i love the fact that i have the opportunity to travel for work. sometimes it’s US travel, other times i get to visit Europe and on the very rare occasion, Asia.

this time was Europe, a quick trip that included Edinburgh, London and Paris. i had been to all three locations before but Edinburgh was in 1985 and Paris was last in 2005……it had been a long time. a very long time.

sadly, Edinburgh was only 24 hours, in and out. but i still had the chance to walk around a little bit, to/from our event and then the morning before i flew to London. i didn’t have time to go into Edinburgh Castle, but i did walk by, and around it, that counts for something doesn’t it?

the London trip was a little bit longer, but not by much, somewhere between 48 and 64 hours. far too fast for my liking, but enough time to get a dinner in at a ramen favorite, Bone Daddy’s. the majority of my time was spent on trains getting from point a to point b and at meetings. meals were with colleagues at local pubs, sadly none of which i can remember the names of, no disrespect to the pubs, i just didn’t make notes. a good time was had, but sadly no sightseeing……the London Film Museum is still on the list of future activities, as it has the largest collection of James Bond vehicles, oh yeah.

onto Paris, where i spent the most time, four full days! i love Paris. or to be accurate, i love Paris as i remembered it from my trips back in 2001 and 2005. things have changed a lot since then, and although still magical and exciting, to me, not quite as charming as it once was. maybe it’s true what “they” say, you can’t go back again.

when i visited last there wasn’t the big wall around the Eiffel Tower. i understand why it’s there, but it’s not the same. i was able to get a picture without the wall, but it was a challenge.

i was also able to get to Montmarte to see the Sacré-Cœur once again, which was nice, although it was really crowded. also, sadly in February the carousel is closed, so i couldn’t have my Amélie moment. sigh.

the meetings we had while there took us to different areas of the city, where i hadn’t been before, which was fun. meals were at small neighborhood restaurants, good food, but nothing truly noteworthy.

since i was walking down memory lane, i wanted to go to the Notre Dame District and see if i could find a bar that my friends and i went to back in 2001. we had such a fun time there (more than once) and i have nothing but fond memories (J&S i know you do as well). sadly, i couldn’t find the place i was looking for, not a surprise, it was 19 years ago, and i couldn’t remember the exact name or street, but i thought it was on a corner and had a striped awning. right……i did manage to locate the breakfast spot that refused to make me an omelet with potato and cheese. it was one or the other, i couldn’t pay for an extra item, even though i had been able to the morning before. i was hungover, and was not pleased. of course, it’s that place i found with no trouble.

all in all it was a short, but good trip, with the exception of the sinus infection i had for the majority of the time. foreign tinctures, tea and massive amounts of decongestants got me through, but it wasn’t the ideal way to travel by any means. one thing to note, EarPlanes saved my head from exploding on the flight home. they really did the trick to help with pressure. they’re not expensive and you can get them at a drug store or online.

next up on the travel list, Croatia in April. can’t wait for that, i plan to spend an extra week after the event we’re attending to do some sightseeing. whohoo.

1984. that is when i first visited Québec on a trip with my Dad. we stayed at the hotel pictured above, the Chateau Frontenac.

i had to see it again on this trip, so we stopped in for a drink after our meeting. a meeting that went well in spite of the multiple hurdles placed in our way……this trip, it’s one thing after another.

the hotel is in the older part of town and the promenade runs along the Saint Lawrence River. it really makes for a pretty walk and it was a great way to wind down after work.

after a cocktail we had dinner in the quaint old town area at the Le Lapin Saute, delicious food, comfortable atmosphere and good company.

it was a very brief evening of sightseeing, but time was limited and we had to rest up before our next flight to Montreal.

i would love to get back to Québec when i have more time to enjoy the area. i’ll just add it to the list!

what was supposed to be a short layover in Toronto last night turned into an overnight. sigh.

it all began at SFO when we (my colleague and i) found out our flight was delayed due to a technical problem. the problem was someone on the previous flight dropped their laptop in between the seat and wall in business class and they had to remove the seat to retrieve the laptop. thanks to that one laptop, we missed our connection in Toronto and had to re-book for the first flight out in the morning. not a crisis, but our new flight lands at the time our first meeting is due to start and our luggage spent the night at the airport and we stayed at the Sheraton. thankfully we received a packet of amenities and the gift shop had a limited supply of make-up in almost my colors.

fingers crossed that everything goes well this morning and that our flight is on time, our luggage makes it on the new flight, that there is no traffic between the airport and hotel and the hotel and our meeting location. that is a lot of moving pieces, but not too much to ask……is it?

if you’ve been reading this little blog of mine since the beginning, you might remember that one of my first trips was to Québec with my Dad in 1984.

i have such fond memories of that vacation. we stayed at the Château Frontenac and new friends were made. sadly, one has since passed away, but the other is still in my life, although i don’t see her nearly enough.

i don’t know how much time i’ll have on my Canadian tour for sightseeing since this will be work travel, but i will make it back to Château Frontenac, that my friends, is a must.

photo courtesy of Wikipedia

with four free hours before my flight i wanted to get out and see another part of Northern Ireland, so i arranged for a driver to take me somewhere and then to the airport.

although it was about an hour away, i opted for the Dark Hedges and the Coastal Causeway.

The Dark Hedges are made up of 150+ Beech Trees that were planted along the entrance to an estate built in 1775 by James Stuart. they were planted to create an imposing approach, probably one of the many reason they were used in Game of Thrones as the King’s Road, Transformers and The Last Knight.

after the hedges we moved on to see the Coastal Causeway. the causeway as a whole runs from Belfast to Londonderry and is a little over 80 miles. we didn’t go the full route, we ended the adventure at the Giant’s Causeway named a World Heritage Site in 1986.

it was a pretty dreary morning to head to the coast, but i (probably like a lot of you) think the coast is beautiful during any weather. also, the worse the weather, the less people you have to deal with, which is a good thing. the walk down to the Giant’s Causeway from the parking lot was about 1/4 mile, and the first view from the overlook reminded me of the Sonoma Coast.

the Giant’s Causeway is an area of about 40,000 interlocking basalt columns which are a result of the way lava cools after a volcanic eruption. in a poll of Radio Times readers the Giant’s Causeway was named the fourth greatest natural wonder in the UK. the tallest columns are 39 feet tall and some are 92 feet thick in places.

ok, maybe not quite like the Sonoma Coast.

in a time where threats of wall building fill our US news, it’s interesting to go somewhere and see a wall. a wall that was built to help keep the peace in 1969, intended to last six months, but many years and talks later, is still there at the request of the residents. gates close on Friday evening and reopen Monday morning.

i am not a political person, and i readily admit, i don’t keep up on international news, but i was truly surprised at the amount of current discord and separation between the two sides of Belfast. taxis are divided, some not even going to the airport, homes bordering the wall with cages covering their yards to protect from fire bombs that annually get launched over the wall. murder reminders, memorials, tributes, and burned out buildings on both sides. it’s important to know the history and facts, and i’m glad i went on the tour, but, i must admit, i’d rather picture the Belfast of rolling hills, jagged coast line and frolicking sheep you see on TV.

after a dose of Loyalist and Nationalist reality, a big coffee and breakfast i made my way to the Titanic Museum. i was happy to find it wasn’t just about the sinking of the Titanic (because that would be a museum of sadness and too much Celine Dion) but more about the history of Belfast – the linen industry, workforce, ship-building, and the Titanic. it was really interesting and well done, worth the cost in my opinion.

i have another tour booked in the morning before my flight back to London, hoping tomorrow brings a bit more peace & harmony.

a work trip has landed me in Belfast for 48 hours, where sadly i have very little time to sight-see. i arrived in the early afternoon, checked into the hotel, had a snack, and by then it was 4 PM……not much daylight left. so i grabbed a map from the hotel, asked for a direction to walk, found an end point, and started walking.

the first attraction was City Hall

then there was the view from the top of the Victorian Square shopping center in the top floor viewing dome

followed by a quick visit to St. Anne’s Cathedral

park and street art are always fun

St. Patrick’s Church was my end point

and then the walk back to the hotel where i saw City Hall all lit up

i ended my walking tour at Belfast’s oldest pub, The Crown.

i hired a Black Car to pick me up at 8 AM tomorrow for a quick tour before my work day begins. you know me, i always have to fit in as much sightseeing as humanly possible on any given trip.