In 2020, other than a bus trip to the Cape to have lunch with my cousins, I went nowhere. But it's not as if I haven't been anywhere since the pandemic.
In the summer of 2021 - all vaxxed up, someplace to go - I spent a weekend in New Hampshire, and made two long-weekend trips to Vermont.
None of those required a flight, however.
In October, 2021, however, I branched out a bit and braved a trip to New York to visit an ill friend on Long Island.
In 2022, the world - with a small w, but The World, nonetheless - opened up. I flew to Tucson by way of Dallas to spend a nice-weather week with my sister Kath and BIL Rick.
Flying...It's like riding a bicycle. It all came back to me. The hassle, the stress, the cramped seats. But it was kind of fun to actually take a trip trip.
Last month, I took another jaunt to Long Island, again to visit my friend, newly sprung from the rehab facility where she'd spent the last year.
Tonight, it's the big time. Sort of.
It's not like Ireland is uncharted territory for me. I don't know how many times I've been there. 12? 15? At some point, I'll figure it out.
Still, it's my first international trip since 2019 when I went to - ta-da - Ireland. And I don't want anything to gang aft agley. (Okay, okay. I know that's Robbie Burns, who's a Scotsman, not an Irisher. But Scotland's right next door. And my latest DNA report from ancestry.com has informed me that 13% of my DNA pegs me as Scots. Thanks, Dad! Hoot-mon!)
So I've done my checklist.
- Not that everything isn't cash-free, but I got my Euros.
- Signed up for the international plan on Verizon.
- Filled in the online form to have my mail held.
- Charged my Kindle and downloaded a few books.
- Texted my Irish friends to square up our dinner plans for Saturday. (Moran's on the Weir. Yum! Plus, friends.)
- Confirmed my VRBO rezzy for Galway.
- (Over) packed my bag, including a couple of items for my niece Molly, who's moving to Dublin for a year for grad school.
- Made sure I've tucked my Global Entry and vax cards in with my passport. (And triple-checked that nothing's expired, although I already triple-checked, and what could I do about it at this point?)
- Put a couple of adapters in my backpack, along with my phone charger and my laptop. (Never know when I'll feel the urge to blog while I'm away.)
- Stuffed a change of clothing and some necessaries (like low-dose lipitor) into the backpack. Just in case my checked suitcase gets waylaid, which it probably won't, given that Logan to Shannon is a straight shot, and Shannon ain't all that big and commotion-y.
- Placed a note at the front door reminding me to turn the AC off.
- Checked in for my Aer Lingus flight.
- Made sure I have a few N95 masks with me.
- And a few snacky things. (Kind Bar, raisins.)
1 comment:
Yippee! Hope you made it safe and sound and hassle-free.
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