2017 Year In Review

It is the end of another year.  Time flies when you are not looking... Let’s be honest and say that 2017 was an interesting year.  It was filled with marches, tweeting, volunteering.  It was a year of change.  But passions helped to keep me grounded and things in perspective.  In that regard, it was an amazing year.  It began on an epic cruise ship through so many islands now wiped out by hurricanes, and concludes with my first trip to Central America snorkeling on the second largest coral reef in the world.  I took time planning trips to exotic locales and quick getaways around DC.  And while I still did not get to my final state, I did, truly, see some breath-taking views.

 

 Water and weather played a huge role in my 2017.  So many trips involved islands, coastlines, oceans, seas, rivers, bays and straits.  I was able to drip my toes in cold and warm waters – in the Pacific NW and the Caribbean.  I explored areas on both coasts and was able to see marine mammals, birds, aquatic life of all kinds in various environments I got to see the 2 different kinds of rainforest in one year, tropical and temperate, in the Pacific NW and Belize.  We got to small towns and big cities on the water.  And then there was the rain…oh the rain!

 

 

 

Year End Summary

• States/Territories Visited: VA, MD, WV, DE, NJ, NY, TN, FL, NV, CA, WA

• Countries: USA, Belize, Mexico, Canada (technically)

• Key Cities: Orlando, San Jose, Philadelphia, Baltimore, Las Vegas, Anaheim, Redding, Seattle, Nashville, Cancun, Reno, Denver, Fort Lauderdale, Belize City, New York
• Art Towns – St Michaels, Maryland; Friday Harbor, Washington

 

• (new) Parks & Park Units: Lassen Volcanic National Park; Whiskeytown National Recreation Area; Point Reyes National Seashore; Stones River National Battlefield; San Juan Island NHP; George Washington's Birthplace NM; Fredrick Douglass NHS; Belmont-Paul Women's Equality NM; Tulum National Park, Mexico; Blue Hole National Park, Belize; Lake Tahoe State Park, NV; McArthur Burney Falls Memorial State Park, CA; Swallow Falls State Park, MD; Lime Kiln State Park, WA

• Concerts:  Cher, Neil Diamond, Dianne Krall, 3 Cellos, Rod Stewart & Cyndi Lauper, Chicago, Guns & Roses, New Kids On the Block, Paula Abdul, Boyz II Men, Megan Hilty, Richard Marx & Rick Springfield, Queen, Bruno Mars, Lady Gaga

• Theater: War Paint, Puffs, The King & I, Bandstand, A Bronx Tale, Groundhog Day, In Transit, The Little Mermaid, Mamma Mia, Fun Home, Cagney, Midwestern Gothic, Mean Girls

• Aquariums: Cancun Aquarium

• Ghost Tours: Winchester Mystery House, Nashville

• Iconic or Plain Ole’ Amazing Sites: Chichen Itza, Tulum, Xunantunich, MesoAmerican Reef, Harry Potter World, Disney, Nashville's Parthenon,  Red Rocks Amphitheatre, Sun Dial Bridge, 500,000 plus people marching in DC for the Women's March, THE ECLIPSE

 

 

John and I took a few road-trips this year.  We hopped in a car to a small Chesapeake Bay town to get away on the water, drove into Pennsylvania to rock out to Gun’s and Roses and learn the art of chocolate, headed into the mountains of VA and WV to see spring flowers and fall colors, and explored the panhandle of Maryland to spend time at Deep Creek Lake… but by far, our most epic road-trip of the year was the drive to Nashville for the solar eclipse.  With a year advanced planning, the trip showcased the adage, “best laid plans” …we had issues with solar glasses, solar filters, crowds so large the city could not contain everyone!  (Don’t even start me on the car trip back that took 2x the time it took to get there).  We toured as best we could, visiting the Country Music Hall of Fame, the Parthenon, the Hermitage and even took in a ghost tour, a paddle boat dinner cruise, toured the Jack Daniels factory, and closed our trip with a horse & buggy ride through the city.  For the big event, we headed to Stones River (away from the city crowds).  There we were treated to lectures by experts, first class equipment courtesy of NASA watchers and assistance when my camera filter turned out to be a fraud.  We got to experience totality in a natural setting – we heard the birds settle, the insects wake up and the temperature change in the field we spent the morning in.  I ended up with epic pictures of the event that landed me in the newspaper, and a desire to do it again come 2024!

 

This year brought me 2 new passport stamps – Mexico and Belize.  It was time to visit our neighbors to the south.  And it was time to revisit lessons I learned in junior high with Mr. Lingelbach ancient civilization classes on Mayans and Aztecs.  Between these 2 countries we toured 3 Mayan ruins (Chichen Itza, Tulum and Xunantunich) representing the height and downfall of the Mayan Empire.  We marveled at the construction, acoustics and design elements using astronomy; we learned our Mayan jobs (bee keeper for me, rock maker for John); we discussed Mayan society and rituals; saw elements of how the Aztecs moved into these cities; and we toured the entrance to hell, when we went cave tubing in Belize.  Mayan Ruins were not the sole reason to visit these countries – we took full advantage of the water and went snorkeling, boating and kayaking on the 2nd largest reef in the world with an amazing array of marine life, I don’t think I have seen that many fish in one spot outside of an aquarium.  Parrotfish munching coral, squirrelfish zipping around, groups of wrasse & Sargent Majors, Angelfish, pufferfish, rays, nurse shark, dolphins, tons of invasive lion fish, and more.  We ate exotic foods… Professor Clark’s college course on Culture & the Environment prepared me for insect cuisine – I popped that cricket appetizer right in and became the star of my Cancun River Cruise; as a result the whole group tried some! 

 

 

Every year I make sure to get out into nature and see some of our country’s last great spaces.  For one big trip, I headed west to road-trip through mid & northern California. I spent 2 days in Point Reyes National Seashore hoping to see the famous lighthouse and beach cliff waterfall.  Intense fog meant I did not see either, but I did put plenty of miles on my hiking shoes going to see the Point’s Tule Elk herd, the elephant seals (see, hear & smell), McClure’s Beach and marsh with beautiful song birds, and out to Tommel’s Point & Bird Rock.  I was still inundated with fog, but thought of it like hiking in a Scooby Doo cartoon – it was that thick!  Heading out to Lassen, nature still was laughing at me because over 25 feet of snow were on the ground.  So this geologically active site was completely covered.  I also put more miles on my shoes around a lake with beautiful reflections.  The weather finally let me have a win at Whiskeytown National Recreation Area where I hiked to see a series of waterfalls.  In the middle of the summer, my best friend and I headed all the way to the top of the Pacific Northwest to visit the San Juan Islands and the National Historical Park where we learned of the war that almost was (over a pig), that the Brits built a better camp and threw a better party up there, and that a whole area can get behind the conservation of a species to protect their identity (the orca). We spoke to local leaders and business owners for her blog, toured historic sites, museums, went out on the water, enjoyed the solitude of one of the most unique places I have been in the continental US.  It was a bucket list trip.  And one I would not mind taking again.

 

With friends and family all over the place, I always have excuses to travel – I wish I could visit everyone all the time.  Until I hit the Powerball, I keep watch for United & SPG sales.  I need those sales to see people I love and have adventures big and small, like when I visited a certain Mouse in Florida with John and in California with Christine; made a deposit at Gringotts with John and got back pure magic; oohed and aahed at the Colorado Ballet’s production of Dracula with Sue; learned about San Juan Island history, culture and environment with Lesley; road-tripped with Christine through the desert from Vegas to Anaheim and back to see more friends and our favorite boyband in California & Vegas; took in the colors, fragrances and arrangements at the Philly Flower Show while visiting Dr. Katie; discovered why Lake Tahoe’s motto is “Keep Tahoe Blue” with Tessa; learned the fine art of chocolate tasting in Hershey with John; toured a haunted house and danced off the chills to 80’s music in San Jose with Bunny, Paige &  Leslie; island hopped with Linus & Jason; climbed the endless stairs of Red Rocks Amphitheatre and stopped to see Bison with Megan, Mark and Ben; showed off the local area for Stacey, John R and Sarah; and, stamped my passport with John in Mexico & Belize.  The arts always play a big role with friends and family – together with my Broadway partner in crime, Marie, we saw shows on commuting, tiny towns in PA & high school hierarchies, with John and Charles-shows on veterans, the Italian mob, a body swap, singing mermaids, a girl with 3 dads, a singing family in the Alps and funeral homes, with Susan - a classic about a King and new experimental theater on Midwestern murders, and solo to celebrate women entrepreneurs, and dancing actors who played mobsters.  With Michelle, Linus, Ashley, Marie and John, I celebrated the outdoors and live music at Wolf Trap and other area venues listening to offerings classical to pop to rock.

 

Travel in 2018 already has a huge checkmark … I finally booked my trip to the last state – Hawaii.  We took our flight credit from St Croix and applied it to Honolulu, and I cashed in 100,000 hotel points!  Come the end of February/beginning of March, I will have finished a big bucket list.  We will be visiting Oahu and the Big Island so I can finally see Volcanoes National Park.  I have an itch to photograph some pahoehoe!  But this check mark doesn’t mean I am done traveling the states.  My motto, “It’s a Big Country, Someone Has To See It,” still applies.  I have other national parks/units and big things in states I missed on my first pass on my list; I want to visit a few next year.  Really I want to see as many as possible.  So next year, I have my sights on Devil’s Tower in Wyoming on a road-trip from my inevitable trip to Denver maybe with Tammi.  I hope Dry Tortugas recovers enough for a visit in Florida since it was damaged this hurricane season and I scrapped plans to visit.  Lesley is organizing a trip to Idaho’s panhandle for us. I also need to get back to visiting Canada and up next could be Quebec City.  John and I have hopes to visit Poland and Jamaica. 

 

I have to keep eyes on Groupon Travel for some exciting options.  AND I  must keep calling out to Hermes and Tyche - the Greek Gods of travel and luck.  There is so much to see, do and learn... and let's face it, travel makes me happy AND it's a great distraction to the insanity in DC.