Repack Your Bags! New Horizons Ahead!

These are the stories of nine countries battling the COVID pandemic, which brought travel to a screeching halt for almost three years and destroyed the livelihoods of people who depended on tourism.

Just as Antarctica approved the post-COVID return of cruises and expeditions, the number of visitors hoping to travel the Drake Passage to and from Antarctica plummeted after a rogue wave killed one American woman and severely destroyed a Viking cruise ship on December 1, 2022.

But I never anticipated nor wished for a front-row seat to war on October 7, 2023, at 8:15 AM, when the first sirens went off in Jerusalem and missiles flew above our hotel.

Travel is my passion. As the oldest girl in a family of 12 children, I needed to wander if I hoped to escape my siblings and parents. Early photos document me in the backyard wearing nothing but a diaper (if that) and gazing longingly at neighbors' hedges, roses, and woods—no doubt wondering what was beyond. Later in life,

Anthony Bourdain significantly influenced my passion for travel. He gladly immersed himself in the culture of every country he visited, trying mysterious food and drink, participating in every activity, and asking challenging questions. He was a brilliant author, chef, and traveler—always ready with a quick quip—but also struggled with demons. His suicide on June 8, 2018, at the age of 61, caught so many of us by surprise, especially those like me who thought he had everything one could wish for.