Beattys Overseas

Now that the Beattys are no longer Overseas, there's little reason to upkeep this blog.  We're both busy getting our lives back on track (John starts at his law firm next week; I'm working for a designer and attending school), and our International travels have ceased (to see how bummed out I am about this, see the Big Apple Homecoming entry).  Therefore, my little website project comes to an end. 

Endless thanks to all who read our blog, watched our videos and cruised our photos during the past 1/2 year.  I enjoyed creating this website so immensely; it provided me a "job" while on the road, encouraged my writing and allowed us to keep in touch with our loved ones.  We are truly flattered by all who logged on to read this site (over 300 unique visitors!),  we appreciate all the comments of support and enthusiasm, and we apologize if we didn't respond to every single email! 

With this final blog, I thought it would be fun to share a few points of the trip's highlights and lowlights. 

Signing off,
Whitney Beatty, Editor-in-Chief
and John, guest columnist

Best flight: Our December 25th flight from London to Johannesburg, South Africa was awesome.  The British Airways business class section and flight crew were super posh, making us feel like royalty.  Plus, the cabin was filled with many family members of the plane's crew, creating a very Christmas-y family vibe.  Also, there's always a positive buzz on a trip going from a cold place to a warm place.  All that flip-flop & sunscreen anxiety makes everybody giddy. 

Worst flight:  We actually had amazing airport karma.  We were so lucky not to deal with a single delay, cancellation, nor did any piece of luggage go missing. 

Latest dinner hour: Buenos Aires, Argentina, 11pm average dinnertime.

Most fashionable city: Paris, France. Obviously.

Least charming 'old world' plumbing feature: Separate Hot and Cold faucets in bathroom sinks.  We encountered these in rural France and Austria.  Try getting a handful of warm water when one spout delivers icy agua and the other's eau is boiling hot... Difficult. 

Country where we met the most Americans: Tie between New Zealand and Argentina.   

Most awkward encounter with fellow traveller:  Our first day at Mkuze Game Reserve in South Africa, a fellow guest walked by me and nicely asked where I was from.  When I said, "USA," he angrily responded with "Your President is an ass."  Um, okay.  That, however, was the only anti-American thing said to us, which isn't all that bad (or false, even).  We had been worried that we'd get a ton of flak for being 'ugly Americans,' but never had any problems. John said it right when he said, "People like respectful & nice people, no matter the nationality." We are very respectful and quite nice; and people generally welcomed us everywhere we went. 

Most annoying overcharging at restaurant: Vienna, Austria... a traditional Vienese restaurant charged us for the bread & butter consumed from the basket placed in front of us at our table.

Hottest climate encountered: Cairns, Australia.  Average daily temps were 36° Celsius (96.8° Fahrenheit) during our nine-day visit.  Yowza. 

Items we toted around the world, but didn't use (not even once): Money belts. We never felt the need to put our money or IDs underneath all our clothing. Unlike what our Grandma Helen says, the "vigilantes" were not looking to steal from us. If you are going to a place where pickpockets are common, you can borrow our never-used money belts.

Items I didn't pack, but wish I had: more ponytail holders.  I kept losing the ones I had brought, and couldn't always find replacements in other countries.

Most enjoyable and enlightening museum:  It's a toss up between the Louvre (duh) in Paris, France and Prince Archbishop Wolf Dietrich von Raitenau's Residenz in Salzburg, Austria.

Museum where John freaked out when the camera battery ran out about 1/8 into our visit: the Naval History museum in Lisbon, Portugal.

Most expensive Internet connection: 5 Euro for ONE HOUR (roughly 8 US dollars) at the Melia Aurelia Hotel in Rome, Italy.

Cheapest Internet connection: FREE ones at our friends' homes...  Thanks Jon & Vanessa, Alex & Karen, Amgad, Sylvia, Doug & Yoly, and Augusto!