A Forever Home... At Last!

It was made official this week.  After more than two years of fostering Happy Jack for the Gadsden County Humane Society, my boy has found his forever home!

Happy Jack came to me after my first foster dog, Buddy, was successfully adopted into a great home.  Buddy was with me for a little over a month, and riding the wave of excitement, I agreed to take on another dog, and that's when Happy Jack came to me.

Happy Jack had been found abandoned in a ditch, and based on his behavior, I am certain he was abused. He had never really lived in a home environment, so my first few months with him were-- let's just say--challenging.  (Surprisingly, he was housebroken and I never had problems with him going in the house at all)

Rescued dogs may carry with them the emotional scars and baggage we don't know or fully understand, but that doesn't mean they will never overcome it.  They can not tell us about their past, but they do communicate to us humans in many other ways that we just have to interpret.  That was the case of Happy Jack.

I will confess there were many times I wanted to give up on Happy Jack.  Thanks to the wonderful support of other volunteers at the Gadsden Humane Society, however, I continued to do my best to work with him.  We developed a tremendous bond and he was deeply attached to me, which proved even more difficult in placing him in a new home.  I would take him over to a prospective new family for a "sleepover," only to be asked the next day to pick him up.

It was my biggest fear that no one would see Happy Jack as I did as he grew to become overly affectionate, loyal, and eager to please.  As he became more confident, I witnessed his transformation from the timid, shy, and emaciated dog, into a very wonderful companion.

UK Adventure Post - Observations & Tips From the Journey

I jokingly told my friends and family in Britain that I didn't want to rest while I was there, 'cause I'd have plenty of time to rest when I came back to the U.S.  I wanted to see and do everything!

Now that I'm back, my body gave subtle hints that it needed rest at last.  It also indicated it needed to bank some energy to fight the pollen and other mess that affect my sinuses (a sure indication I'm back in Tallahassee).  As I rested, though, I made a few mental notes about my journey that I thought I'd share for anyone headed across the pond on a similar journey:

• Look RIGHT, then LEFT before crossing the street in Britain. Sounds simple, huh? My non-attentive-American-self nearly met the front end of a tiny Vauxhall because, like all Americans, we tend to look left, then right, before crossing.
• Once you convert your money, forget about the value of the American dollar and just try to be frugal with your quid.  You'll do nothing more than stress yourself out thinking about the value of the bottle of Ribena (£1.50, or $2.45) you just bought at WH Smith or the £2.19 ($3.58) for the tall coffee at Starbucks. I bought the ingredients to make for a church potluck a Mexican Layered Bean Dip, which I thought would be a treat since it's not so common there.  I never imagined I would pay the equivalent of $17 that just yielded a small tray.  Yeah, it isn't easy for the American traveler in Britain, but be smart when it comes to eating.  Pick up pastries, ready made sandwiches, and drinks at a Tesco, Sainsbury or ASDA and have a picnic at the many squares or parks.  One of my true favourites was to go to Greggs, a bakery with a wide variety of savoury and sweet goods.  The onion & cheese pasty (89p) and the steak bake (£1.29) are great.  
• Another thing about the money--- it can be really confusing how the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland--one nation--has multiple currencies, but all are pound sterling of the same value. Scotland and Northern Ireland print their own notes, and what's even more confusing is that three banks (The Bank of Scotland, The Royal Bank of Scotland, and Clydesdale Bank) in Scotland print notes, with similar colours for each of the denominations but with different historical figures.  It's interesting to note the absence of the Queen on Scotland's notes.  
• If you want to feel like Bubba-of-the-Boondocks goes to the Bright-Lights-Big-City, try using your Scotland notes to pay for items in London, or anywhere, for that matter, in England.  The English will look at you funny, or say they won't accept them, whereas in Scotland, there are no problems using Bank of England notes.  When I got Bank of England notes as change in Scotland, I saved them for use in England.  I heard, though, that if you needed to exchange notes, your best bet was to go to a bank or even the train station.  
• Getting around the country is cheapest by coach (bus) but fastest by train. I took the coach from Glasgow to London (est. £40 return) on Greyhound.  Yes, it's the same Greyhound company as in the US, except the buses and the bus stations in Britain are a lot cleaner and nicer.  Some even have free WiFi access.  One of the advantages of my trip by coach was that we traveled by night-- a "redeye ride." Leaving at 10 p.m., you can sleep on the coach and arrive in London by 7 a.m., ready to explore the city.  My coach made one stop in the middle of night at a services station where you can buy food and drink. Travel by train is fast, but costs a lot more, but I would recommend that over travel by plane.  
• Britain has a lot of budget airlines available with some great schemes or price plans but there are other factors to consider, especially traveling to London.  You'll need to arrive at any airport early, go through security, and have tight limits on both hold and carry-on luggage. Arriving at airport, you will still need to pay fare for train or bus into London, which can be very costly.  Even in Glasgow, taking a taxi from a train station in the City Centre to airport costs £25.  By train or coach, you'll be taken straight into the city centre and access to local public transport.  In the end, you may pay more flying.
• The people in Scotland can be extremely friendly, even when they're upset.  I was traveling back to Helensburgh after a day exploring Glasgow when the I train I was on terminated early due to technical problems.  I was stuck with many other passengers on a platform, and many of the passengers were complaining to ScotRail agents, but in a very polite way.  I wish I could have recorded the conversations I heard for use in my conflict resolution training! Scots are generally very conversant.  There were many times that people would just come up to me and carry on a conversation, especially when they hear my American accent.
• When a Scot learns you're from Florida, expect an apology.  I can't count how many times the people I met apologized (with humour) for the weather when they learned I was from Florida. Scots have an endearing charm of Florida and her beautiful beaches, sunny weather, and of course, Disney World!  Many of the people I've met have been on holiday in my home state, and they look at wonder in why I would leave Florida to come to Scotland.
• The National Wallace Monument in Stirling, Scotland was very interesting. Go if you're not claustrophobic, and in good health.  Take pics to prove you made it to the top! It's not an ideal spot for children, as we quickly learned. 
• Don't expect great coffee anywhere, unless it's from Starbucks or Costa.  I once made the mistake of ordering coffee at a small stand in a park, and to my horror, the lady mixed water from the kettle with a scoopful of instant coffee.  (I'm a coffee snob.) That's quite common.  If you're out and about and need something warming, stick to the tea, or better yet, a dram of Scotch whisky.

Street Demonstrations in London. March, 2011

• People might avoid going into a city if they knew street demonstrations were scheduled, but it turned out to be of great benefit for our group.  Police closed many of the streets of central London because of the largest protest since the anti-war demonstrations in 2003.   We were able to move around the city centre with great ease.  
• Take in amasing views of the city from the London Eye. If you really want to take some great photos, then you might find the £20 price worth it. I was very fortunate to go on for free. I should warn you though, the queue can be long, especially on weekends.
• Always carry a sweater, jacket, umbrella, rain coat, or a combination thereof, especially in Scotland. As they say, you can experience all four seasons in one day.  
• On another note about the fast-changing weather, don't get discouraged when it's raining in the morning.  I canceled plans for a day trip to Edinburgh (it didn't really bother me anyway, as I'd been there before) because of the rain in the morning, but it was sunny and bright by afternoon.

Yotel Amsterdam Schiphol

• Having left Glasgow for Amsterdam on Sunday evening, my flight to Atlanta wasn't due to leave until late Monday afternoon. The Amsterdam Schiphol Airport has two hotels in the ticketed passenger area of the airport, and I had a comfortable stay at the Yotel. After past experiences sleeping in airport terminals, I thought I'd try an upgrade. This unique hotel's rooms are small cabins, complete with television, monsoon shower (I loved it!), bed, small table, and toilet.  

Amsterdam. April, 2011

• There's also an excursion company that operates from the airport that can take you on guided tours of Amsterdam.  It's a minimal tour, but worth it if you have a lot of time to kill. Anyway, it's a great diversion from being stuck in the airport for many hours.  A group of six (I was the sole American with five Canadians) of us met at 8:15 a.m., ventured through passport control, customs, and stowed our hand luggage in the company's secure locker, ready to leave the airport by 8:45 a.m.  Our guide gave us an overview of Holland, took us to a farm that made wooden clogs and cheese (I was in heaven!), visited a windmill, drove through Amsterdam pointing out important sites, and dropped us off at a dock to board a one hour cruise through the canals and River Amstel. We were brought back to the airport by 12:30 p.m. to make our afternoon flights.  
• During the excursion, I bought a ball of the delicious cheese... let me warn you if you do the same: Dutch security officials pulled me out of the queue when my backpack went through the x-ray machine.  I was questioned about the contents of my backpack, pulled out everything, and they laughed when they found my fall of cheese.  Apparently, it must have looked like some incendiary device
• My L.L. Bean backpack, the Bigelow Day Pack, was the best travel companion!

• A great return of investment for my journey was my Delta Sky Club membership.  Of course, I used it in Jacksonville and Atlanta, but it's best use was in Amsterdam when I had long layovers going to and from Glasgow.  The membership is good for use at the KLM Crown Lounge (Lounge 52, intercontinental) at Schiphol.  KLM out does Delta by far... the light buffet meals, self-serve drinks (that was well worth it alone!), free WiFi, and best of all, sleeping lounge, made it worthwhile, especially after factoring the costs in Euros of similar goods and services within the airport. 

UK & Amsterdam Adventure - The Last Day

I forgot to add this post that I wrote out on the flight home:

04 April 2011

Somewhere over the Atlantic

It was bittersweet to leave Glasgow on Sunday.  I have met some wonderful people on this journey, and I was glad to spend one last moment as they prepared for church.  They prayed over me as I was about to leave, and I could feel that great energy surge through me. 

I arrived in Amsterdam and had a little fun with my 19 hour layover.  I stayed at the Yotel, a hotel within the secure area of the Schiphol airport that has tiny cabins for rooms, complete with shower, toilet, small work table, a bed with television tucked in the cubby.  It was very convenient and nice to stay overnight in an airport trying to get comfortable in a terminal.

This morning, I went on a day excursion into Amsterdam, taking pictures of windmills, touring a wood clog and cheese making farm, and an hour-long canal cruise.  After that trip, I really do regret not having gone to Amsterdam sooner!