Good morning, friends! ☀️ It’s a gloomy, rainy morning here in Atlanta, the kind of start to the day that makes me daydream about getting away, about “shaking the dust of this crummy little town off my feet and seeing the world,” to put it in words that Jimmy Stewart’s George Bailey might say in It’s a Wonderful Life.
I was able to get in a quick three-mile run — thanks to my treadmill — but still, I daydream about going places. I’ve been watching, on and off, Stanley Tucci’s Italy lately, which makes me dream about taking six or eight weeks off to do nothing but travel up and down that country.
So, my question to you is, with spring just around the corner — it’s officially here in just over two weeks — what are you daydreaming about? Where would you like to go, anywhere in the world, if you could? A place to run, or just a place to visit — where would it be, and what is special about it to you? — Terrell
Just booked a yoga and meditation retreat in Costa Rica for a week in the summer. April goals are to finalize summer travel/ race schedule and plans:))) Now where to go and what races to run?!?!?! hahahah
How great! I've never been to the Caribbean--only to all the islands on Hawaii. No cruises either! Only cruise I went on was to Northern Europe just before 9/11. They are fantastic. . . and I must say, the food and dining are great! Be sure and take your running shoes and run around the entire deck--not just the track!
Just on a side note, my Birthday is the first day of spring :)
I'm on the mend, and after six months and a wrong diagnosis, the only thing I'm thinking about is pounding the pavement again and looking forward to our cruise in September. You never know how
Happy early Birthday, Steve! Guess you found a better doctor who actually helped you! You're lucky. . . so many diseases of the human body are misdiagnosed. Lace up those shoes and get out there.Where are you going in September???? :)
There is special Whale Watching at the Oceanfront Marathon every year! Sometimes you get lucky and see the whales while running the Marathon and Half. I've considered it numerous times for a vacation.
Pretty rare to see Orcas that far south! Ours are not common considering what they have done to the waters here in Puget Sound. There seem to be a number pods farther north in B.C. Nice there are watch groups and running groups around here that support the whales. One thing I can say, Orcas are really big! They could have easily turned that ferry over in the water! :)
There are so many places on my bucket list too! I ran Dublin in 2019 in honor of turning 55 and for my 60th- I have my sights set on running a half in Scotland! In the meantime I am planning a special trip for my husbands 60th this year. He loves Egyptian history so I am working on a cruise down the Nile! I have a friend who is a travel agent with a specialty in cruises so she is helping with all the details. I am not a big fan of cruises but as long as there are stops to see all the ancient sites....Stanley Tuccis series has me wanting to return to Italy as well! I think I need to retire!😜
That’s great Karen! Sounds like we are the same age. Would love to do a half in Scotland as well. A lot of my ancestry is from Great Britain and I want to go there some day. I hope you get to realize that dream!
I spent six months in Limerick in the early '70s. The company I worked for was doing a joint venture with an Irish company to make dry-cleaning equipment. When my boss bragged that his company was 60 years old, the owner of the Irish company smiled and said his was 200 years old. Never met an unfriendly person there and learned first hand how well we have it in America.
Some times I wake up in the morning dreaming I am on the Oregon Coast. I can smell the oceans dampness all around me. In the blankets that lay across the bed, in fresh brewed coffee. Even in my scrabbled eggs as I pick out the chopped up mushrooms that hid within my eggs. I dreaming of walking down the silk smooth beach as the sea mist greets me with every breath I take. Here is where I find peace. Here is where I feel like I can do anything. So what holds me back from going on this amazing adventure? Is it money? Is it the drive? its a thirteen hour drive from my home to Oregon Coast. Do I take my dog? She jumps on people. She's not trained. Should I camp in my car? These are the questions that pelage my mind every time I dream of going to the coast. Fear. Fear of the unknown. It's sort of like running. Each time I sign up for a race to a track that I have never seen before is daunting but also thrilling because I always am curious to see what is around the corner. So, why can I not do that with all of my life? Fear. Fear of not being good enough or not knowing the correct way to be. Fear of not being accepted for who I am.
I daydream of the Oregon Coast. Such happy memories there.
My dream is to go to the Amalfi Coast - The Conqueror Challenge does various hiking trips around the world and one of their trips is the Amalfi Coast Italy...hopefully, September 2024!!!
Just came back from one of my dream trips. Very short, but it was enough. My husband and I went down to Baja to see the Grey Whales in the lagoons. We landed in Loreto on a Tuesday, were picked up by the tour van on Wednesday and taken out to Magdalena Bay. We spent two nights in a camp on a small island that helps form the lagoons. From there, we went out on the water 4 different times, two hours each time and got to see these amazing creatures up close. Close enough to be covered by the spray they exhale. We also had the great fortune to have dolphins swim right up to the beach just feet from our camp. Literally on the beach! The actual sand! They were herding fish as their hunting technique. It was AMAZING! We were back home in rainy L.A. by Saturday afternoon. It feels like a dream.
I'm envious!! Only seen the whales once in Hawaii--off Princeville on Kauai and the Orca Pod that came up alongside the ferry on the way back from Vashon Island. One of these days I'll go to Maui to run the Half and whale-watch in January. :) Never have seen any dolphins, though. . .
That sounds great. Some of the folks that went to watch the grey whales with us had already been whale watching in the Sea of Cortez and saw a pod of Orcas. They were pretty excited about it.
Good Morning, Terrell. Hope it is just rain and not severe weather. Looks like it had been pretty nasty in the South East lately, though from what I can see, Atlanta looks pretty good. I have to worry about several others that I know in North Carolina. . . and then there is my brother in Vermont, running (after a stroke) in 3 inches of slushy snow. Just the normal clouds and 40 degrees here in the PacNW.
Far Away Places. . . there is a song about that from the King and I. . . that keeps running through my head. I've been to a lot of places as a visitor, but here is the conundrum. . . you have to go back to wherever "home" is!
A Long Walk might suffice like the El Camino de Santiago in Northern Europe or the Inca Trail in South America to Machu Picchu or staying with relatives, like the ones I have in Genoa, Italy. I'd rather go and stay someplace for awhile to get immersed in the culture and fit in. I've done that in Hawaii where I'm treated as one of the locals, and in India. I'm just not the touristy sort. . . :) Portugal, the Bordeaux. . .though it would have to be a long period of time.
At the moment, I'll stay where I am. Looking at the world situation now and the way things have changed in all the places I "wanted" to go, this is a pretty safe backwater!
Walked 2.17 miles the other day, My ankle held up! I'll go out again for another 2 today. Slow but sure. . . see how far I get for the month of March! Used to be around 50 Miles for the month, but this is a different era! :)
Two spots on my bucket list- back to Alaska for another cruise ... this time with a side trip to Nome ... and Churchill, Manitoba to see the polar bears.
Loved Stanley Tucci’s series and was a factor in visiting Italy last year! For now am visiting New York for the first time in 10 years in April- tips welcome!
I love France too -- my wife and I had a chance to visit there the year before Covid, and it was just breathtaking. We went to Dordogne, in the southwest of France (I think) -- amazingly beautiful little villages, the Lascaux caves (where the 20,000-year-old cave paintings were discovered) and it was just wonderful. Where in Italy would you like to go? (And are you watching/have you seen the Stanley Tucci show?)
I have always wanted to visit Ireland and my dream is to run a half marathon there. I believe there’s one coming up July 8 so still working on travel plans. The run sounds absolutely beautiful! It’s been a tough winter for me. I broke out with shingles mid-January and ended up with post herpetic neuralgia. After 7 weeks I’m finally able to get out for walk/runs but I’m slow. Just celebrating being able to get out! And so kicking myself for not getting the vaccine! It would have saved me immense pain.
Gale, I'm so sorry you were sick with Shingles. As soon as I read your comment I ran down to Kroger & got my first dose for the shingles vaccine. Thank You for sharing your story it certainly inspired me to get the vaccine.
Yikes! Shingles can be so tough -- I need to get the vaccine too, in fact. I had a very mild case of it once when I was a teenager, but another friend got it and had it bad. I feel for you!
And yes, the half in Ireland on the 8th of July is in Kilkee, I believe -- it looks AMAZING. https://runkilkee.ie/
The West of Ireland--Connemara, specifically--where I used to run the lonely Bog Road between Cashel and Clifden--just me, the sheep and U2 on my headphones. Not warm and exotic, but one of my favorite places on earth. And Happy Friday, Terrell!
Happy Friday right back at you, Diana! Where you're describing sounds absolutely wonderful -- is this the same place as the "Wild Atlantic Way" that I've heard about in Ireland? Did you live there at one time?
It's part of it--now that there is the Wild Atlantic Way route. I started going in 1994--been 14 times, I think-spent two months there and considered moving at one time...It's unbelievably wild and beautiful...and a PERFECT place for long runs in which it's just you, the wind and your thoughts.
Just booked a yoga and meditation retreat in Costa Rica for a week in the summer. April goals are to finalize summer travel/ race schedule and plans:))) Now where to go and what races to run?!?!?! hahahah
How awesome is that?! I'll have to research some races there for you!
How great! I've never been to the Caribbean--only to all the islands on Hawaii. No cruises either! Only cruise I went on was to Northern Europe just before 9/11. They are fantastic. . . and I must say, the food and dining are great! Be sure and take your running shoes and run around the entire deck--not just the track!
Terrell, I just signed up for a 10 miles race the end of May. Do you have a 3 runs/week training plan you can recommend? The race is May 21st....
Yes I do! Shoot me your email and I’ll send it to you 👍
Sully42796@comcast.net.
That is True! Orcas look small in the photos, but boy, they are not! If they are one of the smaller species, I can't even imagine the larger ones!!
That’s so awesome! I never gave Aviña a thought but now I’m putting it on my bucket list!!!
Just on a side note, my Birthday is the first day of spring :)
I'm on the mend, and after six months and a wrong diagnosis, the only thing I'm thinking about is pounding the pavement again and looking forward to our cruise in September. You never know how
much you miss something you can't do it.
Happy early Birthday, Steve! Guess you found a better doctor who actually helped you! You're lucky. . . so many diseases of the human body are misdiagnosed. Lace up those shoes and get out there.Where are you going in September???? :)
Just going to the Caribbean but this time also to Puerto Rico...
Love a cruise... sit back, get waited on, and I don't have to cook or worry about
anything but relaxing. I do, however, use the gym and run the track on the top of the ship.
I do have to keep the pounds off.
There is special Whale Watching at the Oceanfront Marathon every year! Sometimes you get lucky and see the whales while running the Marathon and Half. I've considered it numerous times for a vacation.
Pretty rare to see Orcas that far south! Ours are not common considering what they have done to the waters here in Puget Sound. There seem to be a number pods farther north in B.C. Nice there are watch groups and running groups around here that support the whales. One thing I can say, Orcas are really big! They could have easily turned that ferry over in the water! :)
My daughter and her husband took a cruise to Alaska...
Their whale-watching excursion was super windy, and only saw two from a distance.
She said you never realize how big they are until you see one in the wild.
There are so many places on my bucket list too! I ran Dublin in 2019 in honor of turning 55 and for my 60th- I have my sights set on running a half in Scotland! In the meantime I am planning a special trip for my husbands 60th this year. He loves Egyptian history so I am working on a cruise down the Nile! I have a friend who is a travel agent with a specialty in cruises so she is helping with all the details. I am not a big fan of cruises but as long as there are stops to see all the ancient sites....Stanley Tuccis series has me wanting to return to Italy as well! I think I need to retire!😜
That’s great Karen! Sounds like we are the same age. Would love to do a half in Scotland as well. A lot of my ancestry is from Great Britain and I want to go there some day. I hope you get to realize that dream!
I spent six months in Limerick in the early '70s. The company I worked for was doing a joint venture with an Irish company to make dry-cleaning equipment. When my boss bragged that his company was 60 years old, the owner of the Irish company smiled and said his was 200 years old. Never met an unfriendly person there and learned first hand how well we have it in America.
Some times I wake up in the morning dreaming I am on the Oregon Coast. I can smell the oceans dampness all around me. In the blankets that lay across the bed, in fresh brewed coffee. Even in my scrabbled eggs as I pick out the chopped up mushrooms that hid within my eggs. I dreaming of walking down the silk smooth beach as the sea mist greets me with every breath I take. Here is where I find peace. Here is where I feel like I can do anything. So what holds me back from going on this amazing adventure? Is it money? Is it the drive? its a thirteen hour drive from my home to Oregon Coast. Do I take my dog? She jumps on people. She's not trained. Should I camp in my car? These are the questions that pelage my mind every time I dream of going to the coast. Fear. Fear of the unknown. It's sort of like running. Each time I sign up for a race to a track that I have never seen before is daunting but also thrilling because I always am curious to see what is around the corner. So, why can I not do that with all of my life? Fear. Fear of not being good enough or not knowing the correct way to be. Fear of not being accepted for who I am.
I daydream of the Oregon Coast. Such happy memories there.
My dream is to go to the Amalfi Coast - The Conqueror Challenge does various hiking trips around the world and one of their trips is the Amalfi Coast Italy...hopefully, September 2024!!!
Last year we did Iceland. We planned to go to Norway, but passports expired and we’re heading to New England, hoping to get to Arcadia National Park.
Just came back from one of my dream trips. Very short, but it was enough. My husband and I went down to Baja to see the Grey Whales in the lagoons. We landed in Loreto on a Tuesday, were picked up by the tour van on Wednesday and taken out to Magdalena Bay. We spent two nights in a camp on a small island that helps form the lagoons. From there, we went out on the water 4 different times, two hours each time and got to see these amazing creatures up close. Close enough to be covered by the spray they exhale. We also had the great fortune to have dolphins swim right up to the beach just feet from our camp. Literally on the beach! The actual sand! They were herding fish as their hunting technique. It was AMAZING! We were back home in rainy L.A. by Saturday afternoon. It feels like a dream.
I'm envious!! Only seen the whales once in Hawaii--off Princeville on Kauai and the Orca Pod that came up alongside the ferry on the way back from Vashon Island. One of these days I'll go to Maui to run the Half and whale-watch in January. :) Never have seen any dolphins, though. . .
That sounds great. Some of the folks that went to watch the grey whales with us had already been whale watching in the Sea of Cortez and saw a pod of Orcas. They were pretty excited about it.
Wow, Maria! This sounds incredible! What an amazing trip!!
Good Morning, Terrell. Hope it is just rain and not severe weather. Looks like it had been pretty nasty in the South East lately, though from what I can see, Atlanta looks pretty good. I have to worry about several others that I know in North Carolina. . . and then there is my brother in Vermont, running (after a stroke) in 3 inches of slushy snow. Just the normal clouds and 40 degrees here in the PacNW.
Far Away Places. . . there is a song about that from the King and I. . . that keeps running through my head. I've been to a lot of places as a visitor, but here is the conundrum. . . you have to go back to wherever "home" is!
A Long Walk might suffice like the El Camino de Santiago in Northern Europe or the Inca Trail in South America to Machu Picchu or staying with relatives, like the ones I have in Genoa, Italy. I'd rather go and stay someplace for awhile to get immersed in the culture and fit in. I've done that in Hawaii where I'm treated as one of the locals, and in India. I'm just not the touristy sort. . . :) Portugal, the Bordeaux. . .though it would have to be a long period of time.
At the moment, I'll stay where I am. Looking at the world situation now and the way things have changed in all the places I "wanted" to go, this is a pretty safe backwater!
Walked 2.17 miles the other day, My ankle held up! I'll go out again for another 2 today. Slow but sure. . . see how far I get for the month of March! Used to be around 50 Miles for the month, but this is a different era! :)
Two spots on my bucket list- back to Alaska for another cruise ... this time with a side trip to Nome ... and Churchill, Manitoba to see the polar bears.
Loved Stanley Tucci’s series and was a factor in visiting Italy last year! For now am visiting New York for the first time in 10 years in April- tips welcome!
My dream has always been Italy. France comes in 2nd. One day I hope to get there!!!
I love France too -- my wife and I had a chance to visit there the year before Covid, and it was just breathtaking. We went to Dordogne, in the southwest of France (I think) -- amazingly beautiful little villages, the Lascaux caves (where the 20,000-year-old cave paintings were discovered) and it was just wonderful. Where in Italy would you like to go? (And are you watching/have you seen the Stanley Tucci show?)
I haven’t seen it yet. I’ll definitely watch it!
I have always wanted to visit Ireland and my dream is to run a half marathon there. I believe there’s one coming up July 8 so still working on travel plans. The run sounds absolutely beautiful! It’s been a tough winter for me. I broke out with shingles mid-January and ended up with post herpetic neuralgia. After 7 weeks I’m finally able to get out for walk/runs but I’m slow. Just celebrating being able to get out! And so kicking myself for not getting the vaccine! It would have saved me immense pain.
My bucket list contains a marathon in Cuba. Visited there before it was closed off again. One of the greatest and safest places on Earth!
That sounds like a lot of fun! And I’m a cigar smoker so that would be 2 great reasons for me to go there.
Gale, I'm so sorry you were sick with Shingles. As soon as I read your comment I ran down to Kroger & got my first dose for the shingles vaccine. Thank You for sharing your story it certainly inspired me to get the vaccine.
Yikes! Shingles can be so tough -- I need to get the vaccine too, in fact. I had a very mild case of it once when I was a teenager, but another friend got it and had it bad. I feel for you!
And yes, the half in Ireland on the 8th of July is in Kilkee, I believe -- it looks AMAZING. https://runkilkee.ie/
You need to take two shots. My mother has it, and it's horrible!
I took mine after seeing the pain she went through.
The West of Ireland--Connemara, specifically--where I used to run the lonely Bog Road between Cashel and Clifden--just me, the sheep and U2 on my headphones. Not warm and exotic, but one of my favorite places on earth. And Happy Friday, Terrell!
Happy Friday right back at you, Diana! Where you're describing sounds absolutely wonderful -- is this the same place as the "Wild Atlantic Way" that I've heard about in Ireland? Did you live there at one time?
It's part of it--now that there is the Wild Atlantic Way route. I started going in 1994--been 14 times, I think-spent two months there and considered moving at one time...It's unbelievably wild and beautiful...and a PERFECT place for long runs in which it's just you, the wind and your thoughts.
Sounds amazing!
It truly is.....