Birthdays around the globe

The Rio post and my remark about us celebrating at foreign locations got me thinking. I tried to make a mental list of all the places that we have been on our birthdays and decide how exotic they really were – and to figure out the winner so far in the competition.

Apart from such international and trendy locations such as Düsseldorf, Mainz and Goslar – either because we had been living there at the time or visiting – here are the top spots of the last 22 years.

I kicked off the habit in 1995 with Santa Barbara, California. We were doing the typical road trip that summer with Los Angeles, San Diego, San Francisco, Las Vegas and Gran Canyon on the agenda, and we happened to be in Santa Barbara that day.

The husband followed suit in 1996 with St. Ives, GB, where we spent a week that year touring beautiful Cornwall. I have a very nice picture of that day in my album (unfortunately only analog) of him standing in a phone booth in Sennen Cove calling home. Since his Mom was out at that moment, he only talked to his Dad, though, and so he never heard those congratulations he had secretly hoped for. You all know how Dads are with dates and stuff, right?!

In 1999, we celebrated hubby’s birthday at the Warner Brothers Movie Park in Bottrop-Kirchhellen, Germany. I am not sure that this counts as an exotic location but we sure had fun. Since the weather was a bit shitty there weren’t any queues, and at some point birthday boy could ride the roller coaster  without even getting off his seat.

A bar in San Cristobal de las Casas

In 2003, it was my turn again in Mexico. We were backpacking through Yucatan that June, and we came to be in hot, humid Merida in the morning and in cooler, mountainy San Cristóbal de las Casas in Chiapas in the afternoon.

The husband tried to give chase in 2004 with Gran Canaria … Well, we had decided to get away for a week on a package deal to relax and recharge. On the day we did a little tour through the interior and the little villages f the island. And that is all I can remember.

Santa Catalina Cloister, Arequipa

In 2006, we both scored. We celebrated his 40^th birthday in Arequipa, Peru, where we spent almost four weeks visiting Lima, the Nazca Lines, Lake Titicaca, Cuzco, Puno, Chan Chan, but most importantly trekking the Inka Trail up to Machu Picchu. On my birthday I was in Toronto, Canada, visiting my sister, her husband and my two nephews. They got me one of these fantastic sugary birthday cakes that are kind of a tradition in my sister’s house, and in the evening we went to the movies to see Over the hedge. My significant other joined us later that week since he had been in Vancouver for business on the day.

New York, New York

In 2007, the husband at least started his birthday at a kind of exotic location, namely on board of a Lufhansa flight from Toronto to Frankfurt coming back from a business trip. The rest of the day was pretty tame with a celebratory dinner in Mainz. Since it was my turn to turn 40 that year I fulfilled a long-time dream and we went to New York to celebrate my birthday in the city that never sleeps. And of course we stopped by at Tiffany’s – although sadly they were out of telephone dialers that day.

Roses in BCN

Does it count that in 2008 sweetie celebrated his birthday in Barcelona, Spain, although we were living there at the time? Yeah, I guess so … it was our first year there and his first Sant Jordi, the day when - in celebration of the city’s patron saint – every woman receives a rose and every man a book. I woke up in Salamanca, Spain, on my birthday that year since hubby had a week of language tutoring there and I had accompanied him. After breakfast and presents we started our drive back to Barcelona stopping in Avila and Valle de los Caidos on the way for some sightseeing and in Sigüenza for a great birthday dinner and the night.

Medieval York

In 2009, the husband was in for a surprise trip down memory lane. After the obligatory cake in the morning I took him to the airport and we went to York, GB where we had lived for six months in 96. We drank tea at Bettys Tea Room and ate a great curry at his old time favorite The Viceroy of India.

If the rule applies we both can score a point for 2011, having spent our birthdays in Buenos Aires, our fairly brand new home at the time. Although I want some brownie points because the husband left me alone and went in a business trip so that I celebrated the day all by myself with my Girlie Day.

Pipa Beach

His birthday bash in 2012 is hard to beat. We went to Brazil that year, spending 5 days in a jungle lodge, followed by a week in a beautiful hotel up north in Pipa, Rio Grande do Norte. So on his birthday he woke up to the sound of waves, and we spent the day doing nothing much, enjoying the sun and the beach, drinking a Capirinha or two on the terrace and enjoying a great sea food dinner in the evening.

So who wins?