I had hoped to have gotten all the posts related to our past international travels on the blog before we had taken our first “post” pandemic trip; I am not even a quarter of of the way there. The muse hasn’t come around lately so I’ve been in a bit of a writing funk.

What I had really hoped for was walking the Stations of the Cross in Jerusalem or flying over Cappadocia Turkey in a hot-air balloon. But instead we settled for a three-day-two-night staycation on San Juan Island in Washington State instead.

I have about as much enthusiasm for this trip as I had for China. Zilch.

With our financial year end at work in the rear view mirror and a chunk of our state’s population fully vaccinated, we thought it was high time to finally get out and do something. I was thinking a road trip around the Olympic Peninsula or the Columbia River Gorge. Bob, on the other hand, was looking for something a little more sedentary. This was probably prompted by the fact that he would be doing most of the driving.

We had reserved domestic locations, like San Juan Island, for our retirement years. The goal was (and still is, god permitting) to travel the world while we are still mostly physically and cognitively able. A comprise therefore was sorely needed, even if I bitched and moaned the entire time.

One can imagine how I could be slightly disappointed about the trip. Add to that the cost of our lodging and the ferry trip over to the Islands; those two expenses alone were more than all the AirBnbs we had paid for on our most recent trip to Europe. This was so contrary to our style of travel; every nerve in my body was reeling. We would spend in two nights the amount we had spent for nearly two weeks of lodging in Athens and Corfu!

I am probably over-dramatizing so we’ll just chock it up to Pandemic fatigue.

Bob, in his infinite wisdom, thought it a good idea to write a series about how I felt before, during, and after the trip. So here goes Part I, the Prologue.

The San Juan Islands are expensive. Everything we researched (from kayaking, whale watching, bike riding, to eating) costs a pretty penny. The entire time I was looking at things to do on the Island, I kept being reminded that this is why people with dough vacationed here.

The only real low cost attractions I found were hiking through the forest or along the water, reading, or using the jacuzzi; I plan on steering a particular someone toward these budget-friendly alternatives while we are there.