The Beginning

Hello to all those interested in my adventures.  I decided that 2013 was the year of travel.  So I am going to record all of my "nonwork" travel, adventures and musings. 

Wanderlust is a strong desire for or impulse to wander or travel and explore the world.  [definition by Wikpedia]

My impulse for travel started at a young age; it started with me wandering the city of Cleveland [my mom said I was lost but I always knew the direction home].  My love of books allowed me to travel the world and time while cuddled on the living room floor with my green blanket.  As a teenager, I explored the world by having penpals through the "Blue Blue Marble" show.  At the age of 13, I spent 3 weeks in West Germany [it was still divided] to visit one of my penpals, Gretchen Hofflin.  It was exciting getting "shots" for travel, going to the travel agency [the only way you could get airline tickets],and getting a passport.  And then I boarded the plane by myself.  But I had my favorite friend, a book. 

I traveled from Cleveland to Zurich to Basel, Switzerland.  The family picked me up from there and we drove back to Germany via the Autobahn.  They lived in Botzingen; Bötzingen is a municipality in the Breisgau-Hochschwarzwald district, Baden-Württemberg, Germany.  It's in the Black Forest region of Southwest Germany.  It was a new adventure for a girl from the city.  We walked everywhere in town, through the vineyards; rode bikes over to France; traveled to the Swiss mountains for the weekend.  It was at that time I knew I was meant to wander the world.

So back to 2013.  I have planned small and big trips throughout the year.  I travel for work and collect miles/points/status: Delta Airlines Diamond Elite Member [228,540 miles], Marriott Platinum member [50,878 points - I gave some away last year], Hilton Diamond member [217,979 points - I gave some away last year].  Each year you have to renew the status but the perks pay off:  first grade upgrades on Delta flights, executive/concierge levels at Marriott & Hilton hotels with free breakfast and/or nightly snacks & drinks, 4 nights stay at the Doubletree Times Square hotel using points. 

My adventures start next week, so come join me while I travel the world.  I will critique it all from the plane seats to the weather and the joy of the world's population.

SIDENOTE:  Last year my niece let me plan her honeymoon to Italy.  I LOVE IT!  I am a planner and enjoyed designing the trip of her lifetime.  It gave me the bug to become a travel agent.  So I am pursuing a correspondent course to become a certified travel agent with the plan of becoming a honeymoon specialist.  It will open the door for me to travel to the sites and experience what I will be promoting.  So I am open to resorts offering me  a "look see" for what they have to offer.