Egypt!!

There was a time when I didn't care if I saw the pyramids. In high school, my dad came to Cairo for work and reported back that the pyramids look just like the pictures and were no big deal. From his reports, I assumed Cairo looked like this.*

Then, in 2008, the family went to China and we saw the Great Wall. Dad said it looked like the pictures but I thought it was awesome. And that's when I knew I would come to Egypt one day.***

Since the pyramids were at the top of the to-do list, we went there first thing. They were everything I dreamed they would be!**** We did all the things: we climbed what was allowed, we kissed the Sphinx, and we walked like Egyptians.

      

We took a camel ride to see the full panorama. It was a pretty tame ride despite the wild action shot you'll see AT in.***** We also posed ridiculously atop the camels to get not-actually-lined up shots with us holding things. Please enjoy the absurdity. 

    

   

Artsy shadow shot:******

 

Naturally, I ended the ride by posing with all my new BFFs. One of us was not into the continued posing.

We are here for the rest of the week and will be hitting the various museums and taking a day trip to Luxor. Many people have asked...yes, it is very safe here. All the stories you've heard of people protesting in the streets or of foreigners being turned away from the country are of America. The Egyptian people have all been lovely and want their tourism boom to return! Come see these things for yourself!!*******

-KT

P.S. If anyone needs a paperweight, call my dad.

 

*He came back with multiple different pyramid paperweight sets. One in blue, one in stone, and one in glass. When I told this to our tour guide today, she said he must be a very generous man to bring back so many souvenirs. I laughed and told her they were all for him and not for us.** I then explained to her that my mom did not allow him to keep them all at the house and he had been required to take all but one set to his office at work. 

**He is, however, a very generous man. 

***This also explains why you should never ask my parents for a movie critique. They will almost always tell you it was like the preview.  

****Though with way fewer people than I thought!  Egypt wants you back, Tourists!! 

*****Or this is her first rodeo?

******Is this too much???

*******Roof raising is optional.

A Very Curaçao Thanksgiving

One more from the islands!!

There was a lot to be thankful for today! Please enjoy pictures and a high text to footnote ratio to get you through the holiday.*

 The morning and early afternoon were spent on the beach.** AT enjoyed watching the ships come in and I enjoyed the sunshine. 

The afternoon was spent strolling around the town and a ferry ride when the bridge was unavailable.***

   

  

We took some obligatory Curaçao photos but mostly were in awe of other people taking photos and their fantastic posing game. We tried to recreate it but ultimately went with the classic family pose. 

 

 

We had a crazy delicious dinner and, even though we were not in America, we lived up to all the American thanksgiving stereotypes.**** No food is pictured because we ate it all. 

 

Finally, on the walk home we saw a Santa***** parade and fireworks****** and a street party and everything!! This was Thanksgiving to us but just a Thursday to Curaçao.

It's a bit much to live every day like Thanksgiving, but if you live even half your Thursdays with the enthusiasm of Curaçao, you'll be doing alright!

-KT

*For you, Kyle!!

**You guys!! This beach is a sham!! You can't even tell! We are on the second floor of the hotel here at a salt water with sand infinity pool that overlooks the harbor. It was trippy and the perfect solution to a no-beach problem. 

***The bridge floats and moves out of the way sometimes to let ships through! IS THIS WHOLE TOWN A FACADE????

****We ate way too much at the main meal but all still ordered dessert and ate all that too. We complained about how full we were the whole way home but also talked about the things we would eat again. America. 

*****Looking dapper in blue and balloons!

******I broke one of my strongest beliefs today and took a picture of fireworks. That's right, I think firework photos look stupid and I judge you pretty harshly when you post them on NYE or July 4th. I think, "Put the camera down. Watch the fireworks. Your pictures look lame and don't do it justice." And you know what? This picture looks lame and it doesn't do it justice but I took a picture to show that they existed. And with Scarlett O'Hara as my witness, I will never take a picture of a firework again. 

No Turkeys Here!

Okay, we look photoshopped into this photo. I promise you, we were in Anguilla. And yes, that's Anguilla courtesy of St. Maarten via Curaçao where we daytripped to Bonaire after arriving from Miami. The things this family does for points are ridiculous and we all openly admit it. 

We arrived in Curaçao in time for dinner and scenic street views. The island was settled by the Dutch and has the feel of the Caribbean with the brightly colored houses of the Netherlands. 

They, like us, have bypassed Thanksgiving entirely and are ready for Christmas. Dad is pumped!

The next day we went to Bonaire and had a tour of the island. Bonaire is much smaller than Curaçao and is known for its snorkeling and diving. The entire island is surrounded by a coral reef accessible straight from the shore. We toured the southern half of the island where we saw the salt ponds that harvest sea salt. It's not snow that you're seeing, but mountains of salt waiting for transport. 

The ponds surrounding the salt flats are ideal for flamingos. The flamingos feast on shrimp in the briny waters and that's what turns their feathers pink. They're shy birds so we couldn't get too close!

   

We also saw the huts where slaves lived when they were brought to the island in the 1800's. The houses are maintained today as a memorial to the slaves that built the island. 

We ended our tour of the island with some beach time before flying back to Curaçao!

The next day we headed to Sint Maarten, the Dutch, which shares land with Saint Martin, the French. The island is divided in half and has two of everything. If you mail a letter to the US from the Dutch side, it goes direct. If you mail from the French side, it detours to Europe before hitting America. We ate dinner on the French side and it went straight to our mouths with no international detours. 

 

Today we took a ferry to Anguilla, owned by the British. The ferry was a tad rocky and gives you this fantastic shot:

Upon arrival we had beach time and lunch time (our two favorite times) before returning to St. Maarten. For thanksgiving proper we will be back in Curaçao with no turkey or traditional trimmings. We wish you the best with your family and are thankful to be traveling together (minus UK who is prepping a turkey for AT's return!).

Enjoy your turkey, all!

-KT

Bermuda

I like to travel to new places for country points.* This is my third trip to Bermuda. That's how much I like Bermuda. I half-jokingly talk about buying a summer home here.**

The reasons why Bermuda is one of the world's finest islands include:

• The entire island is surrounded by coral reefs making the water more shallow, calm, and turquoise than the rest of the Atlantic Ocean surrounding it. You can dive, snorkel, or simply look at it. 

• Currency? US dollars. Language? English. Friendly people in Bermuda shorts? Everywhere. What's not to heart?

• The island itself is basically one large botanical garden. 

• The beaches have pink sand that is both impossibly soft on your feet and never gets hot.***

• The Bermuda Triangle you've heard about is possibly giant craters in the sea***** causing explosions and is definitely not going to abduct you and cause you to miss your return flight. 

• Speaking of the return flight, it's only two and a half hours from Atlanta. I dare you to get anywhere better in that time. (If you do, let me know ASAP.)

• No iguanas.******

• You clear US customs in the Bermuda airport so when you fly home you walk straight out of the airport like it's a domestic flight.*******

If you, like I, are constantly searching for the perfect island, come to Bermuda and try it out. Even if it's not your dream island, you will have a Bermudaful time. 

-KT

*And to explore the world, obvs. 

**This is the alternate lifestyle fantasy where I pull a mid-life crisis à la Diane Lane in "Under the Tuscan Sun" but move to Bermuda with no language barrier and spend virtually no time or effort on house renovation. There are several friends/readers out there that I would accept as my Sandra Oh. Feel free to submit applications for this sure-to-be-coveted position. 

***I have not found any research**** to support my claim that pink sand doesn't absorb heat and scald your feet like white sand, but you can read this thing about why the sand is pink. My explanation is simply: science. http://mobile.royalgazette.com/article/20120301/FEATURES02/703019903

****Er, Google searches

*****Again, science. http://interestingengineering.com/mystery-of-the-bermuda-triangle-has-finally-been-solved/

******This is a special contribution from Mom. She hates iguanas, y'all. They essentially ruin the entire Caribbean for her. 

*******If this doesn't sound like a big deal to you, YOU DON'T KNOW MY LIFE. 

Bonus photo for those that read foot notes to the end. I took a picture for a family and they also took mine...and coached me through a variety of poses.