Happy New Year! Make it an adventuresome one!

Kick hell out of your bucket list in 2016.  Have you always wanted to see Egypt?  Don't let fear of travel stop you.
Here, Cookie and Keller make a return trip to the Great Pyramid of Giza.  They continued throughout the Middle East.

The sky's the limit, when planning your new year.
Put yourself as high as your plans and adventure can stretch.
 The High Roller in Las Vegas will give you a bird's eye view!

MAKE IT A RED-LETTER NEW YEAR. TAKE A PAGE FROM OUR TRAVELERS' BOOK!   

CHECK SOMETHING OFF YOUR BUCKET LIST 

STORY By CHRISTENE MEYERS
PHOTOS By BRUCE KELLER 

WHATEVER MAGIC the holiday has held, now's the time to grab your dreams before the luster fades.

Make 2016 the year you
try out for "Jeopardy."

If you've always wanted to see the Pyramids, book a trip to Egypt.

Cookie returns to Paris -- for a night or ten on the town.

If you've yearned  to spend a weekend in Las Vegas and take a spin on The High Roller, what are you waiting for?
If you've dreamed about a cruise but haven't called a travel agent, do it. Sail away.
Always wanted to see Glacier, Yellowstone or Yosemite? Our national parks are a great treasure.  Now's the time.

Learn a new language, or
instrument this new year.

Missing a far-away niece, nephew, sister, aging auntie? Give a call, plan a reunion, make that visit. Book that Elton John or Lady Gaga concert.
Have you admired a friend's tattoo, toyed with getting your own? Cowboy up, friend. (Start with a temporary one, as I did in Maori land.)
Is a special must-see city on your list? Seattle, Paris, Rio? Carpe diem.
HAVE YOU wanted to try out for "Jeopardy" because your friends insist you'd win?  Make it happen. Nothing ventured, nothing gained. Go for it!
How about learning a new language or returning to school -- I'm working on an advanced degree in poetry and playwriting, and learning Italian, loving the classes and challenge.
I'm playing my saxophone again -- even doing gigs with Montana bands.
A FEW THOUGHTS on traveling in these times of terrorism, suicide bombings and random crack-pot acts.

Plan a visit to a favorite relative --we're
off to San Francisco to see niece Amarylla.

Glacier National Park beckons on your bucket list? Do it. 

I've traveled since I was a little kid, and I never board a plane or ship without thanking the gods for safety thus far and wishing to return home in one piece. Yes, these are frightening times, but when it comes to terrorism, the threat is "overhyped."
My pilot father always said our chances of being killed in a plane were far less than as a passenger in an auto. Likewise, the likelihood of being killed by terrorism while traveling abroad is slim.

Cookie and Keller kick hell out of their bucket list, which
includes a yearly trek to San Francisco and a sail to Alcatraz.

BE VIGILANT, look around, assess each environment, use good old "common sense" as you move about. 
Above all, don't cancel a long-planned trip or dream. Grab some gusto. Happy planning!

COMING LATER TODAY: Whereiscookie follows the fun, putting a fresh spin on travel and the arts.  At 5 p.m. today, we return to a favorite city, San Francisco. Join us, with quotes from the late columnist Herb Caen to pay tribute.  We post Fridays for the weekend, and as the spirit and adventures move. We've posted more than 350 blogs now. You can find specific cities, venues, parks, hotels, cruises by filling in the tab at the right-hand of each blog. Explore, learn and live!