2 Weeks of Being Da Ho

I moved to the West Coast two weeks ago now, and the first thing that hit me was the three hour difference between this strange land and pretty much everyone else I've ever met.

Moscow, Idaho doesn't have too many options as far as transportation goes, so the beginning of my journey was pretty rough. I had a couple of huge bags, a cold, and 12+ hours of travel on me before getting here. Walking up a hill for a solid mile with my bags under the blazing sun was rough, but being unable to find my new apartment was the real pain in the ass. After finding my room and getting settled in, I soon realized that my cold was actually the flu, so I was essentially in bed for almost a week drinking Robitussin, taking Tylenol, and chugging water.

After I regained my health, I started to appreciate the rural world I immersed myself into. I started to explore a land that is mostly marked by valleys and crevices, but it's also very much a town of welcoming, Western folk. It would be an understatement to say that people here are very nice and willing to help despite the slight redneck feel to it.

So far, I've only found three real areas outside my apartment in this town worth going to. A mile to my right is Palouse Mall: the only sign of anything resembling the 21st century. It's pretty small and not very special, but if you're looking for groceries, clothes, pharmaceuticals, Starbucks coffee, and any form of technology, there's no place better. It's also a great place to dump a whole stack of resumes if you're looking for a job.

Main Street is about a mile to my left and it's full of small restaurants, cafes, local banks, and other small businesses. It's also the cultural gem of the town often frequented by hipsters(and others who love farmer's markets/spending hours in a coffee shop), music aficionados(there's a couple of cool music and guitar stores), and college professors. It also has a ton of bars I have yet to check out, but this area is supposed to be huge on beer and micro-brews, so I'm sure I'll make my way around the bars at some point. Or maybe not--pretty much everyone here brews their own beer.

The only other place I've checked out is the campus which is right across from me. It's a pretty big campus compared to Gettysburg, but it's still not as huge as I imagined it would be. Despite the fact that I'm looking for a bike, you can still get from one end of campus to the other with your legs. It's also a great place to go on runs especially with the dry weather of the West(let's just say I don't miss the humidity and heat waves of the Caribbean and East Coast). I haven't really seen much more than the library, but overall it's a beautiful campus and a beautiful area. I still miss the East Coast quite a bit, but living on top of a hill and waking up to this view every day doesn't hurt.