Eight years ago today we boarded Holland America Line’s ms Prinsendam in New York City, and set sail for an adventure.
We had quit our jobs in Seattle.
Sold or stored most of our belongings.
Drove to Missouri to leave our car and our cat, before a plane flight to New York.
On board the Prinsendam, we first sailed down the coast to Florida, which gave us a chance to visit one last U.S. port to grab anything we missed.
Then we sailed for seven straight days across the Atlantic to Lisbon.
Onward, then, through the Mediterranean and into the Black Sea.
Five months later, in September, we sailed back into New York City.
We had experienced Europe.
From the Black Sea to the Polar Ice Cap.
Mostly on cruise ships, but some time on land, traveling by train, and by ferry, and via public buses, and even cable cars.
We explored.
We laughed.
We learned.
We started this blog. You can see our first post here: Nothing but Blue Skies and Blue Seas
Most of all, we grew.
We became more open to new experiences.
We learned about history and different cultures.
We realized that deep down, most people are the same.
We came back to the United States, grateful for large, inexpensive cups of coffee. (The Euro was quite strong compared to the dollar in 2007.)
And, we became immensely grateful for the freedoms that our passports allow us as U.S. citizens.
We found new, better jobs than we’d had before.
We did not grow weary of travel.
We wanted to see and experience more and more of the world.
So if you have the chance to travel, where ever in the world, do not pass it up.
Whether you are 21 or 81, or anywhere in between, traveling somewhere new will open your eyes and change you in ways that you can’t imagine.
Just go.
If you started reading this blog eight years ago or just today, thank you for following along and sharing our journey.
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