Since I won't travel this month and next, I will have a few local things to write about and will even do a few re-posts until the end of February. That's because I'll undergo my second hip replacement surgery in two weeks. My recuperation wasn't too bad and didn't last too long, but it's another time for me to slow down, write articles and put together some videos. I'll be eager to travel again starting in March.
For now, I have chosen the photos that mean the most to me over the past twelve months. I'm not writing much about them and simply providing the links from my corresponding blog post. I hope you enjoy them as much as I loved writing and documenting them.
January: L.A. Wildfires
A year ago, I flew out with NLS to Los Angeles to see her off for the second semester of her study abroad program in Tokyo. I was also going to write about a few places in L.A. We were astonished to see this large plume of smoke coming from the ocean, which turned out to be the wildfires that caused so much destruction in Pacific Palisades and Altadena.
February: royal Caribbean cruise
This was the first time RAS and I didn't really enjoy being on a cruise. Harmony of the Seas turned out to be a disappointment, mostly because the food was substandard, the ship was very busy, and we only had two port stops on a seven-day itinerary. But we enjoyed Roatan, which we had never been to before, where we took a kayak and snorkel tour.
March: Tuscany and the cinque Terre
I debated whether to include Japan or Italy in for this month, because I went to both places within five days of the other. But since I stayed only three days in Japan and took fewer photos, I didn't have much to show for it (although there's one up above). On the other hand, I was in Italy for nine days and saw so much more, including this picture of Vernazza in the Cinque Terre.
April: Denver
I didn't travel at all during this month, which was just as well because I was going somewhere over the next six months. So, I included the most significant photo I had for April, which was the No Kings protest on the 19th at the State Capitol. No, I'm trying not to be political here, but I did think this was a significant story, especially for this year.
May: Rocky Mountaineer
This was a great way to travel to Salt Lake City for the annual ASTA Convention. I was lucky to go on a pre-FAM trip on the Rocky Mountaineer train from Denver to Moab, with an overnight stop in Glenwood Springs. Now called Canyon Spirit, they offer itineraries that go to Salt Lake. All the while, guests travel in comfort and luxury with fantastic food and unlimited drinks.
JUne: Palm Springs
My June travel involved going to the NATJA Conference at Palm Springs and a post-trip to Huntington Beach. I enjoyed all of it, but the most unique experience was going to the Spa at Sec-He and soaking in the private mineral pools and enjoying some of the facilities. I could have stayed there longer or could have come back for more.
July: Pacific Northwest
RAS, his friend and I spent a few days in Seattle, Portland and the Oregon Coast. While I've been to the two cities multiple times, we visited three places I had never been to before - the coast from Astoria to Tillamook, the Willamette Valley and Olympic National Park. I hope to return here someday and spend more time than we actually did.
August: San Antonio and Austin
Maybe going to Texas in August isn't such a great idea, due to the oppressive heat that's the normal climate for that time of year. So, it's great to have wonderful things to see and do, like the Mission San Jose, as well as superb places to eat. I did in both San Antonio and Austin, where I took a fun food tour.
September: carnival cruise
As part of a seminar at sea with Carnival, I went to two ports I hadn't been to before: Grand Turk in Turks and Caicos and Puerto Plata in the Dominican Republic. I enjoyed both places, as well as Nassau, Bahamas, where I took a local food tour. But Carnival Celebration is such a massive ship, I don't think I'll be going on those kinds of cruises any time soon.
October: Louisiana and the tri-valley
I included two places for this month, as I didn't go anywhere in the next two. Both the River Parishes and Lafayette were fascinating because they are both so different from anywhere in the country. I probably had more Cajun food than I ever had in our one week there. In the Tri-Valley of Northern California, I tried some amazing wines, even more incredible food and enjoyed unique activities like cow cuddling and the Blackhawk Museum.
November and December
Like I said before, I didn't travel anywhere these two months, so I'm sharing one of the many photos we have of our black cat, Genji. It's just a fun way to conclude this post.
