Highlights of 2016 in 16 pictures
In
relatively chronological order, these are my favorite photos of the
places and things we have experienced during our second year of
retirement and full time RVing.
January and
February
We began the
year freezing our asses off in cold but beautiful Colorado, helping
Richard's cousin with their business. Whilst Richard underwent
recovery from cataract surgery, I flew to Australia to meet my first
grandchild, Maddie. She was 5 months old and simply adorable. I
tell you people turned their heads when I walked by with her in my
arms. She was a scene stealer – still is!
March
We took a couple
of quick breaks, once near Pensacola FL, to tip our toes in the Gulf
of Mexico and then in Charlston, SC, to experience humidity and
plantation history. Read more here. We had just about heated up when we continued on our hurried great trek east
across 9 states to Richmond, VA, in time to cool back down and attend the wedding of
Richard's son Steven and his lovely new wife Melinda.
April
The wedding
festivities finally over, we headed to St Andrew's Airforce base to
see the sights of the nation's capital, Washington DC . What a
beautiful city it is in the sunshine – I loved it.
So much history, and fabulous museums, including the world famous Holocaust Museum. And of course, no visit to Washington is complete without a personal handshake from the President!
May
More historylessons in Gettysburg PA, then more sightseeing in New York State Finger
lakes area, as we waited for the freezing rain and cold weather we encountered as we headed north to turn warmer. We planned to stay a few weeks visiting friends in Canada. Finally we gave up waiting for the snows to
melt and just did a quick trip in the truck. But what a fabulous
weekend – catching up with an old friend,
Needless to say, the cold spell ended once we returned.
June
Unsure of
inclement weather in Tornado Alley, we decided to wait it out in
Ohio. A pleasant break as we finally thawed out, and learned all about the local history and the influence of the Amish.
Then off again to Wichita, Kansas to visit one of Richard's old friends for 4th of July celebrations.
July
After
experiencing a spectacular storm and deluge in Wichita, we did a quick stop in Dodge City
to look up some family history, then went on to Colorado, back to
where we had started the year, for a family reunion. We encountered
a forest fire and slept uneasily as the smoke sneaked into the
trailer during our first night. We watched the surrounding mountains
burn for the two weeks we were there, but luckily for us the fire headed away from Coaldale and the reunion went ahead as scheduled. For some, all that anticipation, preparation, and good food was just too much... 
whilst we were beginning to get a nagging suspicion about our travels. Was there something about us that jinxed the weather wherever we wandered, we wondered...
August
After our six
whirlwind months of travel we decided to take it easy – and sit out
the heat of summer by heading up a mountain and mixing lazy days
making new friends with some hiking among the late blooming summer
flowers of the Grand Mesa.
September and
October
With temperatures just right, we finally hit
some of the National Parks on our wish list – within the Grand
Circle of Utah. Red rocks, pine forests, colossal arches and stone
bridges, canyons, slot canyons, stone pinnacles and the majestic mountains of
Zion. So beautiful -it was mind-blowing - plus a time of personal challenges when I had to face my demons... and I won.
November
A family
emergency sent Richard to visit his brother in Arkansas while I
stayed by myself in northern Arizona – far enough removed from Sin
City to be safe and looked after by new friends in Fort Mojave and be made to feel at home over Thanksgiving.
, but
close enough to meet up with my nephew and his new wife for a couple
of nights in the gambling capital of the world. It wasn't a bad place to reminisce about the wedding I missed...
December
We begin the
winter in a snowbird RV/trailer park about an hour south of Phoenix – a wonderfully friendly place
where we feel at home in an instant. I even get to join a band as part of the pre-Christmas festivities.
Not only that, we also get hired to
clean rental trailers for new arrivals, and after just a week of scrubbing
and hoovering, remember why we decided to retire in the first place! Not much blogging done because my laptop died half way through November, and this new replacement one I got for Xmas is currently being used to prepare for a public speaking trip in Scotland later on in January I still need to post about Zion and our December... so watch this space... I will get back to blogging more in 2017!
But I must warn you, it looks
like 2017 is shaping up to be a working year. The UK's Brexit legacy of the
falling exchange rate has scuppered our budget and our plans, and we
need to take at least a year out of our travel adventure to see less
and work more. Thank goodness we packed so much into 2016!
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