My Affliction

A friend of mine recently told me of a newly identified condition called "destination addiction".  This need or drive some people have to always have plans to travel somewhere apparently really does have a name; my guess it was probably spawned from all the frustration of travel limitations during the pandemic!  I am more than willing to admit that it is definitely my affliction.  Having had a bit of a depressing start to 2023, it was amazing how, once I'd chatted to another friend about making travel plans for the fall, I started to feel so much better.  It was like a gray cloud had lifted off my psyche.  Apparently, my mental health really is dependent on having airline reservations and destinations planned!  

However, it was clear to me that October was too far away so I started casting about for something to do in the spring.  And, while it is known I am not a big fan of cruises, I also am aware there are times when that form of travel is really the only practical way of seeing certain places.  As cruises go, I was pleased with the Azamara trip I took in the fall - particularly in terms of the number of passengers (under 700), the quality of my stateroom, the service by the crew, the food and other amenities.  So, I started checking out their itineraries for the spring.  One that was of immediate interest was a 12 day cruise that started in Istanbul, visited Bulgaria and Romania then returned to Turkey visiting several ports there before going on to some Greek ports finishing in Athens.  I have been curious about seeing Istanbul for a long time but the opportunity has never come up.  I certainly was interested in seeing Bulgaria and Romania.  So, I decided to book it.  Shortly afterward I did, however, there was that incident in the Black Sea when a Russian fighter jet shooting down the Ukrainian drone.  Within days, Azamara changed the itinerary to eliminate the Black Sea ports; so, Bulgaria and Romania were off the itinerary.  Instead, additional ports in Turkey and Greece were added.  That didn't stop me from continuing with my plan.  Bulgaria and Romania would just have to wait.

The outcome of all this is that I am going to be seeing more of Turkey (to date I have only visited two ports - Alanya and Antalya which I saw on the last cruise) and, as well, visiting some more places in Greece.  At the suggestion of my travel agent, I added a three day guided tour to the region of Cappadocia prior to boarding the cruise ship.  All this is a bit daunting as I will again be a solo traveller; while that usually isn't an issue, this time I will be in places that will be quite foreign to me.  

I leave on April 27th, overnight in Istanbul on the 28th before a flight to Kasmeri in Cappadocia for my private tour.  On May 2nd, I had planned to fly back to Istanbul to start the cruise.  However, last week, I was given the option of taking a "road trip" with my guide instead of flying.  I jumped at that option so I will be seeing the quite a lot of the Turkish countryside on the 7 1/2 hour drive to Istanbul.  Once there, I board the Azamara Pursuit which will stay in port overnight to give passengers the chance to spend a day visiting Istanbul before setting sail.  We start by cruising the Bosphorus Strait before heading for ports in Turkey and Greece including Canakkale, Cesme, Ephesus, Rhodes, Kavala, Thessaloniki, Volos, and Mykonos.  We finish by docking in Piraeus (Athens) for a night before disembarking.  Every port will be new to me, except for Athens; so, needless to say, I am quite excited - and also a bit intimidated.    

So, the bottom line to all this is that I have decided to totally embrace this "condition" I have and, now that I know what it is, I plan to keep sane by regularly feeding this "destination addition" of mine!  My gypsy soul is happy again.

Thankfully, another potential mental issue I recently read about on Facebook doesn't apply to me, at least currently.  It's called Notriphobia - the fear of not having any trips booked.  Whew!  Dodged that one for now.

Stay tuned.  I will update the blog as often as I can starting sometime after April 29th.  Thanks and I hope you enjoy the posts!