Pre-flight Amsterdam to Seattle checklist: Phone, wallet, glasses, passports, tickets, boarding passes, masks, sanitizer, proof of vaccination, Negative Covid test results, and Combined Passenger Disclosure and Attestation to the United States of America Form. Wait. What?

 We finished our 2021 Senior Nomad travels in Lagos, Portugal last week, and we were happy to be heading to Seattle in time to celebrate Thanksgiving. And frankly, we were tired of patting ourselves down to be sure we had whatever we needed to continue border-hopping through Europe.

 Not that anyone should feel sorry for us. Every day we count our blessings that we are healthy and able to travel, but heading “home” for a bit also felt great. And with the current news of another, highly contagious Covid variant on the move, we may have escaped lockdown in a foreign country by a hair from Santa’s beard.

 In early fall, we spent a month in Turkey where it felt like Covid was on the back burner. Certainly in the small village of Gumusluk, where the locals assured us “There is no Covid here!” and acted like it. In Istanbul, masks were required, and you needed to prove you were vaccinated to use public transportation or attend events, but the streets were crowded with tourists and locals alike, and life seemed pretty normal.

 From Turkey, we headed to France. They didn’t require a Covid test as long as we could prove we were vaccinated - and even though our flimsy vaccine cards raised a few skeptical eyebrows they sufficed to get us into the country. They were required in museums and indoor restaurants, and masks were required in all the usual places.

 We packed a lot into the three + weeks we spent in the South of France. Our first stop was Nice, a city we looked forward to exploring for a second time. We were there six years ago when our pregnant daughter and her 2 and 4-year-olds joined us from their home in Paris. It was fun, and we enjoyed a week of sunny days there, but needless to say we didn’t have a chance to appreciate the city's cultural offerings.

 We took a free walking tour of course, and learned some interesting history and discovered several intriguing side streets. We were surprised at the end of the tour with a climb up 350 stairs to a fort overlooking the city. The views were worth it.

 We visited The Beaux-Arts Museum and the Massena museum; both housed in former mansions. One showcased what life was like for Napoleon and his powerful brother who lived there and the other focused on Bourgeois life in the early 1900s. The Museum of Modern and Contemporary Art was impressive - although once again we scratched our heads wondering how some things end up on museum walls instead of the scrap heap. 

 I especially loved the architecture throughout the city. I couldn’t take enough pictures of intricately wrought-iron balconies, garlands of floral plasterwork, and serene statuary. Our Airbnb was on the top floor of a rather plain building in comparison. But it was big, and comfortable and had a large balcony that looked toward the sea.

Unfortunately, when we got off the Tram from the airport I realized we’d left a canvas tote bag behind. It had some expensive snacks, all the spices I’d bought in Turkey, and a new Pashmina inside, but more importantly our only jackets. Our host did her best to try and track it down, and we returned to the airport Lost and Found ourselves, but it never turned up. That hasn’t happened in a long time - and with our “No-Fault on Travel Day” policy firmly in place, we’ll never know which of us neglected to count the bags before we boarded the tram - a cardinal Senior Nomad rule when getting on and off any form of transportation.

After a week we took a leisurely train from Nice to Avignon. And yes, we counted our bags. Our Airbnb had a beautiful outdoor garden patio so it was also easy to bask in the autumn sunlight and read with a glass of wine. But there was enough to see over two weeks that we mixed days out with days at home.

We also toured the impressive the Palace of the Popes and enjoyed the eclectic collection of paintings at the Angladon art museum. We also walked to the neighboring village of Villenveau; it was movie-set perfect. Another highlight was a day trip to L’ Isle-sur- Sorgue for their renowned Sunday market. It filled several blocks of the city! I bought a sweater and we had an excellent lunch overlooking a canal.

On a Sunday morning we discovered Simple Simon Tea House a French take on a British institution. Their brunch menu was beautifully written out on a chalkboard as only the French can do, and the list of offerings was so long that we decided it would be more food than we could eat, so we almost passed. Then we saw them bring “brunch” to a table of outdoor diners and realized you got everything all at once served in petite portions on an antique platter. I wish I’d taken a picture because it was delightful and delicious. The Rose wasn’t bad either.

The next leg of our journey took us to Perpignan - a small city on the Mediterranean near the Spanish border. Our cozy Airbnb overlooked a busy food court and market. It was nice to just wander across the street and graze for lunch - but at night it turned into a jam-packed bar scene. We’ve gotten used to city noise over the years so it didn’t really bother us, but light sleepers beware.

 Michael was able to attend a professional Rugby match while we were there and he had a great time. Near the end of our stay, we found a concert that was a “Senior Nomad Moment” (Not be confused with I-can’t-remember-your-name senior moments) These are times when we find ourselves in just the right place at just the right time to experience something we’d never see or do if we weren’t on this journey.

 Remember our tip to always look at the posters in shop windows or church bulletin boards? Often times you’ll find local concerts, plays, flea markets, and other small events that don’t show up in web searches or at the tourism office. In this case, we found a free one-night performance by the “We Are All Bach” choir at a beautiful cathedral. We attend a lot of concerts in churches, so why did this one make the list? Mostly the charismatic conductor. Even though every word he spoke was French we could understand his passion for youth and music just from his expressions. And the twist was the concert was interactive. He taught the audience how to sing portions of one of the songs and we all participated with gusto!

 We took a short but very scenic train ride along the coast to the seaside village of Collioure. This sleepy little fishing village has become a travel media darling in the past few years and it deserves its accolade. It looks like something out of a painting - maybe because it has been painted by several famous artists.

Our time in France came to an end on the last day of October. We were able to take one train all the way from the South of France to Ghent, Belgium where we met Mary and all three, now much older children for a week in Antwerp. Her husband Gregoire was giddy at the idea of a week on his own. We found an Airbnb big enough for us all across from a huge park filled with kids' play areas. It was also close to a tram line that took us to the center of town in ten minutes.

 The reason for a rendezvous in Ghent was to attend The World Choir Games. Michael and I attended this bi-annual event in Riga, Lithuania several years ago and remember it as being magical. In this case, with Covid reducing the number of choirs and more events with entry fees it wasn’t the same. We did attend a few free concerts and the kids, now 7, 9, and 11 did their best to sit through them.

 The winner of Best Activity Ever was a visit to Chocolate Nation - a museum experience dedicated to the history and making of Belgian chocolate (including some of the darker moments). Mary was skeptical at first, and rightly so. It could have easily been a tacky tourist trap with a gift store twice as big as the museum, but it was the opposite. Not only was it educational, interactive, and fun, near the end you could taste 15 different chocolates by the sipping-spoonfuls from self-service vats. And, you could go back as often as you needed to be sure you liked the Golden over the Ruby or the Deepest Dark over the creamy White. I think that will be a lasting memory for the kids. And us!

 We said goodbye to the family and left for Lagos, Portugal where we spent the final two weeks of our 2021 Senior Nomad travels. In our former life, we were sailors, and I often say “I miss our boat more than our house.” So whenever we can stay near a marina (or on an Airbnb boat) we jump at the chance.

So when we found this Airbnb in the heart of the Lagos Marina we couldn’t have been happier. We were on the top floor of the building with a wrap-around deck that overlooked a sea of sail and powerboats. And all the tourist boats left from there - so even in November boats were coming and going.

 After the previous weeks of fairly intense travel (with children thrown in for good measure) we were ready to relax in the sun without an agenda, so another benefit of this Airbnb was the use of the very nice pool at the hotel next door. It was too cold to swim but warm enough to loll around on the lounge chairs like a couple of sea lions.

There was a great supermarket nearby, and fish is so affordable in Portugal that I was able to oven roast a whole Dorado, steamed fresh Mussels in White Wine, and serve up Pomegranate Molasses Glazed Salmon. The deli had the most delicious whole roasted chickens slathered in Piri-Piri (a piquant, vinegar-based chili sauce) and really interesting bread. And for those wine-drinking nomads who have been to Portugal, you know just how good and affordable the wines are.

 The village of Lagos itself was also nice. Less touristic, I think, than some of the other Algarve destinations, but it was hard to tell in mid-November. We enjoyed a fun free walking tour with an Aussie ex-pat and did some nice long walks ourselves. We especially enjoyed the walk to the lighthouse where we could watch huge swells of water crash in and out of the caverns below. There is a nice beach near the marina as well, so we may have lounged around some of the time - but we also got our steps in.

 A highlight of our stay in Lagos was the chance to have lunch and then a coffee date with fellow Senior Nomad Facebook Group members  Shawn Johnson and Neil Christensen. It is always a pleasure to meet fellow nomads to exchange stories and travel tips.

 We got our covid tests, gathered our forms, and left Lagos with a fond farewell. Now we're catching up with friends and family in Seattle until we leave for a very rare all Campbell Family Christmas in Palm Springs. Even the French contingent will be there!

 I’ll be back with “The Best of our 2021 Bookshelf” blog right after the new year. Enjoy your holidays wherever you are, and stay safe.

 Thanks for following along,

Debbie and Michael

The Senior Nomads