52

Today is my 52nd birthday. If this isn't the most bizarre year I've spent on this planet, I'm not sure I want to know what's coming in the future. Although let's face it, this next year may be even stranger. I'm buckled in pretty tight for the next seven months or so at least.

The plan for year seven of this blog was pretty modest. Sometimes it happens that way. Our travel whims generally have about the same amount of travel in each calendar year but the distribution isn't necessarily spread out evenly between birthdays for me. That means some years between name days have more travel than other years. Year seven happened to be a light year by design. But not as light as it turned out to be.

We planned to complete four trips over the past year. I know. I know. That sounds like a lot. But only one of those four was planned to be a week in length. The other three were long weekends, either four days or five days away from home. A week plus in Ireland? Done. Lots of rain, but done. Long weekend in The Bahamas? Also done. Pirates and Goombay Smashes and beach time and rum cakes! Awesome! But the other two trips, to Costa Rica's Tortuguero National Park in March and northwest New Mexico in May, never happened. Cancelled! Victims of this global pandemic that is still very much out of control.

So understandably, this is not the birthday post I thought I'd be writing. If everything went according to plan (and we've already established that is very definitely not the case at all this year), not only would I have had time in Costa Rica and New Mexico under my belt, but I'd also be hoisting a beer in the cover photo of this post somewhere in central California after hiking among enormous trees in Kings Canyon National Park this very day. But that trip (planned for this entire week) didn't happen either.

But I am on the road. I'm out in Utah (of all places) on a plan B scenario that's worked out about as well as I could have hoped. It's incredible country out here and I'm excited to explore this place for the next few days before heading home. Given all that's happened over the past four months, I'm pretty excited about getting away for a week to some place this amazing.

Does all that mean year seven was a waste? Absolutely not!! Sure we lost a couple of long weekends in Costa Rica and New Mexico (we'll get there or back there one day) but we snorkeled and explored strange rock formations and played with swords and dug up some skeletons from the past that my native country tried to bury. Along the way we walked a lot and learned and found good food and great drinks, sometimes with music. We also got to travel with friends (or friend) which I love to do. I appreciate the fact that our friend Bryan came with us to Ireland. He definitely made that trip better for me. I love the perspective that other people bring to traveling. Hope we can do it again soon.

All that's not too shabby I'm thinking.

At Giant's Causeway, Northern Ireland. Cold, wet, windy but amazing just the same.

I've traditionally used my birthday post to write about how I'm doing on the goals I've committed to achieving and what my plans for the next year are. Let's not let a global pandemic affect that reckoning, shall we?

Year six of this blog saw me knocking off three of my five goals for my second five year period of exploring the world. Three of five! In one year!! Pretty darned good if I do say so myself. Continent number six? Check! Cologne? Check! Machu Picchu? Check!

How did I follow that success up this past year? Well...by accomplishing absolutely nothing on my list. Seriously. And it was deliberate. Really. Why rush things? I have three more years after this one and the only two outstanding promises I've made to myself is to visit the balance of the 50 states that I haven't set foot in (just four left, if you must know) and to make it to Angkor Wat in Cambodia. Although honestly...this virus out there makes me want to rush a bit more. It's amazing how quickly something that you love so much can be taken from you. I mean that on many different levels.

So what's next? What does year eight hold? Honestly...I have no clue whatsoever. Yes, we have two trips planned already but there are absolutely no guarantees we are going on those or anywhere for the rest of this year and maybe beyond that. I think for the foreseeable future we are going to just remain flexible in our travel plans and open to any possibilities that present themselves. Particularly with the number of destinations that appear to be off limits to Americans considering we lead the entire planet in deaths from this pandemic. So proud!

I've read a lot about the future of travel in the last four months or so. Most of what I have read has suggested more planning is the way to go. Reservations for flights, restaurants and attractions are going to be more important than ever. We can't plan more. We regularly commit to travel plans a year or sometimes more ahead of time. I think for us the answer may actually be to commit later than we usually do and keep all our options open. Sounds counterintuitive but for us over-planners that might be the way to go. I will commit to providing a progress report a year from now.

No matter how it happens, it won't matter at all if we don't take care of ourselves. Throughout this duration of this pandemic, we are fortunate to have not known anyone to be seriously ill with this virus that's out there and I hope we can continue to be so lucky. I know there are so many who are not in the situation we are in. We'll keep pushing the envelope in a very very safe way to travel and explore where we can. Stay safe everyone. Happy birthday to me!

Our first view of New Providence island in The Bahamas. Pretty much paradise.