Posted on

September 2016 – Oktoberfest!

I still remember how this started:

Entrance to paradise

Scene – At work, one day after the first keg is tapped in Munich.

My hand is definitely missing something

Me – “It’d be fun to go to Oktoberfest someday…”

Half bier, half lemonade – Also known as a “Radler” – Cate approved!

John – “You know, we have a 3-day weekend coming up.  I know someone who has gone the last 12 years for this weekend.  Would you like to meet him?”

Bavarian dress in full effect

Me – (Quickly texting Cate about this revelation), “Uh, yeah!  Sure!” (Gets text back from Cate, starts looking at flights and hotels)

The Paulaner tent

…And off we went!  Three years in a row, so far.  What a spectacular time to be in Bavaria!  Fantastic atmosphere to go along with beautiful weather, food, drink, and scenery.  Definitely a must-visit, even for those who don’t prefer the malted hops-flavored brews that dominate the area. Just order a radler. 🙂

  • Local fare at the Chinese Tea Garden
  • Live music!
  • One of the many temporary tents
  • The greatest elixir known to man
Posted on

September 2016 – Muscat, Oman

Our first flight OOK (Out of Kingdom) was to Oman.  A little setup to the situation; we had arrived in KSA at the end of July and had gone through the processes with the company to get our iqamas (national ID cards) and visas which would allow us to travel.  Until this was completed, we weren’t able to leave.

While our first trip OOK was technically dinner with friends in Bahrain for an evening, our first vacation was Oman.  Eid al-Adha (the second of the Eid holidays) gave us the opportunity to take a few extra days off while technically not taking official time off (frowned upon during probation).  Cate found a smoking deal at the Al Bustan Palace Ritz Carlton in Muscat, so a few plane tickets and a taxi ride (with a side visit to Starbucks to get our country mug, of course) later, we found ourselves sitting by a lagoon pool and swimming in the Gulf of Oman. 

It was a splurge, a definite extravagance, however after a little more than seven months of interviews, background checks, leaving my previous job, farewell tours, packing, cleaning, relocating, adjusting to culture, experiencing never-ending heat, dealing with foreign country procedures….  I think you get the idea.  We needed a nice break.  This did the trick.  It was absolutely spectacular.

Posted on

The “Backlog”

Trip(s)

We’ll use the website all the time (we said)! We’ll update it with all the fun things we see (we said)!

Etc.

That was 2013 (I think). Here we are in 2019, many trips under our belt, living on the other side of a world with opportunities to travel seemingly turning into a second profession (no compliants, however). I’ve promised myself to make a concerted effort to keep this little website updated not only as a, “This is what we’re up to” type blog, but also as a running history so I don’t forget in my ever increasing circumventing the Sun progressive counter.

So, I promise to:

  • Update the website
  • Put nice shiny pictures on our Instagram feed @theaznoes
  • Be nice to Larry

(That last part is what Cate tells me all the time. I’m just reminding myself.)