Tivoli Welcome Wagon

Free Day

"Optional" company class
Rebecca at lunch
A street...
A building...

Today is our free day. Although they added another "optional" class for us today, the rest of the day is ours. After having a large group dinner last night we opted to take today for ourselves. We pretty much just strolled around with no destination and enjoyed our surroundings. Copenhagen seems to run as smoothly as any city I've ever been to. I think that there's a lot to be said for a culture that refuses to J-Walk. I think when everyone is doing as they should, not much will go wrong and then you can just enjoy where you are at the moment instead of stressing about the next. All cities need to become much more bike friendly. NYC is about as unwelcoming to a bicyclist as one could get. Here, all of the streets have large bike lanes and separate street signs. There are even free bikes for tourists that have maps on the handlebars. Aside from looking like a tourist, you feel like a native.

First Day in Copenhagen

We arrived at JFK around 1pm for a 4:30 flight. That's a lot of time to kill, and a lot of airport food to eat. Our flights were  pretty smooth aside from Rebecca manifesting the cold from hell. I think she's just allergic to flying since I think I remember her getting sick on the way to London. I got the "jimmy-legs" on the flight to Paris, but with a free seat next to me for the second leg of the journey, I could finally spread out and get some sleep.
Tivoli Gardens it the amusement park that we perform at here. There is a band of cute little soldier boys that would usually always meet us at the airport to welcome us with a song. Sadly they were missing this year, and as disappointed as we all were, we figured it must be because we were split in to three flights. But then as we pulled up to the front of our hotel, there they were, drums out and fifes wailing. It kind of makes you feel like a celebrity and that really doesn't feel that bad.
Since we arrived so early none of our rooms were ready for us. But the hotel provided us with a breakfast buffet while we waited a few hours. I needed some fresh air after all of that time couped up on a plane, so Rebecca and I went out for a little stroll in to town. I love this city. I feel so at home. It helps to have been here a few times before, but I have loved this place since my first trip. I'll tell you why later.

Our Favorite Place

For years Rebecca and I have been routinely going down to Anguilla during our layoffs for some sun and sand. Anguilla is paradise. On our first vacation years ago, we realized that we are perfectly matched in our expectations for a vacation. Neither of us want to stay in a big resort with other Americans. We definitely don't want to be around children. And we like things to be a little on the rustic side. Anguilla was a perfect fit. 

She's a tiny island two hundred miles southeast of Puerto Rico. She boast some of the most beautiful white sand beaches in the world. The locals are  wonderful people. They work at a pace that would drive many New Yorkers crazy, but Rebecca and I just sit back, sip our rum punches and go with their flow. 

We love so much about this island, that to try to write about it would only trivialize it and come up short. To understand its power you must go.