A few days ago, I managed to book an extremely low airfare to go visit my daughter in San Francisco. I found out about the fare by using Skyscanner, where you can input your destination and the dates you want to travel and receive updates whenever the fare goes up or down. So while I…
On losing things: a rumination
One day, in a strange city, my husband took out his wallet in a telephone booth to find a number he had scrawled on a bit of paper and stuck inside. Or maybe he was looking for small change in his wallet. I don’t know. What I do know is that he put his wallet…
Impressions of Beijing
I read quite a bit in guidebooks about Beijing before we came here. Much of what we read was true, but a lot of what I’ve seen (and it’s only been two days) has taken me by surprise. –Yes, as I read in the guidebooks, dog is on the menu. But what I didn’t expect…
Feeling My Age
Kirundo, Burundi, July 31 I’m 47 years old, and the last time I was in sub-Saharan Africa I was about 26. I’ve realized here what a difference that makes. It’s not a physical difference. I’m keeping healthy (knock on wood) and I’m feeling energetic and strong. It’s more a mental difference. In my 20’s, traveling…
Flying Ryanair
When you saw the title of this entry, you probably thought this would be another rant about the discomforts of flying on a low-cost airline, didn’t you? Well, it’s not. I write this full of admiration for the brilliance and sheer chutzpah of Ryanair’s approach. Ryanair must be one of the seven capitalist wonders of…