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Christmas is coming

When I was a child I remember thinking that a year was an interminable length of time. The distance from one Christmas to the next was much longer than a year. It was eons. Eons times infinity. To the power of infinity. Well, maybe it wasn’t that bad. But the length of time far exceeded my patience and attention span. But now I must be reaching the other end of the aging spectrum, but I feel…

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Sittingbourne Speedway - Women Riders World Relay event

Sittingbourne Speedway – Women Riders World Relay event

After the fantastic day at the Ace Cafe in London, Livi (one of our bad ass Admins) and her partner Sebo give the three American Admins a ride to Sittingbourne to our hotel for the night. It’s already well after dark. We are heading to the track in the morning for some riding, and possibly racing.

Of course some fantastic conversation, imbibing and Moto talk follows, along with a slice of…

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And so it begins - Women Riders World Relay

And so it begins – Women Riders World Relay

The dream that was born in August of last year became a reality on February 27, 2019. Hayley Bell started both the idea for a round-the-world relay ride for women motorcyclists, and the ride itself at John O’Groats Scotland in the UK that day.

Dozens of riders took turns carrying the baton that will hopefully make its way through more than 80 countries over the next year before it makes its way…

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My next big adventure

My next big adventure

After 25 years of working in the hospitality industry for a handful of companies, I’ve finally decided to make the leap from hotel manager to hotel owner. Well, motel owner to be exact.

I’ve been dreaming and talking about having a place of my own for more than a decade. And now I finally do. It’s a small place, an antique (having been built in 1937), and it needs tons of work. I mean TONS of…

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Tanzanian Cooking Class

After spending a few days in Serengeti National Park and the Ngorongoro Crater, we all look forward to a relaxing day by the pool back in Arusha. (Little do we know how long it will take us to get back to the city, and our day turns into an evening cocktail hour by the pool followed by a relaxing morning before we catch our bus back to Nairobi.)

I always enjoy watching the world go by from the…

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Ngorongoro Crater, Tanzania

The full moon casts its glow over the plains of Tanzania and the highlands of the Ngorongoro Crater most of the night. My bed is perched just inside the glass domed viewing platform of our room on the crater rim. Half an hour before sunrise I wake to the periwinkle and salmon glow of the approaching dawn, peer outside at the Cape buffalo and roll over and go back to sleep.

Sylvester takes us…

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Serengeti National Park

During the night we hear lions roar not far from camp. They’ve been hunting. Our hosts bring tea to the tent and give us a wake up “call” by standing on the path outside our tent and softly saying “Good morning”. They’ve brought two thermoses, one with coffee for Sharon and another with hot water for me to make tea. We slip on our socks and go sit under the awning to experience the start of the…

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Into Tanzania and the Serengeti

Into Tanzania and the Serengeti

We thought a week in Africa wasn’t quite enough to see all the gorgeous landscapes and wildlife, so we opted to push back our departure date on our flights. We made arrangements with Base Camp Tanzania, a tour company out of Arusha, to spend a few more days in Tanzania.

A shuttle takes us from our hotel in Nairobi to a local transport depot where we board a small bus with locals for our half day…

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Elephants and Giraffes

Animals make me happy. And rescued animals make me even happier. We have two special stops in Nairobi that Heather and I are super excited about.

Part of our guided tour includes a stop at Giraffe Center on the outskirts of Nairobi in Karen. It’s adjacent to the world-famous Giraffe Manor. Guest who stay in their luxurious rooms have the incredible experience of opening their room windows during…

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”I had a farm in Africa...”

”I had a farm in Africa…”

Karen Blixen wrote those as the first few words of her autobiography, Out of Africa. Her book was made into a movie starring Meryl Streep in the 80s, and it’s been my favorite movie since the first time I saw it.

If you’re a fan of the movie, or of Karen Blixen’s writing or personal story, you may recognize the house shown in the following photos. Karen’s farm at the time she lived there nearly…

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Masai Mara

During the night we hear lions roar not far from camp. Masai warriors stand guard near our tents.

In the morning, the glow in the sky is incredible. I’m so excited for the day that I can’t sleep, so I get up early to see the sun rise.

Cape buffalo graze 100 meters from our breakfast tent and watch is warily. The Masai carry spears as they walk us from our tents to any of the areas of camp.

We…

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Bound for Masai Mara

Bound for Masai Mara

The air is soft and light on my skin as we walk from our rooms to breakfast. Our dozen gathers to eat before we climb aboard the Landcruisers and make the journey to Masai Mara about 5-6 hours away.

Traveling overland is by far my favorite way to see the world. Being a passenger rather than a driver affords me the luxury of a few hours of viewing local life as we drive. Kenya is a wonderful place…

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Lake Elmenteita, Kenya

From Naivasha we take a day trip to Lake Elmenteita to view more animals. Shepards watch over their herds while they graze in the fields along the highway. Olive baboons forage for food closer to the road.

We stop at the Sunbird Lodge along the way for a view of the lake and a cold beverage.

We enter Soysambu Conservancy from the highway and stop briefly to put the top up on the Landcruiser.…

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Into Africa

Heather, Sharon and I are off on another adventure. Those smoking hot last minute travel package deals are just too hard to resist. A weekly newsletter listed a great deal for a few days in Kenya including game drives, airfare from the U.S., hotels, meals, guides, etc. and with Heather tracking down a popular safari guide company in Tanzania, we’ve created a nearly two-week adventure at a…

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Riding Round the World

Ever since I crossed south of the United States border and into Mexico, I started to dream of riding over the next border and into yet another unknown land. Each border I crossed as I moved south revealed another culture and another experience for me, and somewhere ahead lay another border that could do the same.

Many motorcycle riders I’ve met have dreamed of circumnavigating the world on a…

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Hideaway Hot Pot in Iceland

Hideaway Hot Pot in Iceland

Somewhere during our eight days of searching Iceland for natural hot springs, Jen and I came across one of the most beautiful places I’ve had the privilege to enjoy. I intentionally left it out of the blog so I wouldn’t disclose its location while sharing this magical little place. It deserves to be sought out by a few people who will respect and care for it while enjoying it, not handed up to…

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Reykjavik

We’ve closed the circle. Late in the afternoon we reach the eastern outskirts of Reykjavik and make our way through one roundabout after another toward the city center.

Jen and I stop at a couple of vintage shops to find some unique souvenirs. Afterwards, we drive up the busy main drag Laugavegur and park a couple of blocks away to walk around the area.

Graffiti decorates alleyways, building…