We are back home and already working again. I am always surprised how easily it is to get back to the same rhythm again. But things haven’t changed very much here and everything is familiar.

But not everything is the same. I feel a calmness inside me I have not felt for a long time. This has probably something to do with my PhD, where there was always a lot of pressure. And we have taken a lot of good memories back home that keep me happy and optimistic. Here are a few of my best moments of the trip:

Driving up the road to Hurricane Ridge at 7 in the morning. The sun was rising and we drove out of the fog and had this stunning view. In the far distance we could see some mountains from Vancouver Island above the clouds. Magical.

We had been driving along the Oregon Coast for half of the day when we arrived in Florence. After lunch we went further south and came to some sand dunes. We drove along these dunes for a while, but when they were never ending we decided to stop and climb them and have a look at the other side. What we found was a huge remote beach. I felt tiny.

One evening we meet my old Professors from Eugene. A long time I did not now if I should ask them to meet. But then I finally did and we had a very funny evening. We went for dinner and had dessert at home. While eating dessert and talking we were working on a jigsaw puzzle with no edge and 5 additional pieces. I am very glad I went back to meet them.