Then of course there's worrying about home and the fur babies I've left behind. Will everything be okay while I'm gone? Will the dogs eat? Will they forgive me for leaving in the first place? Seriously, it took my pit bull almost a week to forgive me for being gone so long on our last vacation. Speaking of vacation, here are a couple of sunsets. The first night (with a bit of the moon) and the last night (in order of appearance).
Beautiful, right? But despite all that gorgeousness, I've discovered I'm a fuddy duddy. I'll admit that trip was great, really great! And I doubt I'll ever say no to a Hawaiian vacation. But I'll tell you this... taking a weekender to a family wedding 10 days later, wiped me out completely. It was only 2.5 days from start to finish, but I find myself dreading the next trip I'll take in March. (Okay, so maybe I partied too hard so it's my fault. Hard to say...)
What about you? Do you love to travel? Are you good at it? Got any tips for me? I'm in serious need.
17 comments:
I feel your pain, Dee. Guess that's one great thing about the internet. You can take virtual tours anywhere in the world.
I found the more I traveled the easier it was. What not to take. What clothing I was more comfortable wearing. Which airport bathrooms were less crowded. What was needed by TSA. Geeze! I knew what seats I preferred. Short trips are harder on me than long ones.
ALWAYS carry clean underwear, your meds, contacts, spare glasses, a toothbrush, and your phone charger in your carry on or purse. ALWAYS use a purse that zips closed and preferably a shoulder bag that goes over your head so your hands are free and you never have to set it down any place. Make a color copy of your travel ID front and back. Put it in a carry on separate from where you carry the original. Carry one credit card. Before you travel have the limit lowered to what you think you will spend. Some card companies will note you are traveling and to where. Have the card company number to call should you have a problem.
I'm an "okay" traveler, but I much prefer being a hermit. :)
And Rita really seems to know how to do it!
I always enjoyed traveling...'til the little guy came along! Then, suddenly, a 5 hour flight wasn't a chance to relax and escape into a good book, it was 5 hours of trying to keep my kid from screaming, crying, kicking the seat in front of him, flopping into the aisle, spilling anything on himself or others or...you get the picture. Hubs and I could usually keep him together for, say, the first 5 minutes. After that, we simple resorted to buying the people around us very stiff drinks. We're hoping to become happy travelers again, about the time the kid reached the age where he prefers not to travel anywhere with his parents. :}
Hi Jean,
Ha! I agree! Not to mention reading a good book that takes me far away. (Hey, I think I see another blog in my future. LOL.) Thanks for coming by!
Hi Rita,
Holy cow! You've got this traveling nailed! I actually took WAY too much on my big vacation so I learned from that and took the exact RIGHT amount for my mini one. That was fine, it was the predawn wake ups for the airplane that set me off on the wrong foot. I'm not so much the morning person. Haha. Thanks for dropping in! I took copious notes!
Hi Anne Marie,
Well, you're certainly right about Rita! I hate to say that I'm becoming a hermit, but I think I am. I never used to think that, but it seems the evidence is piling up otherwise! Thanks for stopping in!
Hi Samanthe,
I remember those days! Hubby and I used to bring Tootsie Pops and hand them out to everyone sitting around us as a "so sorry you have to deal with this' consolation prize. Even if they declined, they knew we were trying to make it better. It's nice to travel with a teenager who's used to headphones and being in her own space! Thanks for popping in!
I'm both. I love to travel but I also love being home.
Rita's advice rocks BTW. I'd add look those border guards in the eye and never give in to your desire to scream they are all fricking idiots because they made you line up in the wrong queue for 30 min and then tell you you're in the wrong place :) Just say thank you.
Traveling with little kids is hard but now--OMG, nowadays mine are so amazing. :)
Hi Toni,
I was looking at the pics of your trip thinking, "Ha! Not me!" LOL. While you were ziplining I was reading a book in my room overlooking the beach. I'm sure both of us were very happy with our vacations. LOL. But the aftermath was exhausting. I need to learn how to travel right so I can do it more often. Yep, Rita rocks (so does her advice)!
Pssst! Get an airline CC with the carrier you use most often so you can accumulate frequent flyer points and upgrade to first and business. No waiting in lines and free drinks.
Rita,
What's a CC? Not that it matters because Southwest doesn't have first class. It's a free for all with that airlines. But it's the most inexpensive when I fly back home and one of the few to offer bags fly free.
Oh, Dee, I used to think I would have been a great world traveller if only I had the money, the time, the partner... until one day I realized that if I'd a wanted to, I'd a done it.
These days I accept that I like being home, with short forays back East or to the west coast of the U.S. Mind you, that's major travelling when you consider I live in the Yukon.
Hi Marcelle,
That is definitely traveling for you! I hear you... Money and time are giant factors. I still want to visit places, but it's wrong to dread it. LOL. I'm hoping I get better at it. And possibly, I have to do it right, you know? Maybe if I make it easier on me I might like it more...? Thanks for dropping in!
Dee CC is a credit card.
I love to visit new places but the getting there is a pain in the butt. So I'm with you on that. The older I get the less I want to make the effort.
I keep putting off booking my trip to Australia for that very reason. I've been doing that trip every other year for over forty years and it never gets any easier. Of course, if I won the lottery I'd go first class and sleep all the way. ;)
I have the travel bug. My hubby and I did a lot of it until he became ill. Brought scads of reading material for the plane ride and lots of small pads for notes for articles and a book to list where we took which photos. Robena--I thought the serving of ice cream by Quantas in the middle of the night was a lovely idea.
Rita,
Thanks! Of course! CC. Duh...
:)
Hi Robena,
Australia is one of the places I'd love to visit, but the flight scares the bejeesus out of me. LOL. I've never flown longer than 5/6 hours. (To NY or Hawaii.) I can see how you might not want to do it, but envy all the times you have! I think I'd go anywhere if it was first class. Haha. Thanks for stopping in!
Hi Elise,
What's this about ice cream in the middle of the night? That sounds heavenly! Glad you got a lot of traveling in when you could. I know many people wait then ill health doesn't let them travel at all. Now that sucks. Sounds like you've got the drill down though! You and Rita. Haha. Thanks for stopping by!
I hate the long flights, but still, I travel. The best one lately was touring Scotland with my sister in law and her husband.
But is you have fur children, I don't know what to tell you. That's hard.
Hi Susan,
Scotland sounds like an awesome trip! My hubby and keep talking about going to Ireland. He has a lot of cousins there, but we've never been. Yeah... the more I leave town, the longer it takes my pups to forgive me for deserting them. Thanks for dropping in!
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