I am currently reading “Vagabonding: An Uncommon Guide to the Art of Long-Term World Travel” by Rolf Potts. Since I’ve been back from my trip I was in the mood to find information on how to enhance my travel experiences. For the most part, I’ve been fortunate to visit cities I have always dreamt about, but I couldn’t help feeling if I was traveling “correctly.” Lol. As silly as it sounds, I knew I wanted to visit these particular cities for my interests and no one else’s. But upon listening to others share their adventures with me, I realized everyone had a different approach to visiting new places. I felt that my inexperience might fall short, and was worried I wasn’t getting the true essence of a new town or city.
Listening to others and comparing how they plan (or play it by ear) a trip made me realize that everyone has their own method. It was up to me to customize my own interests so I could get the satisfaction I wanted out of my trips. Yet there are other factors that come into play. While it rained on and off in Amsterdam when I was visiting, I had to adjust my discomfort to go along with my plans. Normally, back home in Chicago, I would stay inside nice and dry and ride out the weather. Being on a tight itinerary meant having bad hair days and braving the wind so I could visit my points of interests. I was on my own and I had to get things done!
In Florence however, me and my friend had our moments of disagreements. Her interests are different than mine, and we sometimes would get pretty frustrated with one another on what to do next. I felt as if I should have had a day to myself to go to the museums since it’s not really her thing. I questioned who was getting the most “culture”, but in the end, we both were. Reading “Vagabonding” made me feel secure enough to know that I was truly experiencing life out of my travels.
Now the issue of time has been on my mind, and I question if I’m getting enough “experience” out of my short stays. “Vagabonding” introduces the idea of long-term traveling, but I’m still perplexed this is something I could do anytime soon. For the idea of retirement; yes. I could definitely see this as a possibility. It’s grasping this concept now that has me stuck. In the meantime, all I could do is focus on paying off my credit cards, so in the future I could figure out where my next adventure lies. I am excited because I have a strong feeling I know where I’m going. It’s just a matter of TIME.
Speaking of TIME, I landed back from my mini vacation and went to work that Thursday and Friday. Me and my friends met up for margaritas after work and I told them about my time out in Amsterdam. I rested up that Saturday and on Sunday, went over my Dad’s house to celebrate his birthday. My brothers were interested about my trip, mostly because they were pretty surprised I planned everything on a month’s notice. Reflecting back now, I’m glad I got a chance to tell my stories with my Dad included. As I’ve gotten older, I realize the time I spend with my parents is precious especially with everyone having a full schedule. He complained about his birthday cake being small, but to me, this was a big moment for all of us to have him with us.
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| The table is ready! |
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| Mexican tamales! |
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| Selfie time with my Pops |
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