2020 vision

Flashback to New Year’s Eve 2019. “This is going to be a great year” I thought. Milestone birthdays, Charlie and Amy’s wedding celebration, a family once-in-a-lifetime trip to Nepal with plenty of travel in between. Yup, 2020 was going down as a good ‘un.

Psychic abilities nil points.

Still, what a spring and summer. Lockdown may have meant waving goodbye to long anticipated events, but being allowed the freedom to walk locally everyday meant watching the wheat grow, seeing buds burst into blossom and discovering new paths through woods and fields full of flowers.

Covid lockdown brought problems, loneliness and tragedy for many which I am truly sad about. But it also brought traffic free roads, fresh air and a time for contemplation of a new way of living life.

Unfortunately with the lifting of restrictions came an unsatisfactory halfway house. Brilliant to see close family again, but do we really need to be encouraged to “eat out to help out”? We are the fattest nation in Europe, and Covid (plus a myriad of other diseases) likes its victims stuffed full of burgers and pies.

Go back to work in your offices. Why? More pollution, less family time. I had hoped for a new order, a seizing of a chance to do things differently. But no, same old ways but with a mask on.

Oh well, if nothing’s going to change, might as well make the most of it. So here I am, sitting on a plane, on my way to Turkey. A last minute window of opportunity between the weekly government assessment of which countries we can and can’t travel to.

Steve and I have belongings to collect from the sale of our Turkish house a year ago. This has been our first opportunity to get them. It will be strange on many levels, not least that

we won’t be staying in our own house. Although it was definitely time to sell, I loved that house and it was a home from home. Also we have the absurdity of having to wear a mask in all public places – even the beach! Mental.

I will be keeping you updated on the highs and lows of travel during Covid. In the meantime , here are a few photos highlighting the positives of 2020 so far.