June 2024: Back in the U.S.A! Zurich, Athens, Greek islands, Thessaloniki, and London. It was a lot of fun, but crazy! The logistics of flying 6 people from various parts of the U.S. was challenging. It was 21 flights in total, and nearly two dozen hotel rooms in varous locations. I'm not even mentioning the many ferries and taxis. I was happy to get to London and relax a bit before heading home. We took at least a thousand photos (way to many to post, but several Greece, London, and random after photos are below). Zurich was fun, as always. Greece was an adventure. A lot of people were either suffering from heat stroke or actually dying while we were there. Nichole and I made the mistake of taking a seemingly simple 6 mile run to the St. Nicholas chapel on Kea. We neglected to bring water, and underestimated the heat. We were dying, but not literally. Unfortunately, a guy who was my age went on a short hike and died. Very sad.
In other news . . . we were having a glass of wine on one of the Greek isles and Maddie mentioned that she had been to London 5 or 6 times and hadn’t seen a member of the royal family. I said I had been there at least 30 times (33 after checking all my passports) and same result. So, surprise, surprise. While running toward Kensington Palace in Hyde Park, I encountered a female police officer who was running in the opposite direction. We were the only people on the trail, so it was obvious that she wasn’t chasing anyone. She was in full uniform, including boots, a bulletproof vest, etc. It was pretty hot, especially for London, and she looked tired. I kept running, and I then saw a man and woman who were also coming in the opposite direction. They were both wearing running clothes and were chatting as they ran. The guy was Prince William! He was an inch or two taller than I am, and looked exactly as he does on “the telly” as they say in Britain. They both smiled at me, but didn’t say anything. They kept running in the opposite direction. About a minute later, another female officer came running along. She was dressed the exact same as the officer who was in the lead, and she too looked pretty tired. That’s it. After 33 visits, I finally saw a member of the royal family. Over to you Maddie!
[Update]: Many people have asked if the woman running with William was Kate. No. She appeared very fit, and was much shorter than William, but she was definitely not Kate.
