I'm thinking about the famous and historic places I have been to. It's amazing considering I was a welfare kid, the daughter of a single mother until I was 9 when my mother married an Army Officer, and my life changed forever.
Leaving my hometown, Lebanon, PA when I was fifteen and going to Germany, where I went to an American High School, I was able to visit places I could have only read about back in my hometown.
The Eifel Tower in Paris on a cheerleaders trip.
My Senior Class trip to Italy, I saw The Sistine Chapel, Colosseum, Catacombs, Roman Forum, Trevi Fountain and was blessed by Pope Pius XII in St. Peter's Square.
I saw the beautiful sights of Florence including the magnificent statue of David. And there was the Leaning Tower of Pisa, The Apian Way, and my first view of the Mediterranean Sea. Little did I know then that someday I would cruise the Greek Islands 45 years later.
As an Army Wife, there were more amazing places to behold again in Europe limited a little bit by family life and my husband's job.
Later I became a group tour travel agent, sales rep, and escort. I traveled the Tundra in Alaska, ice fished on the Bering Sea, cruised most of the major Caribbean Islands, toured Caracas, Venezuela, and I was awed by the magnificent architecture and acoustics of the Sydney Opera House.
The beaches of Fiji dazzled me, and Hawaii soothed me.
Memorable moments embedded in my mind among many are crossing the Atlantic on the SS United States with 5 small children and sailing on it home with 6. The Statue of Liberty was beautiful as we sailed into NY.
I've loved every visit to our Capital, Washington, DC, the fallen October leaves at a West Point football game, and living in Tarrytown, NY near the Tappan Z bridge.
I was awed when cruising the Fjords in Norway and barely slept on the overnight ferry from Oslo to Copenhagen where I was greeted by the multiple blossoms in Tivoli Gardens.
I have been blessed beyond compare to travel this earth, and I know this sounds corny, but my greatest travel blessings have been each trip to be with family, see a new Grandchild, and go to their ceremonies of life.
Waiting now for the birth of my first Great Grand Child is as exciting as waiting for the first of 13.
When you count your blessings, start with family and loved ones, friends, and life's celebrations.
May you be as blessed as I am.
Mom, G'ma, Mary
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