It is the 2023 US Independence Week. We are staying in an old parsonage in Wedron, IL on the banks of the Fox River, far, far from Chicago. We distance ourselves from the festivities to protect the dogs from the incessant fireworks that drive them into a terrified depression finding them shaking uncontrollably and hiding in the bathtub. The parsonage is in a mild state of disrepair. It has a creepy basement that smells eerily similar to my long-deceased Grandmother's basement back when she resided in Evergreen Park, IL. It feels like it should be spider-infested but, so far, I've only seen emaciated webs without a host hovering in the center.

Our typical mode of travel is to pick a country, find a bunch of places to visit, and then figure out how to get to those places. Everything is paid for individually. This is done with an eye toward minimizing package tours and the cattle car experience of visiting places. For Iceland, my wife, who frequents travel sites, found an entire package for Iceland hitting all the major tourist attractions including airfare on Iceland Air. The tour included visiting both the Blue Lagoon and the Golden Circle on a big charter bus, something we steadfastly avoid, but the price was so good we opted to take the hit.

Our typical mode of travel is to pick a country, find a bunch of places to visit, and then figure out how to get to those places. Everything is paid for individually. This is done with an eye toward minimizing package tours and the cattle car experience of visiting places. For Iceland, my wife, who frequents travel sites, found an entire package for Iceland hitting all the major tourist attractions including airfare on Iceland Air. The tour included visiting both the Blue Lagoon and the Golden Circle on a big charter bus, something we steadfastly avoid, but the price was so good we opted to take the hit.

I swam with Manatees in Crystal River waters and learned a lesson about life