Pat

Retired. Have time for the things I love: travel, my cat, reading, good food, travel, genealogy, walking, and of course travel.

From the Death Strip to the Kitchen Table

23 May 2026

Berlin presents me with a different kind of wall – not concrete and barbed, but the mental tug-of-war between being a present parent to my German daughters and answering the insistent call of history that seems to echo from every corner of the city. I find my thoughts detouring toward places like the Berlin Wall Memorial or Underground Tunnels. It’s a delicate negotiation within myself of how many historical stops should be smuggled into a day before I feel like a bad mother.

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By Pat, ago

Repeat After Me: What, Me Worry?

22 May 2026

I love to travel. It is like a nectar of the gods for me. What would the future be without a next trip in the works? 

And, I enjoy the planning. My motto is: plan, there will be enough surprises without building them into my schedule. Why turn travel into a gladiatorial event staged by Travel Gods, who seem to wake each morning asking, “How can we spice things up for our pilgrim today?” Why be clutching my boarding pass only to find a flight is cancelled with no Plan B?  

Which brings me to a modern dilemma. All the chaos currently facing travelers today, especially anyone foolish enough to believe a direct flight actually goes directly these days.

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By Pat, ago

Algeria 

Between Warm Welcome and Wary Watchfulness 

Notes from a a Land of Generosity That Never Quite Looks Away

Lessons learned by travelers: one needs time in any country to understand and appreciate its history, culture, diversity and idiosyncrasies or peccadillos. I admit, I knew practically nothing about Algeria before my arrival. After 15 days, I feel I have scratched its surface. 

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By Pat, ago

Forced Kick-Back in Algiers

12 April 2026

We arrive at the Houari Boumediene International Airport and use a concrete walkway to our hotel.

We stay at the Hyatt Regency Algiers Airport so no great hardship. Large, modern and luxurious, we eschew the beautiful indoor pool and fitness room. Instead, many of our group meet in the lounge for big cold beers!

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By Pat, ago

Oran, Algeria

10 April 2026

It’s a cool, pleasant but hazy day. I grab a cup of Nescafé, sit on the terrace overlooking date palms and dunes listening to doves cooing in the trees. Cooing good morning or good riddance?

The good news – we fly to our next destination: Oran. This eliminates a 600-mile drive and replaces it with a fast 5 miles to the Timimoun Airport. I feel relief. Possibly, I have been driven through enough Saharan landscape during the last couple years.

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By Pat, ago

Timimoun and the Ighzer Plateau

9 April 2026

The day begins slowly, air is still relatively cool. We enjoy a coffee on our terrace overlooking the palm groves and dunes. Unfortunately, the coffee is Nescafé and the view is marred by haze and dust.

However, it is new day and we will explore the region. It will be a hot day in the Red Oasis. Sort of reminds me of a typical summer in Bakersfield.

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By Pat, ago