Looking Back, Looking Forward

Not a day goes by when we don't think about our trip.  Many days, we even talk about it.  It helps that we have put up pictures as our computer backgrounds and put up our souvenirs on the walls.  We wear necklaces and bracelets that came from Ecuador, Peru, Chile.  Even in my classroom I have pictures and trinkets up.  I read that it is important to keep these things out and in public view because every time you look at them, you remember the trip.  And even the act of remembering a good experience gives you the same feeling that you had when you were actually on the trip.  Even the days that were "boring," when we didn't do much, we were not doing much in Peru or relaxing in Argentina.  Really, every day, for us, was historic.

We want to continue to share some of those experiences, especially now that we have some videos.  As we figure out how to get those up, we will, we promise.  But we also want to look forward to what is coming next.  We are travel bugs.  A lot of travel we want to do before kids come along, and then when they get older we can take them with us.  We are pretty conscious, though, of places we want to take our kids.  Right now we want to do places that we would not take children.  And so, we look ahead.  Right now, we are in the midst of planning a cruise.

I know, a cruise doesn't really sound in line with our simple life, with our love for the earth and simplicity.  But I did quite a bit of research on cruise lines that would match our needs.  Of course, we need to be in a place that is gay friendly.  In truth, that wasn't hard.  Most cruise lines are finding that a large percentage of travelers are gay because they tend to have the money to do it.  Think about it - two male incomes, no kids.  You can bet they will be traveling.  Even two male incomes with kids.  And gay couples tend to be more prepared for kids, anyway - I mean, it's not like they can accidentally have a kid.  If a gay couple has a kid, it's because they wanted a kid and they planned for a kid.  Typically that means they are financially ready, as well.  Anyway, my point is, travel agencies are all about catering to those with the means to travel, and that includes us.

The big one, though, was the impact on the environment.  You can probably do some of that research yourself, but we did choose our cruise line based on a few articles that we found.  I even made a PowerPoint to show Tanya.

In the end, we decided on Holland America Cruises.  We will visit some of Karis's family in Indiana for a few days over Christmas break (because we have to travel on the school calendar - one of the un-perks of teaching), and then we will head south to go on a 7-day Caribbean cruise.  I think the sunshine in the middle of an Alaska winter will do us some good.

In the meantime, Tanya is working on her stone inlay projects, Karis is starting yoga, and they are loving the late Alaska summer.  For more pictures, you can follow Karis on Instagram @kariskoett.