At the bottom of the page click on the YouTube link to see the photos.
After 47 days and roughly 10,000 meals, Dickie and I have returned to "Our Little House in the Prairie". We are tired, jet-lagged, with three suitcases stuffed with laundry and bits and pieces picked up here and there, and hearts overflowing with wonderful memories of our time in Europe. I’m both sad to have left such amazing places and people behind, but ecstatic to know that I’m back with friends in the familiar land I call home.
How do I hold on to those magical feelings? How do I bring that same attitude of peace and relaxation into our daily lives in Nevada-Land? It was so easy to just live in the moment, senses heightened to the sound of the waves crashing……..completely giving in to the feeling of pure aliveness and presence.
In Amsterdam the X-Rays and metal detectors were turned up so high that the zippers of my backpack set it off. Once I was zapped by the powerful X-ray machine, a scowling agent sternly told me to walk over to the mini-hallway and wait there. After a few minutes another scowling agent told me to walk over to the chair and sit down. Then she spent 10 minutes or so sweeping me with a metal-detecting baton and then proceeded to pat me down. The same happened in Washington. Seriously, do I really look like a radical assassin?
Once I calmed down I remembered that this trip was more than god-awful metal detectors; it was a trip all about people and landmarks. I thought of the more than a thousand miles we cruised along the Norwegian coast, the tens of thousands of islands that crisscrossed the mountainous fjords winding inner passages. What’s more, nearly a third of this magnificent terrain lies above the Arctic Circle, in a part of the world where the sun rises in May or early June and does not set again in July or early August. Alas, few travelers visit here during wintertime when there's total darkness for 2 months and the temperatures are resting below zero F - not exactly a resort-type destination for sane vacationers.
As much as I gripe and moan every time I have to fly – the time zone disorientation, sleep deprivation, and congealed airline food, I still have a healthy list of reasons to return to Europe, anytime of year.
This trip is now a memory I will cherish forever. And should it fade away a quick click on this blog will bring back the places, the experiences and the people I met along the way. Although it has been proven quite difficult to keep up the blog on a cruise ship (internet is very spotty), it is preserved for an eternity. No catastrophe can damage it and I can revisit all my old blogs whenever I need a little boost of adrenaline. That's why I have one.
The YouTube is a trip down memory lane. Enjoy!
Click on the above YouTube link to see the pictures.