Bon Jour!

I have safely arrived in Paris. Thank you all for your patience in waiting for my promised daily blogging. Obviously, it's been a bit more of a challenge than I expected to get access to the internet in order to update you.

The first night I arrived, we did a "Paris By Night" tour, thus explaining the dark photos. We drove past Nortre Dame, the Arc de Triomphe and the Eiffel Tower. It is a beautiful city. However, I was actually nodding off during the tour due to no sleep the night before on the plane. It was pretty amusing! Fortunately, my Uncle Paul was not dissuaded.

Travel Itinerary

I just spent the last 45 minutes putting together a nice post and lost it - frustrating! Anyway, here is the promised itinerary. It is still a work-in-progress, but this gives a general overview:

March 28th – Fly LAX to Paris, France
April 3rd – Drive to Bardos, France
April 5th – Overnight trip to Spain
April 18th – Fly to Jordan
April 21st – Fly to Syria
April 24th – Fly to Paris
April 29th – Train to London
April 30th – Drive to Scotland/Wales
May 5th – Fly to Uganda
May 11th – Drive to Rwanda
May 14th – Drive to Uganda
May 16th – Uganda Safari
May 18th – Fly to Ethiopia
May 21st - Fly to Dubai, United Arab Emirates
May 23rd – Fly to London, meet Mom & Dad at Heathrow and fly to Dublin, Ireland???
May 24th – Arrive in Dublin???
May 30th – Fly to Italy???
June 4th – Fly to Hong Kong???
June 6th – Fly to Nanning???
June 14th – Fly to Hanoi, Vietnam
June 24th – Fly to Nanning, China
July - Friends to adopt their second girl in Guangzhou, China???

More updates later. . .

A Taste of What's to Come. . .

Yesterday I went to the Syrian Consulate located next to Fashion Island in Newport Beach. I arrived about 9:45 AM in hopes of being the first one to be helped at 10 AM when they opened. I was joined by several other Syrian nationals with hopes of the same. 10 AM came and went. No one opened the door. Then 10:15 AM, then 10:30 AM. Still no consul.

During this time, I had a nice chat with Ahmed aka "Mike". He is a Syrian who has lived in the US for the past 18 years. He still carried his Syrian passport because "he had just been too lazy to get his citizenship." He needs to go to Damascus in order to visit his ailing mother.

We discussed his business. He owns (no stereotype comments now) a 76 gas station and an Arco gas station in Costa Mesa. He has also owned a 7-11 in the past. He educated me on the differences in the franchise requirements and the downsides of 24-hour business. I was sad to leave our conversation. However, I couldn't wait indefinitely for the Honorary General Consul to show up to the office. I had a previous lunch engagement, so I left at 10:40 AM.


My mom and I were scheduled to go to tea with our neighbors. I had long wanted to try the Shangrilah Bistro & Tea Garden in Long Beach, so that is where I suggested we go. Upon arrival, we found the place deserted with a simple sign posted on the door indicating the "harsh winter weather" had wreaked havoc upon their establishment and it was closed indefinitely. Why the website hadn't indicated this important fact remains a mystery. Fortunately, we were a group of flexible people, so we landed at Le Creperie on 2nd Street. All's well that ends well.
Keeping my two change of plans in mind, my musing for the day was that this truly is a taste of what's to come as I travel to other lands and experience the differences in cultures. Flexibility will be the key to enjoyment as I make plans only to see them change. I can't wait for the adventure to begin!

Pop Goes My Heart!

This is the funniest part of "Music & Lyrics", so save yourself some $$ and watch the link. It captures the '80s so perfectly. I must say it was a little more fun on a gigantic screen, but this will do.
Jamie is my blogging mentor. She was the catalyst to using this mode of communication for my trip. Thanks for inspiring me to have my own. You're the best!

Tonight was Sister Night, a weekly Thursday night tradition for the Baker girls for the past two years. We make cookies, talk about life, and laugh at our family heritage. One funny thing about me we laughed about tonight is how I will make a gigantic deal over small things, such as not wanting to pay an extra 50 cents for a waffle cone. However, I will run out and purchase an $100 hair straightener for my sister in order to make her happy about her haircut. These are the mysteries of being Suzanne. Two stories of the day that made me laugh at myself (and I think others laughed at/with me). The first was I turned the speaker on my new global phone on when answering a phone call and didn't know how to turn it off. Because I just happened to be running an errand to Circuit City where there is a Verizon Wireless booth, I humbled myself and asked for help. The gentleman at the counter had only a slight condescension in his air. There was another woman at the counter who empathized with me. I still got out of there in a hurry, but laughed about it later

The second story has to do with the traditional baking of the Sister Night cookies. Every week it seems the cookies turn out differently, usually having to do with the Baker responsible. Tonight, Meredith and I were it. I was responsible for mixing the liquid ingredients and her for the dry. When tasting the dough, we commented about the difference. They, of course, still tasted good. However, being Bakers, we needed to analyze WHY the difference. Meredith's theory was a possible different formula in the usual margarine used (Blue Bonnet). I theorized it must be that we made a double batch. As Meredith listed the measurements for ingredients, she started with eggs. It was then that (light bulb goes on) I realized: I never added any eggs. The part of this story that made us laugh hysterically was how our theories were so complicated and the reason was actually very simple. Ahh. . . the life of being a Baker.

Travel update: The Middle East part of my trip is confirmed. Now I just need to get a Syrian visa. Off to the Syrian Consulate in Newport Beach (of all places!) tomorrow.

Being Aunt Suzy

One of the joys of my life is being an aunt. It allows me the privilege of lavishing gifts (sticker books, games), sugary treats (Lucky Charm Marshmallow Treats) and saying YES to almost everything my nieces and nephews ask (can I play with your phone?, can I use your computer?, will you play "crispy" aka Frisbee with me?). The picture really captures the moment. They are so much fun! Another joy for me is being with cherished friends. As you will continue to see through pictures, it is how I love to spend my time. Enjoying chips and queso at Chili's is a small perk that comes along with hanging out and catching up. Today I got to be with my dear friend Karen and her son Joshua.

Travel update: I have an opportunity to meet a friend in the Middle East. It is an area I hadn't included previously due to traveling alone. I'm so thrilled to see how God continues to put together the itinerary. BTW - stay tuned for the itinerary.

More good news is my passport made it safely back from the Ugandan Embassy. Hey, that thing is like gold to me right now!

Saying goodbye

Today I met with my staff from Covenant Manor to tell them I resigned my position. We had a wonderful time downloading the many happenings there over the past three months. Things change - a resident passed away, others are in the hospital, one went to a higher level of care, new residents have moved in - and yet stay the same - Covenant Manor residents will always be the most eccentric and enigmatic group of people under one roof I've ever met!

What makes me sad about closing this chapter in my life is leaving a great group of people to work with. They allowed me the opportunity of practicing my leadership skills in the capacity of "boss" for the first time. Their commitment and humor kept me sane on the days when there were more complaints than compliments. They each made my job much easier than it would have been without them. Thank you Barbara, Nick, Gelacio, Alex, Holvin, LaVine, Ruth & Patty!

A blog to log my adventure

Welcome to my travel log. This is the place to come for regular updates on my newest life adventure. I hope to make it a daily habit to share my thoughts, photos and locations when I'm on the road. Therefore, I will start now!

On March 28th, I will leave the United States for five months. My around-the-world adventure will begin! In the past few months, I have quit my job, sold my condo, updated my technology (camera, iPOD, laptop, global phone - that's a feat for a technology late-joiner), and planned a loose itinerary for my travels. What fun it has been!

This past week, I've worked on getting visas for Ethiopia, China and Uganda. My passport is currently in Washington D.C. at the Uganda Embassy. Next week, I will go to San Francisco to get my Vietnamese visa. So many things to do! So many things learned. My new favorite website is the US State Department (http://travel.state.gov/). I had no idea there were so many requirements to get into other countries. My naive Western view of things had me thinking I can go anywhere and do anything. The Russian Embassy website convinced me otherwise (won't be going there!).

I also am getting together with friends before I leave (see below). The most difficult thing about my trip is saying goodbye for awhile. Today I wrote a letter to my residents telling them I have resigned my position. Tomorrow I will get together with my staff and tell them the news. One more step of closure and step toward what God has planned next. I'm excited!

Testing, Testing....

One, two, three! Here we are in Jamie's office, setting up my new blog. I will be using this venue of communication as I begin my travels around the world. Feel free to drop by my comment box and show some love!