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March 25, 2004
To Spain -- or not?
By TOM BLAKE
For The Register's South County Weekly Newspapers
Each year, my partner Greta and I try to plan a
vacation together. We feel getting away is good
for our relationship, rekindles the flame
and gives us time to focus only on each other while
away from the day-to-day demands of working
full-time jobs.
Most of our trips are stateside. Often we drive to
Sonoma County to see my mom. Last summer we
toured Idaho, Wyoming and Montana. We've visited Maine
and Michigan. But when we can, we travel
internationally.
To
go abroad takes planning. Last July, we made airplane
reservations to go to Spain during Greta's April
spring break from teaching this year.
Our
plan was to fly to Madrid and hop a train from
Madrid's Atocha station to go to the Costa del
Sol for a week. While there, we planned to
take the premier train to Barcelona and back. And
then, we'd return by train to Madrid for two
nights. A month ago, we finalized all of the
reservations.
We
paid for and had our Rail Europe train tickets and
hotel reservations in our possession.
And
as the countdown to departure day approached -- April
2 -- our excitement started to build. Greta said
it was going to be a romantic trip and I liked the
sound of that.
And
then three weeks ago, the environment in Spain
changed. Ten terrorists' bombs ripped through
three train stations, including Atocha in
Madrid. Our first reaction: It's too dangerous to go.
We didn't want to be zipping around Spain on
high-speed trains wondering if a backpack filled with
compacted dynamite was hidden in the luggage
compartment. We asked Rail Europe to refund our money
and canceled our hotel accommodations. But for some
reason, I didn't cancel our airplane reservations.
We agonized over our decision. We knew there
were more important things in life to worry about,
but we were disappointed. We asked
friends, family and acquaintances for their opinions:
Should we rethink our decision and go
to Spain as originally planned?
Our
biggest concern, of course, was safety. Would we be OK
over there?
My
second concern was how my 93-year-old mom would feel
if we went. I didn't want her to be
a nervous wreck.
The
military men in our families -- a Navy man and a
Marine -- said go for it, Spain will be more
secure than ever. Similar sentiments were
echoed by my friend Tom Oliver, the former CEO of
Six Continents Hotels, the largest
chain in the world.
But
others told us to forget Spain and to go somewhere
else like Aruba, Mexico or Hawaii. A
few days in Palm Springs was
suggested. Crystal, one of my deli employees, pleaded
that we not go.
We're asking for readers' opinions.
If
you were in our shoes, what would you do? Would you be
on a plane to Madrid a week
from Friday?
E-mail
TPBlake@aol.com if you'd care to confuse us even
further. In next week's column,
we'll share what readers said
and reveal our decision.
Weekly comments:
Cindy Avery, Smithtown, N.Y.:
"I just read your book, 'Middle Aged and Dating
Again.' I'm still laughing my
fanny off over some of your stories. Thanks for a good
read on a day with no
patients and too much snow to want to go out."
Response: Living those experiences
was equally as funny.
Don
Hull, Santa Ana, president, Packards International
Motor Car Club:
"O.C. singles should consider
joining a Car Club. Great place to have fun and meet
people. Lots of men:
www.packards-today.com to see calendar of events."
Personal of the week
"Active, retired Laguna Hills chiropractor seeks
active gentleman between 70 and 80,
over 5-9,
interested in fun, good conversation, health and
longevity who enjoys dancing
movies and travel and
DRIVES AT NIGHT."
Interested? E-mail Tom at
TPBlake@aol. com. He will forward e-mails.
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