It happened quite by accident. I was planning our family’s first vacation abroad. It was a special trip for the four of us – one week in London, one week in Paris, a birthday celebration and my first time back in London since studying there in college. With guide books and maps laid out on the … Read More
“Extroverts have more fun.” ~Rick Steves Travel writer Rick Steves tucks a page of wisdom in the introduction section of his guide books. He calls it his “Back Door Travel Philosophy,” his thoughts on the value of travel and how it impacts our lives. But it’s paragraph five that I think is the real gem: … Read More
We bought our first video camera in 1989 when our son was born. It was one of those large Sony Camcorders that required a steady hand, and it was magical. From family milestones to treasured vacations, our video camera served us well. We graduated to smaller versions over the years, but all of those cameras … Read More
“I see skies of blue and clouds of white, The bright blessed day, the dark sacred night. And I think to myself What a wonderful world.” ~Louis Armstrong, What A Wonderful World I took my first cruise in the summer of 1994. It was a short, three-night affair on the Viking Serenade, a long-ago ship … Read More
Souvenir: from the French, “to remember.” Their memories dance across our Christmas tree, sparkling in the glow of the white lights. Like voices from Christmases Past, they stare out from the branches as if to say, “You remember when you found me, don’t you? It was at that…” I quickly cut them off, because of course … Read More
It was early September 1974 when my college friend Jan and I arrived in London for our semester study abroad program. It was my first trip beyond the United States – with the exception of Canada, but growing up in Minnesota, I never counted Canada as “foreign” – and my first flight across the Atlantic. We … Read More