Anyhoo, gotta get to the point, because there's a ton more packing and cleaning to be done. I thought I'd make some notes about how we chose the destinations we are planning to visit since that's one of the questions I've been getting a lot (some destinations are still tentative further along into the trip, though).
Italy: Our original plan was to stop in Stockholm, since that was a logical stopover destination on the way to Moscow. Turns out Stockholm is pretty much cold and dark and depressing in December, though. So we decided we had to find a warmer place, still at least sort of on the way to Moscow. So we chose Italy! We were going to stick to Rome and Pompeii (we recently saw a tv show on the brothels of Pompeii and wanted to check it out for ourselves), but then a coworker of mine said the Amalfi coast is the most beautiful place she's ever seen, so bam! it's on the agenda too. Which also meant we backed up our departure date from TX by a day... and are now leaving on the busiest travel day of the year. Ah well.
Russia: My brother is living in Moscow, and can't do a whole lot of research in December since the archives are closed, so we decided to freeze our butts off and visit him. :) I've been reading Fifty Russian Winters and A Russian Diary to get some background before we go.
Galapagos: South America was originally not on our itinerary at all, but I sat next to Lance Tarrance (one of McCain's political advisors) on a flight recently, and he raved and raved about the Galapagos - and he's been around the world a time or two. So we decided to take a little southern detour down there between Christmas in the US and heading to Thailand.
Southeast Asia: It's cheap, relatively safe, and there's a well-worn backpacker circuit. And everyone who has been to Thailand has said it is fantastic. :)
India: Brian has been here once before for a wedding, but I really want to see the Taj Mahal, the International Museum of Toilets in New Delhi, and the houseboats in Kerala (Brian has a coworker who knows people). Plus they have a lot of vegetarian food!
Dubai: This area has very little recorded history or culture, but due to the recent influx of oil money, the country is creating its own identity as a land of luxury and lavish extravagance. Everything has been built to be bigger and better here, so it should be fascinating to see. Hopefully I can use my hotel points for a free stay in a resort on the artificial island Palm Jumeirah (shaped like a palm tree - see picture).
Cairo: Gotta see the pyramids, plus we've never been to Africa.
Eastern Europe: Turkey is at the top of Brian's list of places to see, and we may be able to meet up with my brother and a couple friends in the Ukraine next summer. Also, Eastern Europe tends to still be a bit cheaper than western Europe.
Alright, I just saw another cat fur tumbleweed roll by, so it's back to cleaning and packing...
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