Road Trips and Dublin Car Rental

I thought I would elaborate on my previous weekend, the big baby shower extravagance! I flew in two days earlier so I could spend some time with my mum, dad and sister. We went out for my mom's birthday dinner (a bit delayed as her birthday is in March). It was a nice time for me to catch up with the family as well as errands that I had to run in my hometown (getting my hair colored!).

Saturday, I joined my two girlfriends and we drove down from Northern Virginia to almost the bottom of the state. My friend S, rented a car, which helped immensely in us getting last minute preparations for the baby shower done. Also, with a car, I could really see spring coming alive in Virginia. There is nothing like driving down the entire length of the state for one to really appreciate the beauty of the Old Dominion (despite the Governor's proud marking of Virginia being a Confederate state).

I must say, renting a car can liberate one to truly explore any site or location. My good friend Molly Malone and her honey rented a car when they visited South Africa and listening to her adventures made me envious, it certainly frees one from some restrictive public transport systems (like the midnight closing Paris and Washington DC metro or the frantic craziness of rush hour in Rome and and Berlin). From Car Hire Ireland to the American Zip Car, it seems a good idea!


Continuing onto the weekend saga....the shower started at 3pm and it lasted well until after 6pm, as my friend H said, "A good time was had by all!" We played some weird baby games, like a mad lib's and finding safety pins in rice. The momma to be got more than enough cloths for baby girl.

After the shower we girls decided to go out for dinner (we just didn't want the fun to end)! And though we are all older we stayed up till well past our bedtimes, savoring our rare time together. Me, H and S, stayed at a Travelodge, which has the strangest mascot, a semi-nude bear leering out at customers in a very suggestive manner. It weirds us all out and we have decided to no longer stay there (we use to always stay at Travelodge when traveling in college, as it fit our budget, but now we are professionals, we agreed we could move up the hotel chain, no?).

The next morning we high tailed out of it there (as it was Sunday and everyone had to get back to the real world, blah). But we were able to make one last stop to our beloved ala mater, Mary Baldwin College. It was lovely to walk the campus and even catch up with a familiar face!

I left Monday back for Arizona. Though I was sad to have to return to this military state, I did have a great time and that makes it all worth it!