MY TRIP - PART 2
The People

To my surprise there were many people on this trip who came from Arizona. What I learned was that retires who live in Phoenix want to get away from the heat and since Flagstaff is in the northern part of the state it is much cooler, the average daytime temperature while I was there was in the 70's.

There were also many people from Florida with the same desire, to escape the Florida heat. There were a few people that came from New York and Chicago. I was the only one from Massachusetts and received a prize because I had traveled the furthest. Not to get excited, the prize was a leather luggage tag!

I would say the average age of a "STUDENT" was 75-80 years old. One couple that I met have been married for 66 years and I figured they have to be a good 88 years old. They spend their summers traveling from one summer school to another.

There were a few ladies who needed the help of a cane to get around but that did not stop them from participating in any of the trips. Many times we had to walk on uneven terrrain, go uphill, down hill and with an elevation of 7000 feet, it was not easy, but these plucky ladies did it! As a matter of fact one lady that needed a cane took a side trip and went white water rafting!! I did that about ten years ago, that was enough for me.

Two ladies were the babies in the group, they were only in their 60's, had their own car and had driven from Florida and after summer school had plans for more sightseeing in the area.

Our group had a reserved section in the dining room, some tables were set for two, four, six, ten or twelve, that gave us an opportunity to meet many of the people in the group.

One big plus for me was spending time with my cousin who joined me on this trip. She lives in Florida and I see her when I go south for the winter. We are not only cousins but good friends who grew up and played together when we were children. It was a joy to spend time with her and reminisce about "the good old days."

There were a number of ladies that come from the Delray area so when I get down to Florida this winter we are planning a "school reunion, class of 2005."

Millie

Related website: Senior Summer School - Flagstaff

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