Welcome to My Blog

I am so glad you have stopped in for a visit today! I’d like to take this opportunity to tell you a little more about myself and why I am writing this travel blog, Cruises, Tours and Beyond.

The U.S. Navy

My father was a career sailor. He would bring home tales of his travels to far-away places and I began to dream of making my own visits to those mysterious lands.

After college I, too, joined the U.S. Navy. My first duty station was a small village in Greece. Those two years were quite the experience. Living in a completely different culture with a language I could not understand, an alphabet that made my head swim and food that this picky eater never even heard of was fabulous; I was hooked!

Art (my husband) and I met while I was stationed in Greece. He was a Naval Reservist and came to my base for his two weeks of active duty. It was a whirlwind romance, and four months later we were married. I still had a little over a year left on my assignment in Greece, but we made the best of it. He traveled to Greece a couple of times, and we also met up in London for a quick vacation. We started our romance traveling and we continue to travel today.

Sharing Our Travels

Back in the 80’s one of my husband’s favorite things to do after a trip was to take his slides and projector back home to show his parents and brothers where we had been and what we did. And believe it or not, they enjoyed the slide shows!

I don’t know if we wore them down, or they just wanted revenge by making us look at their travel photos, but the rest of the family began to travel as well. In fact, these days, we often travel together.

My Travel Career

I have had numerous careers over the years, but by far the most fun was owning and operating a travel agency. I had that pleasure for nearly 20 years. The hardest decision I ever made was to close the agency. There were several factors that lead to the closing, but in retrospect it was the right decision.

Owning the travel agency allowed me to open my eyes to some other forms of travel. Cruises have always been a favorite mode of travel, but since I was selling other products I felt I should experience them as well. I went on escorted tours and found out that they were much different than I had thought. They turned out to be a great way to really explore those areas not accessible by cruises.

Thirty plus years later, Art and I continue to travel. Yes, we still cruise and take escorted tours, but we are not opposed to pulling out maps and travel guides and planning our own itinerary. We have even been known to combine modes of travel!

It Started with a Cruise

Art and I have been on a lot of cruises. I took my first cruise, a three-night cruise to the Bahama’s in 1978, and I have been cruising ever since. It’s such an easy and relaxing way to travel.

Many of the cruise ships I have sailed on are no longer in service. Some have been retired, scrapped, or transformed into other ships. Ever wonder what happened to that cruise ship you sailed on back in the day? Here’s a website where you can learn all about old and currently sailing ships.

Now that we are semi-retired, our cruises are getting longer. Our last cruise was 28 days, and the next one we have on the books is 57 days. Is an around the world cruise on the horizon? I’m not sure, maybe, if I can find the time and the money!

What Travel Means to Me

Traveling allows me the opportunity to experience other cultures. It helps me to be more understanding of people of various races and religions. I absolutely realize that the American way of life is not the only way, it just happens to be the place I was born and raised; it’s familiar. I am grateful for what I have every time I return home.

Traveling has made history come to life. I truly wish I had been able to travel when I was younger. I’m sure I would have done a lot better in my western civilization, world history and geography classes. Oh well, at least I get it now.

I am truly blessed and have been able to travel to a lot of places. So often people say to me “You have been everywhere”, but there are many, many places I have yet to explore. My plan is to travel for as long as I am able.

My Goal

I won’t subject you to the darkened room with the whir-click-click of the slide projector. But, I do hope my images and stories inspire you to pack your bags and get out there and experience the world for yourself.

Every great adventure starts as a dream. Start dreaming! 

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