First Yosemite Post!

So here it is: the first post on my life here in Yosemite. I arrived in my new home last Sunday afternoon. I live in El Portal, California, which is a tiny town just outside the Arch Rock entrance to Yosemite National Park.

El Portal is comprised of Yosemite employee housing, a small elementary school, a community hall, a post office, a market, and the world’s most overpriced gas station. The town is situated in the middle of a canyon formed by the Merced River, which is pretty much as beautiful as that sounds. We’re literally feet from the banks of the river, and I’ve been told that when the spring thaw starts, El Portal is suddenly much closer to the Merced than it is right now. I can’t wait.

Here’s a short list of things I already really like about living in El Portal:
--My roomies - beautiful, smart southern gals who are up for as much adventuring, beer-drinking, and general mayhem as we can fit in to these four months. And they do their dishes!
--I can’t talk enough about the proximity of my apartment to the Merced River. I can hear it whenever I step out on the porch. And smell the water.
--The view out our living room window. Oak trees, canyon walls, sunrises before work. Anna Bunny likes it too. She watches birds.
--Bear-proof dumpsters and recycle bins.
--Monday night yoga in the elementary school gym.
--The fact that when one of my roomies and I stepped out on the porch last night there was a deer munching on the tree right in front of us. It didn’t even look up.
--The “street” I live on turns into a beautiful ass-kicker of a trail just a short walk from our building.
--The elementary school playground has a kiddie-sized climbing wall.
--Sal’s taco night. This really deserves it’s own post, so I’ll elaborate later, but every other Thursday a taco truck pulls in front of the community hall. The whole town shows up, beer is sold, mayhem ensues.

Overall things are going really well here, I will post again soon with photos and thoughts about my internship.