Day 0 minus 100
On a warm summer evening in the New Year, Gray asks me what I want for my birthday this year. “It’s a special one so we need to do something special to celebrate, don’t you think?”
I think for a moment, then say with a grin , “How about a trip around the world in 70 days, a day for each year!” I shouldn’t really joke when it comes to travel, as Gray needs no encouragement at all to be off and away.
So, it is decided. We begin to plan our Trip Around the World for 70 years. We decide that trying to fit into exactly 70 days may place too many constrictions on us. We begin planning what we really want to do.
The first view is, Europe. We love France, so it is obvious that we’d want to go there again. England is another obvious choice as Gray still has some family there. We wonder about Scandinavia as we have been enjoying watching some Danish TV series. And are intrigued to find out more. Maybe we could travel by train from Paris through Brussels up through Holland. The possibilities for a great trip are endless.
After many long, excited discussions I decide that I need a notebook to jot down all the possibilities for us to mull over. We use the net for most of our research as well as listening to friends about their recent trips.
Many mornings over breakfast Gray says, “Now, this is just an idea, not set in concrete, but have you thought…?” Sometimes I enthuse and rush for the notebook and other times I mutter that my notebook is looking pretty scruffy with all the cross outs. There are pages titled Final, final, final plans by the time we’d start any bookings.