Traveling With Judi . . . .

Soooo.....last year on New Year's Eve, I was in New York City (unintentionally... thanks to the UK Border people not letting me into the country and sending me home)!! I think after my ordeal, I was in bed and sound asleep by 7:00, so I certainly didn't make it to Time's Square to see the ball drop!! I'm trusting that this New Year's Eve will (hopefully) be much more fun and less exhausting than last year!  2016 certainly came in with an unexpected BANG and change in plans, but it's been an interesting one for sure!! I still have no specific answer as to WHY I was detained and shipped home last year, but I have a general "sense" and reassurance that there was a reason my plans were changed so abruptly last year!! AND....I've not let it stop me from making plans for another trip....SOON!! Thanksgiving week, I "just happened upon" (Divinely Inspired perhaps?!?!) a "glitch" (or a VERY short 5-hour fare war) and found a flight...

Somehow this post got on Facebook last year, but not on my travel blog!! I think I had great intentions of writing a more in-depth post for my blog, but it never seemed to be the right time as I processed through my experience and lived my life back at home in 2016!! So here is last year's UK Border experience in a nutshell.... (Written on Jan 3, 2016)...Some of you may have noticed that I'm in Indiana instead of the UK, so I figured I'd give you the short version of my "ordeal" with the UK Border & Customs people a few days ago!! I arrived assuming I would be okay as a visitor under their "Visitor 6-month visa" but when I got there the Border agent decided I was a "high risk" for overstaying my welcome!!  Bottom line (which doesn't apply at ALL to me, but she couldn't see that)....I had already been in France for 3 months - add on a couple months in the UK and she was concerned that I might decide to stay illegally and ...