Alex the Traveler (and Philip, too!)

Helping other make memories. And making our own, too!

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  • Roadtrips

          Dear Connecticut, I owe you an apology. For three decades I hated driving through your state on road trips. The traffic was always awful, the construction was always awful and your state was always the worst part of any road trip to NYC and points south along the Atlantic Coast. I am sorry for being so mean. This past trip combined with things I have heard from other travelers have convinced me that things have changed for the better. 

       I have been a long time fan of road trips, The luxury of living in the Northeast of the US allows me to visit many great places without needing a multi-day car ride. I have driven down to DC, Philly, and NYC many a time on a whim, just because they are accessible. 

    I have taken road trips to visit friends, a ton to see concerts, a few (not enough) for sporting events, and to just get away for a bit. They are a less expensive, more flexible form of travel. Barring traffic and weather, you are in charge. Are you going there as quickly as possible, with minimal potty breaks, or are you taking your time and stopping off to see sights along the way? You have so many choices and you get to decide as you go.

          This past weekend I drove down to Philly with a buddy of mine to watch a soccer match. Not just any soccer match! No, it was a pre-season friendly. Did you think I was hyping things up? No, I am here to tell the truth. I drove 6 hours each way to watch a Championship level team play a preseason game. 

          Let me explain before you stop reading and before Alex decides to never ask me to write her another blog post again. I am a Sunderland fan. I have been a Sunderland AFC fan for 10+ years. I have seen them get relegated in back to back seasons. And I got to see them win promotion on two amazing last minute goals in the playoffs. I saw them qualify for Europe for their first time ever, during their first year back in the Premier League.

          This is not a sports post, so if you feel lost, it’s ok. I have seen them suck and seen them do things the club has never been able to achieve before. I have ridden the roller-coaster of fandom with this team. I have cried the saddest and happiest of tears. So of course I was going to try and see them during the preseason tour of the US.

    Picture of the scoreboard at the game

          They played Wrexham FC at Subaru stadium outside Philadelphia. It was basically a home game for Wrexham and it was likely because some famous guy from Philly named Rob might be there. He was. Briefly, he went home sad as Sunderland won 1-0 and dominated the entire game, without their best player. 

          The game was fun. And not just because my team won. The weather was great, the stadium was nice. And everyone was there for a good time. The smaller, purpose built stadiums of the modern MLS are great venues for the game. You are right on top of the action and you can hear all the fans and all the chanting. The lack of empty seats always makes any event at a stadium much more enjoyable. An attendance of ~17,000 out of a capacity of ~19,000 was a nice thing to see for a preseason friendly. 

        Attendance was nice because both teams have well regarded documentary series about them, Sunderland ‘Til I Die and Welcome to Wrexham, The latter inspired by the former, according to Rob Mac himself. And I would recommend both, even to the non-soccer/sports fan. Also, soccer fans in the US just want more. It often looked like a concert of a sub-genre where people choose their shirts from other bands of the sub-genre. I often play a game in WDW where I spot the Soccer Jersey, and playing at this match was a blast. I saw half the Premier League represented with scatterings of random clubs from across the MLS, Bundesliga and Serie A. This of course is on top of the big obvious ones you’ll always see like Barcelona, Madrid, Bayern, and PSG. Shout out to the woman in Rose Lavelle USWNT jersey for making sure the women were represented. I wish I had worn my Legacy hat.

        Philadelphia is a great city. I enjoy almost every minute I am in Philly. We did not get a chance to explore it as much as I’d like because we ended up staying closer to the stadium, in Wilmington, DE. Wilmington was also nice and we were not the only ones who traveled for the game there. We ran into Wrexham fans who traveled from around Philadelphia and from elsewhere in the US and plenty of Sunderland fans who came from the UK. In fairness, I am sure there were Wrexham fans who came over from Wales, but I was not on the lookout for them. I had my eyes on other Sunderland fans from the UK, like they were long lost cousins.

        We talked to a father and son at a bar in Wilmington and we had a nice chat about how excited we are about the upcoming season. At the game, while waiting to buy merch, we chatted with the man behind us who came over for a month with his family. I was talking about how this might be my only chance to see my team as talking my wife into traveling to the northeast of England could be a tough sell. 

    He was quick to correct me. Extolling the beauty of St Andrew’s Church. Calling it one of the most gorgeous churches in England. Upon further research he’s made a good point. 

    Picture of the inside of St Andrew’s in Sunderland

        We ate no cheesesteaks, but we did partake of some local bars in both Philly and Wilmington. My fair share of Yuengling’s were consumed. I made sure that a pilgrimage to Wawa’s occurred on the way home. We did properly respect the city as much as we could.

        As I said at the top, my anger at Connecticut was well earned. It was nice to see that I have to change my opinion there with how kind the state was. It really is a pretty state with its own fun, non-casino based activities worth exploring. The coast is as pretty as any in New England. The hills and trees flow right down from the Connecticut River. One long valley and forest that feels like home. Sincerely Nutmeg state, I do apologize for decades of slander, and likely some libel as well. Your state is lovely and next time I will be sure to stay and visit and not just drive through. We’ll save driving through for New Jersey.

  • Geo-82: Not So Old-Fashioned

    Geo-82: Not So Old-Fashioned

    Last month, Philip and I were lucky enough to get a reservation at Geo-82, the relatively new bar inside Spaceship Earth. I’ve been dying to go since they announced it – it’s a running joke that I could spend all day inside Spaceship Earth and I’d be a happy camper. Legit, one of my life goals is a Spaceship Earth evac. Philip feels the same about Turtle Talk with Crush. I’m pretty sure if I allowed him, he’d just stay in the room watching it over and over.

    Anyways, I looked forward to Geo-82 almost as much as I had looked forward to Victoria and Albert’s last year. (DROOL). When we arrived (after paying homage to Dame Judy Dench), we were shown into a waiting room and given cold towels. The waiting area was, in a word, stunning. The art deco theming is perfect, and my favorite part was the carpet – it looks like the outside of Spaceship Earth

    Lobby of Geo-82

    The menu was epic. Rarely do I want to try everything on a cocktail menu, but here I was enthralled. Fortunately, there was an easy answer. Whenever I don’t know what to order, I get an old-fashioned.

    Our server saw our celebration buttons (it was our anniversary weekend!) and was so sweet – she brought us champagne on the house to sip while we waited for our drinks. It was an excellent start to the drinking. And it was quickly followed up with the old-fashioned for me and a whiskey for Philip. The old-fashioned here was made with brown butter and came with luxardo cherries. A couple of days later, I got schooled at The Edison that luxardo cherries aren’t actually original to old-fashioned, but I do love me a snack with my cocktail. That said, this wasn’t an old-fashioned. The only flavor I got was brown butter. It was over the top. The drink was good, but I’m appreciative that the server warned me in advance. If I hadn’t known, I would’ve probably had to get a different drink.

    The old-fashioned was served with a flourish and the ice cubes had Spaceship Earth on them, which was adorable:

    The view was also epic – we didn’t do the dessert event, but I bet it’s incredible:

    The view from our seats

    I also just loved the style of the bar, there were so many touches and reminders of Spaceship Earth itself everywhere.

    All in all, we had a great time getting drinks. Although I will note, the pours are pretty heavy and given the heat and humidity…and the fact that I’m a light-weight meant that I was down for the count after. I can only imagine if I’d gotten the bourbon flight!

    Geo-82 is an adult-exclusive lounge inside EPCOT serving drinks and small plates. Advance reservations are required. More information can be found here.

  • 250 Main Hotel

    250 Main Hotel

    We recently got back home from our annual trip to Rockland, Maine. Rockland is one of my favorite places on Earth and is where my other mother lives. This year, she insisted that we bring Peggy, our new-ish dog. Thus, began our search for dog-friendly hotels in the area. The one with the best reviews and the perfect location? 250 Main Hotel.

    250 Main Hotel / Credit: Barbara S, Tripadvisor

    We opted for a long weekend, driving up on Thursday (with a stop in Boothbay Harbor for a puffin tour!) and planning to stay through the July 4th weekend.

    Check in was smooth, including the staff loving on Peggy. Check in begins at 3PM, with staff guaranteed at the desk until 8PM. Our only complaint about check in was that the hotel doesn’t have parking on site – they recommend that guests park at the municipal lot across the street and down a bit of a hill. We had brought Peggy’s pup tent (aka travel crate), so we had to unload quickly and move the car. But legitimately, that was our only complaint about the hotel…everything else is an absolute rave.

    No idea why Peggy is licking her lips here…

    The pet-friendly rooms are all on the second floor so that the animals don’t bother other guests. The only room left when we booked was a cozy king room, aka 250 Main Hotel’s basic room. We’re not picky, and for a “cozy” room, it was huge. There was plenty of space for us, Peggy, her crate, and even our two family local family members to join us in the A/C for dinner. Oh! AND THE BATHROOM HAD HEATED FLOORS. Be still, my beating heart.

    Peggy enjoying the king size bed
    Peggy and Gator living their best lives

    The hotel is full of adorable art throughout. I felt like every time I walked through the lobby, I noticed something new. The elevator in particular was my favorite. I felt so guilty riding the elevator for a single floor, but I couldn’t get enough of it.

    Roof View
    Lobby
    Lobby
    THE COOLEST Elevator

    We missed out on the free wine they served between 4PM and 6PM nightly because we were too busy exploring Rockland and Camden with family, but that is one of the best pieces of this hotel. We did, however, thoroughly enjoy the breakfast. The pastries are from a local bakery (Atlantic Baking Co.) and are incredible. Philip was also a huge fan of the view from the roof, and spent a decent chunk of time up there writing. The hotel also provides filtered water and reusable glass bottles so you can bring full bottles up to your room.

    We loved our stay. 250 Main Hotel is in a perfect location, just a block from downtown and across the street from a bunch of food trucks and Saturday maker faire. It’s also down the block from the boardwalk, which was Peggy’s favorite part because it meant we were just about a ten minute walk to the beach and a puppy swim.

    Boardwalk with Peggy, who is rocking her new Mainer collar and puffin leash. Thank you, Nora!

    In summary, we had an incredible time and will absolutely be back next year. 250 Main Hotel is a pet-friendly boutique hotel in Rockland, Maine. It has views of the harbor, and they sacrifice a hotel restaurant in order to encourage their guests to explore and support the local businesses. They are well worth the stay!

  • H2O No Glow After Hours

    H2O No Glow After Hours

    Philip and I are a bit insane. We’re the types that tend to either forget our anniversary or do something completely insane for it. There’s no real in between. This year, we decided on the insane. We had some DVC points to kill and decided to head to the Cabins at Fort Wilderness (review of those incoming!). But we noticed that Typhoon Lagoon’s after hours party, H2O Glow After Hours had an event on the day of our anniversary. It was fate! We would already be in town and neither of us had been to Typhoon Lagoon in about 30 years.

    Not shown: How hard it was raining when we walked in

    Aside: The last time I went to Typhoon Lagoon, Disney Dollars and fanny packs were a thing. The first time around. So we’re talking somewhere around 1990, maybe. I have absolutely no memories of that visit with one exception. My mother, who HATED swimming, forced to ride on the lazy river aka Castaway Creek. But in her panic about swimming (which was crazy, she absolutely knew how to swim), she fell off her inner tube. And her fanny pack got soaked causing us to spend the rest of the evening blow drying our Disney Dollars in our hotel room. Anyways, I should’ve known that if my only memory of this park was that of my water-phobic mother living her worst nightmare that this trip might have some hiccups.

    RIP Disney Dollars, 1987-2016

    Our hiccups were all connected – and related to the weather. We went to speak with the golf cart rental cast members because ours wasn’t charging, and as we crossed the parking lot to get to the bus stop, lightning struck. As in, very very close to us in the ACTUAL parking lot. As in, car alarms started going off. Now, another aside: this isn’t the first time that’s happened to us. In 2019, we came down to run the Star Wars Half Marathon Weekend. And at the 5K, the race start was delayed due to storms. When we decided to bail after about two hours of waiting because we needed to get to Magic Kingdom by 9AM. As we’re crossing the EPCOT parking lot, we were maybe 10 feet away from where a bolt struck. My ears were ringing for about 30 minutes after. Knowing the storm mostly passed, we headed to the monorail. It still wasn’t running, but Josh D’Amaro (No joke, he was there to check in on Guardians!) took pity on us, made some phone calls, offered us his private car (which we turned down after telling him that was too much), and bought us coffee and donuts (which we gladly accepted) while we waited for the monorail. Unfortunately, we were so overwhelmed and singularly focused on getting to Magic Kingdom, we neglected to take a photo. So, Josh, if you’re reading this…seven years ago, you made our morning. Long story short, if I had a nickel for every time I almost got struck by lightning in a Walt Disney World parking lot, I’d have two nickels. Which isn’t much, but it’s weird that it’s happened twice.

    2019 RunDisney Star Wars Weekend. About 10 minutes after this, the skies opened up

    So back to the situation at hand. We get to Disney Springs for our transfer and it’s still thunderstorming like crazy. But we know Disney well enough that they’ll keep the event running unless they absolutely HAVE to cancel. We’d rather be there eating snacks and drinking drinks so that when the water features opened, we’d be ready. But the idea of leaving the shelter of our covered entryway at Disney Springs was too much and we opted to stay put for a bit to let the storm pass some. Spoilers: it didn’t. In fact, half of Disney Springs ended up losing power and having to shut down.

    It was a little bit wet.

    We soldiered on, with a few friends we made along the way who were thinking as we did. Better be at Typhoon Lagoon than not. Once we got there around 7PM (the event started at 8PM) and checked in, we made more friends – a cast member from Hudson, MA – and moseyed into the park. We opted to wander for shelter while tracking the lightning, grabbing a beer en route. Fortunately, we rarely travel without a deck of cards or our emotional support Kindles, so we were happy to wait for the event to begin.

    Hopeful that sky is clearing up…spoilers, it DIDN’T

    The best laid plans…around 7:55PM we noted that none of the food stands were switching to the specialty foods. And all of the lifeguards were in a staff meeting. Yikes. And yep. As it was foretold, at about 8:05PM, they made the decision to cancel the event and close the park. Heartbreaking, but, for the record, the absolute right choice.

    We were ushered out of the park (and a few not-so-smart people who’d been splashing in the water…in the thunderstorm…were ushered out of the water) and encouraged to take ice cream and water or soda on our way out. They offered either a chance to go to an alternate night of H2O Glow or a single day water park ticket good for a year. For us, neither was a great choice, so we were told to chat with Guest Services.

    All in all…it was an interesting anniversary. But aren’t interesting experiences what marriage is about? I think so!

    Photo: disneyworld.disney.go.com

    H2O Glow After Hours is a private 3-hour nighttime event consisting of free snacks (popcorn, Mickey ice cream sandwiches, Mickey ice cream bars, a fruit ice alternate), drinks (soda and water), a DJ-dance party, characters, and specialty for-purchase food and drinks. Oh, and a chance to ride the waterslides lit up for nighttime!

    Photo: disneyworld.disney.go.com

    Alex’s required items for a crazy summer Florida storm OR for H2O Glow After Hours:

  • Logan Express Remote Terminal

    Logan Express Remote Terminal

    About a month ago, Massport officials announced a brand new remote terminal for Delta and JetBlue passengers at the Framingham Logan Express. Starting on June 1st, the terminal allows for passengers to check in, drop off bags, pass through security, and be dropped off directly at the gates. With our upcoming trip to Orlando on Delta, Philip and I decided that would be a great chance to test out the new terminal. In short? It was an absolute success!

    One important thing to note – the remote terminal is completely separate from the regular Framingham Logan Express. It has its own parking lot and building on Flutie Pass, which is where the old overflow parking lot used to be before they built the current parking structure.

    Logan Airport Remote Terminal at 19 Flutie Pass in Framingham (at 4AM)

    Pricing is the same as the regular Logan Express from Framingham at $9 a person one-way. However, unlike the regular Logan Express, tickets must be pre-purchased a minimum of 90 minutes prior to your bus departure. Remote terminal buses leave on the hour from 4AM, with the last bus of the day leaving at 11AM.

    Our flight was scheduled for 7:05 AM, so we were recommended to hop on either the 4AM or 5AM bus when we pre-purchased our tickets. Knowing this trip was a bit of an optional one, we opted for the 5AM. We figured if anything went wrong, we’d just go home. But even with the 5AM bus departure, we still were asked to arrive no later than 45 minutes prior to our scheduled departure. Bag drop closes 45 minutes prior to departure, and security closes 35 minutes prior to departure.

    We were living a bit dangerously, and arrived in Framingham at 4AM. We had pre-paid our parking fare and had no issues finding a spot. That said, the lot was mostly full, with only a few random open ones. I would have concerns with finding a spot later in the day or during school vacations.

    As we walked in, there were two separate lines for Delta and JetBlue check in and bag drop. While waiting for to drop our suitcase, staff were walking around marking the bags with either red or blue tags based on which airline you were flying. Our only concern with the bag drop was simply that when I checked us in to our flight online, I thought we’d each check a bag…and since the staff are so new, they were having issues with our check in when we only showed up with one. I felt a bit bad to force them into a training experience first thing in the morning! I will note that despite them stating bag drop closed 45 minutes prior to bus departure, they didn’t seem particularly strict about it and we saw people continuing to check bags pretty much until they opened security.

    Credit: Jesse Costa/WBUR

    After check in, we were asked to sit in the terminal and wait for security to open up, which it did around 4:30AM-ish. They requested everyone with TSA Pre-Check line up first, then they let those without line up behind. We were the last of the Pre-Check group, but I didn’t notice any difference in how the people behind us were screened. I will say, the TSA agents were the nicest, calmest, sweetest agents I’ve ever experienced in all of my travels. I wonder if it’s a specialty role, but they definitely didn’t seem as exasperated as most I’ve seen. In particular, a teenager wearing a Sunflower Lanyard was escorted to the front of the line and allowed to go through first with their family. Another woman wearing a sweatshirt was asked if she felt comfortable removing it before the agents screened her – rather than just telling her she needed to remove it. Those are little things, but the little things MATTER.

    From security, we were led to another holding area. The holding area had water and a vending machine. When the bus was ready, the teenager and their family was asked if they wanted to board first, another small thing that mattered. Our bus tickets were scanned, and we headed towards the bus. Carry-ons that wouldn’t fit on the bus were tagged similar to the luggage and put in a different hold.

    We departed two minutes early on a freezing cold and cramped bus. I probably should have put my Cotopaxi Alapa 24L in the hold or in the upper space. Given it was so early, we hit no traffic and arrived to the secure side of Terminal A at 5:35. The red-tagged bags were unloaded, with carry-ons left on the walkway for pick up a la pink-tagged bags on a jet-bridge. We walked in where the Terminal E shuttle picks up, which is in the extended section of the terminal. For us, that was great – we were departing out of gate A18 and planned to grab some coffee in the Delta Sky Club anyways. And we got a note from Delta that our bag was loaded onto the plane, so that was great to see.

    We had to wait for a plane to pass before they dropped us off

    One important warning – if ANYTHING happens to the bus, it is no longer considered secure. In other words, if you break down on the side of the Pike, you’ll be given a new bus, but dropped off in the front of the terminal, rather than at the gates. Consider that when you choose your time of departure.

    Summary:
    1. Remote terminal is at Flutie Pass, NOT at the main Logan Express bus stop in Framingham
    2. Bag drop closes 45 minutes prior to your bus time.
    3. There’s a spot to fill your water bottles after security so you can bring something to drink on the bus
    4. The bus was FREEZING, so bring an extra layer
    5. The bus only runs between 4AM and 11AM for now, but hours might get expanded later

    6. The Delta drop off point is in the extension to Terminal A, rather than the main area and is the first stop

    Closing notes? We’d absolutely do this again. Philip says his favorite part was driving right onto the tarmac. Mine was just avoiding bag check and security at Terminal A (although we would’ve just done carry-ons for this trip if we hadn’t been testing the system)…and also the mile walk across the terminal over to the extension.

  • Dublin – Whiskey, Beer, and Noms.

    I absolutely LOVE how walkable most cities are. I lived in New York for a decade and the things I miss the most are public transportation and walkability. Philip and I moved across our town, and in doing so, we’re no longer walkable to our town center. Well, we are, but it’s about three miles rather than one now.

    Anyways…despite us spending an hour and lots of money at Eason, due to the walkability, we were able to book it (GET IT?!) to meet up with our tour. We opted for the Letz Go City Dublin Jameson Distillery and Guinness Storehouse Guided Tour, with a walking tour between the two. Insert Viator Link! Fortunately, everywhere in Dublin seems to be, for the most part, within about two miles, or a 30 minute walk at a RunDisney pace (16 minutes per mile!).

    Bow St Distillery. Yes, we’re sunburnt

    We met with our group at the Jameson Distillery Bow Street and our amazing tour guide, Seán Cuddy, started with a story into Irish lore while we waited for our entry time. The timed entry tour started with our choice of drinks – whiskey neat, whiskey on the rocks, or whiskey with ginger ale and lime. This was to bring with us on the distillery tour. Philip, as expected, opted for the rocks. I went with the ginger and lime. And on such a hot day, it absolutely hit the spot. We took our drinks to learn the history of Jameson Whiskey and how it’s made. We also got a chance to test three of their line – the Irish Whiskey, the Black Barrel, and the Jameson Distillery Edition. They also handed out Biscoff cookies and water to cleanse the palette. The Black Barrel was my favorite, but I prefer a smoother drink such as a bourbon.

    Not shown: Biscoff cookies.

    After we took the tour, we moseyed with Seán across town to the Guinness Storehouse. He took us by Ireland’s oldest pub, and told us more Irish lore. He also gave us history of the Guinness family before we arrived. To my disappointment, no one told the story about how Guinness is why statisticians have Student’s t-test, but I digress. Seán was an amazing storyteller (and if we could have, we would’ve gone to one of his shows), but due to the timing, we were often walking at a fast pace in the heat. While we could keep up, at a few street crossings, we lost some of our slower tour-mates. And two of our tour mates opted to take a cab across town instead of the two-ish mile walk.

    The Brazen Head, Ireland’s Oldest Pub

    Eventually, we made it to the Storehouse, and we were escorted in. Here, Seán stayed with us and gave us a quick walkthrough. Unfortunately, our entry time was close to closing, so we rushed through a bit, but what we saw was amazing. Philip joked that it was a cross between Willy Wonka’s Chocolate Factory and Walt Disney World. Here, we got a half-pint taster to take with us as we wandered around. We spent the most time on the marketing floor, which had all of the historical ads. I would’ve liked to have more time on the floor I dubbed “Living with the Guinness,” but we were running out of time and Seán wanted to get us up to the top floor for the views (and our full pints).

    After Philip was good and toasted (I’m a lightweight and gave up after a few sips), we opted for dinner at Arthur’s Pub down the street at the recommendation of Seán. It might have been the best Guinness stew I’ve ever eaten, so his recommendation was right. Philip got the fish and chips, which were also great…but mine was better.

    I actually remembered to take a food photo!

    From there, we wandered back towards the DART station and moseyed back towards Dun Laoghaire.

    Current read? Land by Maggie O’Farrell

  • Dublin – Donuts and Books

    Instead of continuing to wander around Dun Laoghaire (which we’ll do again), we spent our first full day in Dublin. Philip had some work to do, so we took a bit of a lazy morning. My usual morning routine consists of the New York Times puzzles and the day’s Clues by Sam followed by whatever physical book I’m currently reading (as of 09 June, 2026, I’m reading The Messenger Cat Café by Nagi Shimeno), so I enjoyed the time to breathe. We wandered downstairs for breakfast, which consisted of Irish tea and standard breakfast fare. I absolutely loved the Royal Marine, but I’ll be honest, the breakfast was standard fare. We did go to their pub for dinner the next night, but that’s for another post.

    We wandered out of breakfast and headed towards the DART station. And I’m just going to say it. WHY CAN’T THE UNITED STATES HAVE REAL INFRASTRUCTURE?! We got our Leap cards and were able to get on a light rail that took us out of the suburbs and into Dublin proper.

    Now, as I mentioned on Insta, I have a superpower. My superpower is finding fancy donuts. I can scent them out. When I go to the dentist, I stop by Rocco’s. In Ketchikan, I went to Jellyfish Donuts. When Sister and I run Dopey, we stop for donuts (and when she runs on her own because I’m injured, I bring them to her). This isn’t even including the time Philip and I met Josh D’Amaro without realizing who he was and HE bought us donuts and coffee. (True story! We also almost got struck by lightning that same day.) Anyways, while wandering around looking for the entrance to Trinity College, I stumbled upon Offbeat Donuts. And they were SO GOOD. I got a cookie butter iced latte and a red velvet donut, Philip opted for a Nutella ring donut.

    Still drooling over this donut…the coffee was a bit too sweet though.

    We kept wandering and found our way over to a bookstore – which is Philip’s superpower. I will take this opportunity to mock him a bit though; the bookstore he found was a chain we had around the corner from our hotel! It’s a local Irish company, I was just amused that it was a chain.

    And since we all know that Philip and I can waste hours in a bookstore, we ended up running out of time and having to run across town to meet our tour!

  • Dun Laoghaire, Part 1

    Dun Laoghaire, Part 1

    So I mentioned this week how much I hate time zones. Well, we tried to off-set the hatred by staying awake on our first day. We had apparently brought the hot weather with us, which didn’t help sleepiness!

    Getting through the Dublin airport was seamless – we were one of the last flights of the morning, so customs was a breeze. And our bags were coming around just as we got through. Taxis were readily available – although the transit system is so seamless, we absolutely could have opted for that if we weren’t exhausted. We arrived at our hotel around noon, less than two hours after our flight was on the ground. Unfortunately, such an early arrival meant our room wasn’t ready, so we decided to dump our bags and wander.

    The Royal Marine Hotel in Dun Laoghaire

    First things first, our hotel was stunning. The entire place had a classic feel to it, with a “private” gated garden overlooking the water out front. I say private, but it was open to the public. After sucking down some coffee in the shop near the lobby, we moseyed towards the water. There’s a gorgeous walking path that follows the coast. As it was Ireland’s hottest May day on record (Shannon Airport reached 29°C or close to 85°F), we thought walking the coast would be nice.

    I get it, you’re probably thinking, “Oh, my sweet summer child!” and you’d be absolutely right. We got absolutely ROASTED. Sunburned in Ireland on the first day of our trip. Because we’re smart travelers. For the record, we had sunscreen…we just were dumb. Anyways, we wandered from our hotel down towards Forty Foot.

    Sculpture in the Park

    Forty Foot is famous for being an integral part of James Joyce’s Ulysses. (Aside…I’ve never read it, but it’s now on my list!) Given the weather, Forty Foot was jam packed – people were everywhere. And since it was a Monday, The James Joyce Tower and Museum was closed. Unfortunately, we didn’t have time to go back to explore it, but it’s for sure going to happen on a future trip.

    As we got warm (and hungry!), we headed back towards our hotel in search of air conditioning (HA!) and snacks. We ended up at Casper & Giumbini’s for an early dinner. They were all booked up until 16:30, but were able to squeeze us in at the bar, which we were grateful for. I stupidly didn’t take any food pictures, because I’m the worst at that, but I will say Italian sausage gnocchi really hit the spot.

    As we finished up, Philip HAD to stop at Teddy’s for a traditional 99. And he didn’t even share the Flake!

    Angry husband hoarding his Flake bar

    All in all, not a bad start to our vacation!

  • Red-Eyes are my downfall.

    Red-Eyes are my downfall.

    I gave a quick overview of our trip yesterday, but today I’ll start to dig into the nitty-gritty. And as the saying goes, every trip begins with a first step. In our case, our first step was out the door of our house and into our car service. As I mentioned yesterday, Carey International is my go-to when I don’t want to park at the airport or at the Logan Express. Which, honestly, is most of the time – I truly hate paying for parking at Logan, especially if someone else can drive me there. As always, our Carey driver was exceptional – he arrived early and was waiting in our driveway for us in anticipation of our pickup time. Which was absolutely fine with me because…

    Reason #1 why red-eyes are my downfall: I have ADHD.

    You’re probably wondering why that matters. I’ve got the fun form of ADHD where I can’t focus on ANYTHING if I’m anticipating something. As in, if I have a midday appointment, I cannot get anything done before it. This is why I try to book appointments first thing in the morning, but when you have an evening flight? OOOF. I literally spent all day Sunday counting down until we had to drop Peggy off at the dog-sitter, and then, after that, basically just bouncing around until it was time to leave. So we were ready and waiting for our driver and I pretty much ran out the door when he arrived early. Poor guy thought we were nuts. Me, IRL:

    Anyways, we get to Terminal E with plenty of time and worked our way to the Delta One counter. The one in Boston is just a separate counter that’s hidden behind a bit of a barrier. We wouldn’t want those plebes to…gasp…SEE US. Side note: we flew Delta One from LAX to BOS and the crazy separate check-in and TSA was amazing…but overkill. This was much more chill. We moseyed through security after checking our bags and made our way to the lounge, leading us to…

    Reason #2 why red-eyes are my downfall: I eat EARLY.

    After entering the lounge, they escorted us into the Delta One lounge. Note, the BOS Delta One lounge is actually just a private restaurant that serves dinner inside the regular Terminal E Delta lounge. When we were there, the showers were down, and there didn’t appear to be any other amenities – unlike the one at LAX, where our waiter offered to help us sign up for massages and whatever else we might need. That said, the food was great. I’m impatient (remember reason #1?), so I often forget to take pictures of food before I dig in, but I did grab a photo of our drinks. Ok, PHILIP took it. He’s good for something.

    Drinks in the lounge. And butter. Because butter.

    My drink had St. Germain, limoncello, and something orange. It was delightful. He had some kind of whisky, and he was happy they offered the big ice cube. Bread service came next, with warm rolls. The rolls themselves weren’t anything to write home about, but the salted butter was delicious. We followed it up with the cheese plate.

    Delta One Lounge menu

    Normally, when I order food, I assume my lovely husband isn’t interested – we have pretty different food preferences – but he ended up eating half of the cheese plate. I neglected a picture, but it came with crustini, apples and cheddar, cinnamon applesauce, a blue cheese that I inhaled, a brie, a really thick honey that I basically ate with a spoon, and a bit of jellied fruit. I went with the lobster roll and Old Bay chips for my main course, Philip went with the burger and fries. The menu changes seasonally, and they try to be locally themed. I’ll say that lobster roll was pretty decent. New England style split top roll that was grilled and buttered, and mayo-style lobster roll with full claws. I’m pretty picky when it comes to my lobster rolls, and I had minimal complaints. We finished up our meals with dessert – I went with the key lime pie (a guilty pleasure) and Philip had the coffee milk and cookies. He said they were just okay, which was sad. My key lime pie had blueberries and Biscoff cookies and was pretty perfect. But it was now 9:30PM and that’s usually my bedtime. So I had been starving and proceeded to overeat at late o’clock. I was uncomfortably full (thanks, GLP-1s!) and my reflux was starting up because of what I ate. With minimal time to digest my food before I needed to try to sleep.

    Delta One Lobster Roll

    We ended up over in the main lounge until it was time to start boarding. My only complaint about the Delta One lounge is that the chairs aren’t conducive to relaxing – it’s definitely a restaurant and NOT a lounge. So we left to go in search of comfy chairs. Fortunately, it was the middle of a holiday weekend, so it wasn’t crowded. But we’re now creeping on…

    Reason #3 why red-eyes are my downfall: I LOVE sleep.

    We finally get ready to board, and beyond the slight hiccups with the touchless boarding – the machine in the line we chose wasn’t working, so by the time we boarded, they started moving on to the other boarding groups, but whatever. I’m ready. I’m sort of digested. We’ve got an hour to take-off, so I’m going to try to finish my book club book (Bat-Eater and Other Names for Cora Zeng). My plan is in place. I’m going to follow the 3-hour rule. Sleep for three hours and wake up for breakfast. Philip’s choosing the opposite. He’s going for second dinner. Filthy hobbit! But I finish my book and CRASH. Instead of a strict three hour nap, I’m out until practically landing. Which is at 10:30AM GMT. AKA

    Reason #4 why red-eyes are my downfall: Time zones SUCK.

    We land into the most beautiful scenery I’ve ever seen, but now I’m groggy, half awake, and it’s midday the next day. Oof. We hop in a cab and make our way south to our hotel in the adorable seaside town of Dun Laoghaire, the Royale Marine Hotel.

    Royal Marine Hotel entrance

    And we’ll cover our groggy exploration of the town later!

  • We’ve gone across the pond.

    We’ve gone across the pond.

    So… I’ve still been a traveler the past year. And I’ve been hard at work for my clients and their travel as well, for sure. But I’ve been a slacker about explaining my travel. But I’m back (and so is Philip, my passenger princess).

    This week, we’re in Ireland, somewhere I’ve never traveled to and a country that Philip hasn’t visited since he was a teenager. We try to do one “big” trip a year, and this is our 2026 one. 2025 was Seattle and Alaska, which was pretty epic. 2027 is still up in the air. Options are welcome!

    My desire to visit Ireland starts with the lore. My guilty pleasure books are often Nora Roberts. I blame my cousin’s wife, aka my soulmate Andrea, for this addiction. I know they’re formulaic, I know they’re silly romance novels, but I love them for the same reason I adore Disney – they are the perfect escape. A few years back, I read the Dragon Heart Legacy Trilogy (The Awakening, The Becoming, and The Choice) and it sent me down a rabbit hole of the Fae. This also coincided with a pandemic watch of Lost Girl, so all things Fae were on my mind. I should note – I have absolutely no Irish heritage. I just am a sucker for wool sweaters and faeries.

    Today, I’m just here to give the quick overview of our trip – as we go, I’ll post updates, and hopefully I’ll remember to actually take all the pictures.

    As usual, since we were traveling somewhere OTHER than Orlando, we flew out of Boston. Logan’s our hometown airport, and I’ve got no complaints. We didn’t get a chance to check out the new remote security in Framingham since we flew out of Terminal E, but that’s on our list for our next flight (because what an awesome advantage!). We got to enjoy the lovely Delta One lounge for dinner, then took the red-eye over to Dublin. We’re currently in our couple of days on our own before meeting up with CIE’s Irish Gold tour. We’ll spend a little over a week with them before heading home. So today is wandering Dublin, then we head to Galway, Killarney, Waterford, and then back to Dublin before heading home.

    Because we can’t go to Dublin without drinking some Guinness, today we’re off on a Jameson Distillery and Guinness Storehouse tour. Review to follow.

    And before anyone worries, the Thunderbolts* (our updated pet group) are well taken care of. Peggy Carter is hanging with her friend Harley, and Natasha Romanoff and Gwen Stacy are enjoying the dog-free life for a week.

    Until later,

    Alex