I have just completed what I think is the longest (in terms of duration) vacation of my adulthood.  Eighteen days aboard a smallish cruise ship, stopping each day at a new Greek island (and a couple of forays into Turkey as well).  As I’ve been telling folks, “Three weeks traveling, and three months of curating the photos!”

Detail from The Erechtheum, Acropolis, Athens, Greece

So, this is the first sample.  Combining three cameras (Nikon D7500, FujiFilm Finepix D45 and iPhone 12 Mini) I shot nearly 1,100 photos.  I will likely be adding the cream of the crop as I go on.

One thing I’m contemplating is creating an album on my Smugmug account of just photos I took of the marvelous little alleys and walkways that are ubiquitous on the Greek isles.  “Μονοπάτι” is one of the words in Greek for “path” (the Greek language is unique and marvelously expressive — no wonder Biblical translations abound — so there could be other words better suited.  For now, I’m going to use “Monopati,’ which translates literally to “one step path.”  Stay tuned!

I was going to title this post, “Worst. Vacation. Ever.” But that only begins to hint at the experience I had. Not given to whining, I’ve already put it in the past, but I want to post The Most Expensive Photo I’ve Ever Taken. Ready? Here it is:

Not much, is it? It’s a pleasant enough scene of a tropical location, looking out into the ocean. But it will never win any photo prizes. Or any other prizes, for that matter. Why it’s The Most Expensive Photo I’ve Ever Taken is the rest of the story.

My plan was to scout out Barbados as a potential remote “work from home” location. To that end, I made the most horrendous travel plans and chose to go while there is a global pandemic scaring everyone. I’m going to blame my temporary insanity on my own cabin fever brought on by working from home for the past six months. But I only have myself and COVID-19 to blame.

The first inkling things were going sideways was when I learned (on my own, no thanks to no notification from the airline) that Air Canada had canceled one leg of my return flight. Wanting (needing) to get home for work, I had to reschedule, and that cost me two days of my trip. No reduction in an already high-priced air fare. My itinerary took me through Toronto, where I had to spend the night in the terminal, because to leave the premises would have required me to quarantine for 14 days. 12 hours in a terminal is preferable. But not comfortable.

When I arrived in Barbados, I had my medically ordered COVID-19 test results in hand (negative) and I showed them to the airport authorities. “These are too old,” I was told. The time needed to obtain the results, plus the long layover in Toronto had caused them to pass the expiration time required by Barbadian authorities, which is within 72 hours of arrival. Not to worry though, I was told. We’ll give you a free test here. You’ll have to wait here for the results, but that should take only 8-10 hours. At least they were kind enough to bring me some food while I waited. And, as I expected, the results were once again negative.

But, I was told, you come from a high-risk country, the U.S.A. So even though you test negative, you may still be asymptomatic, and so we require you to be quarantined for seven days at minimum. And, that quarantine has to be at either a military base, which costs nothing, or at an approved hotel, which I would have to pay for. I didn’t like the sound of “military base,” so I opted for the Marriott, which was one of their approved hotels. They made the reservation, arranged a taxi, and I was taken directly to the hotel, where the desk clerk told me that at least I would have a room with an ocean view. The photo above, is the only scenery I saw for the next four days. It’s out the hotel room window!

Calculating the cost. Well, I’m not going to itemize every little expenditure; that would just as insult to injury. Airfare, lodging, plus non-refundable hotel reservation, pre-paid rental car, room service meals, taxi fare, airport parking as well as the cost to comfort (having to spend two nights in the Toronto airport, having to wear a mask except while eating. As well as while waiting in the Barbados airport and during flights).

That makes it The Most Expensive Photo I’ve Ever Taken.

Starting out with a silly pun (“I don’t know, I’ll ask her”) is probably not the best form to use when writing an online blog, but hey, it’s my blog, and I’ll write the way I like!

Which is a less-than-clever way to introduce my latest missive: My vacation trip to Alaska.

I’m not sure how I came across the cruise deal, or what prompted me to look into it in the first place, but since Alaska was the only state I have never visited, I was interested for that reason if nothing else.

So, on March 29, I booked a stateroom, made flight reservations, and sat back and watched the days on the calendar pass.

I could make this post a lot longer, but I won’t go into the travel issues, so on June 12 I stepped aboard the MS Coral Princess, one of the Princess Cruise Lines ships. My first pleasant surprise was the stateroom. I think my package awarded me an automatic upgrade, so I found myself in a mini-suite, complete with separate seating area, large porthole/window and two TVs!

For the next week, the ship cruised the “inside passage” making ports of call at Ketchikan, Juneau and Skagway, followed by leisurely rounds of Glacier Bay and College Fjord, finally arriving at Whittier, Alaska. Along the way I visited Creek Street in Ketchikan, the Mendenhall Glacier near Juneau, rode the White Pass & Yukon Route railroad in Skagway (coupled with a bus trip to the Yukon Territory for lunch and photo ops) and roamed the decks as the ship navigated the glacial waters.

All in all, it was a very enjoyable trip. The food was great (and I gave myself permission to “cheat” — but still avoided sugary foods, breads, and the worst of the dietary “bombs”), the service was great, friendly and prompt, the weather was terrific (given it was Alaska, so a jacket was handy) and the scenery delightful.

Oddly enough, and I don’t mean this in a negative way, now that I’ve been to Alaska, I have no desire to return. It’s a big world, and there are other places I’d like to see!

I leave for Costa Rica in two days.  I’ve never been there before.  I decided on this trip a few months ago, and didn’t really get a sense for it until recently. Titled, “A Taste of Costa Rica,” this is a multi-destination adventure with a lot of photo opportunities.

Most of my travel destinations have been to U. S. national parks, or cities (for work, mostly) or for European points of interest (given that I spent much of my youth there).  For a change, I’m headed to Central America; I’ve only been to Mexico and the Caribbean to date.

This will be my fifth trip with Road Scholar.  I have thoroughly enjoyed the previous trips, always having some trepidation before the start, and then having a fabulous time! I now have faith that the trip will be utterly satisfying!  I heard a story a few years ago that demonstrates the passage to faith:

Having trouble with his car, a man asks his neighbor for advice. His neighbor recommends a mechanic. Uncertain, the man takes his car to the mechanic, hoping he will repair the vehicle.  The mechanic indeed, fixes it.

Later, he once again has car problems, and takes it to the same mechanic, hoping once again that the man can fix it.  He does.

The third time he has car trouble, he takes it to the same mechanic, this time with faith that he will fix it.

Due to work considerations, I need to report every time I travel outside the country.  Having to provide hotel names and addresses, I needed to look them up, and the results I found depict outstanding facilities.

Hotel Balmoral, San Jose

Selva Verde Lodge

Hotel Arenal Monoa

Hotel Montaña Monteverde

Wyndham San Jose Herradura Hotel and Convention Center

The first quarter of 2018 is past.  Time to take some time out and recharge the batteries.  And take some good photos, I hope!

I took my now-annual one-day trip to St. Petersburg, Florida last week.  As a Knight of the Order of Salvador, it’s incumbent on me to attend the annual Investiture and Elevation Ceremony, which takes place every November. It’s also an opportunity for me to view the current exhibit.  This year, it’s Dalí and Schiaparelli.  Elsa Schiaparelli was a fashion designer (1890-1973) who collaborated with Dalí and other artists of her day.

The House of Schiaparelli continues to this day, and some recent designs were on display as well as some of her original Dalí-inspired works.  Unfortunately, the layout of the gallery was such that photographing items was challenging, to say the least.

But there were also Dalí works on display, from the museum’s own collection, some of which I had not seen in years.  And I had never seen the Zodiac.

I found humorous Schiaparelli’s commandments for women.

(Sorry about the awkward angle and distractions.  I couldn’t find a way to photograph this without trampling other exhibit items – which I’m sure the museum wouldn’t appreciate!).

The weather was great, and I managed to do everything I’d set out to.  Lunch at Casey Key Fish House, purchase salami and landjäger sausage at Geier’s, and a last-minute trip to Old Miakka to visit dad.

Puhan Headstone, Old Miakka Methodist Church

Then I attended the Order of Salvador ceremony, and went for dinner. My hotel manager had recommend a Vietnamese “fusion” restaurant, La V, where I had — what else — pho!

Pho at La V

Sometimes the quickest trips are the most satisfying!