Virtual {Beverage of Choice} Date

Why, hello! I cannot believe it’s been a month since I’ve checked in here. That’s gotta be the longest I’ve gone without posting in the four years I’ve had this space.

See, I published the big post that’s been on my mind for, well, four years, and then I didn’t know what came next. I mean immediately next. I do have several more post lined up, but none of them felt like the right follow-up. So, I let it go a little too long and now I’m just going to do what feels natural, which is talk with you over coffee hot lemon water (and also a can of Diet Coke). Grab your own beverage – hot cocoa, tea, wine, water – no judgments here, and let’s catch up.

If we were sitting across from each other…

…I’d ask how you are. First, because I care and I probably don’t know since I’ve been MIA lately. Second, because I get uncomfortable talking about myself first. Once you ask a question, I might never shut up. Sorry about that.

…you would kindly ask about my travels. You already know all about the study abroad portion, because I’ve told you all about that. But what about that cruise?

…and I’d tell you the truth, because we can be honest with each other. A Mediterranean cruise had been the #dream for my family for years. We put it off in favor of college road trips (blame me for those – visiting 20 colleges is no easy feat) and big family vacations, and this was THE moment.

And it was really nice to be back with my parents after 3 months apart. That was the best part of the trip.

Aside from that:

• We didn’t get to go to Rome because it was too windy to dock that day (and Rome was going to be the highlight of the trip).
• The ship had so many people – it was freaking huge – and the cruise line did a terrible job of managing it. Also, people were quite rude.
• The food on our previous cruises had been insanely great. This was average at best.
• The land tours were largely bad, either not being what was advertised or just having awful tour guides.
• We were told we’d have x amount of wi-fi as if that would be plenty. It was not. Yes, we kept buying more. We won’t talk about how much more, but there wasn’t exactly a ton to do on the ship. (I did read three books, though.)

So, first of all, I don’t really recommend MSC Cruises. We would have gone with an American cruise line (hey, Royal Caribbean) because we’ve done that before, but they don’t run in the Mediterranean in the off-season.

But I’d also tell you that maybe cruises aren’t really my thing after all. They were great for the Caribbean. I mean, you have pools and sun-bathing decks, and so much sun and warmth. Also, when you get off on a Caribbean island, you don’t have that much exploring to do. Sure, go to a banana plantation or zipline in the jungle, but there aren’t the same sort of sprawling historical cities as in Europe. As such, having a limited time on land feels much more restrictive in Europe.

Going into my time abroad, I was definitely not comfortable planning a multi-city European trip without the help of a tour or cruise, but now, I’m confident I could’ve gotten us from A to B to C without much issue. Oh, well. Live and learn.

…I’d be sure to tell you about the best places, though. Guys.

Malta has the prettiest blue water and landscape in general. Aix-en-Provence was absolutely lovely. I really wouldn’t love to live in Paris, but I could totally live in Aix-en-Provence. And I would never get tired of saying it. (Roughly pronounced “ex-awn-pruhvawns”)

…and I’d briefly brag about my flight back home. After rushing to get from our (late-arriving) Genoa plane to our Paris plane, getting all settled in my premium economy seat (ugh, so worth it for a transatlantic flight), headphones in, a lady asked if I’d like to sit in business class. Um, excuse me? She told me some long story about wanting to sit with her friend, who was supposed to sit next to me, and how she had a business class ticket she didn’t want to go to waste.

Twist my arm. I had a little pod all to myself up in business class, which was isolating, but pretty freaking comfy. They also kept pretty good food, champagne, and water coming for almost all seven-plus hours. Worth the extra $1000? No way, but no complaints. My parents were a tad jealous.

…I’d tell you that being home feels so nice. Pippa hopped around me like a lunatic when we got home around 10pm, and I’ll never get tired of that dog’s excitement.

{My puppy. Except that statement will cause my mother to be like, “Um, whose puppy?” Technically she isn’t mine, but I currently spend the most time with her. So, she’s mine till August.}

I baked for like four days straight before Christmas. I can go the gym or cycling studio, grocery shop with ease, drive (!!!), and get everywhere like second nature. As much as I adore exploring new places, the stress levels are way down here. Oh, and I kinda like my family and friends.

{My people}

…I’d ask you if you like puzzles. Oh, my. I love doing puzzles, and they’re so soothing.

I did two 500-piece Disney puzzles with my family on Christmas Day, my mom and I finished the 2,000-piece one we were working on before I left (literally trying and failing to finish it up a few hours before my flight to London), and we’ve done two 1,000-piece puzzles since then. Also, we’re working on a tough Harry Potter one right now. 

Sometimes, while I’m trying to fall asleep, I actually see the pictures in my mind as puzzles and I’m trying to put them together as I go to sleep. I think in puzzles.

…I’d happily announce that I’ve rediscovered my love of reading. In elementary and middle school, I was such a bookworm! And then high school came and I read what I had to, but I had other stuff to do. And then college came and I slogged my way through tough texts and maybe read one other book a year. And then I graduated and read three books (Fathers and Sons, The Woman in Cabin 10, and The Husband’s Secret) within a week. And then I added Hillbilly Elegy to that, and am currently reading Lily and the Octopus. I recommend them all as follows:

• Fathers and Sons: For your “classic-but-not-too-long Russian lit” mood (you have one of those, right?)
• The Woman in Cabin 10: For your “creepy-but-not-too-creepy mystery” mood
• The Husband’s Secret: When you want easy, engaging, mystery/chick lit, or if you’ve never read Liane Moriarty
• Hillbilly Elegy: If you live near Appalachia, have family from there, or want a fantastic glimpse into a modern American crisis that alternates between hilarious and heart-wrenching
• Lily and the Octopus: When you want your heart broken by a dog

Since I have so much time on my hands, I’ve made it a goal to average a book a week. 

And when I finish Anna Karenina (needed a break from it last summer), that sure as hell counts as a full book for the week. My goals, my rules.

…We’d talk about my plans for the next few months.

• Assistant coaching for Girls on the Run
• Blogging more (for real)
• Doing odd jobs/consistent cleaning for my parents during busy work seasons for both of them
• Going to the GOOD Fest in LA the first weekend of February
• Probably doing my Spinning certification a few weeks later
• Going to Charleston with my parents over my mom’s spring break in March
• Heading to Cleveland at the end of March for a P!nk concert
• Running the Cap City Quarter Marathon at the end of April (so glad I had the self-discipline to not run the half because I’m really loving the balance of different workouts I have going right now)
• Going to Chicago sometime. Possibly multiple times. We shall see.
• Deciding between a Kenny Chesney and Taylor Swift concert in June/July
• A beach vacation with the big family in July
• And eventually finding an apartment (!!!)

…I’d finally tell you I should really go now. Nothing on my menu was inspiring me, so I need to go to the grocery store before dinner. And walk the puppy and go to Target. Talk to you next week!

Your turn:

Catch me up on you!

What’s your dream vacation?

Do you like puzzles? Anything I have to read?