Ah, but it's nice to be home again. In the last couple of days we've picked up our held mail, pulled a few weeds, and gone on a food shopping expedition. Every so often we remind ourselves how nice it feels to be retired and not have to head back to work Monday.
Watch this space for further developments within the next few days. Once we've finished the unpacking it'll be time to post some Great Barrier Reef snorkeling photos from the disposable camera, as well as a whole bunch of photos from our Baltic Cruise, complete with witty commentary.
We've flown well over 120,000 miles this year, mainly on United, so our UA 1K status is assured for 2010, meaning we'll continue to be treated the way all passengers should be treated. We're also ready for a break from six months of extensive and intensive travel for us: a Caribbean cruise, Bangkok, Naples and Sicily, Honolulu, a Transatlantic cruise, Alabama, Munich and Schliersee, Kona, New Zealand and Australia, and the just-completed Baltic cruise. Whew! We also added New Zealand, Russia, Poland, and Estonia to the previous list of 65 countries or quasi-countries we've visited.
Right now we're looking forward to a weekend with five of our six grandchildren, during which we'll reflect on the milestone we reached today: 40 years of marriage, and still trying to decide what we're going to do when we grow up.
Kathy and Brian
Two retired educators alternating joyfully between seeing the world and enjoying our eight grandchildren (in order of birth), Jake, Avery, Taegan, Lily, Peyton, Riley, Blane, and Jace.
Kathy and Brian met in the clarinet section of the University of California (Santa Barbara) Symphony Orchestra several decades ago.
Brian's Western Canadian roots and Kathy's Colorado ties resulted in their making beautiful music together along with producing a cross-border crop of descendants.
Kathy spent a year studying in Vienna at the Institute for European Studies and the University of Vienna.
Brian started the school band program in Hope, British Columbia, and later became the high school's vice-principal for 6 years and subsequently principal for 15 years before retiring in 2001.
Kathy, in between raising our three children, taught kindergarten and first grade, middle school, and high school - mathematics, computer studies, ESL, and her first love, band, before retiring in 2001.
We enjoy sharing our travel experiences and providing the odd travel tip to friends, relatives, and visitors.