Planes, Trains and Automobiles

So, we did it.  We took a trip.  Likely our very last nice vacation.  It was 13 days long, longer than we've ever been away from home before.  And can I just say:  hooray! for being home. 

We started in the car, took a plane, then a train, then a ship and a whole lot of buses, then some more cars, a couple more planes and finally our own car to bring us safely home again.

I learned a few things.  Canadians (at least in the part of the country that we were in) don't really say "eh" or however you spell it.  I can hear their Canadian accent in the ou words - about, around, etc., and in the word been.  

I learned they're pretty patient with foreigners unfamiliar with their currency (though admittedly it seems more straightforward and similar to ours than other countries), some of them actually preferred to be paid in U.S. dollars and also learned that - in my opinion - their cash is prettier than our cash.  

I re-learned that the crew / staff on a cruise ship work extraordinarily hard at their jobs.  This particular cruise line has customer service down pat.  Never ever saw anyone without a smile or an offer to help. All while working 18 hour days 7 days a week until the expiration of their contract. 

I learned that our cabin aboard ship was better appointed and more efficient than our hotel room in the heart of Boston.  And the Boston hotel was a well-known, well- regarded,  admired chain. 

I learned that I still love shrimp and salmon in equal amounts.  Even some white fish is tasty though I always grow tired of deep fried things really quickly.

I learned that the online maps we were using were great at showing distances and directions.  Lousy at topography.  Our 40 minute hike up the brick hill schlepping our luggage in 85 degrees and  high humidity was proof of that. 

I was witness to how spoken kindness works miracles in a tense situation.  

I learned how quiet and low-key our lives are.  Being surrounded by so many people the vast majority of our waking hours pretty much exhausted me.  Over and over.  I really do need some "down" time to recharge my ability to handle all the noise and social interactions.

I received much kindness from people.  The woman at the car rental who let us in early to rent our car, the guy at the hotel who didn't charge us the full amount for early check-in, the people who remembered my birthday: from cards to gifts to fresh and hand crafted flowers, to a chocolate bash cake (who even knew they existed?) to even a birthday cupcake from the ship's captain. 

And I have pictures.  A few.  When I get a minute's break from the laundry and ironing and vacuuming and meal prep I might actually figure out how to put some on here.  

Today's gratitude is plentiful.  I am so very grateful to have been able to take this last trip.  So grateful that all the moving parts worked well together and things went off without a hitch. So grateful that all the "extras" (that cost so, so much) haven't put us in trouble.  I'm grateful The Husband's cold seems to be going away quickly, hoping mine that I caught from him will do the same. And I am beyond grateful for the beauty of this world.  We haven't seen only a small percentage of it, but we are consistently astonished at the beauty we do see.