I did it!

Posted on November 15, 2013 by Travel Spirit

Last night I gave an hour-long presentation on a trip I took to Egypt and Jordan back in 2009, to a Travel Meetup club I belong to! Although I was a member of Toastmasters for a while and gave a few five-minute speeches, this was a great accomplishment for me. I wasn’t that nervous and everyone seemed to enjoy it. It probably helped that there were only 9 people there…but for me it was a great feeling! My Powerpoint presentation had 120 photographs that were shot with a point and shoot, but I recently bought Lightroom 5, so I doctored them up some. Now I can’t wait to give presentations on my other epic trips…Peru…SE Asia…and Africa!

To avoid the worst of traffic, I left my house early to drive to Covington, Kentucky, where the event was held, so I had some extra time and decided to practice my photography. These two photographs are of the Cincinnati skyline at sunset.

Here I am in the venue before the presentation. I love the architectural elements of the building…the high ceilings, beautiful woodwork, and large windows.

When you face your fears, anything is possible!

Adobe Lightroom Is A Professional Photographer’s Best Friend (forbes.com)
Lightroom 5.2 (lightfollowers.wordpress.com)
How Toastmasters Club Improves One’s Happiness Quotient (eminenttmc.wordpress.com)
For the Novice: Club Contests Enrich Everyone (talkforchange.wordpress.com)
What’s In It For Me? (firstoaktm.wordpress.com)
Toastmasters International (derekgella.wordpress.com)
3 tips to be awesome! (slideshare.net)

Do we really want to see the sunset?

Posted on February 20, 2012 by Travel Spirit

The 18 days I traveled through Egypt and Jordan with GAP Adventures in 2009, were filled with adventure, excitement and wonder.

Our group of 14 people from across the globe, typically traveled by private van, but we did take a night train from Cairo to Aswan. Here is a map of our route…

This photo is of the back of the Citadel, which was originally built during the 12th Century to be a fortification…a wall surrounding Cairo, but was never completed. It is now a preserved historic site, with mosques and museums.

We wandered through the Khan Al Khalili bazaar. It was an endless maze of sidewalks filled with little shops, selling clothing, jewelry, anything you could think of. It was so colorful and intriguing!

There had been a bombing one month prior to my arrival…a French girl died and others were wounded. Of course my family thought it would be too dangerous to visit…

Our hotel at Mt. Sinai was very nice and the pool looked inviting…but it was too cold to swim. I think the scenery was so simply stark and beautiful!

I was so happy to be able to climb to the top of Mt. Sinai. For those of you who don’t remember the significance of this area. According to the Bible, it is where Moses received the Ten Commandments from God.

It took about 3 hours to reach the top and it was timed so that we could see the sunset. The temperature change was amazing. By the time we reached the summit, it was freezing. We waited about 15-20 minutes to witness the sunset…with my teeth chattering uncontrollably…I’m asking…do we really want to see the sunset?? It was pretty…but we then ran down the mountain, partially in the dark, in about 30 minutes.

I loved this Greek Orthodox Chapel at the top.

The following photo is St. Catherine’s Monastery, which was built in the 6th century and is the oldest continuously functioning Christian monastery in existence. It is built on the site of the original burning bush.

Cats were everywhere!

Our last stop was Nuweiba, Egypt before boarding the ferry to cross the Gulf of Aquaba to Jordan…this was the beach area where our hotel was located…it was eerily deserted!

This little girl was selling jewelry on the beach…but only five people were on the entire beach! We couldn’t speak to each other, but you don’t always need words to communicate. I took her hands and swung her around and around…and we laughed!

Next we’ll explore Indiana Jones’ territory…

A trek through egypt (photos.mercurynews.com)

My Half Marathon in Clayton, Ohio

Posted on October 29, 2011 by Travel Spirit

After some ibuprofen, a hot shower, and a nap, I’m beginning to feel better since jogging my half marathon today! Normally, I don’t get sore after a long jog (the longest before this was 10 miles last weekend), but since it was only 35 degrees this morning, I’m assuming that is why it affected me differently… anyways…it was an experience and I’m glad I did it.

It’s kind of like childbirth, I remember I was wishing it was over a number of times, but looking back, it seemed to go rather quickly. I finished in 2 hrs. 15 minutes, which is the time I predicted, since I normally jog 10 minute miles.

For breakfast, I had whole grain cereal with banana and almond milk, and water. We drove an hour and 10 minutes from a suburb of Cincinnati to Clayton for the race. There was one in town last weekend, but I was out-of-town and there is one this coming weekend, but I’ll be out-of-town again.

This is me pre-race…

My husband took photos of me and although he has many talents/strengths, photography is not one of them. These are the best of the many he took…most of them are blurry. But, I’m not complaining, I was thankful he came to cheer me on! I’m fourth from the left in the photo below. I think there were about 200 people total. I’ll get the results sometime in the next couple of days.

We started about a minute later.

The terrain was beautiful, rolling roads through rural Ohio with pretty trees and farms along the way. When I would get caught up in my head thinking… analyzing…etc., I would look around and be in the moment, thinking I love the feel of the sun warming me (a bit) and thankful that I am able to run (so many people can’t because of being out of shape, past injuries, or worse)! I bought some goo to eat once (at mile 10) for energy. It tastes like chocolate icing. Some people don’t like to take it because of the texture, but it did seem to give me a boost.

The girl next to me in the photo below was beside me for the last 1/2 mile and I told her we could help each other go faster. Anyway, she started to pass me right before the finish line, so I amped it up…that’s why we’re laughing!

Right afterward, I could barely breathe or walk. I’m glad I didn’t stop running the entire time, except for 30 seconds to eat the goo, or I might not have been able to start again!

After stretching some, below is my celebratory photo! Tonight, we’re going to a Halloween party, so a few drinks should loosen me up a bit more! Happy Halloween to everyone and to all a GOOD NIGHT!!

Face Your Fears…Skydive!

Posted on December 23, 2010 by Travel Spirit

Back in 2008, I convinced my son to skydive with me at the Warren County Airport in Ohio. I was nervous…but he was really nervous! I wanted to be an example to him of someone that wants to experience life and face fears! I believe the second photo is of me landing and my son is already on the ground.

It was a great experience…my favorite part was the free fall. I kept my eyes closed while my instructor (who was attached to my back) inched us out of the plane and once out…opened my eyes and loved it! You’ll see in the video that my son, who is 6’9″ tall, is attached to a guy that is about 5’7″! Just click on the following link…then provide your name (you can make one up if you want) and zip code.

via Skydive Video.