It's A Wonderful Life

April 21 - flights booked to Jamaica for family reunion.  Looking forward to hanging out with my dad for a couple of weeks and seeing my 93 year old grandmother.

June 29 - pull an allnighter to pack, all the while ranting back and forth with sister and a duo of cousins re crazy, last minute family drama.  Thank God for the chance to vent or my head might just have blown off.

June 30 12:45 p.m. - British Airways flight delayed 90 minutes due to minor technical difficulties.  On the plus side, find out that crowding has bumped me to Business Class.  Nice!

June 30 1:45 p.m. - board flight that leaves less late than expected.

June 30 1:50 p.m. - am offered champagne by nice waiter steward.  Am good and take juice instead. 

June 30 2:15 p.m. - because my Business Class seat cubicle just isn't perfect enough, I switch from aisle seat next to someone else to empty middle double seat.  Now that's the ticket!

June 30 2:25 p.m. - first round of alcohol cart makes it's pass.  It order a Kir Royale 'cause I'm smooth like that.

June 30 2:30 p.m. - already am stretched out on reclining seat with free socks, puffy blanket, and movie previews playing out on my private video screen.

June 30 2:40 p.m. - have just given my 4-course meal order and am contemplating the extensive wine list. 

June 30 3:00 p.m. - I give the salad a 3/10, but the smoked sea trout with horseradish creme fraiche is definitely an 8.

June 30 3:10 p.m. - apparently I do not drink anywhere near the rate of the Brits either.  I'm still only halfway through my Kir Royale AND my Bordeaux, and the stewards have come by to ask me if I need a refill twice already!

June 30 3:35 p.m. - grilled beef is slightly tough but the ragout with buttered leeks and wilted spinach make it still quite tasty.

June 30 3:50 p.m. - these stewards are the most efficient ever!  Let me digest a bit before you bring the next course, why don't you?  I'll have to save the Baileys till later. 

June 30 5:00 p.m. - 2 glasses of wine, a Kir Royale and a Baileys have me quite mellow.  The movie's pretty good too.  How To Train Your Dragon: 4.5/5 stars.  Time for my nap now.

June 30 6:40 p.m. - am wide awake again.  Weird.  Is this all the sleep I'm going to get?  Maybe I should get back to the drinking.

June 30 8:45 p.m. - Up In The Air was both poignant and sad.  Does it say I'm cynical that I guessed George Clooney's love interest was married the whole time?

June 30 10:00 p.m. - "afternoon tea" on board involves finger sandwiches and scones with jam and clotted cream.  If only I could travel this way all the time!

June 30 10:30 p.m. - am ready to disembark.  What are the odds of a similar glimpse of the high life on my way back?  Sadly, probably not that high.  But hey, no time to dwell.  Jamaica here I come!

- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone

Airport Pick-Up

This is why I like Irish men. Many of my Irish female friends may dispute their value, but there's something unique in the blend of shyness, humor, and lager-induced bravado that can be quite appealing at times.

Last week was a perfect example. Somehow, I got picked up on my flight to the states, without even realizing it! It was like a dating "Sixth Sense" - the ball didn't drop for me until almost the very end :-)

This guy was smooth, patient, non-threatening, but not afraid to move in for the kill at the end of the silent chase. From sitting across the aisle from he and his buddies on the plane, to the final walk and wait at Baggage Claim, it was an exercise in patient hunting. And, by the time the prey copped on, she was already hip deep in conversation, admitting that no she wasn't married, and willingly passing on her mobile number.

Now, I like to think I'm pretty self-aware, but, in this case, cluelessness probably served to keep me calm, unflustered, and distant enough at the start to ensure that the chase kept going. Rather than anxious and self-conscious, I ended up feeling pretty pleased with both myself and him, and smiling a bit as well. The smile had to get bigger when, as we caught up with each other in the snakey Customs line, he sent a smiling wink and his friends chorused out "Hi Sirmelja!" :-)

All in all, an interesting flight.

Reflections in an Airport

I recently flew to Miami for a sad occasion - the death of a very much loved aunt. I'm actually still there, writing in a spare moment while spending time with family. Thankfully, I hadn't had to attend a funeral of a loved one in years before this, so I'm trying to focus on the positives rather than dreading the inevitable outcome of my certain age where this will start happening more and more :-(

But, that actually wasn't the point of why I started to write this. While waiting for my next connection, on one of the layovers of the flight here, a few thoughts hit me:

• That first few hours on U.S. soil always brings a welter of mixed emotions. I feel blessedly normal (it's so much easier to blend in) but jarringly anonymous at the same time (there's nothing that special about me here... weird). In Ireland, I'm kind of exotic (not that many other Americans/black Americans/Jamaican-Americans running around). Here, I'm a dime a dozen. I'm literally of two minds about it.

• When did the whole world switch from laptops to netbooks? (All of a sudden, laptops look big and clunky). And, how can I get one??

• Being surrounded by rushing, semi-panicked strangers, tight spaces, bright lights and loud, clashing noises is NOT the best place to be when the worst sinus headache in the world comes crashing down on you! Don't. Do. That. Again.

Sun Holiday - Cheap and Cheerful!

I love Portugal. Love it, LOVE IT!

Sigh... this is actually kind of a hard admission for me to make because Portugal has been my travel bugbear for years. The one western european country I'd never been to. Ever since - gulp, I'll admit it - I was kicked out of there years ago.

Yes, I was expelled from a foreign country! Sigh again, I can hear my friends shrieking with laughter right now. This is an old story, one they've heard before.

Short story, sweet... 19 year old girl enjoying semester abroad in Scotland makes plans for Spring Break with friends in Portugal. Neither she nor travel agent (this was *shudder* decades ago... remember travel agents?) think to check on whether someone traveling on a Jamaican passport would need a visa. The border agents at the Portugal airport were happy to enlighten me and not at all dismayed by my buckets of tears.

But, all things work together for good. Because I was deported back to London, I got to meet cousins who'd been estranged from the family and triggered a cascade of family reunions. Now it's just a funny story from my college days and a cautionary tale to always, always check the details!

Anyway, enough with the distractions. Here's what you're really here for. Pictures! I just got back a week ago from 7 days in Lisbon and the Algarve coast (Lagos and Faro) where I took over 300 of the darned things. There was a bounty of really great ones to choose from, but I chose only a handful of the best to subject you to. You can thank me later.

One of Lisbon's main squares - Rossio aka Praca Dom Pedro IV

Approaching one of Lisbon's main scenic lookouts, the Miradoura Santa Luzia

Amazing tile work in the Palacio Nacional da Sintra. Sintra was the summer retreat of Portugal's kings and aristocracy. Gorgeous architecture and colors, like a Disney fairytale town.

Fonte Mourisca (Arab Fountain) on the outskirts of Sintra, where many of the locals come for fresh spring drinking water

Church of Santa Maria on the long uphill hike to the Castelo dos Mouros that overlooks Sintra

Inside the church at the Mosteiro dos Jeronimos in Belem, a suburb of Lisbon

Sentry outpost at the Torre de Belem, an offshore fortress built in the 1500's

One of Lisbon's trams climbing the hill from the Baixa to the Bairro Alto neighborhoods

Street art along the tram line - too beautiful to just call it graffiti

Street in Lagos, a town in the Algarve coastal region

Huh?? Art installation in the entryway to Lagos' fortress museum

House detail in Lagos

Cliff detail at the Ponta da Piedade cliffs outside Lagos

These trees are all over the place. I wonder what they are?

Cliff detail at the Punta da Piedade beach outside Lagos. Beautiful place!

Punta da Piedade beach

Faro is usually only a quick stop for people flying into the Algarve and then moving on somewhere else, but it's worth a day's look in it's own right. This was a beautiful little corner inside the walls of the Cidade Velha (historic old town)

Almost tropical scene on the walk around the city walls of the Cidade Velha of Faro

More views along the walls of the Cidade Velha

They certainly know how to set the stage here. Who could resist taking a picture of this scene?

Just inside the main gate (Arco da Vila) of the Cidade Velha

Street scene in the center of Faro

Did I mention that I fell in love with all the colors? Oh, and the music. And the amazing (and amazingly cheap) food! I almost overdosed on fresh seafood. Not to mention the port wine. This place is definitely on my "must return" list.

Aww, shucks!

Yesterday I got this totally unexpected and wonderful email from Tripbase.com telling me that I'd won an award! How cool is that?!

It seemed they scoured (scratched?) the web for travel-related blogs and somehow came across mine.

I didn't win, but I was a finalist for the Expat Blog category.

Amazing! Thanks so much. I guess this thing does get read after all! :-)

Paradise Found

Sunshine filtering through the trees, splashing on the redwood deck. Hanging baskets of orchids and poinsettias in tubs beneath palm and fruit trees swaying in the breeze. Water trickling musically in the new fountain off the front deck while the wind coaxes impromptu melodies from hidden chimes. Dog snoozing on the newly cleaned carpets, back legs twitching in happy dreams. Niece and nephew cuddling with me on the couch, manic grin on T's face, A's curly braids jiggling as she happily tells the story of her day. Sis and BIL snogging in the kitchen. Me soaking it all in.

Home Again

I don't think I told you (my lack of Internet is still getting in the way of anything but the most basic blogging - this update is via iPhone), but I just arrived home to the Triangle (NC) for a friend's wedding and general having of fun. I'm looking forward to seeing loads of friends (I've had to resort to writing out my schedule 'cause it's packed full!), a quick jaunt to Miami to see family, and taking care of a few errands.

I got here Friday afternoon and the wedding was yesterday at Fearrington House in Chapel Hill. It was beautiful, but relaxed and fun. A total success! Weeell, except for the grooms's aunt tripping and dislocating her shoulder, but aside from that....!

Today I get to see my church family at CHBC and lounge around at Weaver Street in Carrboro, before meeting up with my cousin and her daughter later this evening.

I LOVE vacation! :-)

Escape From Cork

After a week of true work hellishness (though I take pains to point out that this still does not bring my job anywhere even close to the status of Job From Hell), I escaped my rampant sense of failure and inadequacy by jaunting off to Galway for the weekend to meet a friend.

Galway was great - pretty town on the coast with loads of time spent just walking around, eating, drinking and people watching :-) It was made even better by the fact that we had almost perfect weather! Sunny, blue skies and gorgeous temps. I had to wear my sunglasses! And I even pushed up the sleeves on my sweater a few times. Amazing.

Sadly, no pictures of the pretty town, my amazingly small B&B room with the Thumbelina-sized shower stall, or of me looking stylishly "hot" because I accidentally reformatted the memory card :-( But I'll be going back, I'm sure, so will have some to post in the future.

A first

I miss lots of people. Lots. And again I say, LOTS! But for the first time, I'm missing someone who left me behind rather than the other way around.

The Wayfaring Stranger and I had very little in common. She - Australian, blonde, mother of 2 kids (both with the cutest aussie accents!), and married to great guy.  I almost always end of friends with my girlfriends' husbands. They tend to make good choices :-)

Me - none of the above.

Yet, somehow, from the potential disaster of 2 kids getting plonked down next to a stranger at a dance recital, came a great friendship. Maybe it was our one thing in common, being expats from the colonies, but we bonded immediately and proceeded to make sure we always had a blast together. Whether putting together homemade pizzas in their kitchen, trekking to faraway festivals, or shivering together on a deserted beach in the middle of an Irish winter, it always worked.

Alas, life (and hubby's job) took her away from me and back to that sundrenched land of surfing and koalas.

I miss her.

Barcelona memories

Here are just a few of my favorite scenes from one of my favorite cities. Dominated by Gaudi, I know, but he's just so good!


Casa Batllo facade


Casa Batllo rooftop


An actual picture of the blogger!


Parque Guell fountain detail


Parque Guell walk


La Sagrada Familia - Passion Facade


Joan Miro statue


Las Ramblas denizens

Gaudi rocks!

After 18 years, I have officially resumed my traveling adventures. Somehow I don't count moving to Ireland. I live here now, I'm supposed to try to see everything. But, maybe it's actually something closer to why I don't count Britain either. Being able to understand the language (mostly, with careful attention) takes away some of that adrenaline-fueled mix of excitement and terror that makes for a real getaway.

Thanks to Aer Lingus, I flew to Barcelona this weekend for less than it cost me to take the train to Dublin a month ago. How weird is that? Yes mom, I traveled by myself :-) I think I needed to do it to prove to myself that I could. Barcelona was great. Yes, the language caused a couple of hiccups, but having grown up in Miami definitely helped in negotiating some of the basics. Plus, gesturing is almost the universal language. I got by.

Barcelona is a beautiful city with a great Mediterranean feel - palm trees interspersed with knobby, almost aspen-like trees. Very walkable with intriguing little squares and something interesting around every corner. Amazing architecture. The colors, ceramics, and organic shapes of Modernisme were just astonishing. I used up the majority of my camera's battery power taking shots of all things Gaudi - Casa Batllo! La Sagrada Familia!! The man was a genius. Needless to say, I can't wait to go back, though I definitely plan to drag someone else with me next time.



I promise, my pictures will be coming soon. I'm hoping I got some good ones. The camera I borrowed from my sister seems to just eat battery power, so I'm not sure I got all the shots I tried for.