Travelog for: Ranil

Hi Mama!

We took a morning constitutional (no pun intended! ) around the park and stopped at the Capitol Building to pose for a photo. 



Ranil

Hola Mama!

We spent a fine afternoon along the waterfront. 




This is the Sacramento River, which runs from the top of California down by Sacramento to the San Francisco Bay Area and the Pacific Ocean.

We said goodbye to Cheerio and TV-TV today.  We'll especially miss that quacking!  I had such a good time on Madeline Island with Cheerio, and she was with me when I became Voyager of the Week.  I will be voyaging onwards too soon, so maybe our paths will cross again some day. 

Dear Mama,

We headed west today.  Not for great adventures but because Miss Kate said it’s time for me and Dottie to get some education and culture.  I thought we had enuff lernin but she thinks we could use un poco mas.   


A pretty day in the city, no?



We were getting a bit peckish as we headed south of San Francisco.



So we pulled over at a rest stop and shared a banana.



Love, Ranil

Mama,

We left the highway finally.  Are we going here?  Miss Kate said, no, it’s the linear accelerator where things go very very fast.  We’re pretty much slow pokes, and it sounds dangerous besides.



Finally, Mama!  We’re at Stanford University, but Miss Kate promised not to leave us here for a semester … just for an hour.  Still, I can say, I went to Stanford, can’t I? 

Oh, did I tell you about our new friend?  She’s from a small town near Milan in Italy.  I asked her if she knew my next host, but she doesn’t.  Oh, well! 



We found interesting things on this campus from TV-sized parking spaces to totem poles.



I especially liked the bookstore.




More later! 

Ranil

Hi again Mama!

Okay, we had a dinner date so we drove on Campus and Palm Drives through Stanford, then on University Avenue through Palo Alto and then down to Saratoga in the South San Francisco Bay where we had a more satisfying meal than hummus chips! 

Hola again Mama!

We woke up early, had a quick dip in the hot tub and were off for some culture, as we did education yesterday.




The culture is Scottish!  We were at such a big fair!  It’s called the Scottish Highland Games and it’s in Pleasanton, California. 


We ate lunch and listened to a great band, Golden Bough.



I enjoy all types of music!  I don’t discriminate based on size! 


And there was lots more to see.



This is hammer tossing.


This is weight tossing.


This man was helping her tune her bagpipes.





This is the kind of dancing Miss Kate does.


We were serenaded by a friend of Miss Kate’s, Mary Rose.


I had a slightly sick feeling in my gut when we stopped to see the birds of prey.


I wasn’t turning my back on this guy.  They call him kestrel.  I call him killer.  :/





Do you think he’s a king?


Ah, this man was testing gun powder with a big pop and a puff!



We ended the day with some very mixed emotions.  Miss Kate handed us to a pirate.  Not cool, man.  Not cool.


But, all in all, a great day!
We got home and played on a tea towel Miss Kate bought at the hall of souvenirs.  See?  I’m getting on the bus and Dottie Mouse is sitting on the window ledge on the upper deck. 


Love,

Ranil

Dear Mama,

My new host is waiting for me in Italy.  It was time to say goodbye to everyone here and give an especially big hug to Dottie Mouse.  I thanked my host for taking me from Wisconsin to “Scotland.”  And I’m sending you my souvenirs, Mama, including a Madeline Island ABC Book bookmark signed by the artist and some green salt water taffy.  I will try not to eat the pistachio taffy before I lick the envelope shut.   



See you from Italy, Mama!  I miss you and hope you’re having a fun time with Timothy III. and Fiona Yenien.  We all so enjoyed looking at their amazing journey through Bolivia.

Love,
Ranil

Hi mummy,
I'm arrived in Italy! I tok some delicious biscuits with me and my host liked them so much, she prepared me a "cappuccino" and we had a break together. I've also met a big frog who lives here.
Bye for now,
Ranil

Hi mum,
I'm spending the afternoon to the park with my friends Jelle and MX Rabbit, we're having a big fun playing together!
Love,
Ranil

Hi mum,
I went to the seaside for one day, the weather was good even if this season is not warm enough to bath.
Love,
Ranil

Hi mum,
Jelle and I went to buy a pizza! It looks delicious, doesn't it?
Love,
Ranil

Hi mum,
at the moment I guess that the weather is much better in Chile than in Italy! Today it rains but we take our umbrella and we visit the Sforzesco Castle which is placed in the center of Milan. It's a Medieval Castle and inside there are museums of paintings, armors, furnitures, Roman, Greek and Egyptian archaeology and so on.
Love,
Ranil

Hi mum,
today the weather is better and also the castle looks better with the sun! I'm sending you some more pictures!
Love,
Ranil

Hi mum,
today I'm to the Bresso airport, a small airport for private planes. I'm thinking to buy my own plane...I think it can be useful for a TV, don't you think so?
Love,
Ranil