For My Friends

I have to say that I am quite sad to have left the illustrious town of Squampton. It is one of the most beautfiul cities I have seen and I am thankful to have seen it before the economic boom it is about to go through. I am very happy to say that my last night there was one of the best I have had in some time.
After a late start (6:30 pm) we went bouldering. I was fortunate to see my friend Jak send her V5 or 6 and Logan send his V9. It was amazing to watch such amazing displays of strength and grace. At about ten we came back to the campsite to participate in a little Swedish culture. Our friend Ricko was preparing some cheese fondue. WIth enough cheese for the whole Republic of China we began eating the kilo of cheese and bread (not sure about the metric conversion but its alot). Afterwards we cracked some beers and rolled some celebratory cigarettes and one of the most beautiful moments in my life occurred.
Ricko is here from Switzerland. He is a metal worker and he decided to take a three month vacation one day. He came here with "his friend" and set out for adventure. His journey ended up in Squamish, where he and ourselves were fortunate enough to be neighbors. He met some Swiss "clampers" who took him cragging one day. He came back with the biggest smile on his face and his friends Marco and Staffan were equally elated. He had a blast and the next day went and bought shoes for more. His second day of climbing was by far the best. The guys took him up an area classic called Diedre (6 pitches of 5.8) and then linked it up to the Squamish Buttress ( 7 pitches 10 C) to take him to the top of the Chief. And apparently he was hooked. He went bouldering several times after that and if his english were a bit better I have a feeling it would have been all he talked about.
So my last day a few of us went to town and bought him a present. When the fondue was over and the cigs were finished we handed him his brand new harness. Never have I seen someone so happy from such a small gift in all my life. "This is a dream," he said. He could not contain his feelings and demonstrated one of the most broken yet elogant vocal displays of emotion.
This moment was the highlight of my trip and I would have everything I own stolen if it meant I got to see that again.
So to all my new friends, I am truly feel blessed. No one in this is world is as lucky as I was to get to share such a brief period of time with such a great group of people. I cant wait to see "yall" again.