Kelly and Wayne and been going through a difficult time in their marriage. The had been married for four years and had decided two years ago to sell their little house and buy a bit larger one in which they could begin their family. These were exciting plans for them and they were both responsible and committed to each other. They both had a great outlook and feeling about the future. However, as it is with life, events and circumstances can sometimes plow head first into individual intentions and plans. And so it was with Kelly and Wayne.

Almost immediately after they put their house on the market and began looking at other homes, the realist market took a strong down turn and while they did find some nice homes that would work for them, they simply could not get any offers on their house. In addition they found out that they would have a very difficult time having a child together and the tensions between the two of them began to mount. It didn’t help that Wayne was laid off from work during this time period and had difficulty gaining new employment.

However, these two were never ones to quit and they truly loved each other. Just about the point that things were looking like a possible break up they both decided to fight for what they had. Kelly suggested that they take a break from all their stress and go to Madrid, which is where they spent their honeymoon. They decided they would stay in one of the Madrid best hotels and try and recapture some of the feelings and intentions they had lost. They strolled past the Teatro Real and remembered the Mozart opera they had seen there before. They decided to get tickets to Verdi’s Aida and something happened as they sat there listening to the powerful Triumphal March and tears filled both their eyes as they knew they would get through their difficulties together.

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Our visit to Washington DC was amazing. I had no idea the Smithsonian was so many museums and that there were so many other museums in the downtown DC area and nearly all of them are free. I couldn’t believe they were free!

We stayed in a luxury hotels DC near the National Mall. Making it easy to walk to all the museums and monuments. All we did the entire time we were there was visit the museums and monuments and there was still toms of more stuff to see so we will have to go back again.

One of my favorite museums was the Sackler Collection. The museum houses Asian art when we were there we saw a showing of Korean ceramics from the 15th century. The pieces were amazingly modern in their look and feel. Each piece was made with crisp clean lines and just the subtlest of ornamentation if any at all. All the pieces were a pale celadon green and each one looked soft and translucent. Also in the Sackler were lots of Buddha carvings. Wood and stone wall panels as well as free standing statues. In the back corner of the museum is the infamous Whistler Peacock Room. A beautiful room of dark wood with panels painted to look like peacock tail feathers. From the Sackler we visited the museum of African Art where we saw African art and textiles from all over the continent of Africa and spanning many centuries of age.

The museum experience in DC are as varied as this country itself. There is not enough time in a lifetime to see it all. Our visit also included the National Gallery which houses an enormous collection of art that begins with classical antiquities to modern minimalism and virtually every style, size and flavor of art in between. We will definitely be back to visit more of the art museums and monuments because there is so much more to be seen!

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With its fascinating history that has seen the extinction of the dodo bird and the development of rum, Mauritius is a fascinating place.  For those who are especially interested in history and culture, there is a lot to see here.  The mix of Creole, French, African, Chinese, and Indian influences speaks of its history, and contact with other cultures for many centuries.  For those who are coming here to get away from it all, and enjoy a stay where it’s warm and tropical, this is also a magnificent place to take a rest, and enjoy the fantastic rejuvenation the sea and sun can offer.  As a luxury destination, it has a wonderful selection of five star hotels.  Mauritius has the power to calm nearly anyone’s nerves, and we’ve selected our hotels based on their ability to provide a glorious hospitality for its guests.

You’ll love waking up in the tropical splendor of the island, where the sea is always close by, and the culture is warm and friendly.  There are many magnificent amenities in our rooms, and in the hotel, to keep our guests occupied and happy most of the day.  With excellent spas and workout facilities, swimming pools, elegant and delicious restaurants, and gorgeous style throughout, there is something for visitors of all ages.  The life on the island is incredibly fascinating, and it’s a relaxed but lively place, and worth seeing the sights here. One of the best avenues toward getting to know a culture is through its art, and Lindsey Collen’s novel, Boy, might be the perfect way to get into Mauritius before setting foot here.

The novel is a splendid coming of age tale of a boy who has to cross Mauritius by himself, to visit relatives.  Along the way, he learns about himself, how to make his own rules in the world, and how he can have a sense of agency in his world.  It’s a very complex narrative, that speaks to many different worlds within Mauritius, and is very illuminating.  It was first written in Mauritian Creole, and then later translated, which reveals something interesting about the author.  Lindsey Collen is a resident in Mauritius, born in South Africa, and choosing to write novels in this language as part of a movement to elevate it according to the strange and shifting standards set by the literary community at large.  It’s fascinating to start looking at language as a tool, and reveals a level of Mauritius that most tourists never get to see.

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Office Space is my favorite flick of all time.  Everyone has had bad job before.  I had more than my share until I stumbled across my latest one.  I literally did stumbled too.  Popping out of a cab, I tripped over the New York Times, which was open to its classifieds.  My Jimmy Choo shoes speared the listing that I applied for later that day, unhappy as I was at the job I was at then.

My job now is nothing like Office Space, fortunately.  Though My boss does drag out his “yeahs,” his business skills have obviously been honed by years of great sales management training, he knows how to deal with people because he knows how to deal with customers.  With him, I no longer feel the need to take sick days for more important things, like sleep.  In my old job, despite working numerous hours of overtime, I never received the same kind of pay that others in the office did because of politicking.

Our performance reviews are great because we get evaluated by our peers and by our bosses too.  It also isn’t that uncomfortable, three on one meeting I had at my old job.  It reminds me more of the creative writing courses I took in college where we work shopped stories, except at my office, we work shop performances and ways of improving them.  It is a very professional environment, but there is also a strong sense of support among everyone in office, probably because we are on the smaller side of things.   We do have training seminar, a process that has helped strengthen the company.  Though I always enjoyed my field, the jobs I had did not always suit me for one reason or another.  But with the vibe of the place and the consistent opportunities for growth, I think I have found my favorite office space.

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With over 31,000 rental properties to choose from, you’re sure to find the place you want, and at just the right price.  With over fifteen years of experience, TransGlobe Property Management is dedicated to serving the Canadian community, with rental properties available in all the major urban centers.  Helping you to find the perfect place to live is just one of the things we’re here to help you with. We have an extremely efficient database, so that you can find the right place for you, and something that can serve all of your residential needs.

We take great pride in our properties, as well as the neighborhoods that we serve.  A place to live isn’t simply a minor detail, but can make a big difference in the quality of life.  We’re here to help insure that your needs as a resident will be the highest priority.  We respond to maintenance questions quickly and efficiently.  At TransGlobe Property Management, our relationship with you is ongoing, and we also offer military, student, and senior housing.  Our residents are never simply names and numbers, but real people, valued for their individuality and personalities.  This is also true for our representatives, who are part of an organic team, always working to make life better and easier.

We do take great pride in our ability to serve the communities we’re in, and we strive to improve relations as well as our organization’s efficiency in meeting you’re needs once you’re living here.  Being here for you means that we are dedicated to serving the community.  We work toward participating in all levels of the life in the neighborhoods, so that we can truly understand where you’re coming from as a resident.  Our track record is not just something we rest our laurels on, but serve as a reminder of what we’re all about.  And what we’re committed to continuing, with you as our client.

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One fall morning we decided to head out on a drive south. Why south, I don’t know just seemed like the direction we needed to go in, and so we did. Leaving Saint Louis, MO early one morning we were heading south on interstate 55.

The Ozarks were full of color, yellows and golden hills as far as the eye could see. It was a beautiful and crisp day, just the kind of day that is perfect for a drive down the highway, a beautiful blue sky with hardly a cloud in site.

We had no plans for the drive, just going with the flow, pulling off to see what ever catches our eye, hit some antique and curio shops and see the beautiful scenery of the southern Ozark Mountains.

We made it to Memphis, TN that evening. When we tried to get a room we started to discover there were some events in Memphis that weekend and nearly all the rooms were booked. It took a little persistence and some time  but we did get ourselves a room and were able to relax.

My friend was a little worried about what we would do the next night so then we had to look at the map and plan where we would be the next night so there would be no hassle or worries. I really didn’t think it was necessary, but if it keeps him calmed down I’ll go for it.

Looking at the map I figured we would be in Jackson, Mississippi the next night. So he got reservations at hotels Jackson and was able to calm down. I am not sure what he thinks is going to happen if we can’t get a room where we are, it is not like there isn’t another town down the road. But you know some people are prone to worrying. Now we can get some sleep and head out on the road to Jackson MS in the morning.

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It was an uneventful flight into Singapore. Bryan seemed a bit irritated that his PlayStation wouldn’t work on the television that was in the seat in front of him on the plane. He had to watch the movies with me instead. We did manage to negotiate our way through the airport, which, by-the-way, was clean and roomy, and find the van that would take us to one of the best Singapore hotels around. On our ride to the hotel, we met a lovely couple. It was their first time in Singapore and they were so very excited. We told them they had every right to be excited, Singapore is a beautiful place.

After we let some jet-lag go, we got up early and wandered through Chinatown. It’s one of our favorite places to visit when we are in Singapore. It was Sunday morning, so all the shops were closed and the street were deserted, so we headed on up to the Boat Quay and on to Cavenagh Bridge. From that vantage point we could see the Merlion fountain and the Theaters on the Bay building look like bug eyes from here. We were hungry and decided to eat breakfast across the street at the Raffles.

With our stomachs full, we began our trip to Orchard Road. We were in the market for a new video camera, we ended up buying the very first one we saw, it only took us 3 hours of shopping though! After lunch, we made a quick jaunt to Fort Canning Park, but weren’t too impressed so headed back to the Raffles Long Bar to down a few Singapore Slings. For dinner, we went to Smith street and had the most perfect satay mutton, pork skewers and Bakkwa, it’s a sweet sliced of pork. Then, sleepiness took over, so we headed back to our hotel for some much needed rest, oh and a little bit of PlayStation.

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It’s Saturday in Singapore, so I decided to head to Little India and basically hang around for the entire afternoon. I took the subway and managed to find Little India, which wasn’t too hard, because  the stop was named Little India. It was another hot day, I can’t tell if it’s hotter then the last time if was here or if visiting the States for 2 weeks during winter made Singapore seem hotter than it should be.

I had no plans at all, so I just wandered around. I found a little shop and had my eyebrows threaded. Then I made my was to this absolute best place to shop for some Indian trinkets and cultural items. I was so ready to shop. There was this fabulous spice place, but I didn’t have enough room in my suitcases for everything I wanted. I’d have to ship stuff back, and I really didn’t want to be bothered with that. After I purchased a few items to satisfy my shopping desires, I wandered around so more and wondered about all the crafts and arts that made up this place. I grabbed a bite to eat at this outdoor Indian restaurant and headed back to my hotel near the Singapore marina.

Sunday, I made my way to Chinatown, but this time I got lost on the subway, probably because it was so hot, it was all I could do to stay focused. But, I did manage to find it, I would’ve shopped there, but my next place to visit was China, so I thought it would be better to spend my money there. I stopped for a nice cold drink and listened to a jazz band playing at a Chinese restaurant. My cold drink was so refreshing, I ended up drinking more and spending the whole afternoon there.

My week was up, so it was time to pack and head back to the airport for my next adventure, China. I thought I’d pick up a copy of James Clavell ‘Tai-Pan’ for the flight over.

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This winter we have our reservations booked for luxury tampa hotels. Always needing to get away from the cold winters in the north heading south is only natural. And with the cold coming in so early this year it looks like it will be a very very long and cold winter. So getting out of the north will be a welcomed relief. We usually spend our winter vacation in Puerto Rico but this year we are going to Florida. Friends of ours recently moved to the Tampa area so we are going to be able to see them and spend some time together and catch up and get some site seeing and beach time is too.

One thing I really do want to get in is a trip over to Saint Petersburg and visit the Salvadore Dali Museum. The museum houses the collection of Salvadore Dali’s works that were collected by the Reynolds Morse family over a nearly 50 year period of time. The collection houses oil paintings that span from 1917 to 1970. There are a number of drawings and sculptures as well. I have been wanting to visit the museum for many years and this looks like it will be the chance.

While we are there we will be taking time for the beautiful beaches. Our friends say they live near a very lovely beach and will be happy to show us around the area. Not having spent much time in Florida I am looking forward to the experience. They have told us about a couple of different restaurants they want to take us to that they rave about. I am always up for some good sea food and here in the mid west sea food is not so good.

Well all in all I think we will enjoy Tampa this winter and won’t miss the usual trip to Puerto Rico too much

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The weekends over and I really enjoyed being able to sleep in. I left my five star hotel Dubai offers around 11am and my agenda today was to check out the gold souk. A souk is a market, and here in Dubai, they have a gold souk. I thought if I had time, I’d check out the spice souk too.

The gold souks were located in the northern section of Dubai. I travelled in a care hire through the narrow streets. As soon as I got to the northern part of town, I could tell it was the livier part of town. Unfortunately, today was a very hot day and the heat was still too overbearing, I wanted to get out of my car and walk around through all the stalls, but I’ll probably only managed to make it to a few. I parked my car in a sheltered car lot and made my way to the gold souks. There were hundreds of shops, I meandered my way through and to be honest, I think this place is more for women. There was jewellery everywhere. There was a plethora of shops and stalls showcasing all types jewellery. I felt like, most of the shops were pretty much the same, it was the hawkers that made the difference. I ended up buying several pieces, mostly for my girlfriend and mom back home. The prices are astoundingly cheap and the quality is great. Now, that’s amazing in of itself.

I had time, so I walked over the the spice souks. The stalls displayed tons and tons of spices and there were hundreds of these shops. I liked going into the shops because many were air-conditioned. I didn’t buy anything, but I acted like I might just so I could cool off. The smell was a delight.

After lunch, I drove back to my hotel so I could take advantage of the free wi-fi and update my blog, send some emails and head on down to the pool and stay cool until it was time for dinner.

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