On the first day of Christmas
19 December, 2020
2020 has been a truly difficult year for everyone, some of us much more than others. We remain in the grips of a global pandemic that has altered life for everyone, and ended it for far too many. At this point Laurie and I remain quite lucky, healthy so far and working hard to remain that way. We look forward to that time when the world will return to something resembling normal and we can live life on our own terms once again. In the mean time, like it or not, we must adapt.
We have traveled during the holidays for many years. We have celebrated the season in many different places in many different countries. We have memories that we will carry with us forever. In 2020 the world is closed. We are controlled by travel rules, closed borders, laws, dangers to our health, as well as by common sense. Tennessee cases per 100k (134/100k daily on Friday) are the highest in the nation....perhaps the world. We have no choice. This year it must be different.
We were incredibly lucky to be able to make a Colorado trip and a trip to the Outer Banks of North Carolina this year, but we had to give up many of the true joys of travel due to pandemic concerns. We missed meeting and socializing with people we meet in our travels. We missed dining in restaurants we find along the way, shopping in crowded markets, having a drink in a really cool bar. We missed experiencing the lives and cultures of the people in the places we visit.
We knew early on that travel during the 2020 holiday season would be highly limited, if we were able to travel at all. We expected a dynamic ever changing situation that could require us to adapt on very short notice. Our normal patterns of visiting several places was never even considered as we knew it irresponsible if not impossible. We put a great deal of thought into how we could travel both safely and responsibly this holiday season. With the daily case numbers we're seeing now, we have no other choice.
We knew it would have to be domestic, and we did not want to fly. We wanted to limit contact with people we encountered as much as possible. We wanted the ability to be mobile if our situation changed and we needed to travel quickly. We needed to be isolated and distanced from others, controlling our environment as best we could. We wanted to make safe, responsible, and healthy decisions. After extensive study and planning, we decided to rent a beach house on the Outer Banks of North Carolina. While not the perfect time of year, we hope to be able to walk on the beach, fish, do photography, and do these things safely.
We have traveled during the holidays for many years. We have celebrated the season in many different places in many different countries. We have memories that we will carry with us forever. In 2020 the world is closed. We are controlled by travel rules, closed borders, laws, dangers to our health, as well as by common sense. Tennessee cases per 100k (134/100k daily on Friday) are the highest in the nation....perhaps the world. We have no choice. This year it must be different.
We were incredibly lucky to be able to make a Colorado trip and a trip to the Outer Banks of North Carolina this year, but we had to give up many of the true joys of travel due to pandemic concerns. We missed meeting and socializing with people we meet in our travels. We missed dining in restaurants we find along the way, shopping in crowded markets, having a drink in a really cool bar. We missed experiencing the lives and cultures of the people in the places we visit.
We knew early on that travel during the 2020 holiday season would be highly limited, if we were able to travel at all. We expected a dynamic ever changing situation that could require us to adapt on very short notice. Our normal patterns of visiting several places was never even considered as we knew it irresponsible if not impossible. We put a great deal of thought into how we could travel both safely and responsibly this holiday season. With the daily case numbers we're seeing now, we have no other choice.
We knew it would have to be domestic, and we did not want to fly. We wanted to limit contact with people we encountered as much as possible. We wanted the ability to be mobile if our situation changed and we needed to travel quickly. We needed to be isolated and distanced from others, controlling our environment as best we could. We wanted to make safe, responsible, and healthy decisions. After extensive study and planning, we decided to rent a beach house on the Outer Banks of North Carolina. While not the perfect time of year, we hope to be able to walk on the beach, fish, do photography, and do these things safely.
Our hideout for two weeks
We have a long history on the Banks. I grew up visiting as a child, visited as a young adult, and we spent our honeymoon on Ocracoke. We visited with our children when they were young, and we scattered our daughter's ashes a few hundred yards offshore from Cape Point. After Paige's death in 1993, we moved to the beach in Wilmington, NC and our trips to the Banks stopped. We returned in September of this year in our camping trailer, the first time in 27 years. This trip reminded us of what drew us there in the first place and of our ties with the Outer Banks.
About as socially distant as it gets
We will be in the same place for our entire vacation if all goes well and I plan to post photos as always. I also plan to write about how we are traveling this year and how we have had to adapt. I also plan to include photos and descriptions of Christmas past, taken during our travels. I want to include past trips to remind us all that the world is still out there and it is still an amazing place to see and experience. I want to give us all focus, and hope of a life and adventure on the other side of where we all are now.
Laurie and I are incredibly aware of how blessed we are. We are so lucky to be currently healthy, employed, and able to travel at all. It has been a sobering and humbling year for everyone, and we look forward to a time when we can once again venture into the new and different. I hope you'll join us for the 2020 holiday travel blog.
Stay well everyone.
Laurie and I are incredibly aware of how blessed we are. We are so lucky to be currently healthy, employed, and able to travel at all. It has been a sobering and humbling year for everyone, and we look forward to a time when we can once again venture into the new and different. I hope you'll join us for the 2020 holiday travel blog.
Stay well everyone.