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Serendipity – My Third Summer in Santa Fe

Posted on August 13, 2022 by Jo Johnston

And just like that … my summer in Santa Fe is coming to an end. I will miss the beautiful sunsets, the buzz of the hummingbirds and the good times with friends I have met over the past few summers. One of my best friends since high school came to

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Between Cruises
9 comments

And Not an Ocean in Sight

Posted on June 10, 2022 by Jo Johnston

I thought I would be blogging from the deck of a cruise ship this month, after 810 days stuck on land. My plan was to fly with my two sisters to Amsterdam today and board Holland America’s ms Volendam, sailing as far north as Svalbard and as far south as

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Between Cruises
41 comments

If You Feed Them, They Will Come

Posted on September 25, 2021 by Jo Johnston

Sept. 25, 2021, SANTA FE, NM — How can time fly and stand still at the same time? It seems my summer in Santa Fe just started, but in actuality I’ve been here almost four months and will return to Dallas in a week. It’s obvious to blog readers that

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Between Cruises
3 comments

The Saga of the Lonely Hummingbird

Posted on August 20, 2021 by Jo Johnston

Aug. 20, 2021, SANTA FE, NM — The distinctive buzz interrupted my reading. I sat still as the little black hummingbird approached a plant in the desert garden just outside the patio railing. He — or she? — hovered, but didn’t find a bloom. The hummer moved toward the small

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Between Cruises
2 comments

Cruising Plans Still Up in the Air

Posted on July 9, 2021 by Jo Johnston

JULY 9, 2021, SANTA FE, NM — It’s been 473 days since I was last on a cruise ship. It will be another 338 days until I cruise again. That is, if all goes as planned. I’m using a pencil, not a pen. Social media is awash in rumors and

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Between Cruises, General Cruising
16 comments

Ending on a High – 1,483 Feet High

Posted on April 8, 2021 by Jo Johnston

Cruise Flashback; Galveston to Dubai 2013 Dubai, United Arab Emirates; May 21, 2013      APRIL 8, 2021, DALLAS – My strongest take-away from Dubai is that there must be lots more people than I thought with money who have the interest and financial resources to live in modern skyscrapers. As I

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2013 Galveston to Dubai, Cruise Flashback
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There Be Pirates in These Waters

Posted on March 25, 2021 by Jo Johnston

Cruise Flashback; Galveston to Dubai 2013 At Sea; May 15-20, 2013         MARCH 25, 2021, DALLAS – As we left Aqaba, Jordan, in 2013, my cruise was nearing its end. I would get off in our next port, Dubai. It is on the Persian Gulf on the other side of the

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2013 Galveston to Dubai, Cruise Flashback
4 comments

Movies, Books Inspire Travel to Arabia and Beyond

Posted on March 5, 2021 by Jo Johnston

Cruise Flashback; Galveston to Dubai 2013 Petra/Wadi Rum, Jordan; May 14, 2013   MARCH 5, 2021, DALLAS – When I first saw the film Lawrence of Arabia decades ago, the desert environment captivated me. Sure, there was romanticism to the epic story, but I wanted to see the real places where

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2013 Galveston to Dubai, Cruise Flashback
4 comments

Where Have All the Tourists Gone?

Posted on February 19, 2021 by Jo Johnston

Cruise Flashback; Galveston to Dubai 2013 Safaga/Luxor, Egypt; May 13, 2013          FEB. 19, 2021, DALLAS – Among my lasting memories of Egypt are seeing buildings, tombs and monuments that are thousands of years old; evidence of societies that are in some ways very different than my own; and sobering effects

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2013 Galveston to Dubai, Cruise Flashback
15 comments

Suez Canal Transit: Can I Call it a Big Ditch?

Posted on February 12, 2021April 20, 2021 by Jo Johnston

Cruise Flashback; Galveston to Dubai 2013 Suez Canal, Egypt; May 11, 2013 FEB. 12, 2021, DALLAS – There are two great Canals cutting through continents – the Panama Canal and the Suez Canal. They are very different. To cross between the Caribbean and the Pacific through Panama, you must go

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2013 Galveston to Dubai, Cruise Flashback
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