Article about my Road Scholar adventures!

Since I retired in July 2021, I have enjoyed a number of Road Scholar's virtual travel programs through their Adventures Online series. Some of my favorite destinations include Easter Island, Machu Picchu, and even Antarctica! These online programs are offered via Zoom, in three-hour sessions daily over 3-5 days, depending on the program. I really enjoy them, because they're taught by experts in the field, and because it's the closest I will ever get to experiencing many of these exotic places myself.

A few months ago, I was contacted by a Road Scholar employee asking if I would be willing to share my opinions of the Adventures Online programs in detail. I agreed at once, because I've thought for a long time that more people should be aware of these virtual programs. I sat down for an interview with her via Zoom in March, and today I received a copy of the magazine with the article. Naturally I'm thrilled, and very flattered that she took the time to put together such a nice article!

Here's the article in PDF format so you can read it for yourselves. I think she did a good job in capturing my enthusiasm for these programs!

As I mentioned in the article, my first in-person Road Scholar trip, in May 2022, was a program called The Legacy of the Scots-Irish: Historical Migration to Cultural Inspiration, which took place in Montreat, NC, in the mountains of western North Carolina. It was a lot of fun, and definitely a treat for OUTLANDER fans!



You can see my detailed impressions of that trip here:

Part 1
Part 2
Part 3
Part 4

Ever since I went on that first in-person program two years ago, I've found that I really relate to Jenny in ECHO, starting to travel for the first time after Ian's death.

[Jamie] could see her heart in her throat the first time she spoke French to a real Frenchman; her pulse fluttered in the hollow of her neck like a trapped hummingbird. But the boulanger understood her--Brest was full of foreigners, and her peculiar accent roused no particular interest--and the sheer delight on her face when the man took her penny and handed her a baguette filled with cheese and olives made Jamie want to laugh and cry at the same time.

“He understood me!” she said, clutching him by the arm as they left. “Jamie, he understood me! I spoke French to him, and he kent what I said, clear as day!”

[...]

Her head turned to and fro, taking in the vast array of shops and vendors that filled the crooked street, assessing the possibilities now open to her. Butter, cheese, beans, sausage, cloth, shoes, buttons ... Her fingers dug into his arm.

“Jamie! I can buy anything! By myself!”

(From AN ECHO IN THE BONE by Diana Gabaldon, chapter 92, "Independence Day, II". Copyright © 2009 by Diana Gabaldon. All rights reserved.)

Just like Jenny, in the last couple of years I'm finally getting to travel and expand my horizons in ways I never thought possible, after a lifetime spent mostly staying close to home. I'm more or less the same age as Jenny was when she began traveling for the first time, going to America with Jamie. It's exciting, even exhilarating, to have all these new options to explore, and every time I have a successful trip, it gives a big boost to my self-confidence.

I would definitely encourage anyone who's interested to check out the Road Scholar programs, both virtual and otherwise!