Leaving home was tough, but the unofficial start of my trip has been a good one! Chilling with Jill was excellent even though Detroit is as much of a hole as it was last time! Karla’s definitely making me see the light in realising that Chicago is the way to go. Speaking of which, meeting Karla, Jill’s best friend, was as great as I’d hoped it would be. She brought her main dude, Matt down from the city with her and the two of them spent a few nights with Jill and I. It was brilliant spending time with them, Jill’s taste in friends is just as excellent as her taste in boyfriends! It was good finally being able to thank Karla in person for the secret missions she’s helped me with too. I loved seeing Jill’s parents again and even got to meet her brother, sisters, nephews and nieces this time around. The days relaxing with Jill’s parents at the lake side house were definitely a highlight. We got a surprising amount done there and good times riding on the pontoon and barbequing were had by all. Libby and Mocha (Jill’s parents’ dogs) had an especially good time and were slobbering all over everybody. Playing with the dogs (and seeing how good Matt was with them) really made me want a pet someday, I know that my brother and at least one of my sisters share my disappointment in not having had a real pet when we were growing up. After being told (repeatedly) by Jill, I’ve come to agree with her in thinking that a goldfish was not a real pet.

During the week, seeing some of Jill’s best buds, Marcie, Adam and Amanda was just as much fun as last time but I’m kinda bummed I didn’t have more time to hang out with them. I’m even more bummed because it’s mainly my fault! I was sick when I headed out to see Jill (that’s the last bloody time I go to a music festival right before I’m supposed to go on holiday!) and I ended up making her sick too. I’m glad we were well enough to do something with them but the whole thing still sucks ass. The sickness thing meant we ended up missing out on meeting Jill’s grandma too.

Even with all that, like I was saying before, the trip out to Detroit was excellent. Seeing Jill’s dad again was great and his partner Carol was lovely. That night was brilliant for another reason too, I finally got to eat my favourite dish that isn’t cooked by my mum again, Jill’s chicken pot pie! I was joking a few days ago that this pie is the real reason I love Jill so much but when I thought about it later I wasn’t sure how much I was actually joking! The world would be a better place if everyone had access to Jill’s chicken pot pie!

The trip also included the first anniversary of the day Jill and I started dating. It was a day to remember. We went apple picking in an unfortunately wet, muddy orchard with Jill’s mum and step-dad. The orchard was really nice and the rain ended up reminding me of home so I was happy, though I’m not so sure everyone else was! Everybody agreed that the cider was good though! The restaurant Jill picked for our dinner that evening was an unexpected delight. Never having had fondue before I wasn’t really sure what to expect but The Melting Pot in Troy was fantastic! The food was incredible and our waiter really helped make the night special, nice work Mike Payne!

All in all, a great trip then. I’m even more excited for Singapore than I was when I left home, I’m expecting very good things, I’ll let you know all about it.

Top: The chicken pot pie; Above: At The Melting Pot