One of the joys of travel has been seeing faces I don’t often have the opportunity to see. My flight from Florida to Buenos Aires went through Houston, so my sister Donna offered to meet up at the airport. I had only a couple hours between flights, and was worried about making it back in time with having to go through security again, so she went into extreme planning mode to make it happen. She arrived several hours ahead, scouted out the location, met me at luggage claim and escorted me through the airport shuttle maze to a suitable place for a bite to eat (which just happened to be at my old stompin’ ground Marriott!) She also brought with her some opłatek, a wafer that is traditionally exchanged in Polish households during wigilja (Christmas Eve). Dziękuję Danusiu, for the meticulous planning to make it happen!

Prior to leaving Fort Lauderdale, where I had the pleasure of staying with new friends Mary and Gary, I also finally got to meet in person another cruise friend Meredith, who has been a text-buddy ever since we both embarked on this cruise mis-adventure, as well as her friend Carole, whose help with getting mail to me on the road was much appreciated. It was lovely chatting with all you ladies!

I’m now in Argentina, where for the next two weeks I will be sharing an AirBnB with 3 new friends. (They are a lively bunch, so no doubt you’ll be hearing more about them in the coming days…) And if all goes according to plan, I hope to catch a few moments with my niece Christina, who will also be in Buenos Aires next week.

Ending the year with lots of friends and family time. Wishing the same for you…