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Travel Cultures Language

OIC the Road Ahead and…

by Sheron Long on July 27, 2021

A little sailboat sets sail for an unusual and imaginary island seen in the distance, symbolizing travels to different cultures. (Image © Urvashi9/iStock)

It’s time to set sail for new horizons.

Looking Back, a World Well-Travelled

In the last 9 years, we’ve enjoyed our travels with you to fascinating and often little-known parts of the world—moving across cultures, delighting in different languages, exercising the bilingual brain, and enjoying the insights that came from the ride.

In this—OICs last post—it’s time to say a fond farewell and to wish you well. May you continue to travel the world and discover how stepping into different cultures enriches your life.

Diving Deep Into the Sea of Travel Memories

by Joyce McGreevy on March 31, 2021

A movie theater marquee comments during the pandemic, the epic wait when visions of normal life, travel memories, and other dreams kept hope alive. (Image © Joyce McGreevy)

Worldwide, many people replied to the epic wait with quick wit.
© Joyce McGreevy

Our Epic Wait Reveals What Matters Most

As our voyage back from quarantine nears the shore of normalcy, vaccination sparks anticipation. What are you waiting for? To see friends and loved ones? To return to school or the workplace? To make new travel memories or simply to regain your memories of “ordinary” life? Given our epic wait, we’ve all had time to ponder such questions.

How much time? By my calculations: 2020 to the nth degree, x number of months + the square root of insomnia, minus hours binge-watching gazillion seasons of “Law and Order,” carry the 1 = A LONG DANG TIME.

Memories of St Patrick’s Day In and Out of Ireland

by Joyce McGreevy on March 15, 2021

Ireland’s blue sky and green meadow in March evoke memories celebrated with cultural authenticity on St Patrick’s Day in Ireland. (Image © Joyce McGreevy)

Before the pandemic, March was a popular time for travel to Ireland . . .
© Joyce McGreevy

How Real Was My Cultural Authenticity?

What could be more Irish than memories of St Patrick’s Day in Ireland? Picture it: County Limerick, March 17. Sunlight illuminates my boarding school overlooking the banks of the River Shannon. Such cultural authenticity! We’ve the day off from classes. Cue the festivities!

The Dripping of the Green

Ah, but this is 1970s Ireland. St Patrick’s Day is a holy day, not yet a holiday. To “celebrate,” we each pin a clump of sodden shamrocks to the front of our school uniform. At Mass, I watch in dismal fascination as brackish liquid oozes along the wool grain of my personal upholstery.

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