I flew from Mexico City to London, a few weeks ago. I did an overnight near Paddington Station. The following day, I caught a train to Cardiff, Wales. It Christmas Day and I thought I should post and give thanks for all of you!

I probably began blogging around the time I began serving in Peace Corps Armenia. There, the holiday is celebrated on January 6th. In fact, all Christian churches celebrated Christ’s birth on January 6th until the fourth century. Armenia, the first country to adopt Christianity as its state religion, around 301 AD, had no pagan holiday, on December 25th. So, unlike other Christian nations, there was no reason to change the date.

After being evacuated from Peace Corps Ethiopia (March 2020) I spent the first ninety days in Honolulu. By the following August, I was in Sitka, Alaska, serving with AmeriCorps. You can’t imagine what Christmas is like in a place that beautiful. The only downside … the bears. There are about 1,050 brown bears on Sitka island. That’s about one bear per square mile. Many bears have grown up eating human garbage. Not every resident in Sitka follows the trash pickup rules and regulations.

My first time in the UK was in November of 1984. I arrived the day before Band Aid recorded “Do They Know It’s Christmas!” I can’t even remember how many times I’ve been in London. I saw my first football match at Emirates Stadium. I made up for it (a few days later) by taking a train from London to Manchester and touring Old Trafford. Fun fact, I joined the Peace Corps, in 1985, after watching the Live Aid concert on television. I could go on and on ….

This is my second time spending Christmas in Cardiff. I didn’t grow up celebrating Christmas and there’s just too much fuss about it, in the USA. Having to explain why you don’t have a tree, why you’re not buying presents, why you don’t want to join “anyone” for Christmas dinner is too exhausting. The picture above was taken at a neighbor’s home. It’s the only photo of me, while growing up, at Christmas. I was two.

“To you and all your family, your neighbors and your friends
May all your days be happy with a joy that never ends
May peace and love surround you
At Christmas time and all the whole year through!” [from “My Christmas Card to You” by the Partridge Family]

Thanks for following the adventure! See you next year! XOXO—GGT