31 Comments

I did not know you were a Banana Slug, Sharron! I almost went there!

Was that Waffle House in Amsterdam near the train station by any chance? If so, that is where I had the best strawberry crepe in my life. It was gigantic, with fresh strawberries and powdered sugar, nothing else. A few years later, I was working at a temp job in San Francisco and a co-worker happened to mention the best crepe she’d ever had was in Amsterdam and I asked her where. Turns out she was talking about the same place! It is a small world indeed!

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Great story! Thanks for sharing it. My waffle house was over on the Prinzengracht, on a corner next to my guest house. A really fun city. Santa Cruz -- Go Slugs!

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That's the sort of thing that would make travel worth all the fuss. This week just driving to kittyfood store, parked in driveway along the way: Big private bus with giant lettering: Lafayette Fife and Drum Corps. People from MY life right there. They march in my other world, 18 C American Revolution. Nope. Didn't stop to disturb their day. Might do next time ))) Made me smile all day. )))

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I definitely would go over to visit them next time! Great fun.

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I wonder how many serendipitous encounters we almost have as well as the ones we do. I met a cousin I didn't know I had quite by chance. We had the same last name and I asked where he was from. One thing led to another. Yep, related. We see each other to this day, 30 years later.

'Dios los hace, y ellos se juntan.' - Very cool story, Sharron!

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Thanks, James Ron, and thanks for sharing your story.

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I love random coincidences like these! Especially when you're across the world. I actually have a draft ready to come out next week of exactly those kind of random meeting travel stories. The world works in mysterious ways doesn't it?

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Cool! I will check it out.

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It is so much fun when those "chance" meetings occur - they bring a specialness to the day and a smile to my face.

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Thank you, Janice!

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Years ago, I got off a plane in London and got in a line for a cab. I kept staring at the man in front of me, not quite believing I could run into someone I knew so far from home. Finally, I said Harry? He turned around and was just as surprised as me. We had worked together for a time several years prior.

It's amazing that these encounters happen so often.

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It seems so unlikely, doesn't it. But it does happen a lot.

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I'm originally from California as well and not long after moving to Wisconsin, I went to the DMV. The woman working there had also recently moved from California! I know the odds of meeting someone else from such a large state are pretty high, but the chance meeting did make the world feel just a little smaller and more welcome.

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Strange, isn't it! Thanks for your comment and welcome to 🍁Leaves, Ms. Ybarra!

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So lovely! 🇮🇹

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Thanks, Acceber!

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Lovely. Thank you. When we visit grandma in Santa Cruz, we often walk the Boardwalk. How can it be, that we see friends from our current town, 300 miles away?

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Where do you live now, Penny?

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North of Redding. But I’m still a Santa Cruz girl.

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Wow, great stories. I have not had these encounters, but I don’t get to travel much, unfortunately. But I did just get my renewed passport in the mail, so maybe my next trip!! 😃

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Thanks for your comment Elle. Save your old passport - each visa stamp in there is a memory of some country traveled to. I understand they may not be stamping passports anymore - everything is / will be just electronic now. What a shame!.

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Really???! Wow I did not hear they won’t be stamping passports anymore....that would be shameful!!

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I am not positive on this. But many other countries do it electronically already. We'll wait and see. I have saved three old expired passports of mine. I love to browse through the stamps to see where I have been!

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Very cool vignette, Sharron. Made me feel nostalgic. Hugs!

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Yeah. Me too! I'd leave here in a minute If I could. My feet itch to be on the road.

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Great story, love chance encounters, makes one wonder though... coincidence or fate or there is no such thing as fate.

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Thank you,Alexander. Good question. Fate.... hmmm. How does fate work, anyway? Does that imply that "someone" is in charge of making things happen? Or what?

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Fate, destiny, the great plan, it depends what you believe in, coincidence? Chance? In Macbeth we’re told exactly what will happen right at the beginning and Macbeth goes and tries to control his fate...

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By the way, the PBS show Nature has a series where they place pretend animals with little cameras. They even do your favorites, the mudskippers.

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Great! Glad to know this.

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