It wasn’t until our third cruise aboard Fathom’s Adonia (and multiple visits to the dining room to enjoy their superb cuisine) that I really noticed this quote on the mural located in the dining room lobby.  On every previous dinner visit, we had made a beeline right past it in excited anticipation of the meal we were about to enjoy with our fellow travelers.  During our third night aboard ship, though, we were meeting Fathom Impact Staff Member, Francisco, for dinner.  He was our cohort leader on the previous cruise, and he wanted to hear about the adventures we had experienced at Chocal and Santiago de Cuba during the last cruise, and our return to Santiago that day.

We arrived just minutes ahead of Francisco, and this time, I did a double-take when I walked past the mural.  Indian novelist, Anita Desai struck a chord in my heart with her words…

Francisco and Bruce

I have traveled in 65 countries and 36 states, and all of those experiences have become a part of who I am.  Nothing else has had more influence on me socially, emotionally, intellectually, or politically as my travel experiences.

Feeling and expressing gratitude is one of my keys to happiness in life, and I owe my ability to appreciate to all those times I left the safety and comfort of my home, and familiar surroundings.

Although my husband, Bruce hasn’t had the extent of travel experiences I have, those we have shared have had the same positive effect on his life.  We are in sync, and we both craved to return for one last time for an Impact Travel experience in the Dominican Republic and Cuba with Fathom, aboard the beautiful Adonia.

My last blog post of our second Fathom cruise hadn’t even been written when we both agreed we had to return one last time.

We couldn’t wait to go back to see our new Cuban friends that had become a part of us.

Coming up next: SANTIAGO DE CUBA:  OUR REUNION WITH BENI, EDUARDO, AND GRISEL