This is the end....(or maybe the beginning)

It is the last day of 2010 and my Facebook shows me that everyone is taking the opportunity to blog their thoughts on the year. Mine is a travel blog, intertwined with my own little life as travel often is. This year has been full of new places and old places, new faces and old faces, new ideas and old habits. And I expect more and more in 2011.

Here are some of my life and travel thoughts from 2010:

-Revisit places you have been before. There is always something you have left undone, there is always a new exhibition, there is always a little cafe waiting for you. A city, town, country, a place is a growing and living and breathing creature that will always surprise you... no matter how well you think you know it.

-Go to a place of worship. You don't have to be spiritual or a Christian or a Hindu or a Muslim or any other persuasion to enjoy the calming affect of a holy place. Stepping into a local cathedral or mosque or temple will give you insight into the soul of the nation you are visiting. People who gather in these places are often welcoming and open, and a wonderful source of knowledge about the very place you want to get to know.

This year we met at our church a lovely retired couple from Maine who are in Prague for four months visiting relatives. We've been able to give them advice on trains, buses, places to stay and adventures to have while in the Czech Republic. And in exchange we've been able to see "our home" through their eyes...And if we are ever in Maine, we have friends who have offered to host us in their cabin on a lake.

-Pay more sometimes. I remember years ago my great travel friend Jamie advised, "Sometimes you have to decide if you have more money than time, or more time than money." Wise words for travel. Now that Prague has a direct flight to JFK, I'm more than happy to shell out an extra $75 if it cuts five or six hours off my travel time.

-You don't have to go far to have big experiences. Some of our greatest discoveries were within an hour drive from Prague, for example: Soos Nature Reserve.

-Travel for someone else. Now, this one is a challenge and requires planning and research but was by far the most rewarding of our adventures this year.

After being introduced to my grandmother's friend Virgil, a World War II veteran who had been in Czechoslovakia during his service, we decided to find out exactly where he had been and go to those small Czech towns and villages, take photos and make a book for him. We hand-delivered the book at Thanksgiving. Virgil was surprised and at first wasn't sure he'd recognize anything, it had been 65 years! But after leafing through the book He did remember a bridge and a street, a building and a square. He was pleased to see how bright and colorful the towns are and that the people are happy.

SO, what are you waiting for? Put on your travel boots and get yourself out on an adventure!

Giving Thanks

December is upon us, the snow falls thick and my favorite holiday is past. Yes, past. Most people would say their favorite holiday is Christmas. Although, I can understand that its promises of peace and joy are alluring, it is Thanksgiving that really holds my heart strings. This is because Thanksgiving really is peaceful. There is no crazy shopping and demand to buy gifts that will be forgotten. There is only food and family and friends and football. People of all creeds and colors and nations can celebrate. Thanksgiving unites.

So to avoid the chaos of the Christmas season that left me with a headache, sniffles and laryngitis last year, I decided to go back to Ohio for Thanksgiving this year. It was my first Thanksgiving in the US since I moved to Europe. I made the right choice. The days were full of meeting friends and hanging out with family but there was none of the hustle and hurry I associate with Christmas. My loved ones were relaxed, not sneaking glances at their watches. I think Thanksgiving is my home holiday of choice from now on.

Highlights:

-H and I stayed in a hotel with a swimming pool so my little brother (7 years old) and sisters (6 and 4 years old) could come hang out and swim. We had a blast! We ordered pizza and ate it by the pool. We gave them chips, we gave them chocolates, we sent them home to Mom.

-In the spring I wrote about a project H and I made for a WW2 veteran, who is a friend of my Grandma. We were able to deliver the book in person of the photos we took documenting Virgil's travels through the newly liberated Czechoslovakia in 1945. He was gracious enough to spend an afternoon telling us stories about his life. It was an honor.

-I grew up just a drive from Amish Country, but until I started dragging H around this little piece of history I don't know that I had really seen it. We spent a morning exploring towns and villages with names like Millersburg, Sugar Creek and Berlin. My favorite memory was, in a moment of modern panic at not being able to get a signal for my cell (mobile) phone, I asked an Amish check-out girl in a farmers' market where the nearest pay phone would be. She went to ask another clerk and came back to direct me about 8 miles down the road to the next village!

-Holding hands, praying and giving thanks around the table at my Grandma's house on Thanksgiving day.

-Dinner with my best friend and her husband before going to see the Columbus Blue Jackets hockey game.

-All the dinners and lunches and coffees and teas that filled our days with friends and family and happiness.