10 Memorable Vacation Moments

From Ten on Tuesday, in no order other than what jumps to mind first:

1. Visiting England with my family when I was 14. I stayed at the Olave House one of the four world centers for Girl Guides and Girl Scouts. That was exciting but I it led to a much more exciting opportunity. Long story short, because I was at the Headquarters for the UK Girl Guides in my US uniform I was asked to be an honor guard for HRH Princess Margaret ( younger sister of the queen) I also met Lady Baden- Powell who founded Girl Guides with her husband. My picture was on the front page of the newspaper that went to all guides and the Leader magazine. It was an AWESOME experience.

2. Driving from Denver to LA in my 1975 orange Dodge Colt with 2 friends from graduate school. It was the first time I had gone on vacation with my family. We had a blast. One of the girls was friends with the son of Robin William's manager. We stayed at his house free for a few days. It was so cool.

3. Seeing the apartheid of South Africa first hand. I remember so vividly walking through the streets of Sweato (the black neighborhood) and seeing the poverty and knowing those people had no chance. I almost felt guilty returning to our beautiful "whites only" hotel. This was made even more memorable when the riots that really marked the beginning of the South African civil rights movement broke out a few months later. Watching the destruction on TV of these riots not long after I had walked those streets was something I will never forget.

4. Walking the Great Wall of China.... need I say more ?

5. Visiting the Berlin Wall 6 months after it came down. I stood there and remembered what it had been like when I visited Berlin years before when it was still divided. It was so awesome to take a hammer and chisel and chip off my very own piece of the wall. I love watching freedom spread :)

6. The beauty of Budapest. I have never seen a city more beautiful than this one. The food was excellent, the people nice . Everything was amazing. I want to go back.

7. Being caught in the worst blizzard in 28 years in Queensland, New Zealand on JULY 3. They had something like 28 inches of snow. I ended up buying some unusual souvenirs lambs' wool lined boots and gloves. They were great when I lived in Colorado. I love New Zealand. If I had to live anywhere other than the US it would be NZ.

8. Disney Cruise with my grandmother, parents and daughter. We sailed on July 4 and 2 days later my Grandmother turned 90. It was the last vacation all of us took together. We all had a great time. The cruise director wished her a happy birthday from Mickey during the show that night. She was impressed we were 4 generations traveling together.

9. Staying at TreeTops hotel near Nairobi Kenya. This is a hotel built in a huge tree. visitors have to climb up a ladder to get there and then the ladder is brought up and you are stuck until the next morning. There is a huge deck all the way around . It overlooks a watering hole that attracts all kinds of wildlife. During the night a buzzer goes off in each guest room when new animals are spotted in the area. It is not a fancy hotel but it is so cool. Queen Elizabeth II was staying in the hotel the night her father the king died . She went to bed a Princess and woke up a queen. There is a plaque in the room where she was sleeping that night.

10. Of course I have to list Russia. When I went to Russia to adopt my daughter, I was reminded of a time 28 years earlier that I had also been in Russia. Things were so different in 2001 than in 1973. In 1973 it was all gray and sad.Some day I will write about the things I experienced in 1973 in the Soviet Union. I never imagined I would be back 28 years later, let alone that I would have a daughter from this country. In 2001 it was alive and exciting. People smiled and wore the highest fashions, (at least in Moscow). Seeing the area where my dd was born is something I treasure. I hope to take her back sometime when she is older.