When you picture yourself in your 80s, what do you see? Many people imagine a life of comfort, but best friends Sandy Hazelip and Ellie Hamby see things a little bit differently. “Don’t sit in that chair and waste away,” Sandy said. “If you don’t use it, you lose it.”
Those are words to live by for these two people! Ellie and Sandy are from the same city, but they met while traveling in Africa many years ago. Ellie, an international documentary photographer, has traveled to 107 countries and visited all 7 continents (洲) for her work. Sandy, or Dr. Sandy as she’s known, is a physician.
Two years ago, the now-81-year-olds started planning an adventure they called “Around the World at 80”, inspired by the Jules Verne novel, “Around the World in 80 Days”. Their goal was to travel to all seven continents, see 9 Wonders of the World, and visit 18 countries in about two-and-a-half months. Unluckily, their plans were put on hold for a few years due to COVID-19 pandemic, but in 2023 they finally hit the road with a new motto: “81 and still on the run!”
So far, they’ve seen the Northern Lights, stood in the shadow of the Easter Island statues, played with penguins in Antarctica, gone dog-sledding, flown over Mt. Everest in an airplane, and enjoyed many other fabulous short journeys. Everywhere they go, they chat with the people they meet and make new friends, which is all part of their mission. “The Number One thing is meeting people,” said Ellie. “We love people. We just love to talk to people, and the world is full of the greatest, most exciting, most interesting people.”
Nothing slows these two seniors down, not even total knee replacements for both of them. Ellie documents their journey with photos on Facebook, and they maintain a blog. Sandy and Ellie hope to inspire others to keep moving into their golden years!
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