Wednesday, September 27, 2017

Do You Have Goals? with Pictures



Do You Have Goals? is an encouraging blog hop started by Misha. 

Goals? What goals? Ohhh, those goals. 
I lost track of my goals as I ran from one project to the next, from one exciting, life opportunity to the next challenge, to one day to the next.

So, let's just put that massive list of goals on hold for now.
What I really did:
1. I prepared for my three independent contract classes for homeschool co-op and taught a bit around my trip.

2. I wrote several worksheets for grammar. These focused on verb conjugation and verbals, such as gerunds, participles, and infinitives. (In current grammar standards, it is okay to spit infinitives like all Star Trek lovers who want to boldly go ...)

3. I went to the Czech Republic via Heathrow in London. This means, I left the states at 5:30 Pacific Time on a Monday, spent a four hour layover in Heathrow on Tuesday mid-day, and then arrived in Prague on Tuesday night.

4. I got to feel like a rock star! For the first time in my life, a taxi driver from a hotel stood at the airport arrivals area with my name on a sign. I almost took a picture of him and the sign because I was so thrilled. Yes, I'm a geek, but since he seemed embarrassed at the idea, I didn't take the picture.

5. If you haven't guessed, I traveled solo. I left one day after Team USA and after most of the parents who went. This meant I toured solo most of the first day and part of the second. It challenged my perception of myself and helped me realize that I do have the ability to travel in a foreign country, figure out planes, taxis, trains, and directions without a travel buddy, and even without working data on my phone since the international data plan I thought I had didn't work for most of the trip. (My husband stayed home (again!) but if my daughter makes it next year, I will drag him with me somehow - not because I have to someone to lean on to travel but because I really want him with me.)


6. I had an awesome trip, saw amazing sights, and watched Team USA race at the Olympic Hopes Regatta for three days in Racice, Czech Republic. I highly recommend visiting Prague, Karlstejn Castle (southwest of Prague via train), and the countryside in the Czech Republic. The following pics are just a small taste of what I saw:
The Old Town Astronomical Clock - 600 Hundred Years Old and Still Ticking! 

The ceiling of a small Hussite Church that I happened upon when I was sort of lost. 

One small view from St. Charles Bridge in Prague

St. Vitus Cathedral in Prague

Part of the old section of Prague Castle - which is a working castle in other sections.

One of the armor exhibits in a small section of the Golden Lane in Prague Castle.

My daughter and her K2 partner racing in the K2 500m. (Kayak with 2 people for 500m)

Same race. They did well enough in their heat to move onto the semi-finals. They didn't make finals, but I cheered as loud as I could for the races they had! (My daughter also competed in a K1 1000m, a K1 200m, and a K4 200m for her age division of 2001 women.)

My youngest. 


7. I didn't get all the research done that I wanted, but I did do some travel journaling on my pc, in a notebook, and on my phone.

8. On the way back, I had a seven hour layover in London so I left the airport, rode Heathrow Express, rode the tube (underground), and took a short walking tour from Westminster to Buckingham Palace via Leicester Square and Picadilly Circus. In Leicester Square, they were getting ready for the red carpet premier of the second Kingsman movie ... if I just had a longer layover, I could have been a crazy fan and waited around to take pictures of Colin Firth! :) But, I just kept walking and went to Waterstones, the largest bookstore in London, instead. I made it back to Heathrow in time to go through all the security and get to my gate with 20 minutes to spare before boarding even started. It was the ideal way to spend a layover in London and I am glad I had the opportunity.









I feel like traveling changes my perceptions and broadens the horizons I allow myself to see. I gain confidence from adventures and I am incredibly thankful for the chance to see a small part of the wide world beyond my usual corner. I hope to share some more in-depth insights from specific parts of the trip in future posts. As it is, I feel like this is a bit overly long for a goals update day. (sorry)

By the way, Team USA placed seventh overall out of thirty-three countries competing at the Olympic Hopes Regatta this year. One of our female canoeists - hailing from the Seattle team - won two gold medals and a silver medal. These are the first gold and silver medals ever won by the USA at an Olympic Hopes Canoe and Kayak Regatta.
(Last year, two young women received a bronze in a C2 race.)
Points are earned for the teams by individual race medals, placement in the finals, and the number of athletes who make semi-finals. Each athlete competes in three or more races at these events with three distances - 1000m, 500m, and 200m - broken into age categories, gender categories, and then individual or small team boat categories - K1, K2, K4, C1, C2, C4. K means Kayak, C means Canoe, and the number means the number of people in the boat.
900 athletes competed from all parts of the globe.

Next month, I'll get back to regular goals.

13 comments:

Alex J. Cavanaugh said...

What an adventure! Glad you went ahead and traveled alone. Sounds like you saw things you would've missed otherwise. Wild about the movie premier.
Seventh is still really good.

Madeline Mora-Summonte said...

Well done all around! Good for you for doing all that traveling on your own. And the pics are great! :)

Natalie Aguirre said...

Glad you had such a good solo trip. Yes, it is a confidence builder to be able to do that. I took my daughter to China a few years ago. Even though we were with a tour, I was the one in charge of us and we had to travel back from a small town in China to Beijing to get home. A confidence builder although I was a bit nervous.

krystal jane said...

That's so exciting! Solo travel is such a great experience. Even when I've traveled in groups, I would always go off alone at some point. Definitely a confidence booster, and it's just so great to see other parts of the world. I love these pictures!! That armor is incredible. I can't believe how close you were to seeing Colin Firth!! I love him!

Hilary Melton-Butcher said...

Hi Tyrean - it sounds amazing ... and I'm so glad you popped into London and managed quite a few things. Well done to your daughter - what an experience for her ...and then congratulations to the team ... cheers Hilary

L. Diane Wolfe said...

Your girls did so well!

I'm not sure I'd be brave enough to travel by myself to a foreign country. But you did it.

Laurel Garver said...

What wonderful pictures. It sounds like you had a wonderfully horizons-broadening time. And as for being "kind of lost" -- your were having "an explore." :-)

Nick Wilford said...

Glad your daughter, and the whole team, did so well!

I visited Prague with my wife in 2006, so this post brought back great memories. The architecture is amazingly beautiful. And of course, I've been to London too many times to count! It's great that you got so much out of your trip. Solo travel is definitely exhilarating.

Spanj said...

What a wonderful trip! I adore Prague. I've been twice, and I can't wait to get back again. And sounds like you made the most of London too (even if you didn't get to see Colin Firth!)

Misha Gerrick said...

Oh wow I love that clock!

I'd love to go to the Czech Republic one day, and I'm happy to read that you've learned something new about yourself. Go you! ^_^

Ruth Livingstone said...

Travelling is wonderful, and well done for negotiating timetables etc. on your own. Doubly difficult in foreign languages! Love the clock too.

Maurice Mitchell said...

What a wonderful trip! I could jump into any one of those pictures and stay the whole day. Tha Old Town Astronomical Clock looks gorgeous and they don't make them like that anymore. Thanks for sharing!

Heather R. Holden said...

Amazing photos! Can only imagine how much more breathtaking these sights were in person. And the fact that you traveled solo is so impressive to me; I have such bad anxiety, especially while vacationing, that I doubt I could ever be brave enough to pull that off myself. Glad this trip was so rewarding for you!