10/2/19 to 10/4/19 - Hermiston, OR to Boise, ID (250 miles) four nights in Tim and Penny’s garage! Free!
Boise, Idaho
We backtracked through Oregon and Idaho to visit some new friends Who live in a beautiful home near Boise. We met Tim and Penny at Red Bay, AL while waiting to get warranty work done at Tiffin. This is where the #rvlifestyle really becomes apparent. In a normal life, you meet neighbors and co-workers and might be just acquaintances for years. When you travel in an RV, you make friends fast, and if they’re full timers, you usually have a lot in common. At least among Tiffin owners, the men are VERY knowledgeable about their rigs and can spend HOURS talking about minute details of TPMSs or generators or tow packages. The women can hold their own, too, don’t get me wrong, but many like me, have hobbies on the road to keep them busy while the men play with their RVs. At Tiffin, everyone spends their days sitting and waiting their turn to get into a service bay - and hang out together talking about where they’ve been, their mishaps and sharing advice. Bill EATS THIS UP. I get bored quickly.
This is the case with Tim and Penny. They have a bigger, nicer diesel rig, but tolerate their gasoline-guzzling baby brother well. Each home in their neighborhood has a garage space big enough for a motorhome with slides extended and full hookups! They invited us to come stay in their garage and we accepted. So Bill and Tim talked and Penny and I shared our creative crafts. She is a quilter and knitter and dabbles some in crochet. I am just learning crochet and had my illustrations to show, so we talked a lot about materials and projects, families and adventures with our husbands.
Boise has a cute downtown. Tim and Penny were gracious hosts and showed us the area on foot. Immediately I found an outdoor venue called the Freak Alley Gallery, created entirely by street artists. I’m sure the art changes often, but what a great way to show of your street art talents in a more acceptable way. There was a high school architecture class on a field trip. It made me miss my students a little.
There’s also a thriving Basque community here. These are a persecuted minority from Spain who are great shepherds, and found a home here in Idaho. There are restaurants and cultural activities, a museum and school to teach students how to speak Basque. the docents were so enthusiastic to share their knowledge with us!
I loved this stop! Again, great food, company and conversation. But I know I’m an introvert, because three weeks of visiting and I’m ready to rest. I found a bumper sticker I should have gotten for Bill that read, “I hate days when I have to get up and go places!” While we’ve really enjoyed our time with friends and family, were looking forward to some down time. So this is what retirement in like, huh.
