Manzanar Cemetery

Manzanar Cemetery Originally uploaded by musicmuse_ca

I stopped at Manzanar while travelling down Highway 395 on the Eastern Sierras. This was the WWII internment camp for the Japanese who were living on the West Coast during WWII. 

When I first moved to California, I had no knowledge of this shameful piece of US history. One of my co-workers in LA who was of Japanese descent mentioned to me that she grew up there during part of her childhood, and it was from her that I learned of the history of this place. It is well worth a visit if you are in the area. 

It is so hot, dry and incredibly remote. Not so hard to imagine how awful it must have been to be forced to move there, leaving all the comforts of home behind and loosing most of your possessions and properties and businesses simply because your ancestors were born in Japan. Don't forget, these were all US citizens who had committed no crime except that of looking like the enemy. The ultimate irony is that many of the young men from there volunteered to fight for the freedom of the US in WWII, while the rest of their families were locked up at this camp. Their unit was one of the most decorated in Europe and also incurred the most casualties. Not much is left there now, but the interpretive center, some markers of what used to be there and this cemetery standing alone at the foot of the Sierras.

Olmsted Point

olmsted point yosemite Originally uploaded by musicmuse_ca

We made it over Yosemite by dusk, and descended to Mono Lake. The last time I was there, the lake was so dry. It was wonderful to see it full and healthy again. The Eastern Side of the Sierras are a special place for me....

I have hiked Lundy Canyon, and camped out at Mono Lake and Mammoth Mountain. I spent some wonderful days hiking the Ansel Adams Wilderness area. But my most magical memories are of the nights I spent in the BLM area near Mammoth camping out near the illegal hot tubs that some industrious hippies built over the natural geothermal hot springs that dot the area. 

Me and my then boyfriend camped out under the stars, sat in the hot tub at night and watched the Perseids shooting by by the thousands in the big black desert night sky. Some memories are magical and stay with you forever.

me and my dog at 10000 feet in Yosemite

me and my dog at 10000 feet in Yosemite Originally uploaded by musicmuse_ca

Well, here I am during my last visit to Yosemite. We are moving out of California after living here for 25 years and back to where I grew up in NYC. I have spent many wonderful days in Yosemite National Park, so I had to go visit one more time (even though I almost burned out the brakes on my car, but that is another story). 

My first time here, my daughter was 9 years old and now she is with me 20 years later as we leave California and move back East. I am excited and melancholy all at once. I love California and I love New York City too. I can't be in both places at once, so I had to make another choice to leave someplace I love and move back to someplace I miss terribly. 

I hope to be able to spend some time in Yosemite again. I fell in love here about 15 years ago with a guy who was just falling out of love with me at the same time. After that heartbreak, I just fell in love with Yosemite itself. I have stayed in the valley in plush accommodations, tent cabined in White Wolf in the High Country and backpacked in some of the most remote areas of the park enjoying the high summits, the howls of the wolf at the full moon at night, the high mountain wildflowers and the cool mountain lakes. I am grateful for every moment I had to enjoy this special place. I will never forget the gifts the wild mountains have given me.