sci-fi author, beatmaker

Category: Travel Page 1 of 3

First Trip to Europe Since the Beginning of the Pandemic


We’re in the south of France right now, visiting my father and his wife. It’s beautiful here, but very hot, and we’re taking life at a slow pace. So this will be an extremely short post.

But I did want to share a little bit about our travel experience. I tried to find similar information online before we left, but France had changed their travel rules only the week before, so there wasn’t much.

We flew out of Oakland, where we were asked if we were vaccinated, but not required to show proof. The US is currently on France’s “green light” list, meaning travelers can enter the country with proof of vaccination, and a Covid negative test is not required. We boarded our plane, transferred in LAX and then Atlanta, where we boarded our Airbus to CDG. At no point were we asked to show our vaccination cards.

Arriving in CDG, we were finally asked to show our passports and vaccination cards. Currently France accepts Pfizer, Moderna, and J&J vaccinations. We showed our vaccination cards and passports, and that was it. No questions, no temperature checks.

So overall, an extremely easy process.

Just wanted to share that information for fellow travelers. Though obviously things are still changing rapidly. With the Delta variant on the rise in the US, we could easily end up back on the “amber light” list, where a negative Covid test is required.

Safe travels, and please get vaccinated if you haven’t already. Yeah, the side effects suck, but they’re almost always over within a day or two.

Your Passport’s Expiration Date Doesn’t Mean What You Think It Means

Front gates of Avignon

Almost exactly two weeks ago, I was at the Oakland Airport with my family, about to board a flight to Paris. We were all checked in.

I heard the Norwegian Air staff call my daughter’s name. Always the optimist, my first thought was that maybe they were going to upgrade her to first class (a weird random thought, but that’s what popped into my head). Unfortunately, there turned out to be an issue with her passport, which expired on October 5th.

Lightweight Chromebook for the Travel Win

I just got back from a family vacation in Spain and France, mostly to visit my dad and his wife who live in a small village near Avignon. As a family we’ve been trying to travel as light as possible. Last summer we flew on WOW Airlines and decided to not check any baggage, which limited us each to a 5kg carry-on bag. For this trip we flew Norwegian Air, which has a 10kg carry-on bag limit per person. That felt generous by comparison, and at the last minute I decided it might be nice to have some sort of computing device besides my phone.

I haven’t taken an expensive laptop on vacation since my MacBook Pro got nicked in Hawaii from our rental apartment. But with near-ubiquitous wifi in Europe, I thought it might be time for my own Chromebook. Kia bought an HP Chromebook 11 a few years ago and we shared it during our Italy trip last summer, but I knew she had a few projects to manage remotely on this trip, and there wouldn’t be much sharing. So I hopped on my bike and rolled down to Best Buy the day before our trip.

Sunburned in Iceland, Brits in France, Driving in Rome

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A minor thunderstorm in Rome to break the heat.

I recently returned from a European jaunt with my family. It was an exciting time to be in Europe with both the Brexit vote and the Euro Cup. The football tournament took center stage — we happened to be in downtown Reykjavik for Iceland’s first goal (the loudest cheer I’d ever heard), and endured a cancelled train due to hooliganism in Marseille. A few stories from our trip …

Let’s Go Swimming!

Good times at Laugardalslaug.

Good times at Laugardalslaug.

We flew in and out of Reykjavik primarily because we were seduced by the ultra-low fares of WOW Airlines. By the time you pay for your hotel in Iceland, you don’t actually save any money, but we enjoyed our short stay. There was a Viking longhouse museum directly underneath our hotel, an early settlement discovered during construction. Among the many fascinating things I learned at the museum is the fact that about 80% of Icelandic men have Nordic paternal ancestry, while about 60% of Icelandic women have Celtic maternal ancestry (Norse Vikings taking wives from the British Isles and settling on the western isle, apparently). The early Icelanders didn’t stop their western explorations there; Greenlandic Icelanders briefly settled in Newfoundland around 1000AD.

Bricks by the Bay 2015

Alice Finch's Mouse Guard!

Alice Finch’s Mouse Guard

We recently took a day trip to Santa Clara to check out Bricks by the Bay, a LEGO builders convention. I’ve tried to get into this before but the line has always been too intimidating. This year we bought VIP early entry tickets (only $20 each) and had a full hour to check out the builds with plenty of room to navigate the hall. There were so many excellent, impressive builds. Here are a few of my favorites!

From Alice Finch's Mouse Guard display

More from Alice Finch’s Mouse Guard display

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Here’s a post about the origins of the Mouse Guard bricks. You can follow Alice Finch on Flickr — check out her amazing Hogwart’s builds as well.

"The Walking Plastic" zombie apocalypse!

“The Walking Plastic” zombie apocalypse!

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I loved this comparatively small build of a kung fu fight in a Chinese inn.

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I didn’t catch the names of all the builders … feel free to add info in the comments if you see something you recognize!

Battle scene, possibly LOTR

Battle scene, possibly LOTR

Iron Giant defends a city!

Iron Giant defends a city!

Scrooge McDuck's gold vault.

Scrooge McDuck’s gold vault.

Thumbs up or thumbs down?

Thumbs up or thumbs down?

Shootin' hoops in the park.

Shootin’ hoops in the park.

Get your iPhone 6 here.

Get your iPhone 6 here.

Don't get run over.

Don’t get run over.

Lighthouse! (Anybody reading Jeff Vandermeer? Extra significance ...)

Lighthouse! (Anybody reading Jeff Vandermeer? Extra significance … )

Underwater adventure.

Underwater adventure.

Stranded!

Stranded!

A fun day trip … highly recommended! Thanks to all the builders who put many hours into these amazing displays.

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