Dagpenger, arbeidssøking og rehabilitering

På tross av hva jeg fryktet fikk jeg ganske raskt innvilget dagpenger etter at jeg gikk over til uføretrygd. Det er såklart ingen formue, men likevel litt mer enn jeg fryktet. Og håpet om en ny jobb og litt "normal inntekt" er fortsatt der, om svinnende.

Et overslag viser at jeg har sendt et sted mellom 200-250 søknader siden februar i fjor. Et fåtall er åpne søknader til relevante bedrifter og andre steder som har utlyst fulltidsstillinger for arkiv, det absolutte flertallet er deltidsjobber innen kontor, administrasjon, og en og annen kundeservice- og butikkjobb som jeg kunne tenke meg. Svaret, hvis det noen gang kommer, er det samme. Takk for søknaden, vi hadde stor interesse/tøff konkurranse, det ble dessverre ikke deg denne gangen. Et par vikar- og bemanningsbyråer har kalt meg inn til intervju, men jeg ser medlidenheten i øynene deres når jeg sier at jeg bare kan jobbe deltid, maks 40%.

Gjennom NAV har jeg fått innvilget ekstra oppfølging på grunn av funksjonsnedsettelse, og håper at jeg kan få litt hjelp og råd der. Foreløpig søker jeg på de jobbene som er, og krysser fingrene hver gang en ny søknad går i utboksen.

Mens jeg søker jobb har jeg de siste ukene også hatt litt ekstra på planen. Jeg tenkte at mens jeg var arbeidsledig kunne jeg like gjerne søke om et rehabiliteringsopphold, og fikk innvilget fire uker på Skogli rehabiliteringssenter på Lillehammer. Fire uker føles utrolig lenge, men gir muligheten til en helhetlig oppfølging av alle deler av ME-sykdommen. Noen behandling er det ikke, men målet er å gi kunnskap og verktøy som kan gjøre hverdagen lettere å forhåpentligvis føre til litt bedre livskvalitet. En egen blogg kommer om oppholdet så fort jeg har samlet tankene og motivasjonen til det.

Sagaen om NAV fortsetter

Kampen mot NAV er en lang historie.
Da jeg ringte NAV i fjor sommer for å purre på anken i klagesaken min fikk jeg vite at de hadde oversett saken og at den overhodet ikke var behandlet. Høres dette kjent ut? Jada, det skjedde med den forrige klagen også. Dette var anken som min advokat sendte inn 12. november i 2014, altså åtte måneder tidligere. Hun burde såklart ha purret på saken siden hun kan systemet godt nok til å vite at hun skulle hatt en bekreftelse derfra, men på grunn av sykdom hadde de også greid å oversett dette.

Jeg fikk omsider snakket med sjefen på mitt NAV-kontor, som lovet at de skulle prioritere saken. Likevel tok det ytterligere 5 måneder før saken faktisk var ferdigbehandlet hos NAV og videresendt til Trygderetten i desember. Nå er det bare noen måneders behandlingstid der igjen, før resultatet er klart, forhåpentligvis i min favør.

I mellomtiden har NAV faktisk greid å både motta og behandle uføresøknaden min. Overraskelsen var stor da vedtaket kom i posten før forventet behandlingstid, og ikke minst at vedtaket var positivt. En lang kamp er over, og en stor lettelse over at jeg faktisk slipper å kjempe videre. Fra 1. februar i år er jeg 60% uførepensjonist.

Men, helt ferdig er ikke saken. NAV forvaltning skal vurdere meg for ung uføretillegg, det samme som jeg allerede har søkt om. På grunn av nye retningslinjer fra sivilombudsmannen har behandlingen av disse søknadene vært stoppet i noen måneder, noe som fører til at de nå har ganske lang behandlingstid på dette. Men ifølge veilederene på NAV Ufør så får jeg, om jeg får vedtatt ung uføre-tillegg, etterbetalt for AAP og attføringsstønad jeg har mottatt tidligere. Det som blir interessant da er jo hva som skjer med anken jeg per i dag har i Trygderetten. Ikke minst om de kommer til forskjellige konklusjoner.

I tillegg har jeg jo bare 60% uføretrygd, og det er ikke snakk om store inntekten. Meningen er at jeg skal jobbe ved siden av, men deltidsjobber vokser ikke på trær, ihvertfall ikke om man ikke kan jobbe i butikk eller barnehage. Og på grunn av en masse regler er det litt uklart om jeg har rett på dagpenger, noe som isåfall gjør at jeg plutselig går kraftig ned i inntekt. Jamen bra vi er to... Og forhåpentligvis dukker drømmejobben opp ganske snart, jeg er veldig klar for å begynne å jobbe igjen!

Så, noen komplikasjoner og saksbehandling står igjen. Men den største kampen er over. Jeg har en fast, stabil stønad som ingen kan ta fra meg uten videre. Så får vi se hvor det bærer videre derfra.

India

India. Wow.

One thing I realise time and time again is that no matter how much you read and prepare for a new country, you will never understand it before you get there. I read the guidebooks, reviews, and spent quite a lot of time on travel forums, particularly the TripAdvisor forum for Goa, reading up and preparing for my two week winter holiday in Goa, India.

Why India, why Goa? January is the worst month for me healthwise, my body gets stiff and I have pains in my muscles and joints because of the cold. So we try to go somewhere warm for a couple of weeks for me to warm up and relax. So, to get warm enough in January, it's around Equator, and mostly far away. As an additional challenge I don't take the change of time zones very well. Compared to Thailand's six hours difference to Norway India has only four and a half, and I realised it makes a difference! Because of work travelling for Tollef it was most practical for me to go alone this year, so I booked a package with Apollo, being easier to have the access to a Scandinacian-speaking guide for any questions.

The trip there, with a stop in Doha on the way, went very well. The airline (Quatar) wasn't as good as I remembered it, but it was comfortable enough, and I managed to sleep most of the way. Arriving in Goa, and after an hours bus trip, I checked in at the Ocean Palms hotel. I didn't get a room with a balcony as was booked, but the room was so nice I didn't bother to change. The roof was very high, with both a fan and air condition, making it very comfortable and easy to have a nice temperature inside.

The first couple of days I used to recover from the trip and get used to the new environment. Quite early on I decided that India was nice and warm, and comfortable enough, but not really my kind of place. Thailand is a lot more developed and comfortable when it comes to hotels, restaurants etc. I was surprised to see the contrasts among the local people, from wealthy Indians on holiday to the poor apparently homeless people along the streets with hungry, half naked children. The dust, as promised by guidebooks and other travellers, got everywhere, my feet were never really clean during the two weeks there.

I stayed in the outskirts of Calangute, one of the more busy northern beaches. Luckily my area was quieter than the central Calangute, and the beach not too crowded. I felt safe enough, and enough eating places and shops nearby to explore a bit. I loved walking along the beach, just feeling the sand and watching the cows, people and the ocean. And the dogs, of course. As a dog-person, it is always interesting to see the street dogs of a foreign country, watching their interaction and language and comparing to our housebound dogs at home. Most of the dogs in Goa seemed relatively well cared for though, many had collars and probably somewhere to go home to.

The fourth day I went on an excursion, seeing the churces in Old Goa, trying to get a glimpse of crocodiles in the flood (we saw a tail), and visiting a spice plantation. It was nice to get around a bit, even if not very exciting. Driving around the countryside also gave me second thoughts about other excursions I had considered, as it was quite tiresome. The day after I relaxed by the pool the whole day, and had a spa treatment at the hotel. It was nice apart from the building noises from the outside, which was not very relaxing.

The turnaround came on the fifth day. I went by bus to the flea market in Anjuna. Even though I had to change buses twice it was a very nice trip, and at some point I suddenly felt much better about the whole place. I walked around the market for a bit, bought some tea and a shawl, and had a nice lunch before taking the boat back to Baga. From Baga I walked along the beach to Calangute, and got the bus back from there. There were so many people on the northern part of the beaches, and mostly Indians.

Originally I had planned to make a three day trip to the historical Hampi, but decided against it when I realised the trip there would be very tiresome. So most of the two weeks were spent relaxing by the pool and a few walks on the beach. One day I tried the traditional Ayurveda spa treatment. After three hours of being oiled, massaged and steambathed I felt ready to be served!

The last Saturday night I went to the Saturday Night Market known as Ingos. It was quite large, and even if it was mostly the same stalls as everywhere else it was a nice atmosphere. I bought some souvenirs and gifts, being very satisfied with my haggling and paying about one third of the first asking price. I got a bunch of different spices, and kaftans for my mother and sister. And one of the cotton backpacks for myself to carry the shopping in.

The next day I spent the whole day at the beach. It was a bit cloudy, and a slow wind, so it didn't get too warm. Unfortunately I also didn't notice that I was getting burned, after almost two weeks managing not to. It wasn't very bad, but bad enough that I slept without a cover that night, and got a cold for it.

Also the last couple of days the weather was disappointingly clouded and almost chilly. For Goa, at least. On Monday I walked along the beach to the Calangute market and did some last minute shopping, and walked back along the road, dropping by a couple of places I'd seen from the bus. On Tuesday, despite the clouds, I stubbornly enjoyed my last day in India by the pool.

The trip back went smoothly, and even though I spent a couple of days with a bad cold when I came home, I definitely felt more rested. Contrary to how I felt the first few days I know I definitely will go back, hopefully with company the next time.

Photos from the US trip

About 700 photos and too many to post in the blog, I will give you some highlights and the links to my gallery. The first week, doing Yosemite, Mono Lake, Bodie, Death Valley, Las Vegas and Grand Canyon definitely was the busiest. From there we visited less of the big places and saw more roadside nature. Here's a selection:

Week 1, California - Arizona:

https://www.simira.net/gallery/Reise/20150905-California-Arizona/

Hiking in the Yosemite

Death Valley

Las Vegas

Hoover Dam

Route 66

Grand Canyon

Week 2, Arizona - Louisiana:

https://www.simira.net/gallery/Reise/20150912-Arizona-Louisiana/

Sonora Desert Museum

New Mexico Ranch and Farm Heritage Museum

The Hubbard Museum of the American West

The Buffalo Soldier Museum in Houston

We had the only day with rain in Houston!

New Orleans

Week 3, Lousiana - Illinois:

https://www.simira.net/gallery/Reise/20150919-Louisiana-Illinios/

Swamp Tour

Underground Railroad Museum

Beale Street

Nashville

Hiking in the Smokies

Kentucky Horse Park

Week 4, Illinois - New York

https://www.simira.net/gallery/Reise/20150927-Illinois-Newark/

Chicago

Amish Country Illinois, Shipshewana

Photographing derelict buildings in Detroit

Tandem cycling along the Niagara

Hiking in Hudson Vally

Travelling with ME

I started writing this post during our trip in the US. I have been thinking about it now and then when travelling. And although this is in particular about the US trip, most of it goes for any travelling I do. Most of my travels are not that extensive though.

 

Because I have ME – how can I do a thing like this? Travelling for a month in one stretch, sleeping in various unfamiliar places?

I have asked this question myself many times, when seeing people that appearantly are too ill to work full time – or maybe even at all – doing things that I would really like to do. The truth is that with planning, adjustment and a certain cost, it is possible to do a lot of things. In my case, I have a light to moderate degree of ME, which means I do not need to stay in bed all day, and can even work for a few hours a week. I actually was slightly worried about this trip, travelling for so long, sleeping in different places almost every night, but in the very worst case we would have cut the trip short, taken the straight route and stayed somewhere nice and quiet for the remainder of the trip. Luckily that was never necessary.

Planning/preparing – The last few days before leaving for the US, I did as little as possible, trying to get a lot of rest before the trip. I also upgraded my flight for a more comfortable seat on the plane. Arriving in San Francisco I had another two days of rest, only going out for meals, before we left for our trip.

Adjustments –

Slow pace - We had a rough plan for the trip, sat at a quite easy pace. We had only two days of really long drives of about 8 hourrs, a couple of days with about 5-6 hours, and then mostly only short drives up to 4 hours a day. We shared the driving, but whenever needed Tollef would drive so I could sleep or just rest. For the long stretches we also had some flexibility to stop for an extra night if needed.

Early nights, late mornings – There were very few nights that we were out later than eight o'clock in the evening. Most nights we were in before eight, some times as early as six o'clock, and stayed in the room in the evening, just resting. We also slept quite late in the mornings, apart from a few exceptions when we had to be somewhere for opening times. I always asked for a quiet room when booking, and we were lucky with most of our motels on the way, having both comfortable beds and quiet nights.

Sightseeing – It is easy ending up walking a lot when sightseeing. We planned carefully what to see, and tried to drive as close as possible to sights. In museums and other places I would take the shorter rounds, sitting down whenever possible instead of standing while reading or watching the sights or listening to guides. Some times I would just sit nearby and rest while Tollef walked around.

Flexibility – Even with the schedule we had left some time for flexibility, staying an extra night somewhere or just spending a day without doing a lot.

Mobilisation and motivation – Consciously or not, my body tends to «know» that I need some energy to get the most out of a trip like this, and mobilises to a certain degree, so that I feel that I have more capacity than I actually have. It makes it even more important to make sure I don't overdo it, but makes it possible for me to some days actually strain myself a bit, and rest a bit more the day after instead. Of course it also helps with the motivation that the trip is solely a positive experience.

The cost -

With the mobilisation especially comes some of the cost. It is very easy to use too much energy, the body not quite allowing me to feel on what level I am. I wouldn't know beforehand how long it would take to recover after getting home, both from jetlag and the travel itself. Hopefully not too long, with all the adjustments I have made underway. The adjustments are also a part of the cost – having to limit the amount of things and places to see (even more that everyone would have to on such a trip, of course there is always more anyone would like to see or do), sometimes skipping places we had planned to see, sleeping in the car instead of enjoying the view along the road, early nights, Tollef having to do more of the driving and going to see some of the places alone.

Coincidence would have it that I was unemployed at the time of our return, and I had the time I needed to adjust the sleeping times, and get the rest I needed to catch up. Within a weeks time I was mostly back on track and on my normal energy level. It will be some time until I try a venture like that again though.

The last week

Day 22 – Chicago

We drove in to downtown Chicago from a suburb an hour north, and parked at the hotel, at a walking distance from the most busy areas of Chicago. From there we walked down to Millennium park to see the famous Cloud Gate, and walked around in the park for a bit. Afterwards we took a bus to Lincoln park where we found the Chicago history museum. We joined a very interesting tour presenting the beginning of Chicago as a town, the origins of the name, and of course the fire, the rebuilding, world fairs and racial confrontations. We spent about three hours at the museum and I could easily have spent another three, if we didn't start to get hungry or have anything else to see.

We took the bus back to the shopping area, and had real Chicago style pizza for a late lunch. Then we went shopping on Michigan avenue, without much to show for it afterwards, some bath cubes from Lush and some candy. After check-in and some rest at the hotel we were still not really hungry after lunch, so we had some real Chicago milkshake for dinner. I had another dip into US specialities and had cotton candy milkshake! It really tasted of cotton candy, I don't see how they make it. I also had a fudge milkshake. Since the milkshakes actually came in small sizes (microscopic sizes in US terms) I decided to have two. 

Day 23 – Chicago – Elkhart

In the morning Tollef went for a run to the waterfront while I slept in. When he came back we got some breakfast, and headed east to Amish Country and Elkhart. The original plan was to go straight to Detroit from Chicago, but then we realised we were going through Amish Country on the way and decided to take some time here. We will be following a Heritage Trail from Elkhart, ending up in Shipshewana, where there is supposed to be a lot of Amish stores and a museum.

Day 24 Elkhart – Shipshewana – Toledo – Detroit

Today was the first day we went really off our planned track, and took some back roads. We decided to do the first half of the Heritage Trail, an audio-guided (driving our car, yes) tour through the Amish Country. Starting out in Elkhart, we got some information about the town we saw the previous day. Then we followed some back roads to the towns of Bristol and Middlebury, while getting some stories and information about sights that we passed. We decided not to stop everywhere, as that would have taken too much of the day.

In Shipshewana we parked and had decided to walk through the town and back. We saw the famous flea-market, a huge stall marked with food stalls, home made furniture and other hand crafted things, clothing, hardware, pet supplies, as well as the usual Chinese cheap stall goods, and a camel you could feed carrots. We walked around for a bit and had a raspberry pie before we walked on.

On the road there were several Amish buggies passing, and there were Amish people everywhere, as well as other local people (a lot of them probably Mennonites, much like Amish but less strict) and of course a lot of tourists. Because the Amish don't like to be photographed I took very few photos in Shipshewana.

After a bit of shopping we visited the Menno-hof museum, learning about the history and beliefs of the Mennonites and Amish peoples, and their lives in Amish country. It was very interesting and I learned a lot. I also realised that I believe in a lot of the same things that the Amish do, even if I lead a very different kind of life. On our way back to the car we stopped for lunch in a small shopping centre, and I got some gifts in their large store, as well as an Amish-style bonnet for myself.

Out of Shipshewana we decided to take a small detour just to get through Ohio and put one more state on the list – a 5 minute detour. And then we chose another scenic route to go past some nice little lakes with a lot of holiday houses along the beach, and really nice and clear water. In Toledo we stopped for milkshake. I just couldn't forget the cotton candy milkshake from Chicago, and we found a Cold Stone Creamery close to the road in Toledo. From there we turned north, and, not for the first time, wove our way through miles and miles of roadwork for the last bit in to Detroit.

Day 25 – Detroit – Niagara Falls

After two nights of bad sleep, I didn't feel very well when I woke up. Possibly also because my body and mind both realise that we are nearing the end of our trip, and is full with impressions, driving, museums, history, eating out and everything else. We are staying at least two nights in Niagara Falls, just to take it easy and relax, apart from a trip out to see the Falls, of course.

Before leaving Detroit we drove around parts of the city and saw some of the empty, neglected buildings that are left several places. Then we drove through the tunnel and came up in Canada. Not very different from the other side of the border, of course, but still very nice. Tollef drove to Niagara so I got some sleep.

In Niagara we had booked a motel quite close to the river. We checked in, and went to a nearby pizza place for dinner. On our way back to the motel we walked by the river and got our first glimpse of the falls, but decided to leave it to tomorrow, since it started to get dark. I suppose we will try to see the sunset tomorrow.

Day 26 – Niagara Falls

To save us some walking de decided to rent a tandem bike to get around to see the Niagara Falls. First, we walked by a spa on our way, planning an afternoon treat for me. Despite quite updated websites they were closed down. Then we walked to the bike rental and got our bike. Riding tandem felt a bit wobbly from the start, but worked out ok. We went down to the Queen Victoria Park and saw the rapids before the falls, and then turned north along the river, getting soaked trying to get a photo of the falls. Then we continued north to the Whirlpool bridge, and then back to downtown. There we dropped by a hotel spa and booked an appointment for me, before delivering the bike and heading back to the hotel for a short rest.

In the afternoon I spent one hour being scrubbed and massage, incredibly relaxing. Tollef met me after the spa, and we went to a nearby American-Italian restaurant for dinner. When we were finished, it was still an hour until sunset, and the sky was clouded, so we just decided to call it a day.

Day 27 – Niagara Falls – Nyack

The easiest way to get from to motel to the mall across the road? Driving, of course!

In the morning, I had a short shopping stop at PetSmart, a chain supermarket for pet supplies. Then we drove across the Rainbow bridge from the Canada side and back to the US. We made a short trip to Goat's Island to see the Niagara from the US side, and then headed south. We weren't quite sure about the plan for the last few days, but at our lunch stop in Bath we decided to stay in Nyack for the last two nights, about an hour from the airport.

Arriving at the motel in the evening, the first thing that met us was four or five police cars surrounding a car and some people. I am still not sure what was happening, but they were gone after we checked in and got our luggage from the car. That is, after changing our room, because the first room we got smelled of smoke.

We thought to go to have some dinner in the mall across the road – apparantly one of the largest malls in the US. The road was very busy and had no pedestrian crossing that I could see in any direction, so we ended up taking the car for the few hundred metres across the road and to one of the main entrances. Taking the same way out after dinner we discovered that we were not allowed to turn left, and ended up driving a mile away to be able to make a u-turn back to the motel. 

Day 28 – Last whole day!

We drove half an hour to the nearby town Port Chester for breakfast and to actually touch the Atlantic ocean. Wow, here we are!

Then we drove north through Hudson Valley, and went for a nice two-hour hike there. It was quite steep in parts, and I am afraid I will feel the result tomorrow. Back in Nyack we had dinner on a brewpub in town, and did some foodshopping before going back to the motel for a shower and a quiet evening.

Day 29 – Nyack – Newark

We got up, finished packing, and drove across the street for some shopping. I didn't really find much, but got a new dog toy and a new blouse. Something for myself, for a change. After a quick lunch, consisting of milkshake, we headed south for the airport, with just a quick detour via a Cracker Barrel store store to buy some last minute gifts.

I'm happy we were early at the airport, as SAS had managed to mess up my upgrade, so it took a bit of time to solve that. Then we settled in the lounge to have some food and wait for our flight back home. Tomorrow morning I will wake up in Norway!

The End

Wow. It's been a great trip, but I am also glad to be home. A month away is a long time, I kind of have gotten used to it, but it will still be nice to get back to everything familiar, and get some routine again. Doing something different, going somewhere new every day, is tiring after a while. We have had surprisingly good luck with most of the motels, nice weather almost all the time, except for one single day of heavy rain, no troubles with illness or anything else.

I have learned so much more about the USA, about the history, cultures, the food, and the land itself. In some ways, it is everything you have seen on TV, and then it is so much more. In many ways the Americans are just like the average Norwegian, they get up in the morning, drive to work, have dinner with the family and spend the evening before the TV. But also there are a larger variety of people, a lot of poorer people than you will find in Norway, a lot of rich people, people of so many different cultures and backgrounds, and a different history. There is a lot of beautiful nature and a lot of fascinating places. I still prefer my own little country, but I do see why people love the different parts of the USA.

The last week we only drove about 1760 km in 18 hours. That is a total of about 8780 km in about 89 hours, pluss in-town driving, navigation to motels, eatingplaces, sights etc. We've been via 18 different states (some more than others).

Week 3 - We are closing in!

What at first seemed like 4 weeks of endless opportunities is getting towards and end. In a few days we will be touching the east coast, hopefully have a couple of days left over to relax without any driving before the flight back home. 

Day 15

New states, new opportunities. We left New Orleans on a lovely Sunday morning with the sun shining from blue skies. After an hour we arrived at Honey Island Swamp Tours, and spent the next two hours photographing and watching dragonflies, alligators, owls, heron, ibis, turtles and snakes in the swamps. The guide was really great!

After lunch we drove north to Memphis, a rather uneventful drive with trees blocking any potential view from the road for most of the way. Tomorrow we have a date with Elvis! (well, not really, but I guess we'll see a bit of him anyway).

Day 16

Elvis wasn't at home, and Graceland not that interesting from the outside. So we went up north of the city to see the Underground Railroad Museum. It was a lot smaller than I expected, but very interesting, even if the tour guide could use some more training. I learned a lot about the slave trade and the slaves' means of communicating and escaping.

We drove to the city centre for lunch, and walked down Beale Street, where we had milkshake and nachos. We also walked down to see the Mississippi river, before taking off further inland towards Nashville. In Nashville we had dinner at a very nice brew-pub, the food was really good if not quite authentic (we had shepherd's pie). When we arrived at the motel it appeared I had booked for the wrong days, but we were lucky and got the last room they had available.

We've been quite lucky with most of our motels so far, only one night with a bad squeaky bed, else we have had mostly spacious rooms with comfortable beds.

Day 17 Nashville

Nashville started with pancakes for breakfast at IHOP (International House of Pancakes) before we went to see The Hermitage, general Andrew Jacksons plantation. The plantation tour was very interesting and informative, and we learned a lot about both general Jackson and his life, and also about plantation life and politics and the beginning of the United States.

We were not very hungry yet at lunchtime, so we dropped by a Walmart to buy water and some light lunch and headed back to the motel for some rest. In the evening we went down to Nashville city centre, and walked along Broadway, visiting a huge candy shop, and passing loads of bars with live music. Unfortunately the famous Bluebird café was fully booked for tonight.

Day 18 – 19 The Appalachians

From Nashville we drove east, into the Appalachian mountains, to visit a friend of Tollef. He lives in a house far up in the mountains away from everything else, without water and only solar power for electricity. We had a nice dinner, and sat outside listening to all the forest sounds and looked at the stars after dark. Before bedtime I also got to learn a new board game, a Carcassonne variety called Discovery. It is getting colder as we get further north, and the evening was quite chilly. I hope it will not get too cold as we get to Chicago and Detroit.

In the morning, we went to a nearby place and had biscuits for lunch. On the way back, our host had recommended a hike from the road and back to his place, «probably a mile or two, maybe a bit more». «A bit more» was a severe understatement. We walked about 5 km (3 miles) over several steep hills, a total of 340 metres elevation. Also, there was no marked track and we didn't have a map, only a gps with the general direction. We walked through a lot of growth with thorny bushes, so that my arms and legs got all scratched up. I was quite exhausted when we finally found the cabin, and had some rest before we left for Lexington.

Day 20 - Kentucky Horse Park

I thought we had more then enough time, arriving at Kentucky Horse Park only two hours after opening time. Well, we left ten minutes before closing time. They have an interesting program, and it is a large area to walk about. We came just in time for the first breed presentation, with five different horses being presented in an arena, working out to music. After the presentation we got to meet the riders and horses close-up, which was really nice. We walked through the «breed barn» and saw and read about the other breeds represented there. Unfortunately there were few European breeds at all, and the Icelandic horse apparently did not come in from the field today.

We also saw the «big barn» where the draft horses lived, and later got a short trolley tour in a large trolley pulled by two Belgian draft horses. We visited the Hall of Champions that has a handful of retired race horses that has done really well, and there was also a barn for police horses, mostly mixes of draft horses and some lighter breed.

At the end of our visit we saw both the American Saddlebred Museum, and the Museum of the Horse. The first one was a bit confusing and, of course, only focused on the American Saddlebred horse, the general horse museum was very good, with a special exhibit about Arabians at the end.

There was a lot of interesting things to see, and I am sure we could have spent another day walking around the grounds, watching the horses in the fields and the jumping contests going on right then. In the end, it was enough walking for a day, and we got to see and learn a lot about horses.

We were not too late back at the hotel, so I got to try out the pool before the sun set completely. It was chilly, but nice to have a quick evening bath.

Day 21 - Chicago!

New car, new state, new opportunities. The car has been asking for an oil change for the last day or so. With a rental car you just don't fix the problem yourself, you get to the nearest office and get a new car. This car was larger, more space for the luggage in the trunk, and better interior, but the one we left had a more powerful engine and was far more comfortable to drive. At least we have only one week left, and no long stretches to go anyway.

Today was the last long stretch, going from Lexington to north of Chicago. The drivers seem to be more reckless the further east and north we get. The first few days people were good on the road, traffic flowed easily about the speed limits. From Texas, people started to drive more aggressively. Even the trailers, that get repeated messages about no passing and staying in the right lane, rushes past and of course causes problems. The speeding seems to have increased the further north we have come from Louisiana, and more cars and trailers passing at high speed. We also see several cars that have been stopped by the police every day. At least the drivers still are good at allowing space for changing lanes and getting onto roads, and there's no honking horns or flashing lights.

One week left. 24 hours and 2421 km this week. I think we're through 11 states so far.