Top Takeaways - #8

Alex and I returned to the US last week. After recharging our batteries for a few days in Madison, NJ we set out on our two-month road trip. Here are our takeaways after a week on the road.

Quite the welcoming committee when we arrived at the airport!

1. Coming back to NYC feels like being home. After being away for over two months we weren't sure we'd miss the hustle and bustle of the city but in just one day we remembered why we love it so much. It's hard to imagine living anywhere else.

2. Weddings are so much fun and you should try to go to all that you are invited to. We celebrated with two great couples (and our friends and family) last weekend - my cousin Todd and his bride Dana and two of our good friends from NY, Dan and Amanda (or as they are more commonly known, Damanda). We had an amazing time at both and each brought back great memories from our big day in June!

3. It's much easier to pack when you have a car to put everything in! After saying goodbye to a few clothing items we never wanted to see again, we re-packed and brought a few more selections this time. I'm excited to have more "normal" outfits during our US leg.

4. Wi-Fi is not nearly as important when you have cell service. I know this sounds obvious but we'd become completely dependent on it for all data on our iPhones abroad - being able to use them while we walk down the street has been a huge improvement! Also being able to talk and text is nice.

5. We are creatures of habit. One of my biggest gripes during traveling in South America was the difficulty we had finding healthy eating options and places to work out regularly. It feels great to be back on a regular workout routine and almost every menu has a salad or lighter option.

6. We have identified our favorite travel snacks: beef jerky, twizzlers, animal crackers and flavored seltzer. Alex and I are not normally big snackers, preferring to have two substantial meals a day most of the time (and the occasional meat and cheese plate), but road trip snacks are a must!

7. Driving a speedboat in shallow water is hard (I had never done it before!). I'm just thankful we only had to pay a propeller "refurbishment" fee and not a full replacement fee...

8. Harvard's campus is beautiful. We were given a tour of both the MBA and undergrad campuses by our friend Todd - the grounds are impeccably manicured. Apparently a common joke among MBA students is that the groundskeepers even shampoo the squirrels.

9. Lake George is practically a ghost town right now. We figured it would still be pretty busy only a week after Labor Day but we only saw a handful of tourists during our two days here. While it seemed a bit eerie to see the streets so vacant, that also meant no waiting at restaurants and we had the lake practically to ourselves!

10. On most days we wake up feeling lucky that we're so fortunate to be able to take a trip like this. Today in New York, on September 11, we woke up thankful that we didn't lose any close friends or family in the attacks 13 years ago and that we live in a country that affords us so many freedoms (including traveling domestically and internationally so easily). Never forget.

Peak: Celebrating the weddings with our friends and family

Pit: The incident that led to the propeller "refurbishment" fee...

Next Stop: Niagara Falls

On the Road

Miles: 270

Route: Madison, NJ - Brooklyn, NY - Old Westbury, NY - Stonington, CT - Boston, MA

Sarah and I kicked off our two-month road trip on Thursday. We packed up our trusty (well, hopefully!) car and headed to Brooklyn to see some friends. My mom was kind enough to take the Avalon in for a check-up while we were in South America so hopefully our 10-year-old car with 150,000+ miles on it will make it across the US and back!

Here we go!

Our hosts on Thursday, Mike and Nikou, prepared a fantastic dinner at their apartment just in time for some more friends (Matt and Emily) to join us from Chicago. After dinner we took a walk down to the water to see the view of lower Manhattan - we didn't realize the Tribute in Light would be illuminated already, but it made the view even more special.

Lower Manhattan from Brooklyn Heights.

We left early on Friday to drive to Old Westbury, NY for Sarah's cousin Todd's wedding. After catching up with the family for a few hours in the afternoon, we boarded a school bus toward the de Seversky Mansion on the NYIT campus. Todd and Dana planned an amazing wedding and we had a great time celebrating!

Sunset ceremony.

A "picture perfect" evening.

Sarah's siblings (and significant others).

We woke up early again on Saturday morning to drive to Orient Point - the easternmost point of the North Fork of Long Island - to catch a ferry to New London, CT. It was a nice way to break-up the trip to Stonington, though it probably took a little longer than driving the whole way.

Waiting by the shore for the ferry.

We passed another ferry on its way back from New London to Orient Point.

Next stop, New London.

After quickly showering and getting ready, we were off to Elihu Island, a small island near Stonington, CT where Amanda and Dan's ceremony and reception were held. It took about 30 minutes to get there, but it was worth the ride - the setting was beautiful and everything was perfectly set up for another amazing celebration!

A suit like that can even make a man with a burly beard look good!

The Tulane crew.

We partied until well into the evening so pulling ourselves out of bed to return to the island for brunch was a bit of a challenge on Sunday morning. It was great to see all our friends, though, and we were happy we got another few hours with them.

Fortunately, the drive to Boston didn't take very long on Sunday afternoon. We met our friend Todd just in time to watch his beloved Patriots lose to the Dolphins - the Giants just lost pretty badly though so I'm glad I didn't give him too hard a time for it. (Sarah is still pulling for the Bengals, who actually won their first game against the Ravens!)

We spent Sunday evening and Monday catching up with Todd and his fiancée Shannon. Though I'll always prefer New York to Boston, we had some great weather while we were here and it was a fun stop on the trip.

Our view from an early morning run.

Todd gave us a tour of Harvard Business School (he just started his second year).

Felt good to be back on a college campus - reminded me of all the fun times at GW.

Tomorrow we drive to Lake George, NY. We have two days there before heading further west to Niagara Falls. Looking forward to a few days in the outdoors after spending the last week in various cities!

A Taste of Home

After a very long night / morning of traveling back to the US, Alex and I used our remaining energy on Monday to rest, unpack, reorganize and catch up with our Foster Parents (essentially true in every sense of the word). Coming home to the peaceful suburbs and a fully stocked fridge (of healthy food!) was such a welcome change from our fast-paced and often over-indulgent traveling lifestyle. Janet quickly whipped up a healthy and homemade salad for me - something I haven't had in over two months - and it was the perfect lunch to come home to!

Such a sight for sore eyes.

We spent the rest of the day relaxing, doing a few loads of laundry and catching up with family; Janet was kind enough to prepare a great home-cooked dinner to end the day - we could get used to this!

Tuesday was a busy though uneventful day of errands and organization. We started with some much needed exercise and took a run through Madison, NJ before the humidity took over. After a good sweat and lengthy shower, we geared up for our tasks with - what else - iced coffee! Then it was on to really exciting stuff like writing a few outstanding wedding thank-you notes, calls to insurance companies, banks and doctor's offices and research for the next leg of our trip. We ended the day with another delicious meal at home, tired but excited for our upcoming day in NYC.

Keep the home-cooked meals coming!

For me, Wednesday was one of those perfect NYC days: beautiful, productive and exciting but not too exhausting. Alex and I both agreed that the city just felt like home, even though we no longer have an apartment there!

We took a 6:37am train into the city and then parted ways until dinner. We walked around, did some much needed shopping (really!), picked up prescriptions, got haircuts and manicures (well, one of us did) and grabbed coffee with friends and former colleagues. Afterward, we met for an early dinner at one of our classic go-to spots, P.J. Clarkes.

Sunrise in Madison, NJ.

Salad from Chop't, diet coke (no more coke light!) and Bloomingdales = near-perfect NYC day for Sarah.

Dinner at P.J. Clarkes is always a great end to any day.

Tomorrow we pack up the car and drive to Brooklyn before heading to Long Island for my cousin's wedding and the start of our two month road trip across the country!