See you in Dublin

4 days, 3 flights, and more ticket changes than I can count, and I'm on my way to Europe. Yes, Europe, Stockholm to be exact.  I know, Stockholm isn't in Ireland.  But it is one step closer.

We decdided to fly standby for this leg of the trip because we had some time to play with before Galway 70.3, and, let's be honest, we're both cheap.  I don't think it occured to either of us that could be this difficult.  We arrived at the Atlanta airport Monday night, quite gung-ho about the start of our trip.  We sat and watched the standby list and waited patientlyfor our names to be called (maybe Dan a little more patiently than I).  At 9:40 we called it.  No big deal, we'll get on tomorrow.  Tuesday quickly became earily similar to Monday, and as it became clearer we were not going to be on that flight, we discussed other options.  It seemed we had more opportunities to get out of the States from New York.  So off we went, running down the terminal, to catch the 10:10 to Indianapolis where we would wait overnight for the flight to JFK at 6am, Wednesday.  We decided to spend the day at the airport to get some work done before the first of three flight opportunities that evening.  We thought, "three flights tonight, SURELY one of them will get us to Ireland".  Once again, we were wrong.  I called Delta to ask if there was anything we could do.  Their response created some frustration for Dan and I to say the least.  And I thought "well, I can pout and stomp my feet or I can put my efforts into finding a solution to this problem".  I chose the latter and immediately began investigating flights to Eurpoe where we could easily hop over to Dublin.  The possibilities were endless as far as I was concerned...London, Barcelona, Amsterdam, Malaga, Manchester.  So we came up with a plan of action and found oursleves a nice corner of the airport to call home for night.  Thank goodness for our handy-dandy fancy sleeping pads, and the wonderful lady at the Delta gate that gave us blanets and pillows.

We woke up Thursday morning with a solid 6 hours of sleep behind us, and a positive, refreshed outlook.  Today was the day.  We spent a good 30 minutes at the gate counter, explaining our situation once again.  Some great people helped us tweak our plan and got us booked on a flight to Amsterdam at 4:15.  Since we had some time to kill, we entertained ourselves with people watching, eating, pictures, postcards, and general quality time together.  Weird, I know.  The Amsterdam flight was looking really promising at 3:15.  But the minutes crept by and all the seats began to disappear.  I knew I wasn't getting on, but I didn't say that to Dan because  I knew there was a good chance he would.  When they called his name, we had already discussed that he would go, with or without me.  It was still early in the day and I had several more opportunities.  And worse case, I would buy the ticket to Dublin.  I made him go, and waited for the gate agents to announce the flight full.  As I watched the plane pull away, a sadness came over me.  I got used to him being with me on this adventure, and the airport quickly became a lonely place.

All the flights we discussed me trying to get on were not possibilities.  But again, the nice Delta people tried to help me and booked me on the flight to Milan at 6pm.  I knew I wasn't getting on it when I got to the gate.  I was starting to get desperate.  The flight to purchase was at 9pm and on another airline.  I'd still have to get my checked bag somehow and get to another terminal.  I called Orbitz to confirm I could get on and they informed me that I needed to book at least 6 hours in advance in order to go through them.  So I went to the source and called American.  Apparently they do not have the same pricing and it was going to be over $3,000.  Um...I think I'll pass.  I figured I would be spening another night in the airport, but this time alone.  As I looked for a gate agent to confirm the location of my luggage, another found me.  He said he was looking for me, he could get me on the flight to Stockholm.  I pondered for a minute if that was the best option.  I decided to to take it.  Probably mostly because the idea of the night in the airport alone made me sad.  And I knew it would be that much longer until I got to Dublin.

So I boarded my first flight to Europe, not knowing how I was going to get to Ireland once I got there.  Dan and I joked that we asked for an adventure... we never did specify when we wanted it to start.  See you in Dublin, Dan!

Top 5

It's the Saturday before we leave and I'm sitting here wondering where the last week went.  I feel like I have done nothing except add to my list of "Things to do before we leave".  It gets longer by the minute I think.  The biggest items on the list?  Finish moving out of the condo and packing for the trip.  It's kind of ironic how the former impacts the latter.  For a hundred dollars, I could not tell you where a simple pair of jeans would be right now.  Everything I own seems to be spread out between a bag at Dan's, my car, the old condo, and one of many boxes in the new apartment.  And I'm supposed to pack for a month long trip right now?  This is going to be ugly.

I think the only thing that is keeping me from getting stressed is knowing that the big stuff is done.  Our flights are booked and we will have a roof over our head in every country.  Everything else is just details.  I get to daydream everyday about the things we are about to see and experience.  Several people have asked me what I am most looking forward to on this trip.  It's a difficult question to answer when you'll be in 4 different countries, 3 of them brand new, and you're not really sure what to expect from any of them.  I thought I'd take a second to put down what I'm looking forward to because it's always so interesting to look back later.  It seems the things you thought were going to be so fantastic are usually ok, and the things you didn't even think about are the one's you remember the rest of your life and tell stories about for years after.

My Top 5 (in no particular order)

1. Camping on the Great Wall - How many people can say they've done that?!  Just thinking about waking up to the sunrise over mountains and seeing miles of stone, dividing a gorgeous landscape.  Not exactly a sight you get to see everyday.

2. Running the Sydney Half Marathon - Running over the Sydney Harbour Bridge, through the streets of downtown Sydney, and ending at the Opera House.  There's no way it'll be a PR because I'll be too busy looking at everything I pass.

3.  Watching Dan race in Galway - Ireland is a famous for it's picturesque landscapes.  How amazing it's going to be to be in the middle of it all, and cheer on some fantastic athletes at the same time.  To see the spirit of triathlon transcend arbitrary boundraries.

4.  Coogee to Bondi Walk - I never did this when I was in Sydney.  A 6km walk along the unforgettable coast of the Sydney suburbs.  Taking the big camera on this one for sure.

5.  Bicycling through Amsterdam - Not exactly cycling, as it will not be for the exercise.  Experiencing Amsterdam as locals do, where bicycles are normal means of transportation around the city, and cars yield to them.

I can't wait to see what it will be the most memorable moments of this trip.  But in the meantime, I just want to enjoy every minute of it and absorb everything I can.

10 Days and Counting

Six months ago, Dan told me about his idea for this trip.  He wanted to race 4 triathlons in 4 weeks.  All I could think was "why didn't I think of that" and "I wonder if he'd let me tag along".  As with anything new, you never know what's going to happen, so I avoided any official planning on my part until it was absolutely necessary.  I was lucky enough to have all the pieces of my life fall in to place at just the right time in order to make this trip possible.  OK, maybe I had a strong hand in helping things along.

I probably should have started this two months ago when we actually started the initial planning for this trip.  It's already been an experience and we haven't even left yet.  While looking at possible flights one night, we must have spent over an hour trying to figure out if there was any possible way we could turn one of our layovers into a daytrip around Cairo or Moscow.  Sadly, it just did not seem feasible, and back to trip planning we went.  One of the many hours spent daydreaming about the possibilities of this trip.

As of this morning, we have all our flights booked; hotels, hostels, and homestays reserved; visas in place; and even a few activities planned, like tickets to LaBoheme at the Sydney Opera House.  This list of "Things to Bring" continues to grow, as does my excitement.  There are still some minor details to workout, but at this point, even if we did nothing else, it will still be an adventure I will want to remember the rest of my life.  So I sit here with two days left at my job, and ten days before we embark on a journey that will take us around the globe, and I think "I wonder if I'll have room to pack some snacks".