Child's play

Yesterday I left Cologne for Cambridge to visit my brother Nick. Steffi took me to the train station at around 11 AM. I took one train one stop and then switched trains. The second train took me directly into the Dusseldorf airport. We were in a bit of a hurry, so Steffi advised me to purchase my train ticket from the train company website. While on the first train, I did just that. It work perfectly and I received a little PDF of the ticket on my phone. When the train's ticket checker came by, I was ready with my eTicket. Unfortunately, the old guy was not pleased. He started yelling at me that these tickets must be "printed -- PRINTED --- PPPPRINNNTED." I just stared at him wondering what in the world he wanted me to do right now. Eventually, he just walked away. The funny thing is that each time I have traveled internationally lately, a random old German has lectured me extensively about something irrelevant.

When the train arrived at the airport, I made my way to the gate with just enough time to grab a sandwich and some Vitamin Water. The water was much more tasty than in the US. I wonder what's different in their recipe. To board the flight, we walked out on the Tarmac (where it was snowing). This seems to be a theme in Europe. They are a big fan of boarding the plane from the outside. It certainly feels very exciting. Luckily, that was the only excitement. Not only did Air Berlin have better take offs and landings, they weren't selling scratch off lottery tickets or cigarettes. When I exited the plane, the very nice flight attendant handed me two chocolate Air Berlin hearts.

Just before exiting the plane, I checked into the London airport (Stansted I think) on Foursquare. Foursquare had lots of tips from frustrated travelers who were frustrated about the immigration process at this airport. I assumed it must have been random and headed into the airport. The line at immigration was very long with only a two workers processing non-EU citizens.

When I finally got got to the front of the line, the woman who processing people seemed immediately unhappy. She had already kicked two people out of line before me... something I've never actually seen before. I hoped it would go well. This is how our conversation really went:
Immigration: You didn't fill out your occupation.
Me: Oh, I'm so sorry! I didn't see that field.
Immigration: If you would read the form, you would see it.
Me: I'm so sorry. I must be overlooking that field. Can you point to it?
Immigration: Read the form.
(I scrambled to find the blank field and scrawled in the word "Marketing" and handed it back to the agent.)
Immigration: How long will you be here?
Me: Two days.
Immigration: Why are you here?
Me: To visit my brother.
Immigration: Why is your brother here?
Me: He's in graduate school.
Immigration: So, you are returning to the US in two days? (Said in the voice that showed she definitely thought I should be going back ASAP).
Me: No, then I'm going to another country (Let's call it Country A - I will save the name for later so as to not spoil the surprise for my readers).
Immigration: Why are you going there?
Me: To visit a friend.
Immigration: And then are you going BACK TO THE US?'
Me: No, then I'm going to another country (I'll also save this name).
Immigration: (In a skeptical voice) Do you already have a plane ticket for this?
Me: Yes.
Immigration: I'm going to need to see it.
Me: Well, I don't have it printed, but I can show you my itinerary.
Immigration: (looking at the itinerary on my cell phone) This ticket isn't leaving from Country A. What's going on?
Me: I'm also going to another country.
Immigration: Fine, you can come in.

Whew... That was the longest conversation I have ever had with immigration. There must really be a giant flow of young American women trying to sneak into the UK from Germany. :-) We are a dangerous bunch with our Burberry jeans and Lululemon hoodies. Oh, and apparently Foursquare knows everything...

Unfortunately, my extended chat with the immigration agent caused me to miss my train to Cambridge. I caught the next one an hour later. Sitting on the train next to me was a tall, young guy from Holland. He was also going to Cambridge. When I asked what was taking him to Cambridge, he immediately (and with no hesitation) said, "I just failed out of my own college. I was partying all the time trying to make new friends in a new place. But it back fired and I failed. I'm now going to Cambridge to take an English class. I want to be able to put something on my résumé for this year besides working at McDonald's." I wondered what the poor guy's parents must think and how in the world he could spill such information to a stranger.

From the train station, I took a taxi to Nick's dorm. The lives in what I would simplify down as a dorm, but is actually called Darwin College. It's a very interesting old place that overlooks a little river. We took a long walk around to check out Cambridge and eventually met up with two of his OSU friends for dinner.

After dinner, I took a cab to my hostel. I walked up to the counter and spoke to a gruff woman in her early 40s. She seemed very unhappy or something... Something negative. She drilled off information about the hostel. I attempted to casually ask two questions, one being the time of breakfast.
Me: What time is breakfast served?
Hostel: Don't ask me this. It's not time yet. I will give you this information when it's time. Just wait.
(The hostel worker gives a long sigh)
Hostel: So, let me tell you about breakfast. It is served from 7:30 am to 9:30 am.
Then as she wrapped up my checkin, she asked about my room.
Hostel: So, you are staying in a double room. By yourself. Is that correct?
Me: Yes.
Hostel: Are you sure?
Me: Yes.
Hostel: Are you sure it's just you?
Me: Yes.
Hostel: So nobody else is going to visit you?
Me: No.
Hostel: Well, if anyone visits you,you will have to check them in at the front desk. They cannot just go into your room. They must be checked in.

I definitely had my fill of strange people for one day. Time to sleep.

Small world

Today was my second day in Cologne. I slept in late and when I woke up, Steffi and her roommate were making an awesome German breakfast. This means there were different kinds of bread, boiled eggs, and toppings. The toppings ranged from cheese to jelly to meats. The idea is to mix and match things with the breads.

In the middle of the day, Steffi and I rode the train to visit the cathedral in the city and walk along the river. Afterward, we went in search of hot chocolate and out of nowhere, we bumped into Steffi's parents. What a nice surprise! Steffi grew up here and has never just bumped into them before.

This evening, I went to the grocery store to pick up a few items that we don't have in the US. Being a foodie, one of my favorite activities in a foreign country is an extensive grocery store trip. I love to see different fruits, candies, and especially different chip flavors. I'm eating a newly acquired package of Haribo candy as I type this.

In preparation for another big day ahead, I'm taking it easy tonight.

Planes, trains, and automobiles

After my exciting adventures in Dublin, I was off to visit friends in Germany. I booked a flight from Dublin to this tiny airport called Maastricht from there. I knew I'd be taking a bus and three trains to Cologne (Koln) where my friend Antje would pick me up by car. Throughout the day, I often felt like Mr. Bean because I only had 3 hours of sleep the night before.

I flew with a budget airline called Ryan Air. I had heard it was a strange airline, but experiencing it was much more odd than I anticipated. First, we had to board the plane by walking out onto the Tarmac. The plane boards like a cattle call where you can sit anywhere unless you pay a fee (they're big on fees) for an assigned seat. Luckily, I had an assigned seat in the front row. Unluckily, it was covered it water from rain blowing in the door.

When we took off, it became clear that the flight staff felt very proud to have their jobs. Not that I blame them, but you would think they would be more proud of a different airline. Once airborne, they started selling all kinds of food. Their carts looked like someone had dumped out a vending machine on them. In addition, they were selling cigarettes and SCRATCH OFF LOTTERY TICKETS. No joke. The plane's landing was no less surprising when we hit the ground with a huge thud. I heard other passengers saying that Ryan Air always has these landings and they've just had to learn to cope with them.

When I got into the airport, the challenge to get to Cologne started. While I was waiting for my luggage, I fired up Foursquare to check in. A message popped up, "Congats! You haven't been to The Netherlands in two years." My first thought was that Foursquare must have been broken. My total airport commute would be two hours to Cologne. How could I be in The Netherlands? I was looking around for clues. Everything was finally confirmed when I saw the wooden Dutch shoes in the airport gift store. I really was in The Netherlands and wow, I was REALLY tired.

Despite my fatigue, I made the bus and the three trains on time with no issues. At the bus stop, a college student asked me if I was also on spring break. This may end up being the highlight of the trip.

My friend Antje picked me up at the train station. We drove to her new house were I was able to visit her husband Thomas and their new baby, Emma. Everything was great. Emma is so sweet. Meeting me was her first English lesson. Thomas made us some tasty German waffles and cherries, and we talked for a few hours. Their new house (that is really nice) was built just a few months ago. It's a special kind of house that was completed in one week or less. After the first day, they were given the keys to the house. Talk about good German engineering!

After a nice German dinner complete with breads, cheeses, and meats, Antje drove me to my friend Steffi's apartment in Cologne. I know Steffi from Memphis where she was an intern at FedEx a few years ago. Steffi had just completed her school's final exams earlier in the day. As a result, a big group of her friends were going out to celebrate. We went to a huuuge bar that is built in an old factory or warehouse space. It's probably the largest bar (and most crowded) that I've ever seen in my life. It was also an experience to see so many young people. In Germany, you can legally start drinking at 16 (although i think the club was 18+). I had a great time meeting Steffi's friends, trying the local beer, and dancing the night away.

Goodbye Dublin

My last day in Dublin was nothing short of eventful. It included a few pubs, fish and chips, and sushi. But, I wanted to do something a little different. At first I thought of going to salsa again... But I ended up at another place, the Laughter Lounge.

The Laughter Lounge is one of Dublin's best comedy venues. It reminds me a lot of the standup places in LA. There was a famous comic from the UK performing and then about 5 other local comics.

I sat on the side, somewhat visible to stage, but not right up front. Most everyone at the event was local (something I find very interesting to experience). When the tables started to fill up, two nice guys asked if they could sit at my extra chairs.

When the show started, it immediately became clear that there's a lot of audience "participation" in the show. The emcee would tease various audience members relentlessly (but in a funny light hearted way). At one point, he asked if there were any foreigners in the audience. One woman in the back raised her hand, Katia. Thank goodness I hadn't been outed. The emcee went on to discuss how charming Irishmen try to be and how often foreign women fall for it.

I felt like I had dodged a big bullet until the two men at my table were coming back from a smoke break outside. Without thinking about it, the two walked right in front of the emcee while he was doing a bit. It was clearly an easier path than wading through the 300 people in the audience, but the emcee was very offended. Suddenly, we were no longer safe from the lime light.

First, he insulted the poor guys. I would explain this in more detail, but its a bit much strong language for my blog. Anyway, then he asked my name. Despite giving my first name (and nothing more) he noticed my accent. He asked where I'm traveling from. I told him from the US and that I live in Memphis. He was very impressed that I live in someplace a little different than the typical big cities such as New York.

Then he asked which of the two guys I have the misfortune of "dating." When I replied "neither," he asked how I know them. I said that they just sat at my table and I just met them. This set him off on another tirade about the two guys being huge jerks. (They were actually really sweet.)

He started to tell me not to let their Irish charm fool me. He said its only because I'm foreign and that they each have STDs and then he predicted which disease each one has.

He then asked why I was in Ireland-- for work or travel. I said travel and he expressed relief that I'm not stealing jobs from Europeans. Then he asked what I do. He was very impressed with Internet marketing and asked what industry I work in. When I said banking, he brought up Ireland's negative relationship with banks. He joked that it's like I kill unicorns... The last baby unicorn in fact... And that I eat it for dinner.

Keep in mind that this was in front of about 300 people. I don't know how well it comes across in my writing, but it was really hilarious. I enjoyed every minute and am so happy to share. I'm not sure however if the poor guys at my table would agree. He relentlessly teased them all night and even got another audience member to smack one of them on the head. Poor guys!

I found a video of the comedian, Keith Farnan, here: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_IS7jFNwnjs

Getting with the program

The past few days have been great, but I've been a bit off time wise. One thing I've learned for sure here is that you must eat on time if you want good food. Otherwise, you may be stuck with something less desirable. Many pubs only serve food during specific hours. This has been a bit confusing to me. Also, most shops here close at 6 PM. I tried to go into a dressing room at a store here and was told simply that the dressing room was closed (in my mind it was just out of order). As I started to look for an alternate dressing room, the annoyed clerk explained that the store was closing. It definitely makes me feel spoiled in Memphis, where I can get lunch at 3 PM and shop until 9 PM.

Despite a few hiccups related to timing, yesterday was a very fun day. I started off by going to take the Jameson whiskey distillery tour. It was interesting in that there was a live person explaining the distilling process. I was a bit disappointed though. Of the 40 or so people on my tour, the guide only picked 8 people to do a full tasting. Being from Tennessee, it seemed certain that i should be selected for this task. The volunteers were able to compare Jameson to Jack Daniels to Johnny Walker (while the rest of us ogled at them). At the end, the 8 participants received a diploma on being trained whiskey tasters. The whole thing was such a cool concept, but I think they should really rethink the 8 part. Everyone should get a tasting. If you come to Dublin and can go only with Jameson or Guinness, do the Guinness tour. Everyone gets to try everything there.

After the tour, I took a long walk. I stopped by Kavanegh's pub in search of food. I sat at the bar for a long while without being served. While I was waiting, I read through the tips on Foursquare and found that only men were supposed to be sitting at the bar at this old fashioned place. Eventually, someone came to tell me that they were no longer serving food. With that, I headed around the corner to a sandwich shop / cafe called The Mad Hatter.

After lunch, I checked out the Celtic Whiskey Shop. I was so impressed at the huge volume of different whiskeys they have there. There's even a big representation from Tennessee and Kentucky. They also had wines from all over the world. The only surprise was that they had no wine from California or anywhere in the US.

I also passed by a number of chocolate shops and candy shops. People really seem to love their sweets here. Below is another hot chocolate from today and an unusual drink I saw in a candy store. I made a quick stop at some point for a Guinness at the original Temple Bar. They had a live band that was playing Irish music-- until they switched to Johnny Cash. It never fails that I can hear music that sounds like home wherever I go.

For dinner, I went to an amazing fried chicken place called CrackBIRD. Apparently, the place started as a pop up restaurant, and has now bloomed into the real deal. I had chicken tenders and these little fried potatoes with a dip made with creamed feta. One of the things I've really loved about Ireland is their use of cheeses.

After dinner, I attended a salsa lesson put on by Salsa Dublin. It was a fairly large event with multiple levels of classes. It was all locals, but interestingly they were from all different countries. It reminded me a lot of the international crowd in Memphis (in fact a lot of things about Dublin have reminded me of Memphis). The class was fun and I had the chance to meet a few new friendly people.

I'm going to head out soon in search of a real Irish breakfast. Hopefully, I will finally be with the program today. I'm hungry.

A city after my heart

I have really fallen in love with Dublin. Although my flight out was yesterday, I opted to stay 4 additional nights. It's easy to get around, it's cheap, the people are super nice, and there's a big tech scene here. Who knew?

Nick left after St. Patrick's Day, so his Cambridge friend Sofia and I hung out yesterday. We walked miles around the city to see many sights including the jail (Kilmainham Gaol), the Irish Museum of Modern Art (they had another Picasso), St. Patrick's Cathedral, and Dublin Castle. We also had a number of amazing meals with hot chocolate and sushi. It was a very eventful day to say the least.

Today was a little less smooth. My original hotel had no rooms tonight and since I wasn't plAnning to stay, I moved to another hotel a 1/2 mile away. This seems close until you figure in the snow and the 45 lbs. of backpacks I was carrying. By the time I completed the move, my hip felt like it was on fire.

I've been trying to take it easy today so that I can rest up. For lunch, I went to a nice pub where I ate an amazing goat cheese / tomato / roasted red pepper soup. For dinner, I went to a tiny wine and pizza bar where the owner (who I suspect was my exact age) gave me tons of tips on the local bar scene. Tuesday is apparently the night to go out here.

Also today, I did a little shopping. I finally found a pair of boots. My shoes have been getting wet. It made me disappointed that I didn't bring my own boots, but the upside is that I now have a cool pair of boots... And an official pair of skinny jeans.

Last, I stopped by what I heard is a famous clothier to the stars (think Lansky's) call Copeland and brothers. I heard that I just had to check out this high end men's tailor. Sure enough, I got to meet the famous tailer, Louis Copeland, himself. Apparently his daughter lived for a short time In Nashville and he's visited Tennessee. He was so nice and we ended with him giving me his business card just in case I need something. I'm traveling alone again for a few days and this was another reminder of the positive things that happen when you're alone. People are so nice!

I don't think I've mentioned it yet... last year, I did quite a bit of genealogy research and found that most likely part of my family is Irish. A few times, people have thought I was Irish. That paired with the beer, all the goat cheese, and the friendly people inspired me to stay a little extra.

Well, I should go to sleep. Hopefully I will wake up rested. There's another big day tomorrow!

Happy St Patrick' Day!

I'm writing this post a bit late. Maybe it's a sign that St. Patrick's Day yesterday was great! Below is a quick post to recap the day.

I started off the day by going to the Guinness factory tour here in Dublin. I meet my brother Nick, his friend Sofia from Cambridge, and Kevin and Anna Ritz from Memphis. We took the tour together and it was a great time. We even went through the beer pouring school.

Afterward, we went to the St. Patrick's Day parade. It was much more manageable than the parade in NYC. I would recommend it.

Once the parade was finished, we want bar hopping for most of the day. We met up with a number of Nick's Cambridge classmates and somehow a number of folks from the Google Dublin office.

Here are a few photos from the great day we had. The first is the beautiful view from my hotel.

If you're going through hell, keep on going...

I debated between this blog title and "putting one foot in front of the other." I smile as I write this post as it was a great and yet crazy day. Very eventful.

This morning, Lisa and I headed into London for sightseeing. We checked out Big Ben, Westminster Abbey, The London Eye, and Buckingham Palace. It was a whirlwind of sights that was perfect. The one awkward thing-- due to my afternoon flight out, I carried the giant backpack everywhere. Fortunately Lisa carried the small one for me!

(We also saw the MemphisTravel.com taxi! Years ago, I used to do work on the website, so it was amazing to see the cab in London.)

As the day grew later, we jumped on the tube to head toward the Heathrow Airport. Since its the weekend, many trains weren't running in their typical patterns. After a few changes, we decided a taxi was in order due to time constraints.

On the way to the airport, I phoned a friend who asked surprised, "why are you still in London?!" This friend helped me book my ticket a few weeks ago. My itinerary said the flight was on British Airways out of Heathrow at 5:25 PM, so I was confused at first. My friend then let me know that although the British Airways flight was considered, it wasn't the one that was booked in the end. I had been scheduled on an AIR FRANCE flight out of London City Airport (not Heathrow) at ELEVEN AM! Holy cow, I thought. Not only did I miss my flight, but I'm heading to the completely wrong airport.

To solve my dilemma, I went to the Air France counter at Heathrow and explained that I had missed my flight and asked for help. The representative was very confused. Apparently Air France doesn't have flights to Dublin from there. My only options were to fly through Paris, or to get to the London City Airport and to fly from there-- both tomorrow. And both would be brand new tickets. That just wouldn't work as tomorrow is St Patrick's Day in Dublin. I had to get here sooner.

In the end, I got onto a later British Airways flight and I'm now in Dublin! My brother Nick met me at my hotel for dinner. Everything worked out and I had a nice day. In fact, I'm considering extending my time here. Today reminded me that sometimes you just have to keep putting one foot in front of the other... One step at a time... And hopefully, eventually, things will work out.

Pub Life.

Today was a fairly relaxed day in London. I slept in to give my sore legs a chance to heal. Then, I did quite a bit of research for my trip, corresponded with Memphis folks, and officially added a new country to my itinerary (how exciting).

Then, I headed out to the British Museum for a bit. It was quite cold and rainy today... And at one point my Internet connection decided not to work, but I made it there (eventually).

In the evening, I headed back to Lisa's where her husband made us a wonderful dinner with pork chops. After dinner, we hopped back on a train to try one of their favorite pubs: Feathers. It was very authentic. Lots of locals and even a dog. I had a local beer and then a scotch (a nod to my Memphis friends).

Here's a photo of me and Lisa. (Note: Photos are acting up on my blog, so this is a bit of an experiment).

Highlights from London

Today was a very good, very long day. I'm going to try to keep it brief tonight because it's late and I'm quite tired. All in all, I learned a lot and got some great exercise. Below are the highlights.

Chris made pancakes for me and Lisa this morning. They were fantastic! Afterward, I went with Lisa to the tube on her way to work. She dropped me off at Notting Hill and then kept going to her stop.

(I certainly got into the deep end of the public transportation pool today.)

I walked around Notting Hill and then decided to have lunch. I found a great pub on Yelp that was about a mile and a half away, so I walked. For lunch, I had a venison pie with mashed potatoes, peas, and a beer. The pub had free wifi, so I used the opportunity to look through my Lonely Planet for London and look up a few things on Google Maps.

I decided to try to get to the furthest away place I selected: the Tate Modern. I only had two hours to get there before closing and decided that just finding it on my own would be enough if I arrived too late. I made it in time and was able to see a number of paintings and sculptures from some of my favorite artists. Below is one of Matisse's paintings.

After the museum, I took the tube back to Lisa's. Eventually, I went for dinner at an Indian place / English pub called Namaste Lounge. It was pretty good. Now, I'm back home for some rest before tomorrow.

All of my photos from the day are below. My blog software is being picky about photos from my iPad or I would mix these into the post. Enjoy!

Space and time

Someone told me once that the time while you're taking your long flight out of the country is the best, most exciting time. It's a space when you no longer have to prepare... When you are disconnected and able to enjoy the peace of having nothing to do (a very rare thing for me). He advised me to enjoy these 8 hours of my old self, because when I return, my life will have changed in some yet to be determined way.

Although it sounds dramatic, I guess it may be true. I mean, I certainly hope to have overcome my fear of solo public transportation at the very least. Other than that, who knows? It's hard to say really.

I'm writing this post just as my plane begins to land in London. London is officially my first stop. I will be visiting my friend Lisa and her husband Chris. I know Lisa from Memphis and originally met her at an event in my condo building. It's surprising how many people I've met that way over the years.

And the good news: I made both flights and all 4 train changes on the tube with relatively few hiccups. Chris met me at the final tube stop and Lisa had shown him my photo in advance (although I suspect my giant backpack may have been a give away too). Tonight, I'm so thankful to find such a welcoming place to stay with such nice friends from home.

This is just a reminder of just how small the world really is.

So kiss me and smile for me

The time to begin my journey is almost here.  I’ve done everything that I can to prepare, from completing my taxes to finding a temporary home for Tom & Jerry.  If I've missed anything, it’s certainly not for a lack of effort.  There have been many long days and nights.  One day recently I worked on my preparations from 7 AM that day to 2 AM the next.  That was a long day to say the least, but the long days are paying off.

Packing was the most complicated part of my preparation.  As you will soon see, my travels include different climates that call for different clothes.  My goal has been to take just one bag – a camping backpack.  A few years ago when I visited India, I managed to pack for 9-days in half of a backpack.  It made the travel much easier, especially in areas that may not be well paved or when there are unusual weather conditions like snow or mud.

The good news is – I did it!  All of my “worldly” possessions are now packed up in one big bag.  I’m also taking a small backpack for day trips.  I hope that between the two, I will have enough space.  And, who knows: maybe I will develop a few extra upper body muscles along the way.  I’m certainly going to miss my regular trips to the gym.    Here’s the final product:

When packing this bag, I was careful to only bring just enough of each item.  In a worst case scenario, I can always buy anything I’ve forgotten.  I was careful not to buy many things for this trip, aside from tiny soaps and various medicines (just in case I get sick).  This was further reinforced by my friend Jane who recently returned from a four month trip to Cambodia.  Her best piece of advice: take clothes that you don’t care about and can leave behind.  That way, you can make space for new things that you find.  At first, Jane’s suggestion seemed out of my world.  I already donate all of the clothes that I don’t wear, so I don’t have many that I would want to part with.  But, after much consideration, I've decided to give it a shot.  I’m taking clothes that I might feel okay donating to the travel black hole.  I’m also keeping the option open to possibly mail items back during the trip.  

Of all the things I packed, there are two items that really stand out.  The first are these Puma shoes.  They are beyond comfortable.  As a bonus, they will (hopefully) allow me to look like a local.  When I visited Norway last year, people assumed I was Norwegian.  Not feeling like an immediate target made traveling more comfortable.

The other important item is an external battery to charge my iPhone and iPad.  I’ve forced myself to only bring these two devices on the trip and my biggest fear is running out of battery above the ocean.  I’ve downloaded books, movies, TV shows, games, music, and my travel documents.  It’s simply amazing how many different things one tiny device can hold.  After filling up my iPad, my next concern was its tiny battery.  The answer?  An external battery made by iSound (check it out here).  It charges up to 5 devices at one time and provides up to 480 hours of power.  You can use it with an iPad, iPhone, Android, or Blackberry.  The best part is that it only weighs 1.4 pounds.  As you can imagine, I’m charging it now!  (Big thanks to Kyle at Nibletz for the recommendation!)

The best news of all – my big adventure starts tomorrow.  I will do my best to blog each day, and my plan is to reveal my route along the way.  In fact, a few pieces are still being decided as I type.  Please check back to follow my progress.

Until next time… Tell me that you'll wait for me… Oh, babe, I hate to go.

Taking Inventory

One of the first parts of my travel planning is always to take inventory of my travel points whether it's hotel, flight, or auto points.  It's helpful in shaping my overall travel plan.

Since Delta has a hub in Memphis, they're usually my first stop.  Unfortunately, due to my traveling streak in 2012 (hello Denver, OKC, and LA), my mileage balance with Delta is pretty low.  I'm at a little over 5 thousand miles which is not even close to enough to get a ticket anywhere.  I started looking for other Delta options and found that if I sign-up for the Delta credit card, I will receive 35K additional miles.  Together, this would probably equal one trip within the US.  Although this is nice, it's not quite the trip I had in mind.

Next, I remembered that two years ago, I signed up for an American Airlines credit card to get some "big" (whatever that means) mileage bonus.  I almost never use the card, so my initial assumption was that I had either very few miles or the miles were lost altogether.  In fact, I didn't set up a frequent flier account when I signed up, so I had no idea where the so-called-miles might be.  After a few phone calls though, I tracked them down.  To my surprise, I had over 84K AA miles!  This was definitely enough to make a little dent.

But, what if I wanted to go farther than these miles would take me?  I had heard about this plane ticket that will allow you to circle the entire globe on one big Euro-Rail-Pass like plane ticket, a Round-the-World ticket.  These tickets are a bit of a mystery, so it took some research on my end to nail down how to get one and how they work.  Here's one of the better blog posts I've found on the topic, How to Buy a Round-the-World Plane Ticket (That Kicks Ass).  This could be a great option.

In the end, I paired up my AA miles with a number of individual tickets.  It turned out to be even cheaper than the super cool round-the-world ticket.  Since I booked the trip a little last minute, I was concerned that my options would be limited, but it has really come together.  I booked quite a few different flights for my upcoming adventure.  I'll post about them along the way to keep you wondering about what's next.  

Stay tuned...

The Adventure Begins

This is the first of what I hope will be many posts in the days ahead.  I have always enjoyed traveling and have dreamed for years of traveling more and possibly taking a "big trip."  It’s a little spurt of the moment, but I think that time has finally arrived. 

I'm going to use this blog to document my travels, and some of the travel planning as it comes along since it’s all a little last minute (and as the planning is frankly more daunting than the travel itself).  My hope is to preserve the memories for myself, and possibly to inspire others to travel a little more too.

Prior to 2012, I had traveled quite extensively (to places like India, Spain, Argentina, and others), but always with a companion.  Last year, I tried traveling to another country alone for the first time.  I went to Norway to visit my friend Greg, who had recently moved to Tromsø.

The hardest part of the trip was getting from my home in downtown Memphis to the Memphis airport.  It was 15 minutes of pure-fear as I worried about what might happen to me while I was traveling in another country and through multiple airports (I had 9 flights in total!) all alone by myself.  I had tears in my eyes all the way to the airport thinking about what I had gotten myself into.  The friend who drove me to the airport chuckled when he thought of the much bigger mountains I had climbed compared to this one that scared me so much more.  I really felt like a five-year old child on their first morning of kindergarten.

Soon after arriving at the Memphis airport, I was upgraded to first class on the flight from Memphis to Amsterdam.  Even more surprising, a British couple I knew from Ballet Memphis was seated in the row directly behind me.  It was then that I knew that things would probably be okay, and that I wasn't really alone after all.

Needless to say, I made it all the way to the hotel in Oslo to meet Greg just fine.  It was an amazing feeling to open the hotel door with my key and have Greg sitting there waiting for me—all the way around the world.  We had a great time in Oslo and then headed on to Tromsø (where it was daylight 24 hours a day!).  After a few days, I embarked on my own to visit Bergen and then back to Oslo before returning home to Memphis. 

My biggest lesson was not only can I travel alone, but that it's actually fun.  Many more people spoke to me when I was alone and offered to help.  I even made a friend that I still stay in touch with today.  And as for being afraid of what crazy things might happen to me as a foreigner - most people thought that I was from Norway.  Nothing happened, except that I was occasionally stopped on the street for directions by tourists.

So here is to a new year, a new perspective, and new travels to new places!  I hope that you will follow my journey on my blog, blog.AngelaCopeland.com. 

© Angela Copeland, Bergen Norway, 2012

 

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