A Life of Travel: My Vacation is Over and I'm Ready for 2022 (Are you?)

1. My 2 week cruise vacation ended yesterday. Breaking from the norm, I took a Caribbean cruise to finish off the year. While we missed 4 ports of call due to Covid, spending such a period of time without opening my laptop was ideal. Instead, my time was spent staring out at the Caribbean Sea, focusing on reading and having no stress. Beneficial is an understatement. The glasses of Prosecco and sunset jacuzzi sessions weren't too bad either and I'm certainly feeling refreshed entering 2022!
    
2. Island experiences. During this vacation, we visited: St. Thomas (highlight: Magen's Bay, one of the most impressive beaches in the Caribbean), Antigua (see below), Barbados (highlight: beach-hopping and turtle-spotting at the picturesque Dover and Rockley Beaches) and St. Lucia (highlight: spending a full day visiting villages, rainforests, thermal springs, hiking trails, local eateries and more with Morgan, the owner of Wow Tours, the perfect local guide for the most gorgeous island in the Caribbean).
    
3. Antigua and Barbuda. While I'd already visited the other islands, it was my first time in Antigua and Barbuda. It became the 126th country I've visited. After a full private tour around the island, we finished the day at beautiful Dickenson Bay for a dip in the water, walk on the white sand and a moment of gratitude that I was even able to add a new country during these times.
    
4. Betty White died. Damn. Like most, I was a huge fan. And I actually met her once when I was delivering Christmas gifts for a well-known gourmet store in Los Angeles, many, many years ago. (It was during a brief attempt to live a 'normal' life.) Anyway, every gift I delivered was addressed to a Mr Johnson or a Mrs Smith and was sent from some film or television studio. Only when I would get to the door of the house (or massive gate) would I learn which celebrity I was actually delivering to. Sure enough, one time the door opened and Mrs Smith turned out to be Betty White! She was super nice and made some small talk as she invited me in to the entrance way of her home so that the several small dogs running around wouldn't run outside. I handed her the package, she gave me a big box of chocolate and a tip and off I went, with a bigger smile on my face than you might imagine.
    
5. Value and time. Even though I know that I should spend more time on things that bring greater value and joy to my life and less time on things that don't, like most people, I struggle to make it happen. Is it the required effort that stops us? Or an addiction to what is easy? The goal this year is to find out, and fix it.
    
6. 2022 things to do. It's only 4 days into the new year but I've already added singing lessons and visiting Senegal to my list of things to accomplish in 2022.

all things travel

Strange Borders
Here's a video that looks at 3 of the strangest borders on the planet and how it affects the people who live near them.

Great Hiking Destinations
With the creation of interesting new hiking routes, it appears the Middle East and Taiwan could be two of the hottest hiking destinations in the coming years.

Literal Street Art
In the French city of Lyon, a local artist repairs cracked sidewalks and walls with colorful mosaics. Finding all of them would be a cool activity.

Singaporean Food
Singapore is my favorite food destination on the planet, especially with all of the street food markets. And now that brilliant street food culture is protected by UNESCO.

The Northern Lights
Here's the best images of the Northern Lights from 2021. Prepare yourself for pure magic.

The Flower Men
One traveler went to Saudi Arabia to hang out with the 'flower men', descendants of certain tribes that wear colorful flowers on their heads. His photo essay and description of his experience is worth checking out.

Cardamom Mountains
One of the great remaining rainforests of Southeast Asia, the Cardamom Mountains is still a relatively unknown destination. It's also a rainforest under threat but a positive ecotourism approach that focuses on the natural beauty of the region could help turn things around.