Inking a Working Vacation

I am going to be firing up my blog again with regular updates and pictures since I am away my newest international sojourn. In a twist of irony, I’ve had a number of big projects pop up during my last week before leaving for Greece – so I am going to be working my tail off while over there. It is going to be truly a “Working Vacation”. Luckily with the spread of WiFi in Greece I should be pretty well connected. I will, however, miss my iPhone! It is ridiculous what they pay over in Greece for mobile phone charges so I will just have to stick to my simple Motorola phone. I might even buy a new one because I heard my sister got a nice phone at a great price.

How does one conduct a Working Vacation? It is actually quite simple. I go to the beach in the morning as if I am on holiday, eat a large lunch in the afternoon like a Greek local would do, and then revert to my American lifestyle and work until the evening time while everyone else is on siesta. At night is a different story, I think that I will become a Greek on holiday! I also plan to continue my exercise regimen that will include a lot of trail running on the island. I was elated to find out that one of my cousins in Serres has also been running, so I will be able to join him for some evening runs through some nice scenery.

So what do I have planned? A very flexible schedule that involves a lot of northern Greece, southern Greece for at least a few days, and I will be traveling to 2 or 3 islands depending on how things unfold. More to come on this..

A Working Vacation sounds tiring huh? Not really – as a matter of fact it sounds like a great balance. It will involve a lot of beach time, eating time, work sprinkled throughout and less sleep (Ok, so I had to sacrifice some sleep – hey, something had to give!). If I stay the course then I have a shot at the Royal Flush of vacations:
(Ace) Spend lots of time with my relatives & friends
(King) my business in high gear instead of coasting
(Queen) In better shape
(Jack) Lots of new, great memories
(Ten) Very tan.


**On a side note: I have 2 pages left of open space on my passport, and 6 years until it expires. Will they really turn you away for not having any space? I guess I will find out soon enough. This passport was actually issued as a replacement for a lost passport 3 yrs and 10 months ago. What kind of ink does it have? Not enough, you can never have enough ink:
Shanghai, China Pu Dong Airport (3 times)
Tokyo, Japan Narita Airport
Bimini, Bahamas
Hamilton, Bermuda
Milan, Italy Malpensa Airport
Frankfurt, Germany
London, England Heathrow (2 times)
London, England Luton Airport
Thessaloniki, Greece (3 times)
Athens, Greece