Travel changes you
As you move through this life and this world you change things slightly, you leave marks behind, however small. And in return, life—and travel—leaves marks on you.
Life Lately
Quite a few things have happened since the last time I wrote. Andrew and I (and the doggos) took a little weekend trip to Rehoboth Beach in Delaware. For anyone who hasn’t been, this is a beautiful area with expansive beaches, an old-fashioned boardwalk, tons of restaurants, an arcade and some carnival rides. President Biden even owns a home in Rehoboth. It’s the quintessential East Coast summer for me, and only three hours away from D.C. I love escaping there.
The last time we visited Rehoboth was in February, days before receiving our first Foreign Service assignment. This trip was more enjoyable, considering both the warmer weather and our improved circumstances (not having our entire lives weighing in the balance).
We ate Kohr Bros frozen custard, sampled Thrasher’s iconic salt and vinegar French fries and devoured some personal-size pizzas from Grotto Pizza along the beach. Life in Rehoboth is good. Even the doggies went for a sandy stroll.
Fast forward a bit to last week. Maple was scheduled for a dental cleaning. These cleanings are quite serious, as she has to go under anesthesia and needed at least two teeth removed. Mentally and emotionally, there’s a lot of buildup to the day of the appointment. But we felt ready.
Unfortunately, during the initial exam, the veterinarian discovered Maple has a heart murmur—a complete shock to us as she’s seen vets and had exams on a regular basis her entire life. Due to the murmur, the vet was not comfortable proceeding with the anesthesia and cleaning until she saw a specialist.
We called around to different veterinary cardiologists in the area. Some told us their next available appointments weren’t until October. October! Thankfully, we were eventually able to schedule an appointment for Maple with a cardiologist about an hour away for the very next day.
She had her appointment on Friday, and we were happy to learn her murmur doesn’t require medical intervention at this time but rather continued monitoring. There aren’t any veterinary cardiologists in Romania, so it looks like little Maple will have to take a trip to Italy or Germany to have this procedure done in about nine months.
All in all, I’m glad my baby girl is mostly okay, but I feel exhausted and emotionally drained. The last five months living temporarily in D.C. have not been easy.
I am more ready than ever for this purgatory of “in-between” to end and our lives in Bucharest to begin.
Apologies if I sound like a broken record on this.
What I’m Watching
We have been binge-watching Ripley on Netflix. It’s seriously so good. The plot:
“Tom Ripley is a grifter scraping by in early ’60s New York. He’s hired by a wealthy industrialist to travel to Italy to try to convince the man’s son to return home. Accepting the job is Tom’s first step into a complex life of deceit, fraud and murder.”
You really ought to watch.
What I’m Reading
The Mercer 2024 Cost of Living analysis came out recently, ranking the most expensive and least expensive cities in the world. Four Swiss cities landed in the top ten, with Hong Kong taking the number one most expensive slot. Bucharest is rated number 155, so very affordable—good news for our pocket books!
Expat Observations of the Week
Over on Threads, I shared how I often saw unmarked police vehicles racing around London with sirens on. I compared this with the highly-visible police presence in D.C./America. The Brits had lots to say in response.
On the Blog
A couple weeks ago I published a guide to fun day trips from DC. Harpers Ferry, Annapolis and Baltimore are all within a short drive but feel a world away from city life.
That’s all for now! Feel free to comment on anything I mentioned or whatever’s on your mind.
Cheers,
Michelle
“Travel changes you. As you move through this life and this world you change things slightly, you leave marks behind, however small. And in return, life—and travel—leaves marks on you.”
— Anthony Bourdain