I struggle every year on what exactly to write for this post. I’ve mostly done a sort of “best of” list of my trips, reminding readers what they may have missed. To be honest, I don’t really like that.

Yes, it’s nice to take some time to reflect, but a “here’s all the trips I took, now go back and read about them” article isn’t exactly fulfilling, and while it does allow for a bit of reflection for me, it probably doesn’t do a whole lot for the average reader.

So this year, let’s try something a bit different, and reflect together. A and I have been trying to use a technique called active remembrance, focusing on memories in a way that experts say can push back dementia a decade or more. So let’s try that together, using some categories that those experts say utilize sensory portions of the brain for longer term brain health.

With each of these, I’m going to give my answer, but I’d like you to think about yours. If you are so inclined, please add your responses to one or more of the categories in the comments. And yes, I know leaving comments on a blog isn’t something one often does – especially on this one, it seems – but maybe we can all inspire each other and wind up with better health. Good deal?

Favorite Bite

This first topic gives our taste sensation a bit of a whirl, in addition to the general imagery we associate with food, as we recall that one bite of something we ate this past year that stands out. For me, I’m going to have to go with a street food in Tunis called leblebi. It’s a chickpea stew thickened with bread and egg. But what made this particular bite so perfect is the environment. A and I walked to a place that we were told had the best leblebi without knowing what it was. The menu was totally in Arabic, although we were able to communicate in broken French. The only tourists in the tiny place with communal tables, we had to rely on watching others to figure out how to order and eat this amazing dish. So it was great food and a feeling of accomplishment!

Favorite Moment

Distilling one single moment is hard for me, but I love being able to reflect on so many wonderful instants of time over the year through active remembrance. I think if I had to choose one moment, it would be watching the sun set over Lake Atitlan in Guatemala. We found a bench with nobody else around and watched the colors change behind the volcanoes. We gazed down at the water and followed the boats making their way across to other towns, and were just totally present. (Sunsets are often among my favorite moments, I’ve found.)

Favorite Thing Learned

This is one of my personal favorite categories. I love learning new things; it is my favorite part of traveling and writing. It also reveals just how little I actually know about the world. Looking back at this year, I don’t think I realized just how much Jewish history is preserved in Morocco, and just how integrated that community – my community – was in Moroccan history. I was shocked, pleasantly so, to find that odes to Jews were placed in the features of the modern Hassan II Mosque, for instance, let alone the number of old synagogues and cemeteries still standing.

Favorite Sip

This goes hand in hand with favorite bite, but brings up different sensations when I close my eyes and think back. And I’m sort of at a struggle. After all, how does one compare coffee in Costa Rica with amazing rum in the Bahamas? So I’m going to go with a sip that is a bit more personal. In Puerto Vallarta, A and I were at the swim-up bar at our resort with her godparents, and they ordered tequila for us. It was divine, but it was less the tequila and more the being there, sitting on a stool in the water, the sun on my back, the warm afternoon making me feel just as good as the drink itself.

There are so many other favorites, and so many other categories we could do, but let’s start here for now. And I’d truly love to hear some of yours!

As for the more number-oriented recap stuff, I spent about five months traveling this year. In all, I set foot in eight UN countries, of which two (Morocco and Tunisia) were new to me. In addition, I visited the pseudo-country of Sint Maarten, which was also a first-time visit. I also visited nine states and DC, although I hit all 50 back in 2019, so none of those were new, obviously.

I flew just over 60,000 miles, my highest annual total somehow, despite only one transoceanic trip. (My flight log map is below, something I find fun.)

And most importantly, I wrote about 120 articles, also my highest annual output, plus had guest articles from several other wonderful writers! And, after a few years in a row of dips thanks to Google’s major shifts, I actually had more views than last year, although still waaaayyy off my peak from a few years ago. Still, yay!

All in all, 2025 was a good year, for travel and for Jonathan. My mental health was reasonably good, my sleep issues were better, and I’m still in the most wonderful relationship a man could ask for. So hey, that’s positive. I wish the world were in better shape, and wish the US took a different route, but maybe 2026 will bring a different electoral outcome and a step toward that. Optimism, right?

Anyway, I wish you all a wonderful and healthy new year, and I will catch you in 2026, the preview for which you can read in a couple days.