Reverb10 :: Try

I've decided to be a part of Reverb10. It's a 31-day blogging challenge where you reply to the daily writing prompts that are designed to get you to reflect on this past year as well as provide some insight for the upcoming year. I'm going to give myself 5-7 minutes for each post.

Day 18 :: December 18, 2010 :: Try

• What do you want to try next year? Is there something you wanted to try in 2010? What happened when you did/didn't go for it? (Author: Kaileen Elise)

2010 was good for me in regards to today's prompt - trying to travel more and see the world after spending the bulk of my life in the U.S.

Since moving to Cairo, I've traveled around Egypt quite a bit. That was my plan for my first year. I went to Siwa, Alexandria, the White Desert, Sharm el Sheikh, Dahab, Mount Sinai, St. Katherine's, Rosetta and Luxor.

Fort Qaitbey in Alexandria, Egypt (Nov, 2010)

But now, I'm trying to venture out and see more of the region. I went to Kuwait in October and had a really nice time. Then last month, I took my first European vacation and spent nine days in Italy: Rome, Sienna, Cinque Terra and Milan. So refreshing.

Someone asked me if these were places on my 'bucket list'. No, but in terms of proximity, I've got it made and I need to take advantage of that.

I'll start 2011 with a Nile Cruise in mid-January. We'll fly to Aswan, take a quick trip to Abu Simbel and then cruise from Aswan to Luxor. Other than that, I've considered a tour of Europe in June. Possibly Turkey next summer too. Oh, and I'll probably go back to Italy. I already miss that good Italian food.