The Pros and Cons of International Travel

As we all know, travel is fraught with complications.  That's part of the adventure.  But sometimes, the complications are just comical.  Here's a pro/con list of my trip back to Jeddah.  The pros and cons are slightly inverted in places, but you'll get the general idea.

Con:
Had to say goodbye to my parents...  Tears.

Pro:
Got a good seat on the bus to Boston!

Pro:
There was a movie showing on the bus!

Con:
It was a movie I had ZERO interest in watching.  (Tron or some such nonsense.)

Pro:
Wifi on the bus. Slow, but manageable.  As long as I didn't try to stream Netflix.

Con:
I tried to stream Netflix.

Pro:
Reached Logan almost on time.

Con:
Longest. Line. Ever. To check in.

Pro:
Turns out said line was only for the flight to Cape Verde! Score one for the zero-wait Air France line!

Pro:
Coolest gate agent ever doesn't even blink at my 67lb and 55lb bags, just waves them onto the conveyor belt.

Con:
Longest. Security. Line. Ever.

Con:
Having to drink my last Poland Spring sparkling water before security...

Pro:
Plenty of time to drink said bottle of water!

Pro:
TSA agent with a sense of humor and a smattering of Arabic!

Con:
Flight delayed one hour. 

Pro:
More time to hang out with free internet!

Con:
Flight delayed two hours.

Pro:
More free internet!

Con:
Seriously, how many times does the gate agent have to say, "if your row has not been called, please move away from the gate area. You are only delaying boarding for yourself and others."  Nobody moved.  Except slightly closer to the gate area.  I think this was repeated 15+ times.  It was almost funny.  But not really.  Especially when my row was called and I had to fight said space-invaders to be able to board the plane.

Pro:
Gate agent calls out list of rows that do not have audio/visual functionality. Mine is not among them!

Con:
Upon boarding, realize there is no audio/visual functionality in individual seats anyway. 

Con:
Full flight.

Pro:
Nice, quiet, considerate row mates.

Pro:
BEST airline meal EVER.  Unbelievable.  Beef with wild mushrooms over mashed potatoes. 

Con:
Curried orzo chicken salad accompanying said entree = not so yummy.

Pro:
Slept (relative term) most of flight.

Con:
Breakfast on flight sucked.

Pro:
Flight only landed 90 minutes late.

Con:
Next flight not listed on connection board, and I didn't have boarding pass, forcing me to wait in line for an agent.  For 30+ minutes.  Only to be told Air France cannot issue a boarding pass for the Saudia flight, despite it being an Air France codeshare.

Pro:
Quick connection to next terminal.

Con:
Nobody at the Saudia counter in next terminal.

Pro:
Air France agent seems willing to help.

Con:
Air France agents (now plural) don't seem to realize it's an AF/Saudia codeshare, and it turns out the Saudia staff never actually staff their in-terminal counter.  Please proceed through immigration.

Con:
Immigration line RIDICULOUSLY long.

Pro:
Immigration line moves ridiculously fast.

Pro:
Stamp in my passport!  Woohoo! 
Note:  though totally unnecessary, those of you who know me know this was the highlight of the trip. 

Con:
Saudia flight not open for check-in yet, despite it being only 3 hours before flight.

Con:
Make that 4 hours.  Delay.

Pro:
Saudia finally opens its check-in desks.

Pro:
Agent takes pity on me and promises me a row to myself on a fairly empty flight.  I can't believe her entirely, but I appreciate her attempt.

Con:
Must go through immigration line again.

Pro:
Stamp in my passport!  Woohoo!

Con:
Most.  Boring.  Terminal.  Ever.

Con:
I am in France, and I cannot get a croissant or a ham and cheese baguette?!  Seriously, WTF?!

Pro:
Leftover sandwich from airport in Boston for just this occasion!  (originally planned to be used during flight, but said meal was too good to pass up.)

Pro:
The one store open is the French goods duty-free store.  I stock up on cheese, chocolates, more cheese, and other items.

Con:
I did not get to purchase any Jacquard Français table linens, which I'd been looking forward to since my previous trip through CDG three weeks earlier.

Pro:
More money for cheese!

Con:
More of a flight delay.  This is starting to eat into my arrival time.

Pro/Con? You decide.
Seven pilots wait to get on my flight.  Seriously?  What exactly does this mean?
Result:  only two went into the cockpit.  The other five went into First Class.

Pro:
I indeed have an entire row to myself. 

Con:
It's only a two-seat row.

Pro:
Hey, it's a row to myself, I'll take it.

Con:
Family of seven going for Umrah seated all around me who has clearly never flown before.  (This is typical on flights to Jeddah, which are always full of pilgrims, but it gets old fast.  Yes, young child, if you press that button a light will turn on.  If you press it again, the light will turn off.  Yes, if you press that button a bell will ding and the flight attendant will come ask you what you need.  Pressing it again before she reaches you and then pressing it again as soon as she turns away is not very nice.  Nor is repeating this over and over and over.  And then getting your brother to do it.  And then your father.  And then your little sister.)

Con:
Meal = icky.

Con:
No ginger ale.

Pro:
I have Orangina left over :-).

Con:
Said family never, ever stops talking.  The entire flight.  Even when they were shushed.  And not just by me, I promise! 

Pro:
That's not entirely true.  They stopped talking once we entered the miqat/ihram zone.

Con:
15 minutes before landing...

Pro:
Only landed an hour late!

Con:
I have now been traveling 26 hours and desperately want my bed.  An hour ago.

Pro:
Deplane and board bus in record time.  Get to terminal and am in short line for immigration.

Pro:
Immigration officer processes me quickly and with no questions.

Pro:
My expeditor is there waiting for me!

Pro:
My first bag comes quickly.

Con:
No second bag.  No second bag.  No second bag.

Con:
Baggage conveyor stops.

Con:
Baggage conveyor appears broken.

Con:
Airport personnel not in a hurry to remedy the situation.

Pro:
They finally switch to another conveyor!

Pro:
My second bag is one of the first to come through!

Pro:
I'm waved through customs without having my bags checked. 

Pro:
My wonderful driver is waiting at the curb!

Pro:
Traffic isn't too bad for 2am Friday after school gets out!

Con:
Prospect of lugging three heavy bags from car to my building and up stairs.

Pro:
My wonderful driver insists on helping!

Pro:
I have my keys!

Pro:
My cats greet me at the door!  They remember me!

Pro:
My apartment is spotless, and my housekeeper cleaned off the dining room table and my craft table!  Score!

Pro:
Bed.  As wonderful as I remembered.

Con:
Cats tried for several hours to break down and/or claw through my bedroom door to get to me for cuddles. 

Pro:
I finally fell asleep despite the clatter.

Pro:
12 blissful, uninterrupted hours of sleep.

Pro:
A day off before having to go back to work.

Pro:
I managed to fully unpack and get my laundry ready for my housekeeper!

Pro:
Cheese and sausage for dinner!

Con:
The store didn't have fresh bread, and multigrain crispbread just isn't the greatest thing.

Pro:
Hey, it's French cheese and sausage...


And that, dear readers, was my latest travel adventure.  I am fully unpacked, my laundry is done (not by me!!), my cats have forgiven me, and I still have lots of cheese and sausage left.

But I'm Not Ready...

This vacation consisted of three countries (one simply for transit), six states (again, one only for transit), six airports, eight flights, two beautiful weddings, planning for another wedding, countless miles on the road, way too many packing expeditions, lots of hugs with family and friends, catching up with my best friend from childhood, quality time with my niece and nephew, a good dose of animal fun, and lots of much-needed down time.  I shipped 40lbs of non-perishables to myself today, which supplements what I can't get on the local market or through the commissary.  I watched countless Red Sox games, celebrated the Bruins winning the Stanley Cup, and reveled in the Heat losing the NBA finals.

This vacation did not consist of any trips to Trader Joe's, The Container Store, DSW, a movie theater, Coach, outlet malls, or any of several other things I planned to do.  I did not get a chance to eat Coquilles St. Jacques or make vichyssoise.  I did eat lobster, bagels, conch fritters, and reubens.

I didn't get my dry cleaning done or my alterations/hemming done.  Which is just as well, since it should have been done before I left for R&R and will be cheaper in KSA anyway.  But I feel silly lugging it across the ocean twice with no tangible results.

I was only able to access my Blackberry a few times, so I didn't get to look at work email very much.  Which is probably a good thing.  But I'm already starting to think about unfinished projects and creating my mental to-do list for once I'm back at work on Saturday.

But I still wish I had a little more time.  Or knew when the next time I was going home next.  Or, for that matter, knew where I was going next.  Bidding will come soon enough and consume all of my time, I know, and I've already started having dreams about it.  Both good and scary. 

I love my job and my lifestyle, but there are a lot of unique facts of life - including uncertainty, constant change, and occasional feelings of helplessness, an inability to easily answer the question "where are you from?" - that accompany it, for better or worse.  There are a lot of hellos and goodbyes, also for better or worse.  If you don't like something, it will change soon enough.  But if you do like something, it too will change.  This is my first post and only my first R&R, but I've come to learn this much already. 

So I'm heading back to KSA and to my work and my life there.  And in some ways I'm ready.  But, in others, I'm not quite ready. 

I'll write more posts once I'm in Jeddah and have time to stop and think.  I'd write more now but need to board fairly soon.  Ready or not...

Saudi Cultural Center Videos

I'm 7.5 hours from leaving Boston on my way back to KSA.  It has been a busy, fun, and eventful week, and I have lots of stories and pictures to share.  But since I've procrastinated on packing and my last shopping stock-up, those will have to wait.  For now, here are videos of traditional dance and drumming from a Saudi cultural center I visited several months ago. 

Total Lunar Eclipse, Part II

I was born 28 days after my due date.  In the middle of summer.  My parents, tired of people asking if I'd been born yet, just stopped answering the phone.  This wouldn't happen these days, but it happened then.  Early in my mom's pregnancy, as legend goes, one of my elderly Polish relatives (maybe my great-grandmother?) put her hand on my mother's stomach and said that the child (me) would wait for the ninth cycle of the moon.

I was born on the night of a total lunar eclipse, a fairly major one of the last century.  My mother relays the story that, while she was in labor, the doctor, nurse, and my father were on the roof of the hospital watching the eclipse. 

Today is another such total lunar eclipse, though it isn't visible over North America, sadly.  It is, however, momentous in that is the first Inex series lunar eclipse since the night of my birth.  According to Wikipedia, "the Inex series repeat eclipses 20 days short of 29 years, repeating on average every 10571.95 days."

I actually think this is a much cooler marker of time than a birthday...

Kandyan Dance Videos

More videos!

This time from a dance performance at a cultural center in Kandy, Sri Lanka. 

 

 

Elephant Videos!

I just realized one of the benefits of super fast internet is that I can now post videos from the last several months!

Apologies for any grainy video - I just uploaded the .mov files from iPhoto without doing any editing or anything, so they may not be of as high quality as they are on my computer.  

So here's elephants heading into the water for their afternoon bath at Pinnawela Elephant Orphanage in Sri Lanka:

And here's one of them splashing around a few minutes later:

And here's a vocal little guy - such a strong voice for a little elephant!

 

And because I can't resist, here's one of a herd of elephants bathing at Uda Walawe National Park:

And, lastly, a solitary bull at Uda Walawe.

More Cheese With That Whine?

All right, I've been writing random thoughts down for days now without getting anywhere near a coherent post, so here are said random thoughts so I can now concentrate on a post about seeing long-lost friends.  Which may well take longer than it should.  And this collection of thoughts sounds awfully whiny now that I read it through.  Sigh.

Before I begin - Blogger is showing a huge and sustained increase in the number of page hits this blog is receiving.  So if you're a new reader, welcome!  And if, more likely, Blogger's stats function is on the fritz, is anyone else having the same issue?

Boy listening to the radio sure does catch you up quickly on pop culture references you've been puzzling over for months...  But can I just ask why the Kardashians are so popular?  I just don't get it.

Yesterday I made the requisite pilgrimages to Basketville and The Vermont Country Store.  I now have a great new collection of beautiful (and hopefully functional) baskets on its way to KSA, and I've stocked up on New England oddities and confectionaries for the next few months.

It's June 14th, and we have a fire going in the woodstove in order to stay warm.  Last week we had a heatwave, and now it's cold and rainy.  I am not really complaining - it makes sleeping pleasant, and I haven't had a lot of outdoor activities this week, so it's not interfering with too many things. 

Not having a car AND not having access to motorpool is challenging.  I can (and often do) take one of my parents to work in the morning and use said car for the day, but that involves getting up early and having a very scheduled day, which is less than ideal on vacation.  That combined with living in the middle of nowhere makes for not getting too many things knocked off my to-do list.  I am starting to come to terms (albeit slowly) with not getting to Trader Joe's on this trip, since apparently there are none in Florida (and none less than a two-hour drive from my house).  I guess stocking up on my favorite pasta sauce was not meant to be this time around.

The real culprit behind my not posting more often is the fact that I have acquired a nasty cough and persistent aches in my neck and head.  It started off innocently enough and became a monster.  I actually lost my voice over the weekend (full story to be explained in a subsequent post), and the cough became more pronounced and joined with an upset tummy.  So of course I've been feeling sorry for myself and watching a lot of Netflix and trying to sleep.  I woke up this morning with a sore ear, but thankfully that's subsided, as has the cough to some extent.  My voice is still pretty weak, but it's rebounding.

Tomorrow is another recovery day with some time for laundry and packing for Miami!  Plus dinner with my brother and his fiancée and kids.  And then off to Florida on Thursday!

(Oh! And the reason that this subject makes sense is that I've been buying and eating a lot of my favorite cheeses that I can't get in KSA, mostly soft cheeses and some fresh mozzarellas.  And occasionally running across a decent French baguette.  Yummmm.)

Insurance Annoyances

I have had my share of insurance annoyances over the years, but ever since joining government service, I've tried to minimize the headaches by carefully researching plans and making realistic choices for my health needs.  So I'm unimpressed by the insurance headaches I've encountered since being home.

My previous insurance, a modified consumer-driven health plan, worked very well for me.  Preventative care was paid for without deducting from my fund, dental care up to a certain amount was covered each year, and I had ancillary vision benefits.  I also have elected to get additional vision benefits each year so I could get glasses/contacts fairly often.

However, when I moved overseas, I decided that the tailored FS plan (most of you know which one I mean) would be the better choice.  People said it worked well even in the US, and my PCP was in-network.  The price was comparable, the estimated out-of-pocket expenses would be comparable, and if anything catastrophic were to happen overseas, it seemed the easiest to deal with.  (Having had my fair share of overseas medical concerns, I wanted something easy to work with.)

This has not panned out in reality, sadly. 

The new plan only covers a few dollars for dental, so the x-rays I needed this week and the small cavity I had to have filled are all out of pocket.  They would have been covered except for a few dollars overage under my old plan.

The worst, though, is that all of a sudden my PCP is no longer in-network.  I know I checked before switching plans, but when I went in for my annual exam the other day, they didn't seem familiar with the company.  A bit of digging revealed that they are not, in fact, an in-network provider.  And I'm not willing to pay out-of-network costs.  Plus, I am not home long enough to research providers and establish myself as a new patient with someone else.  And I like my PCP.  So, I am going to see if I can do my annual in KSA just to make sure I have continuity of care. 

I am considering switching back next open season to my old plan; the $750 deductible after primary benefit funds are exhausted and before 90% coverage kicks in seems a small price to pay.  Especially because in 16 months of care I never came close to exhausting the primary coverage fund.  The only downside is that I lost the initial fund I'd built up and will have to start from scratch again.  With this current plan I have a $300 deductible that starts immediately and no primary coverage fund.  Plus prescriptions are out of pocket instead of coming from the fund. 

The kicker, though, is that my vision plan is fairly limited for in-network providers at home in NH.  It was great in DC, but there's less choice here, unless I want to go to a big box store super retailer.  Which I don't.  I thought today I'd found a great small practice in southern NH, where I am going this week for shopping anyway.  They said they took my insurance on the website.  But when I called, they said they stopped taking this plan.  The receptionist was slightly unsure because the plans she quoted weren't mine exactly, so the office manager will check Monday.  But I can't find another good place right now.  I don't really need an exam - I mostly want new glasses and prescription sunglasses.  My foray into the world of contact lenses lasted about two days last summer before it became painfully clear that I am inept at inserting said lenses.  Even when I was sitting in the optometrist's office and demonstrating the technique they couldn't figure out why they wouldn't go in.  They wouldn't go in for them, either, so I felt a bit justified.  But it's still frustrating.  I really only need glasses for distance and driving and watching movies, few of which I do in KSA, but the prescription is light enough that I can wear the glasses all day without eye strain, which I often do when I'm going in and out of meetings where I need to read presentations.  And in KSA, having prescription sunglasses would be ideal. 

Still, these headaches are minor compared to the ones I used to have with some of the more annoying companies I used to have to deal with.  I'd spend hours on the phone convincing the insurance company that, yes, I did need an MRI on my knee or that, no, the knee surgery necessitated by the tear shown by said MRI was not, in fact, elective.  I am still paying off that surgery, as it cost far more than the insurance company allowed.  Or electing not to go to the ER when I first injured my knee since I, at that time, didn't have an extra $250 to spend just to walk in the door before insurance kicked in.  My personal favorite, though, was convincing the same insurance company to pay for 6 months of malaria meds instead of 3 months, back before I lived in a place where I could get meds shipped by mail.  I itemized the cost of medevacing me when I developed cerebral malaria versus paying an extra three months of prescription costs up front.  I finally got my meds. 

Thoughts?  Have any of you had concerns Stateside with the FS plan?  Run into difficulties with serious illness with a consumer-driven health plan(CDHP)? 

Why... It's Astonishing!

It's raining - and the streets aren't flooding!

Women are wearing t-shirts in public!  And driving!

There's pork and alcohol being sold at this store!  There's pork and alcohol being consumed at this party!  There's a party with men and women! 

It's 12:30pm, and the stores aren't closing for prayer!  (Or 3:40pm, or 7:00 pm, or 8:30pm - choose your prayer time!)

Wait, you mean there's only one entrance to this restaurant?  And I can go in it?  And sit wherever I want?

Whoa!  Look at those cars stopping for the red light!  And using their turn signals!  And turning left only from the left-most turning lane!


There's no air conditioning inside any of these houses!  (Wait, this one I don't like...)


That pretty much sums up my experience at home so far.  Lots of exclamation points (mostly in my head) and shocked disbelief at the blatant displays of heavenly vice.  And mostly lawful displays of driving, including by a large number of women. 

I've also been taking advantage of fast internet and downloading copious amounts of music and books and watching lots of Netflix and Hulu.  I forgot that it doesn't have to take an hour to watch a 20 minute show on Netflix...  I really miss fast internet.  I have gotten my fill of real commercials but still don't miss the AFN PSAs.  I love watching the Red Sox and Bruins win often and then watching the Heat lose.  May those streaks continue tonight as well.  I never thought I'd be cheering for the Mavericks, but I am doing so with fervor now!

Last weekend the whole family drove down to Newport, Rhode Island to watch my cousin marry his college sweetheart.  It was a gorgeous wedding and a perfect weekend for a perfect couple, and we had a wonderful time.  I don't ever want to go to a wedding without a 'lobster display' again!  Lobster claw tempura may be the best food ever.  My nephew was the ring bearer, and, despite not having a lot of context or experience for his role, he performed admirably.  (And stood still and quiet through the entire ceremony!)  He was a little miffed that he didn't actually get to carry the rings, but the pillow was pretty sweet.  And he looked so gosh darn adorable in his suit!  He fell head over heels in love with the bride last summer when he met her, so being in the wedding was perfect.  And he got plenty of hugs from his "girlfriend", as he calls her.  Which is a step up from "my older lady friend", which was last summer's term of endearment.  Keep in mind the child is only 4. 

It's been doctor and dentist visits and lots of reading and napping since then.  I don't get Blackberry service at home or even in the vicinity, so I haven't been even tempted to check email.  When I did send a colleague a quick email about how one of our contacts factors into a current US news story, she sent back a much-needed "thanks, we know, now enjoy R&R," email.  A good reminder to just relax.  Which is slightly hard to do as I watch the news coming out of Yemen and the saga of women driving in the Kingdom, but I'm trying. 

I am going to see one of my childhood best friends and her family this weekend after too many years, about which I am thrilled.  More on that next week.  Then, next weekend, a long weekend in Miami for another cousin's wedding!  My mom and I are going to stay in Key West for a night so I can eat conch fritters and stock up on key lime juice.  Yummmm.  Among other touristy pursuits, of course. 

The first tranche bid list came out today.  I of course won't see it until I get back, which is fine with me.  Second tranche comes out soon enough (when I'll be bidding), and too much of a glimpse into what's NOT on my bid list will be anxiety-inducing.  I have my top five or six dream posts, and several of them are probably not anyone else's dream posts (or at least I get really weird looks from people, including the Ambassador, when I mention what they are), but odds are at least half or more of them won't be on my bid list.  So not knowing what might be on there is making me a bit crazy.  Let's just say I don't plan to use my equity to bid Europe, as so many others coming out of KSA do.  To each their own! 

Happy bidding to many of my friends and colleagues!  I'll be asking for advice and recommendations soon enough...