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Infinite Country by Patricia Engel | Thoughts

   Published : 2021   ||    Format : print   ||    Location : Colombia ☆ ☆ ☆ ☆ ☆   What was it about the country that kept everyone hostage to its fantasy? The previous month, on its own soil, an American man went to his job at a plant and gunned down fourteen coworkers, and last spring alone there were four different school shootings. A nation at war with itself, yet people still spoke of it as some kind of paradise.. Thoughts : Infinite Country follows two characters - young Talia, who at the beginning of this book, escapes a girl’s reform school in North Colombia so that she can make her previously booked flight to the US. Before she can do that, she needs to travel many miles to reach her father and get her ticket to the rest of her family. As we follow Talia’s treacherous journey south, we learn about how she ended up in the reform school in the first place and why half her family resides in the US. Infinite Country tells the story of her family through the other protagonist, El

The Sunday Salon: A little staycation and End of the Hols

The Sunday 
Salon.com

Good morning fellow readers! Well, today is the last day of my two-week holiday/vacation and it pains me to think that it is a whole year before the next one rolls around. I much preferred my days of graduate school, when I had bigger chunks of holidays in the winter and the summer. Oh well, that stipend I earned then wouldn't be enough to sustain a decent lifestyle, other than to just pay bills, so no complaints. Still, it is going to be hard getting back to work tomorrow, though thankfully, everyone may also be in a similar boat.

The husband and I just just got back last night from our three-day low-key staycation in Northern VA. We visited the Lewis Ginter Botanical Gardens in Richmond on our drive there to check out their GardenFest. They had lights set up for the holiday season, mostly decorating the trees at the garden and in places, mocked up in shapes of animals and fairy tale characters. The decorations were very beautiful and colorful, though it was also very cold that night, and that affected our enjoyment a little bit.






We spent most of our time in NoVa shopping but we also spent an evening watching Interstellar at the IMAX theater in the Steven F. Udvar-Hazy Museum in Chantilly. We had already watched the movie and were going this time for the 70mm IMAX experience. In my opinion, 70mm is really just an overkill. I much prefer the smaller screens that stay fully within my vision range, than the 70mms that seem to feel as if a portion of the screen is floating up in the clouds. But that's just me. We weren't expecting to see many people there at all, since the movie has been running for two months already but both shows were sold out. It was quite shocking to see so many people sprint up to get tickets and I thought we may not get any seats but luckily we made it in.

For today, we don't have any major plans. I have some office work to finish up before heading in to work tomorrow but the rest of my day is completely free, which is how I like it. I finished my first book of the year, Letters in the Attic by Bonnie Shimko two days ago, and am now looking forward to starting my next read. My library membership had expired sometime during the past month so I need to get that sorted out tomorrow.

How is your Sunday shaping up? Are you upset about the end of the holidays too or do you have some more days before you get back?

Comments

Sunday is shaping up okay, despite the dreary weather. I plan on doing a bit of...reading! Shocking. I know. Oh, napping too. As for being upset about the the end of the holidays, yes, especially since I had to return to work yesterday for just one day after working two days earlier in the week. I did plan off a few days in mid-January, though, so my vacation days (hours, work at part-time job, but hey still get some time off) don't pile up at the end of the year.


Whoa. Just looking at those pictures again. Stunning. Thanks for sharing.
bermudaonion(Kathy) said…
Yeah, going back to reality is tough. I'm glad you had a nice break. Happy New Year!
iliana said…
I love going to botanical gardens. Looks like you guys had a great time! I go back tomorrow as well after being out for several days. Not looking forward to it but oh well. I don't have many plans for today either so hopefully I'll get a bit of reading done. Enjoy your Sunday!
Sam_TinyLibrary said…
Lovely photos! I hope that your return to work tomorrow is as stress free as possible.
Technically I should be also going back to work tomorrow but I still have a bit of maternity leave left, so I'm not back until Feb.
JoAnn @ Lakeside Musing said…
Tomorrow is join to be a big shock for many of us... it's been so nice to have everyone around for the holidays. Beautiful photos!
Vasilly said…
Initially, I was going to let the kids have a two week vacation, but now I think we need an extra week off. :-) I'm not ready to start school tomorrow. I plan on spending the rest of the day doing homeschooling prep and getting some reading in. I hope this week is stress free for you.
Athira / Aths said…
You're welcome!

I took the whole of last week off so that I didn't have to go back to work soon. But I know what you mean - some of my colleagues did work last week and I am sure it wasn't something they wanted to do.
Athira / Aths said…
Thank you! Happy New Year, Kathy!
Athira / Aths said…
The gardens were really beautiful. I would like to go back in Spring during daytime, so I can see what the place is like at the best of times.
Athira / Aths said…
Enjoy your maternity leave! I love that you got 7 months off - the more time off, the better for sure.
Athira / Aths said…
Thank you! 'Shock' is the right word! I don't think I am ready to go in tomorrow.
Athira / Aths said…
Two weeks is never enough! I now wish I had three weeks off. It bums me some times that most of the holidays are at the end of the year but then after getting two weeks off, I can't think of a better way to spread the holidays.
Belle Wong said…
Love those pictures! It sounds like you had a wonderful staycation! Unfortunately, I had to start work already - I have a deadline on Tuesday so my time off is over. January is quite deadline-heavy for me, so now I'm really looking forward to February!
Athira / Aths said…
It's a bummer to start the new year on deadlines, but I hope January races by for you and you are already in February soon!
literaryfeline said…
Love the photos you shared. I am glad you had such a nice time in Northern VA. It's nice to get away for a little while. Now that I don't have to build time for another long medical leave, maybe we will be able to take a vacation this year. Any vacation. LOL


I go back to work tomorrow to a new boss. I'm sure it will be fine. I've been there so long, seen so many bosses. Still, it's an adjustment. This weekend I spent goofing off with my family.


Have a great week!
Trish said…
Love the pictures from the gardens! We keep meaning to do more things in and around Dallas but sometimes it seems like such a lot of work. Maybe we need to just get a hotel and have a little staycation!


Hope that work has gone well so far. I know it's been tough for me to get back into the routine! Will be glad for Friday. ;)
Athira / Aths said…
Going back to work after a long break is ALWAYS challenging! The longest break I ever had was 5 weeks, when I had to go to India for my wedding and then got stuck there due to some issues. It was hard coming back then, though I was more than ready to be back.