My flight home from Hong Kong yesterday on Cathay Pacific was one of the most pleasant flights I have had in a longtime. My business class pod cozy and service fantastic! In fact I did what I seldom do on a flight, watched a movie I have long heard about, Fifty Dead Men Walking. It was a fine film directed by Kari Skogland, a true story about Marty McGartland, a 22-year old Irish fence Catholic who worked for the British Special Branch during the troubles.

It took me back to one of my first solo trips, back to N Ireland, the lines were still drawn and my naivety was packed into a rental car and driven to Belfast. I remember the helicopters and Brit troops patrolling. I spent one night in a pub known for IRA activity and the next in a Loyalist bastion. I returned last year and was so happy to see the change in Belfast, it gives me hope.