Six more sleeps to the day that we would have departed on our camping trip to the Arctic Ocean. Here is the post of our plans – Arctic Ocean. (I started with 7 sleeps — I guess this is when I realize how long it takes me to write up a post).

Although I am disappointed, cancelling the trip is a small price to pay to protect the well-being of the people in the communities we had planned to visit. We know everyone is struggling and there is little we can do except for kind gestures and respect for all of the people who are sacrificing for the common good and strive to get through this global disaster.

We often think about how fast things can happen and how close we were to being in the thick of it all. The closest was Evan’s (not major but necessary) surgery on March 12. On March 13, it became clear that stricter precautions were in order and everything started to come to a stand-still. A day later and the surgery would not have taken place.

Then there was the matter of everyone’s travel plans. One of our daughters went hiking in Chili late January. The group of three came back safe and sound. However, one month later may have resulted in a different scenario. Another of our daughters and family were to go on vacation at spring break and it wasn’t until the last minute that they opted out which is a good thing or they would have been stranded in USA — not somewhere you would want to be. Friends of ours had gone on a cruise in late February. Again, they came back safe and sound but if they had gone just a couple of weeks later, it could have ended up being a disaster. There are never-ending tales of people whose travel plans were interrupted leaving them stranded throughout the world.

These woes do not even come close to devastation that people are experiencing with the high numbers of deaths. As we watch those figures rise, it seems so sad that we do not get to put faces to those lost to the virus and we do not have an opportunity to honour them. Our collective hearts go out to all those who are suffering and those who have lost someone dear to them.

Well I am sure that we all realize the severity of the situation and that we are all up on the information on a daily basis. As bad as the situation is now, covid-19 has gravely pointed out that we cannot afford to let things get back to ‘normal’. Rather, we now have the opportunity to create a ‘new normal’ by making the changes that are now apparently necessary.

Those of us who get to stay home and isolated, should not bemoan all of the things we can’t do now. We should be glad that we are staying safe. We can also be grateful for things that we got to do prior to this. On that note, I am looking back at the trips we were lucky enough to take. I doubt that any of the places will ever be the same going forward.

Starting from the most current:

2020 – Mexico
Just on a last-minute whim, we went to the Mayan Riviera in January, before everything blew up. It wasn’t until mid-February that people around here started to doubt whether traveling was a good idea.

2019 September – Sproat Lake
We visited my sister-in-law at their summer vacation camp spot at Sproat Lake in BC.

2019 May – 3rd cross-Canada adventure
We visited all provinces in our new camper except for the territories. Our only pre-destined part of our itinerary was the Kitchenfest in Cape Breton.

2018 October – Route 3
We took Evan’s mother on a 5-day trip along route 3 in BC.

2018 May – Paris
We visited Paris for a week on our own before heading to Italy.

2018 June – Italy
After Paris, we joined our good friends on a tour led by Lisa, the best tour guide one could ever hope for.

2018 July – Northern BC
We headed north to visit our friend’s cabin near Fawn Lake, then visited Barkersville and went as far as Prince George before turning back.

2018 March – San Diego
We went to San Diego in our camper with one of our daughters and family in their trailer. We moseyed back along the coast after our daughter’s family returned home in time for work and school.

2017 May – 2nd cross-Canada trip
We visited all Provinces except for PEI but this time, we included Newfoundland. We drove in my car and stayed in bed and breakfasts with just a couple of exceptions.

2016 – England
We went to England with Evan’s mother in tow.

2016 Scotland
After England, we went on to Edinburgh, Perth, Dunkeld and Glasgow.

2015 Belize
Belize had always been on our ‘bucket list’ and so we decided we would travel around the country even though they have fabulous resorts which aren’t really our style.

2015 New Orleans
Even though our goal was to visit Belize, we encountered a glitch with the flights. Every itinerary called for a 12-hour lay-over. So, to solve that problem, we made the stop in New Orleans. Of course, that was before Katrina hit.

2014 – 1st cross-Canada trip
We can credit this trip for making our trip in 2019 the best trip ever! We didn’t include Newfoundland in this trip. We drove, had mother-in-law in tow and organized our accommodation as we went. The trip started off with a bang when we had issues with our brakes leaving us held up in Golden over night.

All this traveling is wearing me out for now but there is more yet to come.