Away From Home and Back Again

Anyone who has been away from home for long periods of time would know how difficult it can be, especially if you have really strong relational ties - friends, family, spouses, significant others, etc. I love, love, love New York. It's such a cultural and diverse part of the United States. I had the pleasure of spending some time in upstate NY in a city within the Dutchess County area called Poughkeepsie. Some think that because its upstate that there's nothing to attract tourists there but I can tell anyone, you can really enjoy yourself there. There is so much to do and see. Returning to my opening statement, as lovely as it was spending time with my family and friends and travelling, seeing and experiencing all that it had to offer, I must admit I began to feel a little home sick.

As much as I love traveling and as exciting as it is to roam, I can never stray too far from home. I love my country of Trinidad and Tobago to that extent. So when talking about things to enjoy versus things that annoy, I would say traveling and visiting new places - definitely something to enjoy. Missing home - definitely something that annoys. Poughkeepsie - definitely something to enjoy. Returning home after some time away - I don't think the enjoyment scale can measure it! (ha, ha)

Here are some places in and around Poughkeepsie that I enjoyed and  simply have to share:

Scenic Places:

The Walkway Over the Hudson        
The Vanderbilt Mansion
Mills Mansion
River where we had family day


Shopping Areas

Poughkeepsie Galleria
Berlington
Sam's Club
Sephora
Kmart
Marshalls
Walmart



Eating Out

Brunch at Hyatt Hotel
The Culinary Institute of America
The Palace Diner
Thai Spice                                                                

Uno's Pizzeria and Grill

The Palace Diner

Vanderbilt Mansion in all its glory!

Between its iconic pillars

Picturesque shot of Vanderbilt Mansion

Posing with Justin Timberlake at Madame Toussaud's Wax Museum

Coming back Home

Although Poughkeepsie is a wonderful vacation spot and a place I thoroughly enjoyed, I started feeling like I'd been away from home for too long. I'm not the type of person to keep in touch with others while I'm out of town so I really began missing friends and family back home. I began to miss those old familiar places, the group of children I teach at my home church, in and around Port-of-Spain, shopping on Charlotte street, meeting friends on the "Lara" (The Brian Lara Promenade) things of that sort.

First thing I did when I got home was to call a few friends and catch up. I almost cried real tears when I saw how grown, how tall, how changed the children I taught had become in my absence. It just felt so good to be back. Even the house I lived in seemed to say welcome back. So glad to be so in love with the country of my birth. It's always good to have somewhere, some special place that you can call home.