The opening ceremonies of the 1896 Summer Olympics, the first modern Olympic Games, were held on April 6th in Athens, Greece. The 2022 Winter Games this February are already diluted by the decision of the NHL not to participate. The USA hockey roster will be filled with amateurs and outside leagues. Watching the games, was always a bucket list goal that’s getting more and more likely to never happen. Plus, it could be years before we feel comfortable even traveling through China. The next U.S. site is Los Angeles in 2027, perhaps my last chance to check this off my list, although it’s no longer a burning desire. As a consolation prize, I was at least fortunate to see the Track and Field trials in Eugene last year, 

Crowds, lines, and traffic congestion are no longer tolerable. Even concerts and ball games are becoming a hassle. Cancellations, rescheduling, and security, plus safety and health protocols are taking the fun out of events and travel. So many of our plans have been changed over the last two years, but we keep trying to schedule ahead. This year we’ve laid out plans for the Keys, Singer Island, Indianapolis, the Grand Hotel, Cleveland, Canton, Asheville, Hilton Head, Portland, Alaska, Russia, Japan, and Kauai. I also plan to go to the St. Pete Grand Prix, Spring Training games, and the Oregon Coast -another year of Atlantic-to-Pacific adventures, plus the ocean cruise. There is also more of Florida to see. 

When you start an adventure, there’s never a guarantee that you’ll get to all the destinations. One of our biggest disappointments was the rough waters that prevented us from getting into Olympia, Greece to see the ruins of the original Olympics site. Weather, Fires, and Covid have disrupted many of our travels. In a sense, we’ve been lucky to go anywhere, but Bali, Kaui, Tahoe, Egypt, Australia, Germany, Canada, Spain, Portugal, Russia, Finland, and Norway have been some of the casualties. There may not be time or money to replace these losses, but we’ll give it an Olympic effort.