The first spring that I started dating Ryan, I had no idea what I was in for. Not only did I meet Ryan's parents for the first time, but I got my first taste of speed at the Indianapolis 500 (Indy 500). We were pumped when we found out that we would be going. So, we went out and bought our race gear aka the most American apparel that we could find. I bought these bought these awful denim acid washed American flags shorts. Looking back THANK GOD it was way too cold for us to wear any of those clothes. I went in knowing absolutely nothing about Indy Car Racing, but was determined to have a good time. The only thing that I knew was that I was putting all my chips on Tony Kannan, a Brazilian Indy driver, racing for KV Racing Technology at the time. Lucky for me it paid off. Tony slipped into the number 1 spot on lap 198 and went on to take home the championship title after Dario Franchitti crashed shortly there after and the final laps remained in cautionary status. Besides Tony winning, somewhere in the 200 laps and the humming of Indy Cars zooming by, the anxiety from the drivers switching positions, the wrecks, and the fight for the championship title, I found an appreciation for the sport and a good nap. You realize how much hard work, heart, and dedication the men and women that race Indy car put into it starting at an early age. My in laws still make it to Indy every year, but Ryan and I have yet to go back. Not to be dismissed though, we have found a new Indy tradition to partake in with my in laws...Firestone Grand Prix of St. Petersburg. This year was our second trip to the Grand Prix and although Tony Kanaan didn't win, it still turned out to be a memorable race. My sweet father in law, always buys the Champions Club Pass which gives you access to the pit stops to check out the driver's cars and see the drivers ups close and after spotting Arie Luyendyk Jr. and Lauren from this season’ of ABC’s The Bachelor, at the Mario Andretti Pit Stop, and having a slight moment of anxiety Ryan pushed me right up to them. I tapped Arie on the shoulder at the same time he went in to give Lauren a kiss *insert palm to face* and said "Excuse me..." Much to the help of one of the Andretti Pit Team members who let them know they had one more, Arie and Lauren turned to me and I asked shyly if I could take a picture of them while congratulating them. They politely said "Sure!" As I went to get my picture of them, Ryan said "well why don't you get in there with them?" As I went to give him my camera, I realized that my hands were shaking uncontrollably. I turned to Arie and Lauren and said, "Sorry! I'm so nervous." The both laughed and reassured me, "Aww..don't be." They were genuinely incredibly sweet. I cannot go without giving an extra thanks to my hubs for always giving me that extra push to get in there when I need it.
After checking out the pit stops of both of our favorite drivers, Ryan Hunter Ray for Ryan and Tony Kanaan for me, we hurried back to our seats just in time for the start of the race. The Grand Prix course encompasses the area around Pioneer Park, Al Lang Stadium, the Yacht Club, down to Albert Whitted Airport. The track length is 1.8 miles for a total of 110 laps and a 198 miles. Canadian Rookie, Robert Wickens racing for Schmidt Peterson Motorsport led for the majority of the race. The last 8 laps were the most eventful with caution flags coming at what felt like almost every 2 or 3 laps. The final caution flag came in lap 108 when Alexander Rossi and Robert Wickens struck each other at turn 1 just in front of us. With their being little to no hope that the accident would clear up before the final 2 laps were completed the final rankings stood as they were at that moment with Sebastian Bourdais taking home his second consecutive Firestone Grand Prix of St. Petersburg title. On top of the Indy Car races there are several other races including the Pro Mazda, Indy Lights, and GT-GTA-GT (think Ferarris, BMWs, Mercedes Benzes, Bentley, Maseratis, Porsches, & McLarens) races and you can't forget the gorgeous bay and St. Pete's continuous growth. If you're looking for a fun adrenaline packed weekend and in the Tampa Bay area in early March, the Firestone Grand Prix of St. Petersburg is worth attending. Find more pictures from the Grand Prix in the next post.
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It's been a while since I have blogged... as in 3 years a while. A lot has changed since then including traveling to several countries and moving back to Florida. I put blogging on hold as I was afraid of speaking from my perspective after being told that sites were monitored to ensure that nothing deemed slanderous was said being said about our host country and beginning to work again while we were living abroad. After talking with a friend recently and being encouraged, I decided that it was time to pick up my blog again. Ryan and I still travel and we often get asked for our perspectives or tips when we travel. So I have decided to let this be a place that houses so much of that. I won't keep this strictly limited to international travel and plan to include trips and recommendations locally too. Over the years, Ryan decided to take a stab at vlogging. He has managed to capture so many of our travels that I failed to blog about over the last three years and he's done a wonderful job at it. Those adventures can be found on YouTube with out latest video being featured below. Ultimately, the biggest reason for this post was realizing that I lost track of my "why" for blogging. So much of this was inspired by my wonderful grandmother who passed away of cancer just after Thanksgiving last year. These blogs were inspired by the roots she planted in a small Alabama town for her 9 children who have all risen to do such amazing and inspirational things for my generation. These blogs are inspired by the gateway that she paved through her pure Christian heart, her boundless love, compassion, intellect, and her desire for her children and grandchildren to aspire to do more and be more. I pray that in these blogs I can not only share tips and recommendations, but that through all of this I can be even the slightest reflection of the wonderful woman that she was... and to her... we voyage back into Georgiana Journey.
Weekends in Qatar are Friday and Saturday and the work week begins on Sunday. This past Friday we took our first real adventure out in the deserts of Doha. We finally broke our new SUV in with a little Dune Bashing thanks to a group event with some of Ryan's co-workers and we all had a blast. For those of you that don't know what dune bashing is, it's both thrilling and slightly scary at the same time. Dune bashing is the desert version of country mudding. (HA) It's taking your truck or SUV out to the desert and wildly driving through the giant sand dunes. The more you feel the better the thrill! Our voyage started at 9:30 am when we all met out at Sealine Beach Resort out in the middle of the desert. Unfortunately, you have to pay to visit the beach there, but little did I know that we were heading to a more exciting beach. We were given the run down on what to do and what not to do before we headed out to the dune and every one let out some of the air from their tires as instructed to better hand the sand and the dunes. I took advantage of this time and rode my first camel. I'm pretty sure that I am fully obsessed now. They're actually really awkward, lanky legged animals, but they're really cute and if I could have one I think I would. To answer any camel related questions that may be presented... NO, I did not get spit on and NO, I do not have MERS as far as I know. :) Now that that's out of the way here are some pictures with the camels. Once our convoy was all set, we headed out to the desert. It was quite a bumpy ride as we tore through the sand dunes, sand flying, wiggling the wheel back and forth to prevent us from getting stuck, and nothing but pure desert for miles and miles. We finally made it to our first large dune which we all needed to manage to make it down. We all got out to check it out and noticed a few trucks struggling to make it back up the dune. This is where I started holding my breathe as I realized that a) getting stuck could be bad and b) as you're going either up or down the dunes you can't tell if someone will be hurling right at you because you can't see the what is on the other side. Luckily we made it down safely, but we had our first incident of someone getting stuck as they tested out how difficult it would be to get back up. Within 5 minutes we were all back together and we continued our bumpy ride towards the sea. Let me just say that Ryan was loving this! He was driving up dunes and having way too much fun! I think he loved it mostly because it reminds him of his Jeep and mudding and being able to conquer the world in his Jeep. I guess it's not called dune bashing for just any reason. After about an hour of driving we finally made it to the Inland Sea which divides Qatar from Kingdom of Saudi Arabia (KSA). If you look at some of the pictures of the water you can actually see how close KSA actually is. We spent a good chunk of the day just lounging, enjoying each others company, and relaxing on the beach next to some of the clearest water I have ever seen. Not to mention that the water felt fantastic. As Ryan put it "just like bath water, the way Ronita likes it!"
We finally decided to head back in around 3 pm as it gets dark here at 5 pm. Everything went well until we got back to our favorite large sand dune. At least 2 of us including Ryan and I really struggled to get back up. It didn't help that herds of 15+ SUVs or trucks would come flying down the hill everytime we attempted to go up. There was no rhyme or rhythm as to which side they chose to go down and again you had to pray to God that you timed it just right and that no one else was taking that same path as you from the other side. After our second failed attempt at making it up Ryan backed down into the valley of a dune at which point 5 ATVs and a few SUVS decided to swarm down the dune and past us on either side. Once we finally made it out of the pit, one of the other guys suggested that we go back further to get more momentum. To Ryan this meant about a quarter of a mile. haha So off we went and he gunned it and we FINALLY made it to the top and just in time as many locals drive out to the desert to camp over night. So cars continued to soar past us as we drove in to head back home. It was quite an exciting experience, although my dad told me that he thinks we're crazy for doing such a thing and should calculate our risks better. I'm very proud of Ryan for doing such a great job driving. He never really got stressed and remained pretty calm through the whole thing which kept me relatively calm. We also have to thank the fantastic group that we shard this experience with for showing us such a good time. Hopefully this is just the beginning of all of our real adventures in Doha. :) Lesson learned... Never plan less than 3-4 days for a trip to Istanbul. We had a total of 2 half days and 1 full day to attempt to cram as much as possible into. I cringe now thinking that we didn't get to see it all! But hey we have an excuse to go back now. Before we got to Turkey I did a little internet research to find out how to maximize our time in Istanbul. I came across a blog called "A Taste of Travel: Your Guide To Istanbul-What To Do." (http://www.atasteoftravelblog.com/your-guide-to-istanbul-36-things-to-do/) This was a gift from God. From the second that I started reading the list of things to do I was hooked. If you ever make it to Istanbul, I will say that the author of A Taste of Travel was spot on on everything that she advised. Well at least the stuff that we did get to try. Ryan was able to book our stay at the Ottoman Hotel Imperial which is located right next to the Aya Sofia and a 2 minute walk from the famous Sultahnamet Imperial Mosque (Blue Mosque). This was quite the perfect location. We were within walking distance of so many of the sites that we wanted to see not to mention the the tram stops are all within about a 5-10 walking distance of each other. On our first night we ventured out to the Blue Mosque which is open to the public for viewing except for during prayer hours. Out of respect you must remove your shoes and you must be dressed appropriately to enter which means legs covered, head wrapped, in other words modestly. The architecture of the Blue Mosque is just gorgeous as is everything else in Istanbul. It's like a palace that you see in fairy tales. Trying to maximize our time before night fall we wandered down the the Old Bazaar which was full of shops selling rugs, hookahs, pipes, pashminas, purses, and other little knick knacks. We found our way to a restaurant with a roof top view that was to do die for. I won't lie we did get hungry again later and found a second restaurant closer to our hotel. We had seen this elaborate clay pot and bread making dish and we're itching to try it. So we ordered it and got quite the show with fire, rising bread, smashing clay pots, and deliciousness! Thanks to this lovely dinner we met our new friends, Noli and AJ who were on their honeymoon, that we spent a good amount our time with and throughly enjoyed their company. The following day, our only full day, we made it to the Basilica Cistern. It used to serve as an underground cistern for the palace during the reign of Emperor Justinainus in the 6th century as well as some other buildings in the area. It is one of the most beautiful sites to see. Once underground you succumb to the beauty of warm lighting, Corinthian style columns, and giant koi like fish swimming in the water. If you look closely, or follow the crowd, you'll find two stone structures of Medusa, an example of the Roman Age. We then ventured down to the Grand Bazaar and the Spice Bazaars where you can find any everything from lanterns, to Turkish Tea Sets, pipes, bags, jewelry, Turkish Delight, and more spices than you can imagine. Dinner that night was an adventure to the Asian Side of Istanbul with our new friends, Noli and AJ, and our friends from Doha, Sam and Cesar at Ciya Sofrasi which was mentioned in the blog. We took the tram and then the ferry over to the Asian side, walked through the famous Taksim Square and made it to our restaurant which was home of the best Turkish food that I had while in Turkey. As we were all freezing before we headed back to the ferry we did a very American thing and grabbed Starbucks to go. Once back on the other side we strolled over the Galata Bridge filled with night-time fishers and went our separate ways until the morning.
Our final half day consisted of the Hamam (Turkish Bath) with the other couples. I wasn't quite sure what to expect but it was quite fun. You lay on a giant circular stone in the middle of a sauna like room and someone literally scrubs you from head to toe. We followed this with a massage which I had a hard time really relaxing through and was actually told to relax on various occasions follow by gentle pats where I needed to relax and laughter. It was a great time. This gave Ryan and I less than 3 hours to see our final site... the Aya Sofia. Once upon a time in 537 it was a church, in 1453 it became a mosque, and presently it is a museum that is in restoration mode. There are tons of remnants from when it was once a church such as Christian mosaics, spots where crosses were once removed, a baptismal, etc. It's an interesting blend of history that showcases both Christianity and Islam. Most of what remains are remnants of Islam. This was a fantastic site to leave on. So with no time left we grabbed our suitcases and headed back to the airport. We made it back home to overwhelmingly hot Doha at 4 am on October 11th. Just long enough for us to veg out before Ryan returned to work the next day. Nonetheless our trip to Turkey was a wonderful and educational vacation that we would recommend to all. As many of you know Ryan and I spent a week in Turkey at the beginning of October. Thanks to the Muslim Holiday Eid Al Adha which provided a week long vacation, Ryan and I were able to venture off to Antalya and Istanbul for a week. For those of you that may not know, Eid Al Adha is the Muslim Festival of Sacrifice in which Muslims celebrate Abraham's willingness to sacrifice his son Ishmael before God, which we also recognize in the Bible. We began our trip with 4 days in Antalya. A lovely little costal beach town. Thanks to my awesome husband, Ryan, who braved it and took on driving in Antalya we had more of an opportunity to visit the sites. When I say that he braved it, I really mean that he braved it because motorcycles drive on the side walks, two lane streets some how turn into 5 lane streets, and driving in the shoulder in not uncommon. We survived though! While in Antalya we stayed an awesome hotel called Hotel Su. The hotel was pure white with red accents, the lobby was adorned with giant disco balls and red accent lighting, and the giant glass window facing the street was lined with rows and row of orange trees nearly from floor to ceiling. The walk ways to the pool were also filled with citrus trees and the hotel as scattered with cats that the hotel takes care of by feeding, providing veterinary assistance, and providing cat houses. The highlights of our trip to Antalya were: finding Umbrella Street in Old Town Kaleci, finding one set of the famous Turkish rainbow stairs, hiking down to the marina which was filled with gorgeous boats offering 6 hour boat tours, getting lost in the streets of old town Kaleci just to admire the beauty of the long winding alley ways and seeing where they dropped up us off, finding Hadrian's Gate, visiting the Antalya Aquarium (home of the world's longest aquarium tunnel), driving through the mountains and hiking out to Olympos to see the ruins, driving out to Perge (established before the Trojan wars) to view the ruins, and just relaxing by the pool and on the beach at our hotel. Here are some pictures from Antalya: Antalya provided us with the perfect chance to just relax, but I really fell in love with Istanbul. Stay tuned for part 2 of Turkish Vacation to hear all about it.
We all know the old saying, "Make new friends, but keep the old. One is silver and the other is gold." But how about living by the following rule too. I came across the above quote recently and I couldn't have said it any better. Although this has become a lot easier for us in the past month here in Qatar, it's easy to get caught up in searching for people who are like you in all manners. I will admit there were times in our first weeks here when we asked ourselves, "where do all of the people in their late 20s go?" or "where are all of the Americans?" Why is it that we as people in general are so afraid to step outside of our comfort zones? Is it because we are afraid of losing who we are, learning new things, or possibly being different? Is it because we are so set in the way that things have been and satisfied with what we are used to?
One of the greatest and first lessons that I can say that I have learned here is that the beautiful thing about a country such as Qatar is that it is filled with people of all different nationalities and walks of life. Somewhat like home. During our first weeks here I sparked a conversation with a British lady and her fiancé at a car rental shop about job hunting. Their advice was to meet people and network. The greatest thing they said to me was "we're all in similar situations." Meaning in a country full of expatriates we all are similar in the sense that we are all finding our way. That kind lady gave her email address and her phone number and told me to call or email her whenever and that she would love to be of help if I needed it. She even advised us on some places to check out. I finally got around to emailing her to thank them for their genuine kindness as I am starting to understand their advice better and that resulted in an invite to Friday Brunch where we will have another opportunity to meet with them again and some new people. We have also found many rewarding friendships with in co-workers and neighbors who treat us just as their own family. We have been blessed to have met and are building new friendships with people from Spain, Britain, Scotland, Portugal, Thailand, Latin America, and the list goes on. I am also learning British English which I am enjoying. We learned that leaving some pants that I bought at someone's house is not only unacceptable, but also quite funny. Pants in the UK are your underwear and the proper term for what we Americans like to call pants is "trousers." The bathroom is the "water closet. "I enjoy hearing that someone is "lovely" instead of nice and that great and enjoyable people are "smashing." Not to mention that "to get on with someone" means "to get along with someone." Even more surprising is that I have had a chance to use my Spanish and Portuguese. I will admit that I have joined the American Women's Association which has also been a blessing. Which contrary to popular belief is filled with women of all ages and nationalities. The beautiful thing about the association is that it not only brings us together because of our similarities, but it also commits to providing us with opportunities to learn about Qatari culture and to experience local activities. It encourages women to get out and explore and to build friendships not based on our nationalities, but instead on what has brought us all here and the beauty of sharing this experience with our families and new friends. Although we are seeing the world simply by moving to Qatar, we are seeing the world through a different light by building friendships with people who aren't like us. We are sharing culture, language, cuisine, hopes, dreams, and passions with people that we never would have crossed paths with back home. Ryan and I are both glad that this has been the start of our journey together as husband and wife and learning and seeing the world together. I challenge you to step out of your comfort zone and meet someone who is not like you. Meet someone who is nothing like you! Find the beauty in your differences and experience life as you never have before. First, I want apologize for the delay in between the posts. We're finally settling down in our new place. There has been a lot to do and find and buy to really get settled here and this is just the beginning. Which leads me to this amazing quote I found today. For those of you who know me well enough, you know that I like to have a plan. I like to know what's going to happen and when and sometimes it drives insane when I'm not in the know. Qatar is where I am learning that I don't have to always have a plan.
I have prided myself on having a set schedule of going to work, coming home, spending time with Ryan, and doing it all over again the next day. Unfortunately for me, the job search hasn't come as easily as I expected. There is a demand for higher education and experience than a person of my young age could have possibly achieved for a good paying job. It can be frustrating at times, but I'm learning from other people that it's not impossible to obtain a good job here and it all lies within your network, patience and faith. So during my search for a job, I am learning to just breathe and know that I will find something, just trust and know that Ryan is my support and my rock, let go of my anxiety of not knowing, and see what happens while I search and wait. I am learning to enjoy my downtime and learning to fill that time with things that I never made time for before. Ryan has decided to come home to share his lunch breaks with me during the week and we both cherish that short time of each other's midday company. Yesterday, I decided to make a Strawberry Pie. Ryan's exact words to me today before we enjoyed the pie, "You never used to make pies back home!" Haha True statement... but to see the enjoyment of indulging in such a treat is enough to remind me that this is my opportunity to enjoy the sweeter things in life: moments shared, love and laughter, and sweet sweet strawberry pie! I have spent a lot of time reflecting and I've realized how gracious God has been to us. Never did I think that we would be traveling the world and taking in some of life's greatest experiences. Today, I thought back to our flight to Greece and as I scrolled though the music albums on the screen of the seat in front of me, to my surprise I came across Johnnyswim's new album, Diamonds, which I have been dying to hear. Some of you may know this already, but I love Johnnyswim and Ryan and my first dance as husband and wife was their song, "Paris in June." Abner and Amanda make some of the most amazing and sweetest music and I find myself getting lost in the lyrics everytime I listen to them. If you haven't heard of them check them out. One of the songs that touched my heart and was so fitting as we ventured off into our new beginning was Johnnyswim's song "Live While We're Young." We have been fortunate enough speak to our families since we have been here on multiple occasions, but this song continues play in my head. It's ever so perfect for our decision to move and the future we are about to create. So I wanted to share it with you. It brings both a smile and tears to my eyes because the lyrics are just beautiful. Enjoy! I have decided and rightfully so that while in Qatar, the best place for me to be in a car is in the backseat. This is not the place for passive drivers, nor road rage, and if you have never had anxiety while driving you will soon develop it. Think Miami driving...x 20! I'm pretty sure that I have gotten in the habit of holding my breath and hoping for the best. Not to mention the endless amounts of construction throughout the city. Maybe my anxiety was fueled from my time served as a claims adjuster. On the bright side there are a number of taxis or you can hire a driver for a reasonable price. So far our stay has been enjoyable. We haven't had an opportunity to explore a lot just yet as the work week began Sunday and ends Thursday. However, I have been exploring the coffee shop downstairs and although I never tried one in the States, I have have easy access to the prized Cronut. For those of you who don't know cronuts were all the rage about year ago when NY pastry-chef, Dominique Ansel, had the GENIUS idea to marry the croissant and the donut. Lucky for me the cronut has made its appearance in Doha. The results... my breakfast twice this week: PERFECTION! My biggest accomplishment today however was braving it and setting off to the Souq Waqif by myself. I managed to get there about 30 minutes before the shops opened for their second wind of the day. Although it was a 108 degrees, it was fun to wandering the alleyways filled with spices, fabrics, scarves, gold, and various other goods. Above is a picture of the heavily filled restaurant portion of the Souq Waqif during the work break. Souq Waqif is one of Doha's most recommended sites and now I am finally able to see why for myself. Not to mention it easily feeds my scarf obsession! So happy to have this in my backyard now.
If you're looking for paradise look no further than Santorini! It's the perfect Greek Island filled wineries, volcanic beaches, boutiques, and relaxation. I won't lie when I say three days is not enough. Our lovely hotel Mill House: Angels & Stars was located off the cliff side overlooking the sea and towers upon towers of beautiful white washed homes, hotels, and churches. The pictures that you see online or on television do no justice. Our room was a perfect little white-washed cave like suite in the side of the cliff. Many of our nights were spent on our balcony sharing wine and taking in the scenery. Even more the hotel states that they encourage laziness in the morning and so graciously brings you breakfast at your requested time on your patio. Champagne, croissants, fruit, and yogurt, and eggs... not a bad way to start your every morning. Our last few days have been filled with wandering the streets of Fira, visiting Franco's: a bar over looking the water that plays Classical Music and encourages you to disconnect with the world of social media, riding an ATV to Oia and many of the volcanic sand beaches of Santorini, and taking in how beautiful life is. Tomorrow we're off to our new home of Doha, Qatar, but for now we'll enjoy the beautiful sunset from our last night in Greece. Cheers to love and enjoying what God and life have given you! |
AuthorAnd so it begins... My story of love, my passions, life, and travel. I am Ronita. Archives
March 2018
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