Bangor, Maine

[BangOR is how you pronounce it btw]

Wow. This was the chillest, most fun trip I’ve been on yet. I had a blast. I left super early Thursday morning to get to the airport. I was really hoping to get my mission call the day before so I wouldn’t have to wait, but fate would have it otherwise. My call came the day I flew out. God must have a sense of humor. I flew to Philadelphia where we had a layover that practically lasted a lifetime. Which, if you’ve never been to that airport, is the worst airport to get stuck in. I had Carter, Chris, and Brittany there so I wasn’t alone which made it bearable. Oh and we also had this bike. 

Oh my gosh I forgot to mention what happened on my first flight! Lolz. I decided to take 2 Benadryl’s so I could sleep the 5-hour flight away. I had a window seat right behind the first class celebs so I had a lot room and there was no one sitting in the middle seat, so I had plenty of room to spread out and get comfortable. About halfway through the flight I woke myself from my sleep talking, which there was no recovering from. I think I tried to pretend I was talking on the phone when I woke up, which, HAHA THERE IS NO SERVICE ON PLANES. I went back to sleep and when I woke up, I asked the girl next to me if we were about to land. She completely ignored me. I think she thought I was sleep talking again.

The flight to Maine was short, and the lady I was sitting next to was named Cathy, and she called herself chatty Cathy, and that name could not have fit her better. She is such a sweetheart. She told me all about her life how she and her husband travel and cruise around the world – they’ve gone on 6 cruises this year already! What an adventurer. That flight was the most gorgeous flight I’ve ever taken- the sky was completely blanketed in an insanely beautiful cloud. It was amazing. And of course I had to get a pic with chatty Cathy. 

As it turned out, our race director flew us out a day early on accident. On Friday there really wasn’t anything to do, so we just packaged metals and color packets together, went to Chipotle, and set up for PPU. Super chill. That night we had our super meet and then we went out for our staff dinner. The staff was super small- only 16 people. It was really nice not to have a huge group though. We went to this place called McLaughlin’s that looked like a 2 story house that was totally open to the outside. In the front there was a fireplace and an area to hang out, and it was right along this little marina with all these trees on the other side of the river. It was so gorgeous.  It was there that I had my first lobster experience. It was really fun to have a lobster just sitting right in front of me and trying not to think about the life it had before being caught, and the kids it had/ wanted to have. Maybe it even had dreams of becoming something other than dinner.  I had a bib on and everything and had to pull the lil lobsert apart. The bib did not help- I still have butter all over my jacket. What is it with me and getting food all over myself EVERY MEAL?

The next day we had PPU and setup at the venue, which was right alongside a super pretty river. We got done SO fast- everyone just worked super hard together and got their stuff done. It was awesome. We got back to the hotel at about 7:45- it was fantastic. I’ve never gotten done that early with PPU and setup. It almost felt like we had cheated- how could we already be done? That’s basically how I felt with the whole trip- it was so easy. That night we went to downtown Bangor which was pretty cute and laid back and had some fish tacos because I have eaten fish tacos every time I am out of town (I just barely realized this). 

The next morning we only had to get up at 4:40- again- what?! In Amarillo we had to be ready to go by 4am! The sun rises at about 5am in Bangor so it felt like the morning was already over by the time the race started. We got all cleaned up by ONE O CLOCK!!!! Like we were driving home by 1!! It was pure insanity.

We got all ready, and then Brittany, Connor, Carter, Chris, and I drove 2 hours to Portland to go see the Portland Head Light. OH MY GOSH. It was unreal. It was insanely beautiful and picturesque. I was amazed. Intrigued. Enlightened. Romanced. Lolz. It was really foggy and drizzly, but it was still super pretty. We took some pics and then got ice cream which made me sicky (when will I ever learn) and then headed back to Bangor. I am so glad we made the trip down there. I wouldn’t have experienced Maine without seeing a lighthouse, and when am I ever going to go back to Maine? Probz never which is extremely unfortunate cuz it's probably the prettiest state in the USA.

The next day our flight wasn’t until 3:30PM, so we took a little road trip to Acadia National Park, which is one of the islands in Maine right on the coast. Oh my GOSH it was seriously so beyond beautiful. We drove around and saw all these islands and boats in the ocean in the bay. We walked to this place called Jordan Pond, a mini lake in this wooded forest area, and it was gorgeous. Then we were driving and saw this dock area with all these boats in the little harbor area that led out to the ocean. Me and Chris got out and took some peectures- and I saw a jelly fish!! I'm still mad at myself that I didn't touch it. And guess what I just realized. This summer I touch the Pacific ocean and the Atlantic ocean. I say touched because I didn't go swimming while in Maine. My finger just touched the ocean. It still counts.

I am honestly still blown away by how beautiful that state is.

The Bangor airport is the smallest airport I have ever been to in my entire life. The arrivals and departures weren’t even on an electric screen- they were on like a menu board like you’d see at McDonalds! It was insane. Oh and there were 4 gates. What a zoo. Then we made it to Philly once again. And guess what? Another layover. I was literally dying to get home so I could open my call. I finally got home at 1AM instead of 9:30, and my fam was waiting for me with a map so I could get right to it! I’ll talk about my mission call in another post.

I realized today that Maine was my last Color Run trip, which is so depressing. I have had the most amazing experiences working for The Color Run. What an amazing chapter in my life to have to close! I am so grateful for the people I worked with, the skills I gained, the places I got to see, and all the fun I had. And I can’t believe I got to count it as my internship and get school credit! Wowza. The Color Run really is the #happiest5kontheplanet. 

Best summer ever.