least that's what it looks like to me) things seem to be all the rage lately. I wouldn't be caught dead trying to ride one of them

 

[All7OfUs]

WOW! Have a GREAT trip!!! Can't wait to hear all about it when you get back!!!



Of course!!

Aren't we going to do simultaneous reports? Do we want to do it in one thread or two? Hmm....lots of planning to do!

Yes! We need to plan how we're going to do our TR(s)!! I have an idea of how I'd like it to go, but we need to talk about it!! Fun times ahead, for sure!!

have a wonderful trip!! Be safe and have fun!!

Thanks so much!!

Leisa, I know I've missed you, but I hope that you and the family have a SAFE, uneventful trip and that the vacation is wonderful. We will miss you.

So, far it's been.... well, read on!

Hope you have a great trip!!

Thanks, Crissy!!!

Have a wonderful trip!!

So far we've had a long drive, and that's about it.

 

[KatMark]

Hi, Liesa! I didn't think you'd be posting until you got back from your vacation. "So far it's been...." -- that doesn't sound good.

 

[All7OfUs]

Safe and happy travels!

Thanks, Sophia!! Safe... so far, so good; happy... not yet.

Or old boxcars?




This must be the water wienie of which you speak!

Darn it, I didn't get to wish you Bon Voyage! Well, I'm sure you will have a great time. And we'll hold down the fort while your gone. We'll miss you!

We've seen old army surplus tents, boxcars, and other mud like huts, but mostly it's been yurts in the grazing lands.

Yup, that's what we've always called a water wienie. I thought that's what everyone called them.

You can still wish me happy travels, we are only half way to our destination- remember, we stopped along the way to see my son's graduation and send our two oldest off to the States.

Well, I guess I have a couple weeks to catch up on the, oh I don't know, 400+ pages of the previous two threads!



Ok, not so secretly, I'm looking forward to it. Safe travels Liesa!

Hi maroo!

Should give you lots of time. Because so far, they aren't holding down the fort very well. Eh hmmmm....

Shoot, missed a final goodbye, but sure glad to read they are on their way! I'm sure Liesa must have mentioned how long it will take them to reach their destination, but I missed it - anyone remember? Sure wish they didn't have to sleep on the side of the road. I will feel so much better in a few months when they are back in the U.S. safe and sound!
Thinking of you all, Liesa! Godspeed and have fun!!

Well, then you're NOT going to love the following narrative of how getting to the Big City actually went. Coming right up...

Thanks for the well wishes- we are obviously going to need them....

Oops, missed the send off. I'm hoping things are going well for them!

MILLIE! Miss You! Sounds like lots of excitement - looking forward to you coming back - enjoy your company, and spend lots of time with that boy - he'll be a man too soon!

So far, so "Central Asian". Well, is very relative.

Sorry to have missed you! I hope you have safe travels!

Gee, it saddens me when I see horses outside North America. They are always so skinny and undernourished looking

Those water "banana" (at least that's what it looks like to me) things seem to be all the rage lately. I wouldn't be caught dead trying to ride one of them

We are safe. And that is good. The further south we went the better the horses looked- you'd be SHOCKED at how bad they look in and around our city.

THey are a TOTAL BLAST!!! VERY fun; although, I'd have to say, I prefer tubing, as they give a better thrill ride in my opinion. You can always tell by the wedgie potential of how good a ride it's going to be.

 

[glennbo123]

You can always tell by the wedgie potential of how good a ride it's going to be.

The tag fairy wouldn't even know where to begin with some of our threads!

 

[All7OfUs]

Well, since I had planned to do a whole mini-report on this Road Trip of ours, I won't give ALL the details now, but I did want to check in and give the major highlights of how our travels have been so far.

6:45 PM- Our passports with single entry, 2-week Kyrgyz visas arrived at our door.

7:00 PM- We drive out of the driveway, and head out on what is "normally" a 16 hour trip.

9:30- Our first potty break (we only took 3 that we were only devoted to potty, giving us a new record!)

2:00 AM- Mike HAD to stop for some shut eye. He found us a little tractor road beside a wheat field, and laid his mat and sweatshirt out to sleep. We crumpled our bodies into contorted shapes and tried to sleep as well.

4:00 AM- He jumps back in the car, says he's too cold, and feels rested enough to continue on.

4:30 AM- The first light of dawn appears.

5:30- A blazing, amazing sunrise to greet the day with

9:00 AM- Mike needs another stop to get some rest. After 40 minutes of eating breakfast which consited of cookies, chips, apples and water, we set off again. By now, we've not eater dinner the night before, nor breakfast. No one, not even the little ones, are hungry, so we press on.

11:00 AM- It is becoming apparent that it is likely we are going to miss the Awards Ceremony part of the evening, but will make the picnic.

2:00 PM - I texted Andrew telling him we will NOT make it by 3:00, but will arrive sometime between 4 and 5.

3:30 PM- We stop by the road once more time to change our clothes and put on a fresh coat of deodorant, slather on a bit of makeup, and we're good to go.

4:30 PM- We park at the school, and walk in.............




Just as they were singing the last song of the evening. For those of you who might know it, we sang, "Blessed be the Name of the Lord" a great chorus of remembering that God is good during BOTH times that things are going great, and ALSO that He is good when things don't go as planned. Providential? You be the Judge. Things had definitely NOT gone as planned, but He carried us through, and we rejoice!


We did not make it in time, but we arrived in one piece, were NOT stopped EVEN ONCE by the road police (not even for a document check), we saw not even ONE accident (which are almost always head on, and unbelievably horrific), and the bickering was kept to a surprsingly small amount.

In fact, Andrew did not get an award anyway; he was not at the top of his class, not the super athlete, etc.... so we ended up really not missing anything. Instead, we arrived JUST IN TIME for the picnic afterwards. Andrew's housemom made our family dinner, and after missing dinner the night before, AND breakfast AND lunch today, we were famished and couldn't have appreciated any meal more!! It was the end of a...



LONG, LONG day that started at 7:00 the night before. What should have been a 16 hour road trip, took us 21 hours, including 3 hours of stops. Ideally, and as we've done MANY times before, we like to break the tirp up into two days and sleep a whole night halfway IN A HOTEL. We are BONE tired and need a rest.

Unfortunately, tomorrow is a full day of graduation prep (the girls and I will help with the party prep) and I need to get to bed.

I took many fantastic pix of our trip across the Steppe today, and I"ll be sharing them with you after I get back.

Hope you are all well!!

 

[All7OfUs]

The tag fairy wouldn't even know where to begin with some of our threads!

Hot diggity! I caught you on!!

Yeah, after I wrote that I had to think twice. It didn't last long.

 

[MRYPPNS]

So glad you made it there with no problems! Get some sleep then have some FUN!

 

[KatMark]

Get some rest, and have fun! And for no incidents on the travel.

 

[glennbo123]

Great update! Thanks for posting it.

Hallelujah for all of the mercies you received!

Now go to bed.

 

[All7OfUs]

So glad you made it there with no problems! Get some sleep then have some FUN!

Shower first, my dear. Amazing what doing nothing in the car can do to one's stink factor!

Get some rest, and have fun! And for no incidents on the travel.

I am pleased with it, even though it was WAY harder travel than anyone should endure. There are still LOTS of things I haven't told you yet- I need to save something for when I get back, right??

Great update! Thanks for posting it.

Hallelujah for all of the mercies you received!

Now go to bed.

You have no idea (well, actually, maybe you do) how many hours of prayer went into this trip already! He is Good!

It's only 10:30. I need to be up at 7:00 if I want coffee, so am headed that way soon.