DEJA VU

The conversation was beginning to sound all too familiar.

Me: Are you taking your hair dryer?
K: Well, I thought I would

K: Should we be checking into calling plans for our phones?
Me: Definitely, but we will be using WiFi in most places.

K: You know pickpocketing is rampant over there?
Me: So I've heard, especially around The Louvre. But what are you going to do? Not go?

Seems like yesterday I was having similar trip planning conversations with my Alaskan friend, now it's my sister.

For whatever reason, and believe me I would like to go back and examine the process, Mr.Y. and I planned back to back trips this summer. The European trip we leave for on Saturday will include my younger sister, K, and my Best (and only) Brother In Law or BBIL. It was to have taken place last year as a celebration for a couple of our party turning 50. Those two will be 51 by the time the trip is over and a third one of our party has turned 50 in the meantime. Woo hoo for the Century Birthdays! (I am carefully avoiding the premature celebration of entering my next decade next year. No reason to muddy the waters with too much celebrating.)

Me: Did you print off all your hotel confirmations?
K: Yep, done.

K:  We are going to want to sleep on this flight because we arrive in Luxembourg at 10:00am and we won't want to go to bed and waste a day.
Me: Well, considering I will have had a ten hour time zone swing in the last week I figure it's a sure bet I won't have a problem with that. Then again........
K: I'm bringing something to help me sleep.
Me: Probably a good idea.

We each had a specific request when planning this trip:
Germany (Mr. Y: I want to take my Air Force son stationed there on a tour of the places I haunted when stationed there. )
France (Me: Can we hit Monet's Garden?)
Normandy, France (BBIL - If I could go to any one place I'd like it to be the Beaches of Normandy.)
England (K: I just want to see castles. Any chance we can go to Downton Abby?)

So, the planning is done, the hotel reservations are made, the car is reserved, and the clothes are starting to be pulled out of the closet in preparation for packing. Again.

K: What's the temperature over there?
Me: Hopefully anything cooler than here.

Yes, this all seems very familiar.