Tips for Long Flights

There are loads of tips out there for surviving and thriving on long haul flights. I won't try to compile an exhaustive list here, but I will share my favorite ideas to avoid utter exhaustion, as I prep for a trip half way around the world to celebrate the holidays with family in the charming Santa Fe, New Mexico.

The list appears more or less in the order in which I do these things:

1. Request a special meal. Most flights, especially big international carriers, cater to a lot of diets. Whether you have dietary restrictions or not, requesting a specific meal gives you some choice in what you eat AND it gets you your meal delivered before the service cart takes its trip down those long aisles. 
2. Download new music, podcasts and books to your devices before departing. Make sure those devices are charged (and maybe even keep chargers or a power supply handy - I like this little guy).
3. Pack a travel pillow, comfortable layers, earplugs and an eye mask in your carry-on luggage. Closing your auditory and visual senses can really help lull you to sleep.
4. Bring some vitamin D, hand wipes and lotion on the plane. These things help me feel clean and stay healthy (I always have snacks and teabags too).
5. Hydrate. This is so important; I know it's tempting to take advantage of the free booze... and it may help you sleep at first, but it will mess with your sleep patterns in the long run and you will arrive feeling much more run-down if you have imbibed. 
6. Be patient and have fun! The flight is part of your trip! 

What do you do to enjoy long flights? Post below! :) 

Not an example of traveling light, but this was taken when I was moving to Myanmar!

Recipe of the Week:
Simple Vegan Quiche! What?!? I made this for my Vegans Anonymous club and it was a hit! I was never a big quiche-lover, but this version offers a savory breakfast option without use of eggs or cream (it's probably a lot lower calorie too). The hashbrown crust makes it delicious and gluten free as well!

Just finished reading:
Burmese Days by George Orwell, a classic, albeit not exactly a heart-lifting or encouraging novel. Still, a recommendation for anyone interested in Myanmar.

The Uncommon Reader by Alan Bennett, another young adult novel. This is a fun fiction, what-if, story about the Queen (of England) and how she begins to become distracted from her royal duties because of... books!

The Art of Hearing Heartbeats by Jan-Philipp Senker, a more recent novel, set in Kalaw, Myanmar. My parents and I visited Kalaw last year and so I could really imagine the village and surrounding natural beauty described. This is a work of fiction, a bit of a mystery, but really an epic love story, that also reveals a lot about the culture and people of Burma. I started reading this on a Saturday night and finished less than 3 days later - it was quite the story!

I'll be flying a lot over the holidays, so look for more book recs coming in the new year!

A Day in my Teacher Life

Today is Wednesday December 7, 2016. I published my post about a Day on the Camino yesterday and I came home from work today with the best intentions - to put away the organic produce from my weekly delivery and to then work out. However, I felt my energy draining and my push waning as I sorted and organized the vegetables. It was almost 5 o'clock and all I wanted to do was sit down and be quiet for a few minutes, in ears, body and mind.

While I took a break under my blue mosquito net I reflected on the day. I hadn't had a moment to myself unless you counted while I was getting ready in the morning, going to the bathroom or checking email during my prep period!

Anyway, I thought I would share today, as a complement to the other post and for my non-teacher friends who wonder what I get up to all day.

6:30am - The alarm goes off! Here we go the day is starting! I feel pretty rested and I'm happy when I wake up. I put on Chvrches, make coffee, blend a smoothie and get ready for the school day.

7:30 - I arrive at school. The commute is amazing; I walk across the street. I drop my stuff in my classroom, switch on the air conditioning and go to fill my water bottle, pick up copies and order sushi for lunch.

7:40 - A Spanish 2 student finds me in the main office placing my lunch order... oops! I was supposed to meet her to show her part of a film that she missed. I rush back to the classroom and get the movie started so she can get caught up. A few other students wander in and also watch. I check my work email, load my gradebook and answer a few What's app texts from friends.

7:55 - Spanish 2 begins. I let the whole class watch a repeat of the first few minutes as they settle in. Then, we move through a warmer, I return their Diaries and Classroom Citizenship evaluations and we move into questions about the final. This is a high-achieving class - they have a lot and some good ones! For almost an hour, we have a back-and-forth of questions and clarifications. They are really focused and I love Spanish. It's a good time.

Just before 9am we move into a game which reviews verb conjugations. It's a lot of fun and this leads us up to the end of class at 9:29. Yes, that is what time first block ends. At this point, I have a whole seven minutes to transition between classes, take care of personal needs (water, bathroom) and touch base with students.

9:36 - Spanish 1 begins. I return their Diaries (Yes, there has been a lot of grading lately, and, yes, there is always a lot of grading.) and we move into homework correction. They've been working through a review packet in preparation for the final exam. We do a review activity and play a game in this class as well.

11:10 - Class finishes and it's time for lunch. Today I have a lunch meeting with some Student Council representatives and any high schooler who wants to pop in and give feedback about the uniform. We can't promise to make changes, but part of StuCo's role is to hear the student body's voice and present opinions and concerns to administration. I pick up my sushi delivery and help moderate the meeting until 11:50. After the meeting ends, I chat with my three StuCo reps about how it went. Then, they move on to class. I eat a few more bites of my lunch and look at my email.

12:03 - My colleague, former language teacher in the Chinese department, stops by for a Professional Learning Community. We discuss our recent integration and field trip, book ordering, plans for next year and more. I type up our notes and post them to our Google page.

During my "free" period, I float between emails, grading some late work, an impromptu meeting with my principal and refilling tea and then deciding to go for a small cup of coffee.

1:35 - Here comes my second Spanish 1 class! We repeat much of the previous lesson, but it is later in the day and every class is different, so I differentiate.

3:10 - School's out! I organize my room a little and my StuCo kids begin entering for our meeting. A Spanish 3 student stops by to make up a quiz and then we are rolling into our meeting. It's an intense one today, with one member resigning (we knew she was going to) and a lot of wrap up from first semester.

4:40 - The meeting wraps up and I pack up! I stop on the ground floor of the school to pick up my Fresco deliver box and run into some of the seniors who are excited to be finishing a music/choir rehearsal. I remind a Spanish 4 student about our coffee plan for tomorrow and carry my box home. I text my neighbor and she comes down so that we can divvy up the beautiful locally grown and fairly purchased products: carrots, potatoes, leeks, fennel, basil, radishes, zucchini flowers, rocket and more. I store this away.

5:15 - I flop down on my bed and do some of the thinking that I mentioned at the start of this post. :D
I love my job, but I would also like to have a little energy left over at the end of the day. I opted to read for a little bit, write this blog, cook some healthy food and finish watching A Day Without a Mexican instead of pushing on to the gym. It's important to me to have some quiet time.

Anyway, that's just one day. A lot happens besides teaching and I hope that it was informative for you to learn a little bit about what goes on for me at school. A busy day, yes, but not untypical. It's 8:37 now and I am going to shower, stretch, tidy up a bit, read and c-r-a-s-h. Tomorrow will be same-same, but different.

And please do grant me some extra credit points for two posts this week! :)

A Day on the Camino

Though many of my days on the Camino have a lot in common, I hesitate to use the word "average" in describing my experiences. Each day does bring a new surprise, challenge or mini-adventure. The experience of walking this pilgrimage is also quite personal... my average day will not necessarily look like what you have been through or will experience.

I did the first week of the Camino, from Pamplona to Navarrete with a friend and that experience was very different from the two weeks I walked alone from Astorga to Santiago. I liked both experiences and feel happy that I got to have some company and some solo time on my first Camino.

Still, many family members and friends are asking for more Camino stories and I do think I can round out my three week experience into a representative day here.
 

This is what I remember...

You wake up. Sometimes because of the light pouring in through the curtains of your private room, sometimes as a result of your alarm or perhaps because of the not-so-quiet roommates who have decided it is time to get their day started. The earliest I hit the trail was 5:30am (my last day, and yes, it was still dark, and yes, I was scared walking through the woods alone...despite logically knowing that the most dangerous place for a woman is in her own kitchen) and my latest was maybe around 10am, leaving Logroño after a bit too much wine the night before... The point is that getting up and getting out is the push every morning. Many of the albergues have check out times of 8am... it's not really a sleep-in kind of experience, but if you stay in hotels then you can leave when you like.

I splurged on a private room (10 euros) in Cacabelos.

You get coffee. Sometimes I would walk for an hour or so before stopping to caffeinate. Other times, an americano was required in order to get my legs moving. Most days you pass through quite a few towns and the Spanish are serious about their café so you are not lacking in options. One of the beauties of the Camino is that it has a very friendly set-up, with plenty of resting stop options. Most of the coffee is espresso, so small, strong servings, instead of the large, weaker cups that most people from the states are used to. Alternative milks have not made their way to Spain in abundance, so it was a rare day that I found a latte with soy milk.

A very lucky day! Soy milk latte and a gluten free chocolate muffin. 

You walk. Yeah, that's kind of the point of doing the Camino (for my Spanish rookies caminar = to walk)... but a lot happens during the walking. Maybe you talk to a friend, new or old. Maybe you put in ear buds and zone out to music. I usually preferred to be present to my surroundings, so I opted to use music to motivate me when I was really dragging or if there were noises I wanted to block out (traffic or loud school groups were usually the culprits). Maybe you think about how pretty Spain is, notice sore muscles or think about the plan for the day. Or maybe your brain just drifts...

Passing through another gorgeous Spanish town.

Steep climb as I enter Galicia

Windy path one foggy morning outside of Astorga

Follow the shells!

Wildflowers and Sunshine

You get stamps. When you start the Camino you need to get a pilgrim's passport. This shows that you are an official walker and it is necessary if you are checking into any of the albergues (hostels). It is also proof that you did the walk and you must show it in Santiago in order to receive your official certificate. You get stamps at cafes, restaurants, churches, sometimes stores and the hostels along the way. For many pilgrims this is their most treasured souvenir from the way.

Tip: Keep your passport in a plastic bag or sleeve so that it survives those occasional rain showers!

I filled up my first passport, so I had to get a second one.

Other side of my passports. 

You drink wine. Okay, so there was only one day in which a wine fountain was on the path, but it was a very cool stop. A monastery in Spain runs the winery and there is a spout especially for pilgrims. Check out their live webcam to see thirsty walkers sampling the vino (remember the time difference between where you are and Spain!).

Sampling the vino

The fountain - notice that there are two spouts, left is wine, right is water. Stay hydrated!

You walk. For me, wine during the day is counter-productive to walking, so most of the time after a water, coffee, snack or simple rest break, I would get back to the walking! My shortest day was a mere 12.5 kilometers (once again, after that night in Logroño...) and my biggest push was 28.7, when I set out from Cacabelos and finally stopped in Las Herrerías de Valcarce.

Entering Galicia.

These Columbia boots worked great for me.

You break. What worked best for me were short, frequent breaks. Sometimes I would have a snack, sometimes I would gaze out at the countryside and sometimes more coffee was in order! Below, are two pictures of donativos, these are rest spots set up for pilgrims that simply ask for a donation. There are some really lovely people on the way! 

  

You walk. Keep going! Just follow the shells and you will be okay! Promise.

This might have been the first day! Somewhere past Pamplona?

Repeat the rest and walk pattern. Remember to put your feet up (and even take off shoes and socks) during breaks. Another coffee is always a good idea. And keep drinking water!

You rest your feet. After you reach your spot for the night, there are a lot of daily to-do's! You find your lodging, drop your stuff, shower, do some hand-washing and rest your feet. There is a certain calmness in this routine and just focusing on taking care of the basics for yourself each day. I heard some horrible stories of blisters and lost toenails so feet-care is definitely a priority!

Swinging my feet off of the balcony in Portomarín

Soaking in the ice cold creek at Ribadiso

Enjoying the late evening sun and a glass of liquid sunshine in Palas de Rei.

You eat dinner. After walking all day it's pretty exciting when it is time to eat! Many local restaurants offer a pilgrim's menu, with a few courses, bread and wine for around 10 euros. This is a nice option if you want a lot of food. There are plenty of tapas options (small plates) and establishments to sample the region's wines as well. Many albergues offer kitchen use and I cooked some tasty meals of gluten free pasta and salad while on the road. 

Pulpo (octopus), served Galician style, with olive oil and smoked paprika. 

Gluten free beer and tapas in Pamplona

Hurray, tapas!

Tapas bar in Burgos

Evening entertainment. Maybe... Many pilgrims will flop into bed, read, write, listen to music, use social media and simply crash. If you have enough energy, then you meet up with fellow pilgrims, venture out for a drink, or wander around whatever small town you happen to find yourself in. Many nights I was in bed before sunset (which is quite late in summer in Spain). Oh, and don't forget to text your mom!

Martini in Burgos.

Checking out the next day's route and eating olives in Muruzábal.

Swimming pool at the hostel in Barbadelo

I believe this was Spain vs. Italy... it was quite an intense game!

There's Santiago! His likeness is all over the Camino.

You sleep. Despite the shared accommodation, basic facilities and sore muscles, I slept great on the Camino. I recommend wax earplugs to block out any noises and a sleeping sack.

 ---> So, who is joining me on my next Camino?!?

Wisdom from the Camino: Where are your dreams? Live them before dying.