San Francisco East Bay Travel Group Meeting - Nov 12, 2022

Note that I've postponed the in-person meeting by one week as I have delayed my return from Denver by one week to help my brother with a massive yard project.

Please let me know if you'll be able to make the in-person meeting. I will be there, regardless, because I love going to that little cafe and pretending I'm in Paris!

Diane, Carol and TexasTravelMom - please let me know if you have photos to share.

I propose this Travel Topic and am open to other ideas, for this and future meetings.

When did you get bit by the travel bug? What is one of your favorite early travel memories, whether from childhood or as an adult?

Love the topic! And I want to be sure diveloonie starts us off! I still want those gorillas…..

I could share photos like I did last time; but if Carol will be there and has time, she will do a better job with Poland.

And I will miss you on Dec. 3, but will be on the plane that day. :)

Oh yes, we will start with gorillas! I've never once seen a gorilla in my travels :-)

Depending on who has photos (and who doesn't yet, like me) we may split Portugal and Poland across multiple meetings.

And I will miss you on Dec. 3, but will be on the plane that day. :)

Wait, what?!? You won't be calling in from the plane??? ;-)

I will be at both November meetings. Looking forward to both!

Hope to be at both. I'm not sure I would do a better job than TTM but I will put together a presentation on beautiful Poland.

I will be there (virtually). Going to try to share video along with pictures fingers crossed.

I can be at one of the meetings only I'm afraid. Dead keen though. Please let me in.

When did you get bit by the travel bug?

way early. I may have a coupla pics if I can scan them...

Count me in for Nov 12 online.
When did you get bit by the travel bug? What is one of your favorite early travel memories, whether from childhood or as an adult? - Great future topic!

Now Nigel, that's a great idea! A couple of pics of our early travels. I'll see what I can dig up and I hope others will as well!

I'll be there for the Nov. 12 meeting. Love the topics!

Oh, what a fun idea! I can come up with a couple.

Please add me! I’ll try and have photos ready. The key word is “ try”. I’ll keep the number down to a few of the more interesting photos. Wish me luck!

I found a couple of pictures of my very first trip to Europe. Oh my, the things I did back then :-)

November 10th: I checked the weather for our meeting in Walnut Creek - sunny and 65!!

November 12th: I've just sent the meeting link to everyone who expressed interest above. There is plenty of room for anyone (local or not) who would like to join.

Hi. I don’t have any travels to share but I would love to hear about others’ travels (& see photos if available). Thanks.

Hi Valerie, I"ve just sent a message with the meeting link. So glad you'll be joining us!

November 10th @ 1pm in person:
The weather in Walnut Creek on Thursday will be sunny and 58. I'll be there, outside.

November 12th @ 11amPT online:
Everyone who has expressed interest, above, should have the link in your messages.

There is plenty of room at both meetings for anyone, local or not, who would like to join.

I would like to join on Nov 12 - looking forward to Tammy's photos after hearing her trip report Sunday night.

I'll be in Budapest for Christmas markets on Dec. 3 so maybe I can join then as well.

Hi Chani, I've just sent a message with the meeting link. Glad you'll be joining us for the long-awaited Gorilla trekking photos!!

November 10th @ 1pm in person:
Looking forward to talking travels tomorrow in Walnut Creek! If I'm not at a table outside, I've probably stepped inside to place an order.

November 12th @ 11amPT online:
There's still room for anyone who would like to join online.

I had a nightmare this morning:

It's the last day of a Rick Steves tour and everyone is up and bustling around super early -- I'm confused and sleepy. We have to go by 2:35am! Why? No one will stop to talk to me, and I just expected to follow the group, not make my own plans. I find the guide, who is sitting on a bench against the side of the building with Rick himself, chatting and laughing together. I have to get her attention and ask what is going on, and she looks at my paperwork, which I can't make sense of, and goes into an explanation that I also can't make sense of -- something was going on at the airline or the airport maybe, and the plans had to change? She says that the seat I have listed is a good one, which is lucky because the flight/trip (?) has been reinstated so I can just go ahead as originally planned. I don't understand it or the map that shows the regional connections and describes the options for what to do when the tour ends. Clearly she and Rick are relaxed while waiting but for what -- a bus? a taxi? Where are they going?

The only name that sticks in my ear from the dream is Trondheim,
and when I woke up I assumed that was in Germany and had to look it up -- oh, maybe Norway is why it wasn't dark in the dream at 2:30 in the morning?

Very disturbing - not least because I usually do my own planning and research and don't depend on following the crowd.

Well, avirosemail, on the one hand, at least you're thinking about traveling. But you're supposed to be dreaming, not nightmaring!

It sounds like it's time for you to plan a trip to somewhere that is very comfortable for you, so that you can get your travel legs back under you! A favorite city or region?!?

I hate those kinds of dreams!

Yep, maybe your subconscious is telling you it’s time to start planning. (Or going)

It was great fun meeting in person today, comparing travel stories of Turkey and Portugal, and seeing Carol's newest travel photo book from their trip to Poland, plus Barbara N's fall color photos.

Looking forward to seeing everyone online on Saturday and hearing more of the stories!

PS - I found my parking garage ticket so I didn't have to mortgage my house to get out.

Hooray! Hope it wasn't too much trouble. Next time maybe have Farrah hold it :)

Hah funny, Farrah probably could have hung on to it! I thought it might have dropped out of my ever-so-secure back pocket in the cafe. It did. And although they'd closed, they were still there to let me in to get it. Phew!

Looking forward to our meeting tomorrow and swapping more travel stories.

If anyone would still like to join, I will check this thread until 30 minutes prior to the meeting time and can send the link.

ETA: don't forget your "first travels" stories!

Good morning! Last call to join is at 1030am PT.

See you all online in a few hours!

Last call at 10:30am PT!

A reminder for new travelers joining us for the first time, please log into your free Zoom account prior to clicking on the meeting link that I sent you via private message. Otherwise, our meeting security setting will not allow you to access the meeting.

Absolutely bummed to have missed this. I only discovered my internet was out about 10 minutes before you started and only got reconnected nearly 2 hours later.

Chani, so sorry that we missed you. Oh dear, hopefully we'll catch you next time!

Thanks to CWsocial for bringing us together so we could hear such great stories of travels from the previous century, and some exciting travel up to the present minute as well :-)

Yes, thanks to Catherine and to Avi for coordinating this meeting. From gorilla babies (so cute) to travel stories from times past. Such interesting and fun stories! What a group!

Adding my thanks to Catherine and the presenters!

what a good time we all had!! Thanks to all....

I love hearing about everyone’s travels! Looking forward to Portugal next time if I can work it out at all!

Thanks, CW & avi and presenters!

Chani, I wondered what happened to you! Bummed you missed it.
Thank to the hosts Avi and Catherine and Carol for a great presentation on Poland. Good grief my travel list just gets longer!
I hope that someday in the future I can attend a in person meeting! Wouldn’t that be fun!

Thanks to Avi for helping me after the meeting with my photo issue. I apparently had a function locked in my zoom settings.

Hooray! Looking forward to your pictures next month. And maybe CWsocial's if they're ready.

Let's not count our zoom screen-sharing chickens before they're hatched :-)
There are plenty more ways that these machines can trip us up hiding under the hood.

Tammy, yes, that would be fun!

Avi, could that thought account for your nightmare?

Tammy, that’s on my agenda as well!