“You missed the 5 AM club, hun” I quipped as my fiancé came down the stairs at 8:30 a.m. (yes, I have a fiancé!).
“I’ve been up for almost an hour!” I added, somehow feeling triumphant that I’d pulled myself out of bed at the same time I used to arrive at the office back in the day, having gone for a run, had breakfast, and commuted first. Those days…
“It’s one less hour until bedtime,” Steve responded with a shrug. He rubbed his eyes, put on his glasses and then smirked as he made eye contact, “I’m Winning.”
I sighed from my perch on the couch, refusing to admit defeat, “It will be a miracle if our engagement survives this lockdown.”
“You’re telling me,” was the immediate retort.
This is an exchange we have frequently, thankfully still in jest.
It’s been a heck of a long time since I’ve blogged and for those of you who have no idea what has happened in my life…. this summary should suffice. I knew I wanted to pick up my blog again but wasn’t sure how exactly since it’s a travel blog and I was no longer traveling all the time. But then EVERYONE stopped traveling all the time. And I realized how much I’d love to mentally escape by blogging and re-living some more recent trips. So, check back as I’ll be keeping this up more regularly! Anyways, there’s more to this 5 AM club story:
Just three months ago, Steve and I spent three weeks trekking our way through New Zealand’s South Island with a sub-set of the amazing group I’d trekked with in the Everest region [Teaser- stay tuned for a belated blog post on this most incredible adventure!]. Anyways, throughout the trip Steve carried around a book that he would [occasionally] read. It’s one of those business-y books that he loves, this one called “The 5 AM Club: Own Your Morning. Elevate Your Life.” Apparently it’s based on the idea that some really successful business people get up and do things at 5 a.m. [IMO, when you sleep and wake up is a “to each their own” kind of thing but if people feel better being part of a middle-of-the-night club then go for it.]
Steve kept saying he was joining the club when we got home from the trip and he actually did really well for the first few days! (when the jetlag had us both up in the wee hours, I might add). It became a bit of a joke after that, but the joke used to be that he’d missed the club by an hour or two, at most. Today he was almost 4 hours late! And happy about it! My how times have changed.
We live in a remote (albeit beautiful) town in northern England that my friend Michael refers to as “Sheepville”. Yet we love where we live and have felt like the world is our oyster, especially this year. Shortly after returning from New Zealand we (actually it was me) found a last-minute deal for a week-long ski ‘holiday’ in France and we took the “Snow Express” bus there from London. We returned from the Alps in early March, jubilant about what an incredible start we were off to this year [#Winning]. And, we even had more trips planned in the coming months, a bachelorette party and stag-do included. And, THEN, 2020 would culminate with our October wedding on Cape Cod, where I was born and where we got engaged last summer. I remember feeling very lucky to have this incredible year in front of me. Yet in hindsight that feeling is a distant memory. I realize now that I had absolutely no idea how lucky I really was… those days.
Let me be clear that I’m still very, very, very lucky. Steve and I, and our families, are safe, healthy (knocking on wood), and financially okay. I have a new-found daily (often hourly) appreciation for those things. I appreciate a lot of things much more now… with an intensity that comes from my core. Flour, puppy kisses, clean sheets, vinyl records, my Peloton, the Internet… the list goes on. My emotions generally vacillate between gratitude, fear, restlessness, nervous boredom, regular boredom, and sometimes that zoned-out place of peace and content.
That is what life feels like now… moments of forgetting mixed in with moments of feeling the weight of the world, sometimes with a weight so heavy it feels paralyzing. A time of crisis yet oddly calm and serene. More calm and serene than ever, actually. It’s all very disconcerting. My favorite time of day is early in the morning… those few seconds of lucidity while tagging-in to the conscious world again. Those first few, innocent moments of rubbing my eyes, stretching a little, maybe piecing together fragments of a dream recalled… then, BAM! It hits me. I remember. And while I may distract myself for brief periods later in the day, that first time in the day is the one time when I really forget. Those 20 seconds… before the BAM! Those few seconds count, though. I’m scared that one day I’ll lose those few seconds. That I’ll remember all of the time. That my dreams will be based in this new reality. And that I’ll forget what life used to be like. Deep breaths… carry on.
Many of the things that we relied on for structure, distraction, safety, and, well, purpose, those things were stripped away in what felt like a heartbeat. Our worlds have been rocked and for the first time in my lifetime our collective world has been rocked. Like victims of an earthquake, we cautiously navigated the rubble, bracing as each aftershock deepened the cracks in the earth’s foundation. Slowly we stopped trying to fix it and are just holding on for dear life. That’s where we are right now, and it’s scary as shit. Nobody is alone right now. Same boat. All of us. Just holding on.
I do believe that how we’re all feeling right now will be fleeting. We will adapt and come to a new normal. But we must be patient. And that is hard. We are used to having things when we want them and even before we want them. We are annoyed when Uber says 5 minutes and takes 7… or shows up in 3. We expect instant gratification and a timeline, as well as options. And we fulfill our end of the bargain to be able to afford such services- we know the expectations, the drill. The long workdays and workweeks, the sacrifices, the time apart from our family, the staying busy and productive… we know the drill and even find comfort in the drill. But the world is different now. There is no drill anymore. The gig is up on the drill. We miss the drill yet now question the necessity of the drill in the first place. It used to all feel so important. It felt like life or death.
I feel like I was part of an advance team of sorts for processing feelings like this; feelings I know many people are now experiencing. I’m not the only advance team member by any means… we know who each other are, like members a secret club. Let me be clear that when I was still in the corporate grind, I was most definitely NOT part of the advance team. But in hindsight, I can tell you which of my colleagues were. They were the ones who boldly took two and even three-week vacations (unheard of!), and often to places I had never heard of. They worked hard and were good at their jobs, almost universally, but did not check email while on vacation. They made sure their work was covered and they went for it. Their ‘Out of Office’ response: “I am on vacation with no access to email” the corporate version of a YOLO face tattoo. They were not martyrs about work (you know, the people who wear their ridiculous number of hours in the office as a badge of honor). In fact, the opposite was true. The advance team saw work for what it was. An aspect of our life but definitely not our entire life. The advance team saw life itself as the most important thing. A shift, for sure.
When I left my job, I had an existential crisis of my own and I like to consider myself a late member of the advance team (not to be confused with the club, the advance team can get up whenever we want). I feel like OG advance team members were born and raised that way, with a worldly perspective. I most definitely was not. I gained that perspective when I left my job, left the drill that I had found so much comfort in, and I threw myself into two years of bopping around the world on my own and without much a plan. I processed my new reality as I saw more of the incredible beauty, incredible joy, and incredible despair in the very big world in which we all live. Basically, I had the great fortune of being able to process the topsy-turvy nature of how my values were changing and my views were changing in the most ideal and easily distractible environment possible: a global backdrop. This is pretty much the complete opposite of the current environment in which many people must process similar emotions. People just like me. I can’t imagine realizing life went on without me going to the office as I sat in my apartment staring at a wall. I just don’t see that going well.
I’ve come to realize that there are very few things for which I am uniquely qualified. But giving unsolicited advice on this topic may actually be one (likely the only):
Hang in there; make this time okay for you and your family – if you have one- if not, make it okay for you. Remember that this is likely the only time in your lifetime you’ll have the opportunity to spend this amount of time with your children, partner, pets, plants or all of the above or none of the above. For sure this is the first time you’ll be able to be with yourself for this extended period of time- your best friend and your worst enemy. I get it. We all do. We’re all chasing connection right now…maybe we always have been.
You are okay, you are probably lonely, and you are doing the best you can. We all are. Same-same as before all of this, but now without the outside constructs that used to provide purpose and allow us to feel productive. With those things stripped away it all seems simpler and also scarier. Yet life goes on somehow. And life stands out right now as the thing that matters most.
As far as expectations right now, the bar is low, and our job is clear: Exhale. And then inhale. And then carry on, all of us, together. That’s what we do now; it’s what we need now, in fact, it’s really all we need now. It’s the new drill, the new 5 AM club. It’s Winning.
And, while the virus will eventually go, and our circumstances will inevitably change, I can’t help wondering if maybe our new drill will not. Nobody knows what the future holds; I have to keep reminding myself to stop trying to guess. One day at a time and one breath at a time, fully appreciating both. That’s all that really matters right now…and maybe forever…and, hopefully, forever.
After spending the holidays in New England, I headed back to DC for New Year’s and a visit from Steve Thailand (he is neither Thai, nor is his last name a country but I met him on my 
We concluded his visit with a fantastic New Year’s Eve celebration that included a houseboat party and trombone concert. I’m pretty sure Steve now has some specific ideas about how Americans celebrate the holiday and I may or may not have played it up that trombones and houseboats are traditional components of any good Yankee NYE.
After a great visit with Steve, I had a few weeks of days filled with normal life administrivia, volunteering (
Rama is just a quick two minute walk from a gorgeous beach with the bluest water. This is where I spent a lot of time plowing through a few selections from the Rama book exchange and enjoying picturesque sunsets.
My five days really flew by thanks to a mix of yoga, surfing, and a snorkeling trip (all arranged by the amazing Lis).
I wanted to believe my comment but at that point I honestly wasn’t sure. But as it turned out my “premonition” was correct and 11 days later there were tearful goodbyes (there are since multiple group reunion trips in the hopper).
Our guide’s name is Ae, which is pronounced like the letter ‘A’ but she said her friends call her Amy. A few days later she was only going by Amy with us and she has announced she’s on-board for any and all group reunion trips. I’m used to having great guides on Flash Pack trips, but Amy is really something special and someone I suspect I will see again at some point. I can only imagine that the first time running a trip is pretty stressful for guides but Amy was calm, cool, and collected (and absolutely hilarious) throughout.
It was also a nearly flawlessly executed trip, as if she’d been doing Flash Pack trips for years (Flash Pack makes it a point to differentiate their trips from the rest of the tour companies- their trips are focused on local experiences and adventure activities, as opposed to just checking the site-seeing boxes). Amy also exudes positive energy that is contagious and it was kind of amazing that out of a group of 15 strangers there was not one personality difference or even hint of a conflict at any point. In fact it seemed our personalities were actually quite similar….
We kicked things off with a day in Bangkok where Amy took us on a tour of the local markets and we sampled various local Thai delights. This was very cool as the markets were really local-yocal and places I would have been nervous to (and maybe incapable of) navigating solo.
It was clear immediately that the Thai food I’d had in the past (even on my previous trips to Thailand) was not the real deal…and we also quickly learned that “medium-spicy” is equivalent to “mouth-about-to-burn-up-I-need-milk-now-spicy.” Even our resident Hawaiian, Corey, was impressed with the spice levels (and also loved his first pineapple curry ever, experienced at a local village). Our Bangkok experience was punctuated with a $10 Thai massage (the massages alone are reason enough to visit Thailand), some templing and few Chang beers (the Thailand go-to beer) before embarking on a 12-hour night train journey, headed north to Chang Mai.
I think night trains in southeast Asia get a bad rap as my experience was extremely comfortable and I slept soundly, lulled by the cadence of the locomotion. 
Upon arrival we scampered off the train and dove into the local scene straight away, starting with breakfast at an outdoor market where Amy introduced us to more delicacies (that I had never heard of but thoroughly enjoyed). We relaxed by the pool that afternoon before heading out to the local night market in Chang Mai, where we enjoyed a traditional and scrumptious dinner (this is actually where Corey was introduced to his new girlfriend, Pineapple Curry).
Then, lucky for us, a few of the guys in the group had heard wind of a Thai boxing event called Muay Thai, and Amy arranged for us to go to that night. I turns out that Muay Thai is the ancient fighting technique that was used by Siamese soldiers after their weapons were lost or destroyed in battle and has been developed over several hundred years to what you see in modern-day Thailand boxing rings. I was dubious about this but it was VERY cool to watch!
I had also enjoyed the Lucha Libre match we saw during 
At this juncture we broke script and decided that swimming in the waterfall was a mandatory activity…so we went in, still wearing our hiking clothes and not having a plan for afterwards. Have I mentioned that these are my people?!? 
Our adrenaline-fueled day continued with whitewater rafting through some Class III rapids, navigated deftly by our guides (Capt Ron was the pilot of my boat, and my fellow sailors were Steve, Kristen, and Charlotte- a crack team- and the laughter seemed endless). 
All in all, it was such…A DAY! A rare, all-caps (but not in the shouting way) DAY. I’m quite sure I wasn’t the only one who caught some shut-eye on our ride back to the hotel, still processing the sensory overload.
And our second stop was the Black temple (also known as Baan Dam and not actually a temple but more of a sprawling, eclectic art museum with a bunch of temple-esque structures and other assorted random things, all created by an artist who lives there). It’s an odd place and a very tranquil space to explore, as you never knew what you’d stumble across next, including phallic symbols everywhere. 
In Chang Rai we embarked on a jungle trek- I loved that there were multiple treks on this trip! Amy had told us that we’d stop and have a picnic lunch during the trek and that it would be “very basic.” Of course that was totally fine and understandable on a trek through the jungle of Thailand. I expected maybe a PB&J sammie and an apple. However, when we arrived at the grassy knoll designated as our lunch spot, it seemed a little early for lunch. Then one of our guides opened a backpack and started pulling out raw food items…not bread and jam type of food items but uncooked rice and raw chicken type of food items. Hmmm….what was the plan here? There was no stove or even a fire pit to be seen. We weren’t too concerned, though, as Amy surely had it under control and didn’t plan to feed us raw chicken to lunch. We than merrily went about our business snapping pics of the beautiful scenery and barely noticing the guides going into the forest and foraging for large pieces of bamboo.
While we didn’t pay too much attention at first but soon we were all captivated watching the three guides prepare the most amazing lunch of all time! Aaron tried to help briefly, but quickly realized he was out of his league with this operation so ended up watching with the rest of us. Really only Amy knew what she was doing enough to be useful. Personally, I was in too much awe watching to think about chipping in! 
In all honestly, it was the coolest lunch experience of my entire life. And this is not my first rodeo with lunch. Our local village guides used slaying knives to cut bamboo from the forest and then deftly chopped it up into various formations. These formations included containers to cook the food in (they even made a rice cooker!), a stove to cook the food on, and even serving dishes, cups and chopsticks.
I swear to you, THIS HAPPENED! I know, I wouldn’t have believed me unless I’d seen it with my own eyes. Also, it was absolutely delicious and perfectly cooked and seasoned food (chicken, pork, rice, veggie salsa, and delicious tea). Somehow they knew exactly how long to keep each dish on the fire for! This was such a fantastic surprise, especially as Amy had totally under-sold it. It turns out she didn’t want to talk a big game, as it was the first time she’d be seeing this lunch experience in execution (minus a trial run she attended a few weeks prior). As Flash Pack insiders we all agreed this should be hyped up for future trips! 
That night was our last in Thailand before we’d crossing the border to Laos and it was spent in the village of Change Khong, in a very special accommodation- 
We all gathered on one of the balconies that evening and enjoyed many Chang beer and many laughs together- the village people really do go above and beyond to take care of their guests. We later learned they had ridden a motorbike to the nearest store (which could not have been that close) two times to get more Chang for us! In fact, between the 15 of us, we managed to consume 86 Chang that night! Even Amy seemed impressed (if that’s the right word?) and she phoned the boat we were would be boarding the next day to make sure they had enough beer on board. Told you she was an awesome guide! The Night of 86 Chang encapsulated:
The next day it was good-bye to Thailand and I left feeling like I had so much of a better sense of the heart and soul of the country than from my few times visiting the beaches in the southern part of the country. The beaches are of course spectacular but there is so much more natural beauty I had never seen and the local village people we met were all incredibly kind and welcoming. 
Thailand definitely has their act together with tourism and it’s very easy to travel around, or at least it seemed that way having Amy figuring everything out for us. Steve even gave Amy complete control to order for him, at every single meal. I don’t think he looked at a menu the whole time but loved every meal, even the “medium-spicy” ones. He followed up after the trip saying it was a rude awakening being back to real-life and especially having to decide what to eat again.
We stopped for the night in the riverbank village of Pakbeng, which seemed to be a popular spot (maybe the only spot?) for boats doing this journey to stay for the evening. 
Our accommodation was adjacent to the local establishment, the Happy Bar, where we enjoyed Lao Beer (Chang Beer was so yesterday) and pool with some locals while Bob Marley tunes played in the background. Amy’s favorite is Buffalo Soldier and it seemed particularly appropriate as the animal is a popular cuisine in Laos. Buffalo blood is even a delicacy here! Very few parts of animals are wasted in Laos, where the average annual salary is less than $1,000.
Tim Tang is a representation of the natural character and ancient spiritualism of Laos, a world that exists with peace and not conflict and where spiritualism exists in nature not just humans, including the water spirit of the Mekong. After two days on the river we all agreed that it’s an incredibly special and spiritual place and we felt lucky to share the experience with each other.
We arrived in Luang Prabang, where we would be spending our final three nights of the trip. How was the trip winding down already?? This one really flew by. But there was still much fun to be had! Luang Prabang is a town in northern Laos built on a peninsula between the Mekong and the smaller Nam Khan River. Our accommodations, 
We dove right into the local Lao culture by playing a game of “pentaque” that night, which is a game similar to bocce or boules. The French had brought the game to Laos and it has remained popular, one of the many European colonial influences that is still reflected in the Lao culture today. We got some lessons and split into teams for a tourney, which was a lot of fun (and just a smidge competitive).
Dinner that night was a traditional Lao BBQ, which was so much fun! You pick out your ingredients amongst a bountiful selection of vegetables, meat, fish and spices and cook them in a BBQ kept hot by embers. Corey was familiar with this cooking technique from Hawaii and helped us to get passed our initial “how does this work?” hesitation by tossing everything on and watching it cook away (he also helped us figure out when it was done). It was such a fun and delicious meal and was punctuated by non-stop laughter among the group. 
That night I recall looking around the table at my new friends and feeling incredibly lucky. There was nobody else I would have wanted to be sharing the experience with than the people around me, even though I hadn’t known any of them just a week prior. 
Our last two days of the trip flew by and we explored Lao Prebang, including Mount Phousi which takes about 350 steps to summit with the reward of panoramic views and a golden stupa and temple. 
There were also markets to explore and cheap massages to be had in Luang Prebang and the night market was particularly bustling. Our last full day was an early one when we participated in the traditional giving of alms to local monks, which takes place at sunrise when about 200 monks process down the main street of town, collecting their food for their one meal the day. Our offering was sticky rice and as the monks silently processed by we sat on small stools (you can also kneel) and gave each monk a small portion. The monks ranged in age from the very old senior monks to sleepy looking children and it was an incredibly spiritual experience.
After our own breakfast (that consisted of much more than sticky rice) we were off for our final trek, this one to another a waterfall. We met our local guide in the village, as it is a tradition to use a local guide as a way to support the village who maintains the trail. Our guide was 75 years old and we had a hard time keeping up with him at times! 
The hike wound us through the Lao jungle, through some villages and the occasional buddhist shrine. At one point we came across a little family run cafe that boasted a log crossing challenge. Yes, please! Five of us gave the challenge a whirl (if you can make it across the log without falling in you are rewarded with a Beer Lao, if you fall off you must buy a Beer Lao). We had a demo where the proprietor made it there and back with no problem and even while balancing a beer on his head. How hard could this be?
Let’s just say the five of us all ended up with a Beer Lao…and we all had to pay for them.
The water was extremely refreshing,though, and it was well worth cooling off and for the laughs (my attempt was absolutely horrible, embarrassingly so!). Afterwards, the young daughter of the owner showed us how it’s done, and scampered across and back with no problem at all. Appropriately humbled and giddy from the beer, we finished our trek to be rewarded by the incredible Kuang Si waterfall. Laos and Thailand are not fooling around in the waterfall department! We swam in the waterfall pools enjoying the cascading water and even figuring out how to get between the rocks and the waterfall to view the falls from behind. And, if you stood under the water the right way, it was also an excellent shoulder massage!
Our final dinner was at a lovely restaurant overlooking the Nam Khan river and we savored our last bites of our favorite Lao delicacies, including sticky rice, papaya salad (medium-spicy, Amy warned), fresh fish, and of course buffalo (I didn’t try the buffalo but others loved it). Nobody wanted to go to bed that night as it felt like an admission that the trip was ending…so we stayed up talking and laughing until our stomachs hurt (so much laughing on this trip!), and until there was no more Beer Lao to be had. 
After the trip, Kristen posted one of my favorite quotes on Facebook, “I am not the same having seen the moon shine on the other side of the world.” That quote was on the front of my travel journal when I studied abroad in Perth, Australia in college…my first time going to the other side of the world. It rung true then but also seems particularly appropriate for this trip, 20 years later, seeing the moon in Thailand and Laos with this group of people. 
As I reflected on what made this group so special, it occurred to me that despite all being adventure travelers in our 30s and 40s, there were other commonalities that transcended the obvious ones. First of all, every single person in the group is hilarious. Just really, really funny people. So much laughing! I can’t highlight the laughter on this trip enough. Also, every person was genuine, kind, and open-minded (only a few of us had been to southeast Asia before) and they wanted more than to check the travel box and have some good Instagram posts (good Insta posts wouldn’t hurt though!). Really, though, the group wanted to know the local people, embrace the local experiences, and absorb the local culture. And together, with the help of Amy and Tui, that is exactly what we did.
So, of course I signed up! Then, it was time, and I eased into my next international travel junket by not straying too far from los Estados Unidos. I arrived to Mexico City a few days early, to visit the Amazing Ana, who is from there and I’d met during my Turkey travels. I stayed with her for a few days and she gave me a wonderful tour of her city- including the incredible Frida Kahlo museum (seriously, Frida was one inspirational muchacha), the really interesting Archeological Museum, and many other sights, smells and sounds (the best sound in Mexico is the music, which is everywhere. And real music, actually being played!). Ana is also a talented artist with a great eye and she took me to the most beautiful places in her city, all while making me smile with her infectious giggle. It was so good to see her again!
We also swung by a mescal distillery to get an up close and personal demo on how agave magically turns into mescal. Here’s me and the proprietor –
At least they put me up in the Sheraton which is located just a tunnel away from the terminal. There I joined a room full of other Lufthansa passengers in a large conference room for our comp’d dinner of turkey and mashed potatoes. Kind of like Thanksgiving, and many people looked about as happy to be there as they would at their disfunctional family’s holiday dinner tables. Unfortunately I was faced with another snafu the next morning as we were delayed leaving Frankfurt and I missed my connection in Munich. Argh!!! I had a five hour wait for the next flight and took out the trusty old iPad to troubleshoot how I would get to THE DOLOMITES, having missed the one bus of the day. I mean, I could always rent a car. But I hate driving. But… it’s THE DOLOMITES!! And your options are veeeerrrry limited. Here’s what I saw of Munich- it looks lovely and I’ll have to go back under different circumstances. 
I FINALLY landed and set out to claim my rental car, dragging a lil’ bit from my 36+ hour journey at this point. The kind woman at Thrifty must have noticed I wasn’t exactly in the jolliest of moods and upgraded me from Bare Bones Fiat to Pimped Out Audi (to be referred to as POA from this point forward). Here she is: 
My mood buoyed slightly… I was off with a sweet ride! The two-hour drive to Cortina was beautiful, despite increasing patches of fog and rain as I got deeper into the mountains (on mostly winding two-lane roads). 
I checked into my accommodation and the proprietor pointed out the four restaurants I could choose from. He said they all close at 9pm as it’s a “sleepy mountain town” this time of year. Hmmm… based on Trip Advisor, I’d thought Cortina had more going on than this? And where were those mountains I was supposed to be able to see from my window?
The rain was really coming down now and it was already 8 p.m. so I motored to the closest restaurant, a pizzeria next door. There were only a few tables occupied and I was seated at a table next to another solo diner, a gent who looked about my age. I wasn’t sure how to sit as I thought facing him directly would be kind of awkward, almost like were at the same table, but with my back to him seemed rude. I compromised and sat at kind of an angle, half-facing him (which in hindsight was probably more awkward than either of the alternatives). I got bored pretty quickly sitting there by myself (and with no phone decoy) and soon we made eye contact and a conversation naturally commenced. Okay, okay I’ll be honest, chances are that I was the one who struck up the conversation… I don’t exactly have a healthy fear of chatting with strangers (as reported in the British rag, The Daily Mail, 
I caught up on some correspondence and other life administrivia that has fallen by the way-side and thank goodness for my Cortina boyfriend, as I would have really gone bonkers without Christoph (both for his company and validation that I’m not a total idiot for making this mistake). He had scoped out the adorable ski town during his time there, and toured me to his favorite spots (of the handful that were open). 
Gotta love an iPad selfie attempt! Christoph also speaks ‘nerd’ so we geeked out discussing things like China’s advances in the innovation arena and how this impacts their global positioning. The next morning brought some sunlight (!!!) and I could actually see the mountains that I would not be hiking. 
No matter, I hopped in my POA and headed to my ultimate destination- the mythical Ortesei. I spent the next 2.5 hours driving through winding mountain passes…it was INCREDIBLE! And included some extremely variable (and equally beautiful) scenery.
For the first time in my life I LOVED driving… a LOT. I think I figured out that my problem with driving in the past is that I’ve been operating average-to-below-average cars and have had average-to-below-average-views, AND have had to deal with pesky things…like stoplights and speed limits. Driving POA through THE DOLOMITES is a different experience entirely. 
It also occurred to me that when I’d booked my hotel in Ortesei I’d assumed there were only a few available because they were all full of hikers like myself, but I now suspected it was prolly because they were also still closed. And… I was correct. It was just salt in the wound when I learned that the mountains in Ortesei were opening for hiking the VERY day I was leaving. Of course they were! Regardless, I loved the family owned mountain lodge where I stayed. The views were totes amaze and they even had some footpaths where I could fake-hike. I was a happy camper.
It was pretty spectacular as far as fake hiking goes and I zoomed off for hours, happy to be moving after days of sitting (something I do not handle well). More views: 
After fake-hiking for much of the day, I took POA out for a spin in the mountains. That’s right… a drive just to drive, with no destination. Driver’s ed was the last time I did that! Then I was off to the airport, not sad it was 3.5 hours away and I savored my final moments with POA. As I drove I reflected on how my Dolomites experience had not been what I’d envisioned at the outset but it had definitely been an adventure and, all in all, one I really enjoyed! I got to make a few new friends, take in some incredible beauty, and, of course, there’s my new love affair with driving. I was glad the many snafus throughout the course of the journey hadn’t kept me from maintaining a (mostly) positive outlook and being open to whatever experiences presented themselves, as they were pretty cool ones! Next up… gobble, gobble!