A real live Military Ball

And there you have it, the official picture from our very first military ball. It was a huge affair with over 300 guests. All of the Soldiers were in their Army Service Uniforms. It ran a little short on pomp and circumstance, but it did include a speech from General Hamm, the four-star General and a presentation of the colors.

With the dress saga behind me I was able to enjoy a fun night and experience Army formal social culture. I think I saw my first lesbian couple out at a formal event. One dressed in uniform and the other barely dressed in a very revealing sequined cutout gown. I know this comment is worthless without a picture but, it was impossible to take a picture without them noticing.

I was waiting for the bathroom when they came in after me. I stepped outside to wait with them to get the story when they asked me to take their picture. Stunned I said sure. They snuggled up close for the picture, then the Soldier spanked the bombshell on the butt. Then another female Solider walked over and she introduced the bombshell as her SISTER. My mouth fell open. Her sister? I have never seen anyone behave that way with their sister before in my life. I left the line because the statement relieved my need to use the restroom. Her sister? Really?

DADT is dead but, I have not seen any same sex couples or met any out lesbians or gay boys in uniform to date. I keep hoping though. Keep hope alive!

After a few courses of food and mingling with the friends I had my fill of the event. We slipped out before the dance floor opened.  Ryan had a few drinks and I was the DD for the evening. It was a cold, rainy night, and I continue to broaden my driving experience. The winding roads on the way home induced outright panic, but having Ryan next to gave me the confidence to take a few sharp turns and bang a few Uies that I would normally avoid.

The dress I wore is by no means a fashion favorite, but it was the best I could do on short notice through the mail. The other female attendees ran the gamut from sweater dresses to full sequined gowns with fascinators. Would I have done anything differently? No. Would I go again? Probably not.

The highlight of the evening was running into my boss and his wife. My boss made an astute observation. He said that he and his wife are the mirror image of Ryan and I. My boss is the extrovert while his wife is the introvert. I am the extrovert while Ryan is the introvert. It was a funny thing say especially because it is true.

Email repost on the goings on

I have not posted in awhile because there has been a lot happening.  A dear friend firmly requested an update. It's easier to just post my note to him than to craft a new post. Enjoy!

Hi J_____!

To be perfectlyhonest I saw your message on Thanksgiving afternoon. I read halfway throughit and began to feel very emotional. So I stopped reading and went on withmy plans to see the final installment of the Twilight Saga. Our dear friendKStew was surprisingly good. I wouldn't call her performance memorable, butI left satisfied. It certainly was not the fiasco Snow White and theHuntsman was. Remember when we went to see that together in the summer? I miss those times with you. Your friendship was and continues to be very important to me.

The job is fantastically rewarding. I am having a great time. I teamed upwith a former colleague for a new initiative we are calling F2F. See article here.It was a great event, and the boss loves it. Also I a m going to my first real live ball tomorrow. I have never been to a military ball before so you canimagine the excitement. In the civilian world I have been to lots of galasand award ceremonies but, I am looking forward to the pomp and circumstanceof an official Army ball. The hunt for an appropriately glamorous ensemblewas laborious. I ordered copy of an Angelina Jolie dress from China, butthen worried it wouldn't get here in time I ordered a backup dress fromMacy's just in case. The dress from China was a very poor imitation ofAngelina's dress, but the backup Macy's dress needed a shawl. Anotherintense pursuit of said shawl ensued. I finally found a shawl last night.

Also on my agenda is my trip home. My mother wanted to have a huge catered affair in New York to celebrate. As the price tag and political drama of who NOT to invite raged, I bowed out and announced that Ryan and I would be in Vegas for my birthday. There was some gnashing teeth and tsk, tsk, tsking, but the party planners all managed to get over themselves. There is still so much more to tell you, but I have to get back to work now.I miss you, and think of you often. I had a few moments this week when I thought what would Jerry do. To be truthful I alternated between you and Beyonce. From my foxhole (Army word I learned this week) you both make very good decisions :o)

Mickie

Male-female relationships only

I am not ashamed to admit my vanity. One of my concerns about moving back to Italy two years ago was my hair. In New York I went to a Dominican salon for a sleek blowout weekly. I kept very few hair products on hand at home. I let my stylist take care of things for me. I would not say I panicked about coming back, but I was worried.  When I lived in Rome in the late 90s I wore my hair natural and was able to care for my hair easily. Now I have a relaxer and my hair requires special treatment.

Last year I stumbled across the Long Hair Care Forum. It changed my life. A plethora of information about hair care to include techniques and multiple product reviews specifically for chemically treated African-American hair. I spent hours on the site learning how to take care of my hair. There are challenges to increase your water intake and vitamins that promote hair growth. The information on the site became invaluable to me.

The site is free for basic information but, if you want to start you own thread or ask questions in a thread you have to become a member. Annual membership costs $6.50. Not bad at all, especially when I had lots of questions and was eager to join the discussion. LHCF has a nail section, a political section, a travel section, a Christian fellowship section and a relationship section.

I was only concerned about the hair discussions and did not venture into the other areas. Slowly though I began to spend time in the celebrity gossip threads. Funny stuff in there. Many of the discussions kept me in the pop culture loop and introduced me to new shows on television. One day out of boredom I scrolled down to the Relationship section that includes sub threads for newlyweds and noticed in parentheses the phrase: Male-female relationships only. Appalled I showed it to Ryan who said well this site does have a section for Christian fellowship. It is to be expected, his eyes said.

A few months went by and Cynthia Nixon publicly stated that homosexuality is a choice for her. This was a popular discussion on the board. The discussion was sometimes uninformed but, not homophobic. When I mentioned my attendance at the Human Rights Campaign gala few years ago, I received a few ambiguous comments, but I let them slide.

The election sparked lots of energetic dialogue, and my eye was drawn to the Male-female relationships only phrase again. There is a section where you can ask the site moderators questions. Usually members ask technical questions about how to post large pictures or change their signature. On Friday I asked why there is a restriction on same-sex relationship discussions. A moderator quickly responded that the site owner is a Christian and the site reflects elements of Christianity. My question sparked some dialogue. One member told me I should be prepared to be banned. Others said the good far outweighed the bad so they stay members even though they find the restriction offensive. The moderator told me the rule would not ever change. She cited that it would be impossible to protect same-sex discussions from harassment on the site.

And there you have it. The restriction exists to protect women in same-sex relationships from harassment from the other members. This sounds so familiar to me. I think I heard this reasoning once to justify segregation of schools in the Jim Crow south.

There's goes my obsession with LHCF. We had a nice run, but your beliefs are wrong.

I'm not one of those people

I'm not one of those people who loves fall. You know the type that barely makes it through summer and craves the crisp air that rolls in around September. I am not that type. Yet, this year I do feel different about Fall. The sinking dread I once felt has been replaced with something else. Not excitement, but perhaps expectancy.

It began in the shoe window on Corso Palladio, the main artery of Vicenza. I saw a stunning pair of those high heeled sneakers I first saw at the Deutsche Bank-sponsored exhibit at the Guggenheim a few years ago. The artist Julie Mehretu was wearing a pair. I loved her sneakers but, I am not one of those people who wears sneakers when I am not running. The pair I saw on Corso Palladio caught my attention. Maybe I am one of those people who wears sneakers when they are not running.

Eventually I found a pair that work more like an ankle boot than a sneaker. See pic below. I bought them at a shoe store near my apartment. The older saleslady suggested a bag to go with my new sneakers. The bag was adorable. It was dark blue leather with black skulls printed on it. The straps were chain links and the satin bow was tied at the corner. To be honest I spotted the bag when I walked in. I contemplated buying said bag, but I could not buy it. That bag represented an old me, a now outdated "punkish" bad-girl look I used to sport. That bag represented Mickie c. 2006. I was very into skulls in 2006. A trip to Mexico with all of the beautiful Day of Dead motifs became an obsession. Fortunately this 2012 and the skulls looked dated. I liked the bag but, my personal style is about moving forward. There are a few other looks of the moment that catch my eye, many of them I have done before. For example corduroy, I love corduroy pants, but there are colors I just cannot wear anymore, namely plum and winter white. I wore them all the time last time I was into cords. They looked boring to me even though they are of the moment.

It is easy to get locked into an idea of yourself and wear the same things every year. For some people that is personal style. They know what works for them and they stick to it.

The first day I wore my high heeled sneakers one of the girls at lunch said, "Wow! I could never wear those, but you can pull that off." I hear this kind thing a lot. I accepted the compliment (it is a compliment right?), but thought a lot about how we can get locked into an idea of ourselves. I have a dear friend who this summer went through something. It was about love or like or affection. That experience changed her and it is reflected in her personal style. Her style is different now because perhaps she feels different now?

Personal style is so much about how you feel and how you want to be seen. It is an area completely within our control. I used to love skulls and bows, now not so much.

There's no hugging at work

In my world there is no hugging at work unless that's the last time you will see that person, as in your last day. Even under those circumstances I wait until outside of the office. The Administrator at my my new office sees things differently.

She sort marched in my office this morning to find me enjoying my bagel and peanut butter breakfast treat to hand me my new Blackberry. Some office drama ensued. She's has worked for the Army for almost 20 years; many of those years in the same office. I don't blame her for being a little high strung. From what I can tell she did not expect me to tell her she was being unprofessional. I told her she is allowed to vent, but she isn't allowed to take that frustration out on me. Ever. I signed for my hardware, and she left. I went back to enjoying my delicious morning treat thinking nothing more about her eccentric behavior.

Later that afternoon as I was leaving the restroom, she approached me in the doorway. Startled, I said, "Oh!" and then, "Excuse me." She wouldn't let me by though. Then she said, "I think I need a hug."

Me: Oh well that is not at all necessary. I don't hug colleagues so you don't have to...

Her: Yes, I need a hug to know that we are ok and you are not mad at me.

I tried to reverse back into the bathroom, but then she lunged at me and threw her arms around my upper body, effectively trapping my arms to my sides, and squeezed. The whole thing happened so fast. I was still protesting when it was over.

I need to give her a name at some point

Ryan's mom is visiting us for a few weeks. She has a short list of activities that are on her bucket list. Visiting Rome is definitely one of them. This weekend is a four-day Training Holiday, which means the Soldiers on base have Friday and Monday off. Ryan usually gets those days off as well. I on the other hand am expected to be at work, but Training Holidays are generally slow days for me and I can get a lot done at the office because no Soldiers are around.

I had something important to do with my weekend though. It was a special weekend because last week Ryan bought me a GPS. When he gave it to me he said, "Now you are completely free." He is such a kind man, unless you try to take him shopping. Then he can very easily become difficult. So when he says free he means I can get in my car, program my GPS and go shopping anywhere and anytime I want without his involvement. This is a very BIG gift, and I used it yesterday.

A few months ago I wrote about shopping at the Italian outlets. It was fun experience but, I needed more time to peruse the facilities, and time was not on my side that day. Yesterday with Ryan in Rome I was under no such time constraints. There was one obstacle: The Autostrada.

Italians are passionate people and this extends to their driving. They view speed limits and other driving regulations more as guidelines than laws with consequences for breaking them. This was of particular concern to me because I do not drive very fast. I obey the speed limit and that means the other drivers tailgate me a lot. I have been driving for about a month now and have gained a fair amount of confidence, but I needed reinforcements to get on the Autostrada.

Over dinner on Friday I asked some friends to join me on a shopping trip and they agreed. We started the day early to avoid traffic and crowds. July is sale month in Italy. That means almost everything is half off. Another added bonus is the exchange rate is better than it has been in months.

Driving is stressful, but I made it to the Autostrada and reached 100 mph at one point. I even passed few cars and buses. The route my GPS (I need to give her a name at some point) calculated took me through a plethora of driving scenarios. There were winding roads, bridges, and more than a few roundabouts and gravel roads.

We made it to our destination in about an hour, which is the longest time that I have driven a car ever. Sadly only one item tickled my fancy. A below the knee black, leather skirt with a sheer, pleated rayon panel on the side. It is a special piece. The sort of skirt one wears with a white off-the-shoulder t-shirt with sparkly accessories to an impromptu cocktail hour or dinner party when the temperatures are crisp.

I will always remember that I bought this skirt on my first trip to the outlets in my very own car. I am completely free now.

All about the new job

To say I have entered a new stage in my life is an understatement. Last month I bought my first car, it's a 2012 MINI Cooper S. The S stands for turbo. It's Eclipse gray with all black in interior. In short she's a lovely machine, and I have been gradually expanding my perimeter around the province. I do not have anything to compare the liberating feeling of jumping in my ride and driving wherever I want to go.

And then there's the job. This is my third week at the new job and it has been pretty darn awesome. I have made a concerted effort to decorate my lovely little office. I put up paintings of pink flowers on the wall and a delicious deep, rose pink carpet on the floor. I have two pictures of Ryan and me near my desk. I keep the ceiling fan on low and the lights dim. It is very peaceful. I like it in there a lot.

As for the job itself, it gets more interesting everyday. I became the Installation Health Promotion officer almost by accident three weeks ago. Since I arrived in Italy I received a thorough education in Federal Government hiring practices. There are preferential treatments for everyone except the well-educated, career-minded woman married to a civilian. Ryan receives a plethora of perks, and many of them are extended to me as his spouse, but finding my own way has been difficult until now.

My primary responsibility at my new job is help Army Commanders prepare for the transition to peace time after more than ten years of war. The Army has built an incredible force of warriors. As the war winds down Commanders are faced with the prospect of having highly trained Soldiers with no wars to fight. Trainings and small-scale missions will be part of the new reality, but some Soldiers will transition back to the civilian world. Many will stay in the military. This transition has happened before but, not since WWII has our country dealt with the prospect of an all volunteer force returning home in numbers with a host of physical and emotional problems.

My job is to identify the resources available to Soldiers and their families; promote those resources especially to our high risk populations and help leaders evaluate the effects on the Army bases in Italy. I have my work cut out for me.

A Roman holiday to celebrate

The best way I know how to celebrate an accomplishment is to go to Rome. I was recently selected to be a Department of Energy Fellow. To celebrate we rented this apartment. It was a great location with beautiful views of the city center.

The train ride down from Vicenza was eventful. There were multiple delays, and drunk Americans on their way to Florence. I know they were drunk because they drank straight vodka out of water bottles for the three-hour ride to Florence. Things were quiet after they left.

As planned we met Dr. LeVeness, one of my professors from graduate school for dinner, and my dear friend Denise also from graduate school. She has a dream job at the American Embassy in Rome. No Rome trip is complete without a visit to my friend Carlos' restaurant Baires. We spent the evening reminiscing about the amazing times we all had in grad school. Dr. LeVeness has this amazing gift of making the people around him feel like they are smartest people in the room. It's a lovely gift.

Saturday morning I woke up early to do a little shopping without Ryan. We met up around noon for lunch at Court Delicati. This is supposed to be the best Asian restaurant in Rome. It did not disappoint. It is located a little outside of the city center near the UN, my old stomping ground when I was in grad school. We visited San Giovanni and The Mouth of Truth. Exhausted from walking around in the 90 degree heat all day we stopped for a few cold ones at a bar to decide on dinner.

We settled on Sapore di Mare. It was an average seafood dinner which does not say much I know.

Sunday we met Dr. LeVeness and his colleague Dr. Clarke for a very fancy brunch. Plenty of prosecco and an all you can eat buffet. We stuffed ourselves for hours then said our goodbyes before taking a taxi to our train. Dr. LeVeness will visit us in September. I cannot wait!

Our Roman getaway was just what the doctor ordered.

That in fact did just happen

We have been eating a lot of fresh fish lately, especially tuna. Ryan's preferred way to prepare it is to sear it with freshly ground salt and pepper. The keys to this dish are of course good quality fresh tuna, a non stick skillet and the right amount of salt and pepper. We have been looking for the perfect salt and pepper grinder for some weeks without luck. This morning I took an early morning stroll around town. I walked down one of those cobblestone, picturesque streets Italy is famous for, when I saw a small kitchen appliance store. In the window was the perfect pair of glass salt and pepper grinders. Excited I walked in on two older Italian men talking. They were surprised to see me, and it felt as though I had interrupted something. Undeterred by their surprise, I inquired about the salt and pepper grinders I saw in the window. One of the Italian men slowly gathered his belongings and left. As he walked out I realized I was in this shop alone with what could be easily described as a creepy old man in some circles.

He came around from the behind the counter to show me the grinders. He said they were in the back and motioned for me to follow him. Eager to surprise Ryan with the grinders I followed him toward the back of the store. Suddenly he turned around before I knew what was happening he grabbed my shoulder and pulled me into an awkward embrace. I wedged my larger than average purse in between us quickly. He asked if I was married. I said YES and squirmed away from his frail torso. He held onto my arm as I pulled away and looked at me with what I can only describe as a combination of desperation and lust. Grossed out and disappointed, I walked quickly out of the store.

Back on the photogenic street, across from a church I looked back at the little shop and confirmed with myself yes, that in fact did just happen.

I am ashamed to admit this

I like to follow beautiful women. There I said it. I like to follow beautiful, well dressed women around, and today I got exactly what I wanted from her. This is not the first time I have done this. I have followed impeccably dressed women around in New York, Paris, Lima,Tunis and lots of other places, but they never led me anywhere interesting. Usually I follow them until they notice me and I stop or get lost.

Today I went out to pay my cell phone bill because my account was compromised last month and I had to get a new card. This is the first time this ever happened to me. I was walking to the Vodafone store when I saw this dark haired, six foot tall Italian woman. I have seen her before. She's not easy to forget with those legs. It was freezing today, and she was wearing these comfy shearling boots with extra socks and tights and a clingy mini skirt. On top she was wearing a short leather jacket trimmed with fox fur. I wondered how she came to be so effortlessly stylish. She was walking much faster than I was, but I kept up analyzing all the details of her outfit. She abruptly turned into the shoe store on the corner. I never go into that shoe store. There are too many choices in there. I don't want Ryan to ever see me in the rapture of my shoe compulsion..before or after, but when the glamazon walked in there I knew I had to follow. She zeroed in the pair of boots I spotted earlier this week. I went to pay my cell phone bill, and when I came back she was still in the store. I went in and bought the boots. It's not like I had a choice! She watched me strut around in my brown suede boots and asked the shop boy if he was sure they did not have a size 10. He assured her that they did not. I guess there are some drawbacks to being six feet tall.

I came home feeling right as rain with my brown suede, fur trimmed boots. Photos to come.

Another unbelievable day at the office

My work is challenging, but rewarding. I work with victims of sexual assault mostly, but often I help with victims of domestic violence as well. It is a tough job because it is often emotionally taxing. At least once a week someone reminds me that they could not do my job. They shake their heads slowly saying things such as it could not be me.

The fact is someone has to do this job. I happen to have the unusual skill set to do it well. I was a volunteer Victim Advocate for three years in my hometown, New York City. The training was intense, but in some respects that was the easy part. I spent one weekend and one weeknight a month on-call waiting for my phone to ring. As a twenty something New Yorker that is normal, but I was not waiting for a call from a previous date. I was waiting for a call from the Emergency Room of the three hospitals I was assigned to. My job was to go the hospital and advocate for victims who might be too traumatized to do so themselves. The stories I heard were harrowing tales of distress, violence and fear.

Prior to the volunteer experience I was terrified of hospitals, but I knew how to handle myself well under pressure. I thought volunteering in a hospital would rid me of my fear. It worked.

I do not discuss cases here because they are confidential, and I do not want to traumatize my friends with details about my work. Yet, how I ended up in an office with a female Solider in uniform and three other uniformed Soldiers watching her grope me requires some background.

The Army has set up a special office for attorneys who take sexual assault cases to Court Martial. One of these special prosecutors came to Vicenza to interview one of the victims I am helping. I went into the meeting with strict instructions from JAG not to speak during the meeting. I had to just sit there with her, and be supportive without talking. She asked for my help but, I could not answer. So when the special prosecutor asked for my consent to let the victim demonstrate on me how her offender grabbed her I was eager to help.

Before I knew it she was palming my butt with her fingers grazing my nether regions. Talk about a complicated situation. I was not prepared to have her touch me that way. The fact that she did so in front of three men as they watched is a discussion that I could have for hours. I took the appropriate actions after the interview, and added the experience to another unbelievable day at the office.

John Luther the British anti-hero

I am nothing else if not curious about how people like me (whatever that means) live in other parts of the world. It has driven most of my varied travel experiences. Even with this curiosity I have shied away from British television. I have quite a few British relatives who tell me about their tv shows and stars who make the switch to American television and film. I am often surprised to discover they are indeed in British.

That brings me to Idris Elba. I had no idea this good looking bloke was British. He exudes the swagger and roughness of the dreamboats of my Brooklyn youth. I was fairly shocked to know they grew that way in the United Kingdom. I didn't watch The Wire,, but I heard he was great. He was sensational on the American version of The Office. He had role in Last summer's Thor, and after he won at the Golden Globes I went ahead and bought the first, then later the second season of Luther on iTunes.

Watching Mr. Elba on Luther you find yourself on edge for most of the hour. It is quite difficult to figure out what he is going to say or do next. He broke a door into pieces in one of the early episodes and I was terrified. His character looms large and in charge of everything except his emotions, which is thrilling to watch. I am thrilled Ryan is no Luther, but I sure enjoy watching Idris strut his stuff round London.

Third time is a charm in Milan

Just back from my third trip to Milan. The first time I went I was an undergrad spending a semester abroad in Rome. It was one of the those wild adventures you have in your 20s.

My best friend Kris at the time and I would go to the train station and hop on the first train leaving. On our Milan trip we met these Turkish guys on the train. Kris had these amazing green eyes that always garnered lots of attention. Any who, theTurkish guys took us to one of the trendiest bars in town where we danced until dawn. The next morning we snuck a peak at Leonardo's Last Supper. This was before the extraordinary restoration project, and we just wanted to check the box that we saw it. We spent the rest of the day walking around looking for the fashion district. We never found it. I left thinking Milan was a much over hyped big city.

The second time I was in Milan Ryan and I decided to go at the last minute..without a plan..for about three hours. This was not a good idea, and we did not have much fun. Three hours is not enough time to see anything. We ended up in a crummy part of town at a bar that served great bacaro, which is heavy tapas. I left with the same mediocre impression of the city.

As they say, the third time is a charm. This time I planned things a lot better. I bought tickets for one of the trips the Army base organizes as part of its Outdoor Recreation program. The Army organizes the transportation, entry tickets and guided tours for Soldiers and civilians. We typically do not go on these trips because most of your time is not your own. They are well suited for those who enjoy traveling dependently. Ryan and I are not these kind of travelers, but in this instance the organized trip was ideal.

I bought the tickets months in advance, and they included the admission to the Last Supper. This was a big plus because arranging for tickets online for admission to the church where the Last Supper is can be a hassle. Since the restoration the Italians are meticulous about the viewing process. We also decided we would leave the group, and head to lunch on our own after the tour.

We picked Colline d' Oro. We love Asian food and it is almost nonexistent in Vicenza. Trip Advisor promised an experience not to be missed. Colline d' Oro lived up to the high expectations. And I finally discovered what all the the hype about fashion in Milan is about. People were impeccably stylish, but also La Rinascente in Milan was the most incredible department saw I have ever seen in my entire life. There was not enough time for me to handle my shopping business, but now I know exactly where to go next time.

Ryan would like me to mention the toddler who screamed as though a demon possessed him for most of the three hour ride..each way, but I won't because the memory causes me to shudder a little.

Rented an apartment in Rome

I am a big believer in setting goals at the beginning of the year. High on my list this year is to spend more time in Rome. I love it here. The first time I went to Rome was in January of 1993. Totally showing my age here. Whatever. I loved everything about the place from the moment I left the airport with those nuns who let let me hitch a ride with them.

I have never been able to let go of my longing to be there. Fortunately Ryan enjoys spending time in the eternal City as well. That's why we resolved to spend more time in Rome this year. We will not live in Italy forever. While we are here it is important to make the most of it. We may not live in Rome but, a three hour train ride is a lot closer and cheaper than an eight hour plane ride from JFK.

We took a day trip in early December last year, but it felt a little rushed. I did not get to shop AT ALL. We spent time with a few friends I have that live there, had dinner, walked around a bit and headed back to Vicenza. We have arranged to go for two nights next month with a couple I recently matched. At first we considered our go to place: Hotel Navona. We stayed there last summer. The location was perfect, but the room was lackluster. It will certainly do in a pinch.

My Brazilian "gay boyfriend" Jeremy was visiting with us from New York. As travel stories go it was a strange coincidence that the owner of the 500 year old palazzo that is the hotel was a former lover a Brazilian novella star. It made for interesting dinner conversation. My friend Carlos suggested the hotel to us. He also suggested a Bed & Breakfast that is directly above his Argentine restaurant Baires. Both options are pricey, especially for a weekend getaway.

Then I discovered this site. I made a few phone calls, sent a few emails and within a few hours I had a deal on the table. I have never traveled this way, but when traveling with another couple it is much more cost efficient.

Sometimes a hastily planned trip comes together beautifully

Traveling more is on the top of my 2012 goals. Last year's list included so many farfetched destinations that it was impossible to succeed without going somewhere every weekend. Unfortunately my work schedule does not allow for exotic travel destinations every weekend. This year I revised my goals to plan more trips instead. Plan is the important word here.

It is always best to get started early when planning a trip, but sometimes even a hastily planned trip comes together beautifully. Last week while on the phone with a former colleague I decided it might be fun to go to Spain for the long weekend. I looked up prices on my new favorite website, vueling.com, and they were reasonable. Ryan was into the idea, but not completely sold. At home in front of the computer with a glass of wine we finally booked our tickets. We took a time out to watch an episode or two of The Walking Dead, then tried to find a hotel.

I should mention that we are not hotel people. We are foodie people. That means we don't care about hotel amenities such as jacuzzis, spas and views. We care that it is close to restaurants. After a few glasses of wine we settled on Hotel Avinyo. At 118 euros for two nights the price was right, and the location was perfect. It was down the street from everything but, the room was a lot like a box. We didn't care though. We wanted to see the city. If the room was too comfy we would have trouble getting out of there.

The first order of business was food. The seafood in Barcelona is abundant. We strolled through La Boqueria amazed at the quantity of fresh seafood there. It was my favorite part of the trip.

We spent most of our time walking around exploring the city which is vibrant and full of charm. Ryan loved all of the modern architecture, and when we stumbled into a Mexican restaurant at the end of our first night he laughed out loud at the mariachi band that appeared out of nowhere. As if that wasn't surreal enough, one of the patrons who resembled Julio Iglesias stood up and belted out a magnificent Spanish ballad. His voice bellowed throughout the space without a microphone. His wife beamed at him from their table. We wondered if he did this every Friday night.

The next day was dedicated to shopping. Again the prices did not disappoint. The cost of living in Barcelona is a great deal less than it is in Vicenza. I bought a few basics, but nothing to blog about.

Our next stop was the Sagrada Familia. I could see progress since the last time I saw it in 1999, but it is not scheduled to be completed until It is scheduled 2025. Can't wait to see it when it is finally finished.

We spent a fair portion of the day planning to eat at the Mexican place we were in the night before, but it was not meant to be. They were at capacity. We ended up at a little wine bar with amazing Spanish tapas, guacamole and salsa.

After dinner we walked around looking for a bar for a night cap, but with so many choices it is very hard to decide. Finally just after midnight we decided to call it a night. We had an early flight in the morning. We had a fabulous time in Barcelona and look forward to planning other trips to Spain.