Guest Cheryl Hollon – and a once in a lifetime trip!

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By Liz, happy to welcome Cheryl Hollon back to the blog! She’s talking about a huge bucket list trip today – so cool! Take it away Cheryl!

I’ve returned from a once-in-a-lifetime tour to visit a site on my bucket list – Petra, Jordan. I’ve been fascinated with this wonder of the modern world since it was featured in one of my all-time favorite movies:  Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade. The final scenes in the movie feature the iconic Treasury, the centerpiece of Jordan’s ancient Nabatean city of Petra. That’s me. I was standing in front of the Treasury.

This trip was more than just a bucket list accomplishment. It taught me an important lesson about my dreams and ambitions. The following picture is the perfect example of trusting that you’re making progress toward that dream. It’s the trust that is so difficult. While our tour group trudged down this hot, dusty canyon, I didn’t know that the goal was just around that little bend. The same can be confirmed at any point along your journey – don’t quit just before that last bend in your path. The Treasury could be just around the corner. 

Another main highlight of the trip was the fabulous food. We were treated to fresh-made hummus, tabouli, falafel, kunafa, bedouin coffee, and excellent chai tea. Our guide always preceded each new dining site with this statement, “Eat as if you’ve never seen food before.” I did, it was marvelous! 

I would love to know your plans for a bucket list adventure. Is it a destination or a goal? My next trip is to see the pyramids at Giza, but my next goal is to finish the mystery I’m writing. Leave a comment to enter a signed book giveaway for DEATH A SKETCH. Please don’t wait until it’s too late. Go! Go now!

Readers, what’s on your bucket list? Let us know in the comments!

The Paint & Shine Mysteries are set in the Daniel Boone National Forest. My parents were born, raised, and now rest in peace in the Adams Family Cemetery in Wolfe County, Kentucky. The characters spend a lot of time preparing traditional southern meals and creating moonshine cocktails. Please consider buying local. Independent bookstores need your help during this challenging time. Libraries are fabulous when your budget is tight.

Published by Cate Conte / Liz Mugavero

Cate Conte writes the Cat Cafe Mysteries and the Full Moon Mysteries. As Liz Mugavero, she writes the Pawsitively Organic Mysteries, the first of which was an Agatha Award nominee for Best First Novel. She lives in the Boston area with her rescue pals.

56 Thoughts

  1. Wow, what an incredible sight that must have been! I love those ancient monuments, Rome and Egypt are definitely on my bucket list, along with Greece, Scotland and Ireland. Good luck on your new book!

  2. That is amazing, as soon as I saw that picture I thought Indiana Jones. My bucket list is Venice, Italy, the Greek Isles and Egypt and many more but they are my top 3. Thank you for this chance at your giveaway. pgenest57 at aol dot com

    1. I also thought of Indiana Jones. In fact, before leaving on the trip, I must have seen that movie a dozen more times. I am adding Venice to my list.

    2. What an amazing trip, Cheryl! Ireland is at the top of my list since my ancestors came from there. For now, I’ll focus on my goal of completing a book that’s due to my editor in September. Cheers!

      1. I’m mostly Irish and my husband and I completely fell in love with Dublin. Things are opening up and authors have been known to write in Pubs!

  3. What a fabulous trip, Cheryl! I must confess I’ve never even heard of Petra but it looks like a must-see.

    My bucket list trip is to finally do that Ireland/Scotland trip we had to cancel in May, 2020…of course. And to finish the book I’m writing – which might happen today!

    1. Hi Edith, I found much to be delighted about in the country of Jordan. It was a delightful mix of modern and ancient. I’m mostly Scottish and Irish and have spent many happy days in both countries. You will adore them.

  4. Bucket list items? Hmmm…I would love to visit Ireland/Scotland and England. For England, while I’d do other things the main goal of that stop would be to visit the Sherlock Holmes Museum.

    I’d like to go to Hawaii. Other travel stuff is keyed towards specific things I want to do. I’d like to visit various sports Halls of Fame. And I’d like to attend various huge music festivals like Wacken Open Air & Keep It True (Germany), Rock In Rio (Brazil), the Download Festival & Bloodstock (England), The M3 Festival (Maryland) and Rocklahoma (Oklahoma).

    I’m not all that sure any of these things are going to happen because of the reality of life today. Between pandemic worries and expense, they will all likely remain on that list without a line crossing them out.

    1. Hi Jay, You will love the Sherlock Holmes Museum in London. I’ve been there several times and I swear it gets better each time. I lived in Bristol for three years during one of my engineering projects and we’re going back for a visit to the village I lived in this fall. We will also stop by to see the British Museum with its incredible Rosetta Stone.

  5. What an amazing trip that must have been. So many wonderful memories – for a lifetime!

    We have marked off two of our bucket list trips. One was to see the New England states in the fall. We took an extensive trip up the entire coastline of Maine, into the interior of the state, going to all the other states to see the colors and sights, on to Niagara Falls and finished up seeing an Amish community in IN and IL on the way home. The second trip was to the Grand Tetons, Yellowstone, Glacier, the Badlands and Mount Rushmore. We had planned on seeing all the national parks in Utah but covid hit. With medical issues, we have had to put things on a slight hold for a bit. However, we hope to resume our quest to see all or as many of our nations natural wonders as possible.

    Learned a hard lesson from my parents. They were hard working and were always going to travel and see this and that, but thought they never had the time or money. Then when they thought they could health reasons prevented it. They would often say “I wish we had”. We want to be able to sit on the front porch in our rocking chairs enjoying the Ozark Mountain scenery and critters while saying “Remember when we did……” A life without regrets and precious memories – what could be better than that!
    2clowns at arkansas dot net

    1. Hi Kay, That’s the same lesson I learned from my parents. They rarely traveled beyond visiting family. My mother always wanted to go to Scotland and Washington DC, but health issues prevented her from going to either place. I was the first one in our family to get a passport and I’m still traveling.

  6. I have always loved to travel and have been on some great teips. Several of my bucket list items are destinations. I would love to go to Greece, Australia and New Zealand. In the US, I would like to spend time in New England, especially Maine, and The Outer Banks.

    1. Hi Christi, What a wonderful list of destinations. New Zealand is on my list. Again, it is inspired by the Lord of the Rings movies. We’re planning to visit on a cruise ship — another obsession with my husband and I. Good Luck!

  7. What an amazing trip! There’s so many places I want to visit- Ireland, New Orleans, Alaska, Australia, England, and again to Germany. I’d also like to get a book published someday.

  8. We were supposed to go to Ireland for our 25th anniversary–seven years ago. I can’t remember exactly why we didn’t but I’m hoping to go soon. I love that you went on an epic adventure. Indiana would be proud!

    1. Hi Sherry, So delighted to see you here again on The Wickeds. Ireland is fabulous and indeed has the best Pubs on the planet. Rent yourself an Irish cottage and have a blast. You’ll absolutely love it. See you at Bouchercon 2022 in a few weeks. Stay well!

  9. Hi Alicia, I haven’t yet been to Alaska and Hawaii, so those are on my list to visit with cruise ships. New Orleans is the site for the Bouchercon World Mystery Conference in 2025. See you there!

  10. What an amazing trip! I’d like to see the Pacific Northwest. And my goal is to get to Bouchercon in San Diego next year so I can dip my toes in the Pacific Ocean.

    1. Hi Liz, I’ve been to Seattle and Vancouver and seen the Muir Woods. I’ll be at Bouchercon in San Diego and will get to visit my brother, too. See you there!

  11. Cheryl, what an amazing experience that must have been, every part of it.

    I’ve been to all but one US state, Alaska, so that is definitely on my list. And while I’ve been lucky enough to visit four other continents, there are still places I want very much to see. Our daughter lives in Kenya now (and we got to spend two weeks there last summer), but when their next post comes up in 2023 they are moving to Athens, so we are looking forward to spending time in Greece, Italy, and the British Isles while she’s there.

    I would so much rather travel than to own more stuff.

    1. Karen, you have my philosophy as well. I’d rather have experiences than things. Next up for me is England, Egypt then Venice. Fingers crossed!

      1. Wow, what an amazing trip! Love the pictures! I definitely want to visit Rome, Egypt and Italy. So many wonderful places to see!

        Thanks for the chance! Adore the book covers! Would love to read and review!

  13. Thank you for endorsing travel Karen! My life has been all about travel…for the first two thirds of my life I worked for a major airline in international sales and traveled internationally almost every week right before retiring. Now in my last third, I am a partner in a wholesale travel company and I delight in applying my lifelong travel experiences when assisting my fabulous clients in planning their travel adventures. I know I have been so blessed by being able to experience magnificent locations and monuments, but what I am most blessed with is getting to know so many cultures and beautiful people around the world. Thank you for letting us get to know you and your writing. I am surprised that I had not known about your books, and as an avid cozy mystery reader, that is unacceptable. I will be buying and reading your novels so that can be corrected. Many thanks for sharing your writing skills with us eager readers Karen!!! Luis at ole dot travel

    1. Hi Luis. I also experienced a lot of international travel with my day job. I was able to live among the people in a way that let me learn about cultures, food, families, and fun! Good Luck!

  14. There are so many places I want to visit! Two trips that I’ve been thinking about for a while are an Alaska cruise and a visit to Vancouver and Victoria Island.

  15. Petra and the pyramids at Giza have long been on my bucket list. The older I get the harder it is to do long-distance travel, but I haven’t given up! I have traveled extensively in South America over 27 years and loved it. I would still love to walk on a glacier in Alaska (one of two states I haven’t visited – the other is N. Dakota). We will be checking off a bucket list item in August. For a variety of reasons, riding a Murder Mystery train has been put off since 1987 when a reservation had to be cancelled. We are going on August 20 – a birthday present to me from my hubby.

  16. Hi Cheryl. Your trip looks amazing. Bill and i are just back from Dublin, nothern Ireland, the Scottish islands and a week in Edinburgh. It was great! This trip was on hold for over 2 years. I’m not sure where the next one will take us.

    1. Hi Barbara, I enjoyed following along on Social Media. There is so much to love about Ireland and Scotland, I think you have to create new words. Enjoy!

  17. Going to England, going on a Mediterranean cruise and going on an Alaskan cruise.

  18. What a trip!! And the food! I would love to go to England. The food would be more familiar, but pub fish and chips–I can dream!

    1. The food in Jordan was so delightful and healthy as well. Quiet, unexpected, and wonderful. England is practically our second home. Good Luck!

  20. Top 5: Greece, Ireland, New York, Chicago, and Cruise to Alaska.

  21. There are 3 places I would like to see before I expire. In order, they are Hawaii, Scotland and Ireland. Hawaii because it is such a beautiful place and my husband’s cousin lives on Kauai. Scotland and Ireland because of family heritage. Being 65 and my husband is 75 and having multiple sclerosis the odds are I’ll never see any of them but it’s a beautiful dream.

    1. Hi Laurie, Never say never, but luckily we can go anywhere in books. There are so many wonderful series set in Scotland and Ireland, that I almost believe I can smell the sea. Good Luck!

  22. This sounds amazing, Cheryl. So glad you were able to go!

    My bucket list. I never met my uncle Karl. He died in WWII on the USS Quincy in Savo Straits. The location of his ship is well known and I’m a nearly lifelong scuba diver. I would love to dive the Quincy to meet my uncle and thank him for his sacrifice.

  23. So glad you were able to cross something off your bucket list. Sounds like an amazing trip. I’ve been on a lot of great vacations and I would really like to take a cruise to Alaska. My bucket list trip would be to go to Nepal to see Mount Everest. Not to climb it, just to see it in person.

  24. What an awesome trip. I am so glad you were able to go. Thanks for sharing photos. Since my husband and I are disabled, we really do not have a bucket list. Right now, we are walking the path of my parents in bad health. Hospice has been called in for my Mom. My Dad has been diagnosied with dementia. I enjoy escaping into books that take me to other places so I feel like I am on a trip. God bless you.

  25. My husband has retired and we had to put our bucket list on hold. But now we are starting to travel again, we plan to go to Athens, Greece, Barcelona (Cruise), Amsterdam, London, Key West (Cruise), Scotland, Wales, Tokyo (once it is safe to travel there), Vienna, Denmark, and then Washington, D.C., New York, and Canada. (plus others).

  26. I would love to see Petra. It’s amazing. Would like to visit the holy land, England, Ireland and Scotland. I know I’ll never see any of them, but I can dream.

  30. I was able to go to Peru and stay on the Amazon and go to Macchu Pichu in 1989, so that is crossed off of my list. It was magnificent. Petra seems fabulous, but keeping closer to home for now, I would love to go to Mackinac Island and rethink “Somewhere in TIme!”

  31. I was lucky enough to knock one off of my bucket list when I went to Peru in 1989. I stayed in the Amazon for a week and then traveled through Peru for a week ending in Macchu Pichu! It was fabulous. Your trip is a place I want to go someday but for now, I will stay in the good old USA and hope to go to Mackinac Island for a visit to go where “Somewhere in Time” was filmed.

    1. I was there in 1989 (and many other years, too). We were lucky to go when we did. It is so over-touristy now, it’s no longer the “real” Peru. I, too, have had Petra on my bucket list, but afraid my overseas travels may well be over, too.

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