This time, I drew the drapes tightly so I would not be awakened by the light. It worked. I was not awakened by the light. Instead, I was awakened by my long-standing idiosyncrasy of being--what shall I call it--tense on "get-away day." The anticipation of the impending journey gets my mind on the destination at the expense of the present. I was awake at 5:45.
I had asked the hotel the night before about securing a late checkout for this day
. I am supposed to be out of the room by noon but I would like to keep it until I am picked up for my Port Louis tour at 2:00pm. No.
I had a big breakfast and returned to the room to pack. Once I was all set to travel, I headed to the beach for a last walk and then to the lounge where WiFi is available to check email. I ran into Donna and Matt, who are also leaving today, and we had a farewell lunch. They are the nicest young (28) couple.
Picked up by "John," we drove through the old part of Port Louis, a city on this island. It is much like the old part of every city in the world. There is a fortress atop a hill overlooking the city and their weekend horse racing track; it is unremarkable. There is a newly redeveloped waterfront that is much like the newly redeveloped waterfronts of every city in the world. It, too, is unremarkable. There is an old market. It is much like; oh, well, you get the picture.
I got to business while in town
. Pepsi has a presence here but Coke still dominates. Coke's advantage is clear: it is distributed by the brewer of the top selling local beer: Phoenix. Pepsi does have some creative on-premise presence and has done a bit of signage with local bodegas as well. My favorite on-premise promotion of all time was sighted here: Just Say GNO. GNO? It stands for Girl's Night Out. Attract the ladies and you will have attracted the men. Brilliant.
I arrive at the airport extraordinarily early for my 10:35pm flight...at 5:30. I am apologized to by several people telling me that I cannot check in for two more hours which means that I cannot gain access to the Air Mauritius Business Class Lounge. As soon as airline people who have said I cannot do something leave their posts, I ask the next airline person. This tactic works everywhere in the world. When one airline employee--it makes no difference which airline you are dealing with--when one airline employee says, "No," find anther airline employee and smile even bigger and ask again and you will eventually find an airline employee who says, "Yes
." This even occasionally works in the United States.
Anyway, I got checked in and made it through customs and security and into the lounge. It isn't much but it is more comfortable than anywhere else in this small airport. And, I have made one more discovery. Until this point, I was under the impression that everyone in Mauritius was kind and warm and happy. Well, that isn't true. The two servers at the Air Mauritius Lounge are surly and rude and grouchy. My faith in human nature has been renewed. Yes; there are mean people everywhere.
Of course, no one here knows it but today is Thanksgiving Day at home. Mauritius seldom gets American tourists so they know very little of us. The reason? Mauritius is wonderful but no more wonderful than many or most Caribbean islands and is one heck of a lot further away. I asked a few Le Meridien employees how many Americans they remember meeting and they mostly said five or six
...in the last few years.
Upon awakening, I began to consider all the things for which I am thankful this year. There are many.
I am thankful for my son and my daughter. They have held me close to their hearts during this most trying year of my life--and theirs.We are closer now than we have ever been. I love them more than they can know. Their partner and husband have been equally caring. The rest of my Russell family has rallied around me with no concession or stipulation. Andy has been there for me in ways that I cannot describe even though his years has been more trying than my own.
I am thankful for other friends who have not let their suffering with my divorce alter their affection for me.
I am thankful for Chalise (for those of you who don't know her, it is she from whom I am buying my new home). She is an amazing woman in so many ways and I will find a way to remain close to her after she leaves Kansas City for her Sarasota condo
. She means a great deal to me...she alone knows how much.
I am thankful for Gloria who has been and is my dear and close friend and confidant. For those of you who don't know her, she lost her husband of 41 years to cancer and we have shared our losses and, I think gained much from each other. She means a great deal to me...she alone knows how much.
I am thankful for everyone at ej4 and BeerCampus and P1 Selling for their support, their dedication to excellence and their creativity--all of which has culminated in making me look good in front of our many clients. I am thankful that they run the show in my absence and have embraced the idea that they do not need me to thrive.
I am thankful for the Regency where I live and for the staff there who has welcomed me, cared for me and smiled at me every morning of my residence. I intend to spend the rest of my life at this Plaza Condo Extraordinaire moving from 1005 to 1502 in just over a month. Life there will only get better.
I am thankful for being able to get into 32 inch waist pants. I am thankful for my health.
I am thankful to have gotten through that most miserable hemmorrhoidectomy--a procedure which I cannot recommend to you while, at the same time, I also highly recommend to you.
I am thankful to have nearly gotten through this most miserable divorce process--a procedure which I cannot recommend. One thing I know: divorce itself may not be as bad as divorce lawyers. Debi and I have paid their bills while they prolonged our (my, at least) agony. I am thankful that Mockingbird is sold and closed and now, sadly and happily, a part of my past.
I am thankful that Debi has a new home and is happy to be moving on without me.
I am thankful to be embarking on a new phase of my life. I intend to live it for me while still practicing, as best as I am able, my STUN process: Satisfy the UnMet Need. Now, I shall endeavor to STUN others and also myself...wherever possible.
I am thankful for IRAs and 401(k)s without which my financial situation now and in the future might very well have been perilous.
I am thankful for Dr Pepper Snapple Group and Larry and Larry and VIcki and Clare and all the rest there. They have shown creativity and trust and leadership and they use ej4 as it should be used and they, with their caring about and attention to quality, have made me and the rest of us at ej4 better.
I am thankful for places to walk and places to run and places to eat and places to check out books and places to get take-out and places to just be--all within walking distance of where I now live.
I am thankful that my Republican friends embrace the likes of Sarah Palin because I rest assured that such support will ensure that President Obama will have four more years to try to dig us out of the mess that George Bush and Dick Cheney got us into.
I am thankful for the 66 countries to which I have now traveled. I am thankful for The World's Greatest Travel Agent, Kathy Sudeikis, who flawlessly put this odyssey together and who will now, I hope, find a way to get me via Iceland to (maybe on a cruise) Denmark, Norway, Sweden, Finland, Russia, (and from there then maybe overland via train) to Estonia, Latvia and Poland and then flying home (maybe connecting via Portugal) in, say, June, 2011. Are you reading this WGTA?
I am thankful for elephants.
I am thankful for friends who have tried to help me find a new church home even though that has not happened yet.
I am thankful that the Chiefs don't disappoint me this year. They have already surpassed my expectations.
I am thankful for the internet and the fact that you can access it even on an island without electric lines in Namibia and how it allows me to stay in touch and share and communicate and keep up with work so that I am not overwhelmed upon my return.
I am thankful for the one who telephoned me--what was it?--four times, to check up on me during this journey. Nobody ever did that before.
I am thankful for Thanksgiving.
Did I mention that I am thankful for Cianan and Megan? Oh, yes; I mentioned them first. I shall now mention them last because they are, first and last, my most cherished support and source of great joy.
Oh: I am thankful that my flight to Paris leaves in three hours and that I have a business class seat.
Au revoir, Mauritius
Thursday, November 25, 2010
Port Louis, Mauritius
Other Entries
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1Up in the Air
Nov 1015 days priorCape Town, South Africaphoto_camera1videocam 0comment 2 -
2South Africans = Friendly Folks
Nov 1213 days priorCape Town, South Africaphoto_camera5videocam 0comment 2 -
3Winery Musings
Nov 1312 days priorCape Town, South Africaphoto_camera2videocam 0comment 1 -
4Ostrich and Baboon and Penguin; Oh my.
Nov 1312 days priorCape Of Good Hope, South Africaphoto_camera5videocam 0comment 2 -
5I'm game for a drive
Nov 1411 days priorKruger National Park, South Africaphoto_camera5videocam 0comment 1 -
6I'm Hip
Nov 1510 days priorKruger National Park, South Africaphoto_camera5videocam 0comment 6 -
7I Know Rhino
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8Do you know the way to Zimbabwe?
Nov 178 days priorVictoria Falls, Zimbabwephoto_camera5videocam 0comment 4 -
9Anyone for a Dip?
Nov 187 days priorVictoria Falls, Zambiaphoto_camera5videocam 0comment 10 -
10Botswana? That's a croc.
Nov 196 days priorChobe National Park, Botswanaphoto_camera5videocam 0comment 4 -
11Up a Caprivi without a paddle
Nov 205 days priorCaprivi Strip, Namibiaphoto_camera5videocam 0comment 0 -
12Hippo Pot of 'em
Nov 214 days priorCaprivi Strip, Namibiaphoto_camera5videocam 0comment 0 -
13New Business Idea
Nov 223 days priorJohannesburg, South Africaphoto_camera5videocam 0comment 1 -
14The Airport Grand to Mauritius Le Meridien
Nov 232 days priorMauritius, Mauritiusphoto_camera4videocam 0comment 4 -
15Harmony in the Indian Ocean
Nov 241 day priorMauritius, Mauritiusphoto_camera5videocam 0comment 1 -
16Au revoir, Mauritius
Nov 25Port Louis, Mauritiusphoto_camera5videocam 0comment 2 -
17Boring Logistics and then: Home
Nov 25later that dayParis, Francephoto_camera0videocam 0comment 0 -
1825,000 miles?
Nov 261 day laterKansas City, United Statesphoto_camera0videocam 0comment 0
Comments

2025-02-09
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AFS
2010-11-26
And we are thankful for you, Paul, and the journal of your amazing trip.
Safe travels.
Caryn
2010-11-26
Safe travels and welcome home!