Woo Hoo... I have Blue Dots!

Have you ever noticed that to accomplish something like weight loss you need to have a goal or deadline, like a class reunion, wedding or maybe a vacation to a tropical island in place?

For me of course the deadline is a booked vacation since I am in a constant state of “looking” for an adventure. The world map in my office is covered with various colors of dots…red dots are places I have visited, green dots are places I have been but haven’t really visited, generally representing long layovers sometimes even twenty-four hours in an airport! Yellow dots are dream destinations, maybe “someday destinations” “Bucket List trips.” But the blue dots are currently planned and booked trips.

Blue dots are motivators; they make me think about how I am going to look in all of those vacation pictures, especially if it is a tropical bathing suit vacation!!

They are a source of forward thinking. They make me think about organizing my daily life while I am not living a normal daily life.  Organizing items like household bill payments, mail delivery, pet care and in my case parental care.

Blue dots also make me consider emergency preparedness and safety. (For more info see Blog dated 8/29/11) What would I have done if I hadn’t left Thailand when I did, just three weeks before the devastating tsunami? Or had been in the blinding sandstorm that occurred in Sydney just a few days before we arrived? Or had been a victim of the massive earthquake that shook China, just days after we left? Would I have had enough of life’s essentials to survive for at least several days?

Having “Blue Dots” also tends to put people in a happier frame of mind, “a vacation,” “time off of work,” time to have fun often with family and friends. Just thinking about it makes us happy, yet statistics verify that most Americans do not use all of their entitled vacation time! That is just crazy… or maybe it causes you to go crazy!!

So generally speaking having a “Blue Dot” or two or three or… in your life is a very good thing!

We have just observed Earth Day but did you really celebrate or was it just another day for you? Did you really think of and appreciate its magnificence and diversity? Or did you just accept it as another ordinary day?

Our earth is the only home we will ever have. We cannot get married and move away or change jobs and move on to another place. We also cannot take a vacation from it so we had better enjoy what we have; and since we can’t move on we need to protect it.

Have you ever explored the depths of its oceans and marveled at its unique creatures? From the endangered manatee to the feared great white sharks the ocean is a constant source of entertainment; it is so much more than any DVD. And we do have several oceans to choose from you know.

Then there are the magnificent mountain ranges located on several different continents. Climbing one of those, even halfway to the summit is a far greater high than can be experienced with drugs or alcohol. Even more thrilling is climbing an active volcano!

Our “home” provides us with the hottest of hot and the coldest of cold. The bitter cold of the Arctic is in vast contrast to the heat of our earth’s deserts.

Regardless of where you claim is your “home” it truly is just a residence because in reality we all share the same home, Earth, so treat it as such. Be proud of your “home”, protect it and take care of your assets, as you would your residence. I am sure most people don’t throw their garbage around their yard or think that someone else will take care of it for them. For many bigger or more is better, wanting to “super-size” but what we need to do is “reduce, reuse and recycle.”

After all you may want to pass your “home” on as an inheritance to your children and grandchildren.

We have all heard and read about a bucket list of things to do before we die but recently I read an article about eleven things to hear before you die. According to Wanderlust the list includes the sound of the dunes, a howler's call, the call to prayer, absolute silence, the humpbacks ballad, prayer flags flying, the rumble of a volcano, an intrigue birdsong, the whip of a dive, spluttering ice and a mighty bat migration.

Per this list I have been fortunate to hear several. I have heard the very vocal Howler monkeys calling out at 4 A.M. in Costa Rica. I also heard the rumblings of Arenal Volcano while there.

I have heard the peaceful yet mesmerizing Muslim call to prayer while staying on the small islet of Layang Layang Malaysia.

While scuba diving in the Dominican Republic I heard the high pitched underwater symphony of the humpbacks off in the distance, just hearing your own breathing underwater is also a unique experience.

I have listened carefully to the splintering of ice as it crunched beneath my feet as I walked across the ancient glacier.

There are a few other sounds of travel that are memorable for me. The sound of molten hot lava crackle as it cools rolling down the side of a volcano in Guatemala cannot be forgotten. And the tinkling of the temple bells in Chiang Rai prompted me to buy a set for myself. The crashing of the waves off of the distant reef in Rarotonga makes me miss the salt air. The thunderous roar of water falling as you stand at the base of Niagara Falls is a reminder of the strength of nature.

Yet there are other sounds that hopefully everyone will someday hear and maybe be fortunate enough not to travel to do so. The sound of your grandchild call you your special name....Gaga, Mimi, Nana, Mema or whatever the first time is certainly one of the highlights of one’s life.

So don't just open your eyes to our amazing world, keep your ears peeled too.

Coffee is the third most popular beverage in the world behind water and tea. I started drinking coffee as a pre-teen when I would spend my summers working on my grandparent’s farm.  As my beverage of choice I continue to drink coffee through most of the day.

I am not a coffee connoisseur but as a world traveler I have had the wonderful pleasure of tasting coffee on various continents and prepared various ways.

In the Dominican Republic and in Peru coffee is served more like thick congealed syrup with water then added to taste. For me in the Dominican Republic it was about 1/8 coffee to 7/8’s of water. It was also there that a friend showed me the consequences of chewing coffee beans… an endless amount of energy, energy to an extreme. Sadly in Peru there just wasn’t enough water to help me get their thick coffee down!

While in Costa Rica a country well known for its coffee I couldn’t understand why the coffee was never ready when the restaurants opened in the morning? Didn’t the locals know North Americans can’t function without their morning coffee? When it was finally brewed it was rich and flavorful. While there I also purchased a traditional wooden coffee maker just in case they never got around to making the morning coffee!

In Bali while visiting one of several coffee plantations I had the opportunity to assist with the roasting process, stirring beans in a cast iron pan over an open aired wood fire. It was hot tedious work and made me appreciate my coffee all the more!

While in Bali I also paid for a sample cup of Kopi Luwak, AKA Civet coffee, Ca-ca coffee, Monkey Butt coffee or Cat Poo coffee. Kopi Luwak, is known as the world’s most expensive coffee is made from ripe beans that have passed through the digestive system of a civet. And yes it was good, exceptionally good, so smooth but far too expensive for my lowly budget to purchase a measureable amount. (Kopi Luwak is mentioned by Jack Nicholson’s character in the movie “The Bucket List.”)

Another interesting point about Balinese coffee is that it is generally served as a powder. Coffee powder is poured in to a cup, hot water is poured in and you swirl the two together to brew your coffee. It is not like instant coffee where the coffee essentially dissolves. Needless to say there is always coffee powder at the bottom of your cup.

Sadly much of the coffee served and sold in Bali is grown on the nearby  island of “Java,” hence the nickname!

While in Australia I needed to order a “long black” or in other words American coffee. If I only wanted the small size I ordered a “small long black.” (Got that?)

My favorite coffee thus far is Coban; it comes from the highlands of Guatemala. In Guatemala we watched as coffee beans were laid out on the ground on tarps to dry before it was shelled and shoveled into bags for export.

On our trip to Africa we had a layover in Addis Abba Ethiopia, now talk about coffee! Some people say that Ethiopia is the birthplace of coffee.  According to the National Coffee Association, an Ethio­pian goat herder named Kaldi was the first to realize coffee’s wonders: “It is said that he discovered coffee after noticing that his goats, upon eating berries from a certain tree, became so spirited that they did not want to sleep at night”, so it is not surprising we might find some “good stuff” there. We were only in the airport but that was all we needed to experience their coffee. The entire airport was filled with the aroma of coffee; you could just breathe to get your coffee fix! I did however purchase a kilo and it was magnificent, rich and full bodied. It is running nose to nose or taste bud to taste bud with my beloved Coban. And of course in Kenya I also bought Kenyan coffee, it too has a rich deep favor.

As a coffee drinker, local coffee from where ever, Costa Rica, Brazil, Guatemala, Panama, Bali, Africa or Ecuador must be tried during your travels. Most recently I brought home coffee from the small South Pacific island of Atiu and my daughter brought me home coffee from Italy from her trip there. Both coffees were flavorful, dark and robust. When I am at home and have run out of my favorite coffee or need a hit of a travel memory coffee that I have brought home with me I look to Windward Coffee.

You too can find your favorite coffee with Windward Coffee in Westlake Ohio. Contact Dave, http://windwardcoffee.com  to keep you in supply! If you live locally Dave will deliver it…it may not be freshly brewed but it will be freshly roasted!

            “Life without coffee is like sleep walking
            through your life!”                         ~Unknown

P.S… A new study says coffee can help women lower their risk for depression by as much as 20%, but then world travel helps with that too!!

P.S.S … And I must confess, I have never liked instant coffee, even when I was desperate, but now that Starbucks has VIA I do travel with at least two packets for emergencies! Hey Dave can you supply me with that?

And so we begin the holiest of all weeks for the Christian Faith that cumulates with Easter, the resurrection of Jesus Christ. For the Spanish speaking community the week is known as Semana Santa.

The week is more than just Spring Break from school. It is also more than chocolate bunnies, pretty pastel baskets and colored eggs.

Not being a devout practicing Christian for years Easter meant just that for me...Spring Break, Easter egg hunts and a church service. It wasn't until I spent a vacation in Guatemala during Semana Santa that the magnitude of the week really hit me. It was there in Antigua that I guess I really discovered the strength of one's faith.

The people of Antigua were all encompassed in the week long celebration, everything revolved around the festivities and preparation for Easter. The entire city was decorated for the holiday but it was about their faith not about commercialism.

My understanding is that the Hispanic communities Semana Santa festivities are second only to the activities that are held at the Vatican.

It is a bit late this year but if you want to truly celebrate Holy Week next year, with something more than a trip to the beach consider visiting a city in a Spanish speaking country. I am sure that it will be memorable with something more than a sunburn!