There’s a whole passel of people, Catholic and non, going to Rome with Emily and Thomas to see them get the papal blessing on their newly-minted marriage. I have the same flight from Cork they do, as does Mary, so we all share a cab to the airport. Em manages to convince Aer Lingus toContinue reading “The papal blessing that was not”
Category Archives: Travel
Sunday night in Cork
I’m staying in Emily and Thomas’ house after their wedding, with Mary, one of Emily’s bridesmaids. Fortunately for everyone concerned, they are not there; they’re in downtown Cork staying a hotel, on something they have dubbed a “mini-moon.” Sunday nights in Cork, they say, there’s a band that plays down at Counihan’s, and they tellContinue reading “Sunday night in Cork”
The whole purpose of my visit
One of the most surreal things about traveling is finding people displaced into a new context, as, in this case, happened shortly after I arrived at Barabrow and people started trickling in for the wedding of Thomas and Emma, which was my whole reason for being there in the first place. Most of these peopleContinue reading “The whole purpose of my visit”
Beyond Dublin
“You’re checked through all the way to Dublin,” said the uniform-clad woman in the Spokane airport, at half-past four in the morning, handing me a trio of tickets. And one, two, three, four, five, the phrase “all the way to Dublin” was lodged melodically in my head for the next 20 hours, until, in fact,Continue reading “Beyond Dublin”
Fiji, live
I had initially embarked upon my recent trip to Fiji somewhat cautiously, because four and a half years ago, I spent a day in Fiji with my little brother, who was 18 and had never seen a third-world country. We exited the airport on an eight-hour layover between New Zealand and Los Angeles, and decidedContinue reading “Fiji, live”
Pretending to be famous
When I got on the plane to go to Fiji, I was greeted by three other women: Marguarite, Elina, and Jennie. They had each reposed themselves in their row of seats in the second-story bubble of our not-so-private jet. I had a row of seats as well — three whole seats in what amounted toContinue reading “Pretending to be famous”
In the waters of Royal Davui
I look for adventure that will make my blood surge, although the ocean has probably provided me with more terror than all other terrain combined. I have always wanted to go diving, and now, here in a pristine Fijian paradise, I have the chance. So I start in the resort’s pool, and dive off-jetty withinContinue reading “In the waters of Royal Davui”
Ghost of Christmas past
This is the third Christmas I have spent away from my own family. The first was in 2001, in East Berlin, when I was 20 years old. I was studying abroad in France, and I managed to procure an invitation from a German boy exactly three years my senior who had visited my family inContinue reading “Ghost of Christmas past”
Fiji handling
Summing up a trip to a resort with a tale of how good the massages were seems intrinsically dull. It should all sort of go without saying. However, being under the hands of a capable masseuse after a very long day of travel is, in the flesh, so pleasant that my immediate reaction was toContinue reading “Fiji handling”
Europe 2011
From the beaches near Barcelona to Foixarda to the canyons outside Perpignan, I spent a good portion of my trip to Europe with climbers. It was delightful.
Botkin Creative 