Russia

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When I was 15 years old my mother took my sister and I on a train trip to visit our grandmother in Iowa. It was early in the morning when the train made a prolonged stop in Omaha, Nebraska. Being from southern California, I was used to warm weather, lots of cars, buildings, brown hillsides, and smog. When my mother gave me permission to get off the train and explore for a while, I raced to a bridge above the train station and gazed out at the river below, the blue sky, and the greenery for as far as the eye could see. I was in a different world and have never forgotten that feeling of excitement in discovering someplace new. I also met a number of characters on that train who were completely different from others in my limited experience. Ever since that time I have always been thrilled to see a new place or meet some interesting person. It can be around the corner or around the world, the thrill is still there.

Now that we have retired, my wife Trisha and I have more time to devote to this passion for meeting new people and visiting new places. We have just returned from a wonderful four week travel adventure which took us to many new and beautiful locations in Alaska, Russia, Japan, and numerous cities and historic sites in China.

We would have to write another book to fully describe all the wonderful people we met and incredible places we visited. Rather than do that, let me share a few of the nearly 1,300 photos taken by Trisha with her new camera. In future blogs I will share more of our adventure, but here is a small sample.