Florida and Colombians

This is Leisureville.

I spent two full days in Boynton Beach, Florida visiting my Nana and her sister. It's been 10 years since I've been to south Florida and my weekend trip made me realize that I should make time to visit more often.

Nana and her sister, Tia Olga. Tia giving Nana a helping hand.

On Sunday, we went on a nice drive, stopped by the beach, met a few fishermen, ate some Cuban food, and picked some avocados.

Giant avocados in the backyard.

Fishing for schools of fish.

On Monday, I met my Nana's family from Colombia. Her family is high-energy, friendly, and goofy. Very few spoke English but the the language barrier did not stop us from joking around, enjoying good food together, and building new familial relationships.

Tia Olga's salon always open for business. 

I could understand most of the Spanish but could not speak back. Google Translate was a fun way to talk to my new cousins. They sat on each side of me and asked me questions as I typed in my response for Google to translate into Spanish. I can type almost as fast as I can speak so it was a pretty quick translation. I foresee Google Translate being an important tool in the next two years. The IPhone app is free and translates from voice input to text- amazing.

The last few days I have finalized my travel plans in the US for the next two months:

Thanksgiving holidays: New York City and Northern NJ
Week before Christmas: San Marcos, TX
Week after Christmas: Midland Park, NJ
Week after New Year's: Las Vegas, NV and Zion National Park
Week of Departure to Philippines: Washington, DC and New York City

One more week until Jonathan and Susan come visit me in DC for a few days. I can't wait to see the little brother and sister. It's been over 6 years since we were all together.

So much happening over the next few weeks! I hope I get enough time with everyone before I leave.

P.S.
I perfect flight starts with perfect timing. To me, that means no waiting in line at the kiosk, security gates, or gate. Then a window seat, preferably no neighbors, and sound asleep before the plane takes off. I'm mastering the ability to find that perfect window of time that allows me to board, pretty much, last minute. Wish my luck on never missing a flight!