Where I'm Flying: May 2016

Now that I've passed the probation period, I can bid for flights and destinations that I want to go to. This month I bid for LA, Tokyo, Bangkok, Rome, and Johannesburg. I didn't get Tokyo, but I'm not surprised since it's a hard flight to get. But I didn't get LA :( So I can't go home to see my sister and my new baby niece that is due this month. My only consolation is that I'm going to Rome twice! I haven't been back to Rome since I lived there four years ago and I've missed it a lot! And I'm going on a safari in Johannesburg and get to pet baby lions, but baby niece > baby lions. Hopefully June gives me some LA flights! Six layovers and two turnarounds this month, not too shabby.

May Roster

Any suggestions for places to bid for June? I'd love to hear your ideas! 

The Great Chase

I had one mission in London: Go to the Royal Academy of Art and see my great great (lots of greats) uncle's paintings. Sir Joshua Reynolds, check him out. He founded the Academy back in 1768 and painted portraits of the royal family and other rich people. There's a giant statue of him inside the Academy courtyard and he even looks like my mom's side of the family! I was getting really excited to go in and see his paintings but when I asked a museum guide where I could see them, he told me they were doing renovations and had put everything in storage. There was nothing to see. I wasn't too disappointed because I knew I'd be in Paris the following week and the Louvre would definitely have some of his work.

I've been to Paris once before on a school trip, and it was cold and rainy. That was about seven years ago, and I actually tried to see Reynold's paintings at the Louvre that time but got lost and ran out of time. This time, it wasn't raining in Paris but it was freezing! Too cold to enjoy walking around, and the flight timing made it hard to make any big plans. I took the hour train ride from the hotel into the city, braved walking a few frozen miles to the Louvre, and walked another thousand miles inside the museum to the British painting collection. That "collection" was a joke of less than twenty paintings, and not one was by my dear old uncle. I was so disappointed. Even seeing the Mona Lisa again didn't matter. I looked at her smug face for two seconds and decided to give up on art for the trip.

I wasn't surprised to see London on my roster for the next month. I've been there at least once a month since I started flying. Once again, I decided I'd try to see these paintings. This time, I'd go to the National Gallery because I specifically looked at their website and Reynolds paintings, and they were supposed to be there. With my luck, I wasn't getting my hopes up. Either the museum would be closed that day, or there would be a metro strike, or the museum would have been destroyed by a meteor just hours before I got there. I made it to Trafalgar Square a few minutes before the museum opened and got in line with the other early birds. Surprisingly (to me at least), there was no last minute decision to keep the gallery closed that day, the doors opened on time, and I was on my way inside.

I skipped past who knows how many masterpieces to find my uncle's paintings. I made it to the 1700s salon and started skimming over the paintings in search of something familiar. Then I saw it. Surrounded by a gaudy gold frame taller than me and right in the center of the gallery was a portrait of Colonel Tarleton painted by none other than Joshua Reynolds.

I found four other paintings of his in the galleries and even learned some random facts about him by reading the painting's captions, like that he had a pet parrot (see painting below). You would have thought I painted them all if you could feel how proud I felt looking at them and knowing that someone in my family made them.



It only took seven years since my first failed mission but I can finally cross seeing his paintings in person off my bucket list!

New York, New York

I don't know how I've lived for 23 years without ever going to NYC. I love it! There is so much to do, so many unique places to see, and most importantly, so much amazing food! I didn't take a lot of pictures here... I was too busy eating :)

The night we got there, I met my friend Wesley who had just moved there two weeks earlier. He had the whole night planned out and a list of places to go the next day. My hotel was in Times Square, so we started there. It's a lot smaller than it looks in the movies but it was still cool to be there.

My pizza experience in Milan hadn't been that impressive, so we decided to go out for pizza at a place called Keste that supposedly has some of the best pizza in the city. It was better than any pizza I'd had in Italy, except for a place in Naples that can't be beat. They also had a homemade burrata cheese appetizer that I still dream about. We ate so much that we swore we'd never eat again, then made our way to the next place for drinks.

When came to a Five Guys Burgers and Wesley said he wanted a milkshake. I was surprised since he had just said he was too full for anything, but I wanted to get out of the cold so I went along with it. We got up to the counter and he pulled out his ID to show to the big guy standing there. Since when do you need your ID to order a milkshake? I was so confused. Then he headed up some stairs behind the guy while I'm still looking around, lost as ever. It all came together when I saw the lights and heard the music from the bar upstairs. Wesley made fun of me for the rest of the night for how long it took me to figure it out.

After bar hopping around, trying lots of fancy drinks, almost freezing to death outside, and me falling asleep in the taxi, we called it a night.

The next morning, we started the day with breakfast at Pick a Bagel. One of my favorite foods besides pizza, gelato, and chocolate, are bagels. It was delicious. We walked around the city the rest of the day, through Central Park where we watched and waited for the ice-skaters to fall (we're usually good people, I promise), Washington Square Park, all the way to the Brooklyn Bridge, and back through Little Italy. We stopped at Ladurée for their famous macaroons and at Cafe Habana for their renowned Mexican corn. We always eat so much when we're together! That's probably why we're friends, because we don't judge the other one for being a pig. 

A big thank you to Wesley for being my tour guide for the day! I can't wait to be back again!

 

They obviously named this place after my dog. 

Land of Pizza

It's been waaaayyy too long since I've posted anything, partly because I keep getting sent to the same places (London and Jeddah, I'm talking about you) and partly because I finally got to go home for the first time since October and had no time to be writing bloggy stuff. But before all of that excitement, I had to survive London again, Paris, Milan, and New York City.



Once again, I was lucky with my roster and scored one of the best multi-sector trips. Dubai to Milan for TWO days, then off to NYC for only 24 hours which isn't nearly enough, back to Milan for another day, and back to Dubai.

I hadn't been back to Italy since I lived in Rome four-ish years ago, and I hadn't been back to the States since I left to Dubai four-ish months ago. You could say I was a little excited.

Milan

The first day in Milan, I just walked around and soaked up the Italian-ness that I had missed so much. I had a huge pizza all to myself and even found peanut butter gelato. I was in heaven. In Piazza del Duomo, I was attacked by pigeons when a guy who sells bird popcorn to tourists forced me to take a handful while he put a pile of it on my head. He grabbed my camera and started a photoshoot, then wanted me to pay him for the pigeon attack. I didn't pay him, but he did get some fun pictures of the whole thing.



I was surprised by how much of my Italian speaking skills came back to me and how much I could understand. I had no problem ordering food, asking for directions, and having little conversations in Italian. Time to start studying Italian again :)

The second day, I decided to take a train to Lake Como and Bellagio. The train took an hour to get to Lake Como, then I had to take a bus to get to Bellagio an hour away from there. It was one of the most beautiful drives I've ever been on! Bellagio was a little dead since freezing weather in February doesn't make a good tourist season, but it was a great little place to walk around. Obviously, I had another whole pizza to myself. And more gelato, and possibly a bottle of wine. Calories don't count when you're in Italy.

The third day in Milan, after leaving New York, I slept for SIXTEEN hours straight! I think this is my personal record. Obviously, I ordered a pizza and didn't leave the hotel room until we left for the airport the next day. I couldn't wait to get back because I was leaving Dubai the next day to finally go home!



New York deserves its own post, coming very soon! :)

Land Down Under

Melbourne, Australia

I'm starting to realize that the places I'm least excited to visit end up being the best places. Like Singapore, Australia was never my top choice of places I wanted to go to. I don't even know why. I've only been to Melbourne so I can't speak for all of Australia (which I've heard is awesome), but Melbourne is really, really awesome. I've been three times in two weeks, and I'm already looking forward to the fourth time.

Australians are some of the nicest people, up there with Americans. That's one reason I loved it so much there. Being in Dubai, I don't know what friendly strangers are anymore because they're a rare find here. Also, they are the best looking bunch of people ever. Chris and Liam Hemsworth are from Melbourne, and I saw guys BETTER looking than them. Reason number two why I love it so much. Start booking your flights, ladies!

I mostly wandered around downtown and did a little shopping. There are lots of cute little stores and all kinds of restaurants, food trucks, and coffee shops. I've heard from a few people that Melbourne has the best coffee in the whole world, and it was very good. I took hundreds of pictures of Hosier Lane, an alleyway covered in awesome graffiti street art that is a popular touristy stop in downtown. Mix Chicago with Portland and you get Melbourne.

I also went to the Queen Victoria Market, the largest open air market in the Southern Hemisphere (thanks Wikipedia). It's a farmer's market, flea market, food festival, street performer stage, and outdoor mini-mall all in one. I tried some organic/vegan/gluten free nachos, Danish pancakes, and frozen berry lemonade. And probably some cookies too... I pretty much ate anything I saw. And I bought some organic soaps and a crocodile charm for my bracelet, because it's Australia and there weren't any kangaroo charms. It's hard to choose a #1 favorite place so far, but Melbourne is one of the top!

Auckland, New Zealand

Auckland is kind of like Melbourne, but the accent is different and everything is 10x more expensive. The people are nice, the food is good, and there is a lot to do. I almost went on a Lord of the Rings tour to see the places where they filmed, like Hobbiton, but it was a few hours outside of the city and expensive. Next time when I have more money I'll go so I can get out of the city and see the countryside. 

I didn't do anything special here either, just walking around, taking pictures, buying little things here and there. I hiked to the top of a volcano, which isn't as cool as it sounds because it's not active and it's just an overlook over the city. A pretty overlook, but not as adventurous as climbing a volcano seems. 

I think I missed out on a lot here by staying in the city, so I hope I can come back again soon and see the nature side of New Zealand. Overall, my trips down under have been some of the best!

Singapore

A lot of firsts happened with Singapore.
First time in Asia,
first multi-sector flight,
first visit to a Hindu temple,
first "authentic" Chinese food,
and first time having my palm read by an ex-Buddhist monk.



Asia has never been at the top of my list of places to visit until I went to Singapore. I had a stereotype in my head of Asian cities being a really crowded and chaotic mess of buildings and traffic. But it was such a peaceful, modern, and pretty place. The architecture is the most creative I've seen anywhere, and unlike most big cities, there are gardens and plants mixed in everywhere. One second it looks like you're in downtown LA and the next you're lost in a jungle.

Singapore was part of my first multi-sector flight, meaning I flew from Dubai to Singapore, Singapore to Melbourne, then back to Singapore and back to Dubai. It was around a 5 day trip and I felt dead by the end of it, but I was happy to get two days in Singapore.



I walked to Chinatown and stopped at the Sri Mariammam Hindu Temple. It's famous for its colorful towers and shrines covered in Hindu gods. I had to take my shoes off before I went in and paid a little fee to take pictures. The monks (if that's the right word) were there doing their prayers and chants with Hindu followers in their gorgeous traditional clothing.

Chinatown was HUGE! I bought a lot of souvenirs I didn't need, tried Asian candies, and got dragged into a few shops by the owners who wanted to sell me things (I'm really bad at saying no). There were all kinds of Asian restaurants there: Indian, Thai, Japanese, Korean, Malaysian, Chinese, etc. For some reason, I went with a Chinese restaurant even though I never have good experiences with Chinese food. Actually the waitress standing outside guilted me into going just like all the shop owners guilt me into looking at their stores. I really need to work on saying no... Anyways, this Chinese food experience was the same as always. Me and Chinese food just aren't meant to be. But I did have possibly the best cup of coffee I've ever had in this restaurant. I don't know what the little old lady put in it, but I was in heaven!



The second day I was in Singapore, all I wanted to do was sleep because it was the last day of my trip and I had just flown seven hours from Australia. I forced myself to go out even though I was grumpy and the humidity was slowly killing me. I went to the Gardens by the Bay, one of the places to see according to tourist guides. If you're into gardens and pretty things, this is the place for you. If you're a jet-lagged soulless zombie like I was that day, then don't go and just sleep. The gardens were beautiful, but I wish I would have waited until next time so I could have been in the mood for it.

The best, best part about my two days in Singapore was meeting Chon, the ex-Buddhist monk mentioned above. I was on my way home from Chinatown, ready to get back to the hotel and relax, when I passed Fort Canning Park. I felt like if I didn't go there, I was going to miss out on something. So off I went, walking around another garden. I was taking lots of pictures when a little old man came up to me and asked me where I was from and if I knew anything about the plants. I told him I didn't know much, and he took my arm and said he was my new friend and tour guide for the afternoon. Chon told me all about the plants and spices of the garden, Fort Canning, Singapore, and how he had been a Buddhist monk in Thailand. Then, and now it gets really good, he read my palms and knew my life story. It was crazy how much he knew and how specific he was! He gave me lots of advice I hadn't realized I needed and told me to come back and visit him again. I'm pretty sure he was Buddha reincarnated.



Now Asia is on the top of my list of places to go, especially if I meet more people as interesting as Chon.

One month down...

I've already been flying for a month, but it feels like it's been waaaay longer. For the most part, I feel like I know what I'm doing on my flights and I thought I'd never know what I was doing. So many great things have happened since I finished training last month, and these are at the top:

1. Finding out that my sister is having a girl! I've been begging her to have another baby for ages, so this is probably my greatest news of the year.

2. Spending New Years in London

3. Meeting Chon, the Buddhist monk, in Singapore 

(more about that in my Singapore post, coming soon...)

4. Spending my birthday in Lyon and eating tons of cheese, chocolate, and wine

5. Having a Christmas sleepover with my Dubai friends and eating tons of pizza and chocolate

6. Getting the sweetest birthday presents from my friends here. A hand-painted Little Mermaid phone case, Victoria's Secret perfume, and a pizza dinner at said pizza restaurant. My friends are the best!

7. Finding an amazing pizza place in Dubai, because pizza here generally sucks. Pizza is a big part of my life, as you can obviously see. 

8. Crossing two new continents off of my bucket list, Asia and Australia

9. My February roster is pretty great. Only 3 turnarounds and 4 layovers!

10. About my roster... I'm going to back to Italy a.k.a. my favorite place ever, AND back to the good ol' U-S of A in New York City!  I've never been to Milan or New York so I can't wait! And both places are kind of a big deal when it comes to pizza, so... You know what I'm doing on my layovers. 

February Roster

I'm behind on posting, as always, but posts and pictures from Singapore, Melbourne, and Auckland will be up in the next day or two!