I realized that my passport is screaming to be stamped but that doesn't mean I can't still dream of places to go. These days many places are being made available virtually. In my first trip back to Italy in 2015 I took an amazing cooking class at Florencetown. It was always a dream of mine to learn to cook in Italy. I still have dreams of spending an extended time in a villa in Italy advancing my culinary skills under the careful direction of an amazing chef while learning how to speak Italian. While I cannot realize that dream today I can take some Italian cooking classes online from the very same company that first taught me how to make homemade pasta in 2015. They are now offering virtual cooking classes straight from Florence. So check one thing off your bucket list while you are at home doing your part to kick Corona Virus Ass. Here is the link:
https://www.florencetown.com/627-live-online-cooking-classes-from-home.html
I will try to post more virtual experiences so you can continue living your best travel adventures from the comfort of your home.
So don't stop dreaming. Don't stop planning. Keep making your bucket list. I will be here to help you realize your dream when it's time to start stamping your passport again. I don't know about you but I am like a child in a candy store trying to decide where my first trip will be. Will it be to Italy? Will it be to the beaches of Greece or Mexico? Will it be back to Rwanda to visit my friends there to give them a hug and say hi to the mountain Gorillas? Will it be to Zimbabwe and give my friends there a hug and be once again humbled by the wildlife and beauty of Africa? Will it be to Scotland? Will it be back to my favorite place of Ireland? Or will I go somewhere entirely new? I am not quite sure....I just know that when the time comes that they say I can start stamping my passport again I will be first in line.
I don't know about the rest of you but I can't turn on the news anymore. I can't read the news anymore. It is too much. I get too anxious. They don't seem to have the answers. I can tell you as a professional in the travel industry that I do get emails and updates every morning and every evening about what plans for the resorts and countries and travel industry as a whole. I check in with my connections and partners in other countries to get updates about whether it is safe to travel. So travel agents will be invaluable as we navigate the new normal coming out of the shut down. Travel agents will have the most up to date information on where to go and how to get there. They will have the most up to date information on insurance policies in light of the COVID pandemic. They will have the most up to date information on the best time to plan your next vacation. Travel agents will be able to give you information that an online booking site will not. I can give you all of that without turning on the news. So please remember us when it is time to stamp your passport.
I know this time at home is hard. I have good moments and I have bad moments. I don’t know if I am always doing this stay at home with class or grace. I am trying to take joy in little things, to count the blessings I used to take for granted, to be kind to myself and those around me because this is hard, to find a new normal and create a new structure, find lessons in things, to figure out a way to grow, and to take my victories where I can find them no matter how small. This evening I went for a run. I wore my shirt that says “Though she is little she is but fierce”. My mind always races on my runs. That probably doesn’t surprise a lot of you. But I was thinking back to 2 years ago when I was getting ready for the Dublin 1/2 marathon. I was in a bad place and my head was messing with my running or vice versa. I couldn’t even run a mile without walking. I could barely break a 13 minute pace. That half marathon was almost impossible to finish. Today I ran a 9:53 mile. Even after a particularly brutal 24 hours I was able to set that aside and run a personal best. For my small 5 foot frame who is not a runner, I run, but my body is not a runners body, I was able to be fierce tonight. I don’t think I have run that fast since I was 15. So even though this is a hard time I am in a better place mentally and physically. So that was a victory for me today. What is your victory? You need to cherish those victories. Celebrate those victories. Be kind to yourself even if you are having a bad moment. This will pass. I know it will pass. That time 2 years ago when my head was messing with my running passed. This will as well. I always finish my runs with one of two songs
I Lived by One Republic because these words lift me up:
I, I did it all
I, I did it all
I owned every second that this world could give
I saw so many places, the things that I did
Yeah with every broken bone
I swear I lived
or I AM HERE by Pink. (I left some lyrics out)
I open up my heart You can love me or not Let it all come right in I wanna make some mistakes, I wanna sleep in the mud I wanna swim in the flood, I like whiskey on ice, I like sun in my eyes I wanna burn it all down, so let's start a fire I wanna be lost, so lost that I'm found
I am here, I am here I've already seen the bottom, so there's nothing to fear I know that I'll be ready when the devil is near
I am here, I am here All of this wrong, but I'm still right here I don't have the answers, but the questions is clear
I decided to put some pictures of one of my heroes...my dad. He has been running since before I was born. One of our family activities was running races. No, that was not always a fun family activity. We ran the Governor's run, the Vail run, the running of the Green, the turkey trot, the cherry creek sneak, the love run, the Bolder Boulder, you name it we ran it. Somewhere along the way I revolted and quit running. My dad used to run next to me and there were always dadisms....let the hill do the work for you...I am sure my sister could come up with more. My family was a running family. Both my parents have run marathons. My brother and sister have run marathons. My mom has qualified and run the Boston marathon over the age of 40. So I never wanted to go back into running because it intimidated me. I finally gave in and began running again. I have not run marathons. I have run half a dozen half marathons. My dad has run every Bolder Boulder since it began. He hasn't let his Parkinson's stop him and some of my most cherished memories are the times my dad has been by my side. I know that I am not able to see him during these stay at home orders and that has been hard for him and for us. I also know that he has been struggling to find some victories in this time. So maybe take today and hug the ones you are able to and count that as your victory today. Cherish the slow down as time with the ones you love. So who is your hero? Where will the two of you go? Who will you take with you on your next trip?
Ciao for now......
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