Wrap up
A Grand Tour it certainly was.
As I am enjoying Home Sweet Home, I am, of course, looking back.
I tell The Mister that the #1 reason that our trip was so wonderful is that nothing went wrong. Nothing. So much of a vacation is out of your control ... and the longer the vacation, the more possibilities for things going wrong. We were wonderfully lucky and we know it and appreciate it.
None of the don't-even-think-about-it things happened, events that would have ended our trip early.
Not even one difficult-to-deal-with thing happened, such bed bugs in a place we were staying or a chipped tooth or lost luggage or a fender bender or an illness.
I got 19 chigger bites in Bruges and, honest, that is the worst thing that happened to either of us traveling 10 countries for 3 months. Sure, I will brag that we planned well but it was mostly dumb luck that enabled the Grand Tour to unfold as we planned ... and sweep us off our feet.
We even had good weather -- and nothing is more luck-driven than weather. We were in England for three weeks and it rained once, for about an hour. Today in Bruges, Belgium, it's 95 degrees but it was in the 70s the entire two weeks we were there.
More looking back ...
A phrase in a novel I was reading on the trip referred to "the pleasures that Europe alone can provide" and I thought, "Isn't that the truth!" I love taking advantage of the oldness of Europe ... the cultures of Europe ... the people and places of the countries we visited. I'm nuts about the U.S. but there's something about traveling Europe.
In writing about beautiful old places and structures, author Susan Branch writes, "Thank you a thousand times for not tearing it down to build something new." I thought of those words so often as I view something from 1612 or 775 -- or BC things even. I am grateful to every person who never swung the wrecking ball, figuratively or literally.
More looking back ...
I won't write about The Mister here 'cause I'll get too mushy. I think you know by the posts of the last 85 days exactly what this dear, incredible man means to me.
As I have for many decades, I can truthfully sing, "Now I've had the time of my life, and I owe it all to you ..."
Enough said.
More looking back ...
We learned so much about other countries and other people - and I learned something about myself and here it is:
We were having a blast on our Segway trip around Bruges. Our little group was 5 people: our leader, the two of us, and a father and son, slowly tooling around the cobblestone streets in a single file line. Most people stepped aside for our little group to go by ... just as we all do for tours, horse carriages, etc.
As we went through one archway, a man about 80 years old standing to our right apparently didn't like us coming through, even though I don't believe he even had to step out of the way. "Jesus!" he proclaimed nastily. (A swearing I particularly hate.) Just blink of an eye later, a little boy to the left of us looked up to see our group go by and he said, "Wowwwww!"
I told Earl later that as I approach old age, I want to be the one that says, "Wow!" I don't want to be the curmudgeon who gets irritated at something new, something different. I don't know if I'm explaining this right but this incident, I hope, has a lasting impact on me and it has nothing to do with travel.
One more: looking back ...
Looking back, I thank all of you for keeping me from getting homesick by staying connected to me. Your enthusiasm for this crazy trip truly made it even more fun. Letting me share our trip on this blog was a joy and so much fun -- and prevented me from feeling like I drifted away from you. I had no idea it would serve that purpose -- but it did.
And you have been so kind in your praise of the blog! I have been a writer my entire career... but never written for family and friends. Your compliments about my writing have meant the world to me, and I thank you from the bottom of my heart. Earl said I should continue my blog by writing about pretend trips and use internet photos! Perhaps I could write from my Ohio home: "As we climbed the Great Wall, I said to The Mister ..."
Nah, I don't think it will work.
What's ahead?
My sister Melissa said she wonders what we will do out of the "bubble of the Grand Tour." All I can say is so far, so good. We have a good life.
What's ahead in travel? Who knows. But Wednesday as we were walking through the Amsterdam airport to board an 8.5 hour flight, I stopped dead in my tracks when I saw this sign (below) and I said to Earl, "That's it! That's the last photo of our Grand Tour!"
And I share that last photo with you ... as I write these words for the last time: thanks for reading my blog!
Jane
As I am enjoying Home Sweet Home, I am, of course, looking back.
I tell The Mister that the #1 reason that our trip was so wonderful is that nothing went wrong. Nothing. So much of a vacation is out of your control ... and the longer the vacation, the more possibilities for things going wrong. We were wonderfully lucky and we know it and appreciate it.
Not even one difficult-to-deal-with thing happened, such bed bugs in a place we were staying or a chipped tooth or lost luggage or a fender bender or an illness.
I got 19 chigger bites in Bruges and, honest, that is the worst thing that happened to either of us traveling 10 countries for 3 months. Sure, I will brag that we planned well but it was mostly dumb luck that enabled the Grand Tour to unfold as we planned ... and sweep us off our feet.
We even had good weather -- and nothing is more luck-driven than weather. We were in England for three weeks and it rained once, for about an hour. Today in Bruges, Belgium, it's 95 degrees but it was in the 70s the entire two weeks we were there.
More looking back ...
A phrase in a novel I was reading on the trip referred to "the pleasures that Europe alone can provide" and I thought, "Isn't that the truth!" I love taking advantage of the oldness of Europe ... the cultures of Europe ... the people and places of the countries we visited. I'm nuts about the U.S. but there's something about traveling Europe.
In writing about beautiful old places and structures, author Susan Branch writes, "Thank you a thousand times for not tearing it down to build something new." I thought of those words so often as I view something from 1612 or 775 -- or BC things even. I am grateful to every person who never swung the wrecking ball, figuratively or literally.
More looking back ...
I won't write about The Mister here 'cause I'll get too mushy. I think you know by the posts of the last 85 days exactly what this dear, incredible man means to me.
As I have for many decades, I can truthfully sing, "Now I've had the time of my life, and I owe it all to you ..."
Enough said.
More looking back ...
We learned so much about other countries and other people - and I learned something about myself and here it is:
We were having a blast on our Segway trip around Bruges. Our little group was 5 people: our leader, the two of us, and a father and son, slowly tooling around the cobblestone streets in a single file line. Most people stepped aside for our little group to go by ... just as we all do for tours, horse carriages, etc.
As we went through one archway, a man about 80 years old standing to our right apparently didn't like us coming through, even though I don't believe he even had to step out of the way. "Jesus!" he proclaimed nastily. (A swearing I particularly hate.) Just blink of an eye later, a little boy to the left of us looked up to see our group go by and he said, "Wowwwww!"
I told Earl later that as I approach old age, I want to be the one that says, "Wow!" I don't want to be the curmudgeon who gets irritated at something new, something different. I don't know if I'm explaining this right but this incident, I hope, has a lasting impact on me and it has nothing to do with travel.
One more: looking back ...
Looking back, I thank all of you for keeping me from getting homesick by staying connected to me. Your enthusiasm for this crazy trip truly made it even more fun. Letting me share our trip on this blog was a joy and so much fun -- and prevented me from feeling like I drifted away from you. I had no idea it would serve that purpose -- but it did.
And you have been so kind in your praise of the blog! I have been a writer my entire career... but never written for family and friends. Your compliments about my writing have meant the world to me, and I thank you from the bottom of my heart. Earl said I should continue my blog by writing about pretend trips and use internet photos! Perhaps I could write from my Ohio home: "As we climbed the Great Wall, I said to The Mister ..."
Nah, I don't think it will work.
What's ahead?
My sister Melissa said she wonders what we will do out of the "bubble of the Grand Tour." All I can say is so far, so good. We have a good life.
What's ahead in travel? Who knows. But Wednesday as we were walking through the Amsterdam airport to board an 8.5 hour flight, I stopped dead in my tracks when I saw this sign (below) and I said to Earl, "That's it! That's the last photo of our Grand Tour!"
And I share that last photo with you ... as I write these words for the last time: thanks for reading my blog!
Jane
Welcome back friends!
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