I know this posting is sounding a little different, but I thought I would share a recognition that I just received in the mail this week from the Department of Defense. I don’t post very often about by military service since it has been over 25 years, and we did not have digital cameras back then and film processing was expensive!

It is the official Cold War Recognition Certificate. It is recognition of service members who were trained and served during the “Cold War” with the Soviet Union. When I went to boot camp and aviation training, we were trained to be ready and fight the Soviet Union. When I was in the middle of a Persian Gulf cruise/deployment, the Soviet Union fell apart on television and the rest is history…

So, how does tie into my travel blog? Although it was not the start of my travel adventures as I was a big fan of road tripping in college, more on that another time… but it was the boom and catalyst for my passion and enthusiasm for international travel.

With 5 years of Active Duty service in 2 war/conflict zones, I was able to visit these countries thaanks to the 18 months I lived aboard an aircraft carrier:

• Naples, Italy
• Trieste, Italy
• Rome, Italy
• Pompeii, Italy
• Venice, Italy
• Palermo, Italy
• Azores, Portugal
• Ponce, Puerto Rico
• Paris, France
• Nice, France
• Marseille, France
• Abu Dhabi, UAE
• Dubai, UAE
• Jabaal Ali, UAE
• Palma De Macro, Spain
• Haifa, Israel

I only wish I had some photos from all those locations. So many memories and quite a reward for serving the country for 5 years.

For example, how many people have ever heard or visited Abu Dhabi?

or know the culture and uniqueness of Marseille, France? I will never forget the “smash” sandwiches made with French fries.

If you are a US military veteran and served during the Cold War, you should apply for your certificate and be recognize for your service during this important era during the history of the world.