Tag: travel

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Another Lesson in Adaptability

Those who know me and/or follow this blog closely know that my family and I are avid road-trippers. Wanna know more about road tripping…check out this post!https://lifelibertyandlibations.com/2017/09/07/looking-for-adventure-10-reasons-to-take-a-road-trip/

Some years ago, my husband and I established the goal of taking our children to all 50 US states. With only about 6 years of working towards this goal and over half of the states checked-off, we are well on our way to reaching our goal before our oldest refuses to travel with us anymore. This year was a bucket list destination of Niagara Falls combined with 7 new states in the upper-Midwest. Taking on the open road and traveling to new places is always full of lessons and new experiences and every trip changes us in some way.

This year’s trip, which covered the US and Canadian regions around Niagara, and our new states- MI (both peninsulas), WI, MN, IA, IL, IN, and OH before returning home, was wonderful and full of great adventure and amazing sights! I wouldn’t take any part of it back. The areas surrounding the Great Lakes were breathtaking and the National Parks there (Pictured Rocks, Sleeping Bear Dunes and Apostle Islands) are true spectacles of mother nature’s power and beauty. That being said, temps were unseasonably cold for much of the area we covered, we tent-camped half of it and the mere feat of covering a total of 9 states in 15 days was exhausting.

I should note that my husband and I both come from coastal areas (different countries, different oceans … but coastal nonetheless). So for us, no summer is complete without a suntan and some quality, lazy beach time. While we loved our adventure in the cooler, northern regions, we missed the warm, sandy beaches that we associate with “our summer”. (Sorry Michigan, that icy water, whilst gorgeous, just didn’t quite quench our thirst for the “beach”).

So, when our timeshare company informed us of a “bonus week” that was close to expiring AND there was availability in our favorite Florida gulf coast town … it seemed serendipitously perfect! Despite the fact that it was an 18 hr drive from home and we only had 5 of the 7 days available, we knew we needed it! We have been working so hard and knew that this would be the perfect summer wrap-up.

And then the news came of the Red Tide, an absolutely tragic (and apparently recurrent) ecological disaster, that left our favorite beaches littered with dead marine life and toxic fumes in the air. We were so bummed! We had worn ourselves out with work (and adventures) and were so looking forward to just parking ourselves on the beach and doing nothing but swimming, sleeping and some lazy fishing. The daily reports of beaches that reeked of rotting fish, waters that caused skin irritations, air that led to respiratory irritations and increased hospitalizations, not to mention marine life that was not only unsafe to eat, but devastatingly being wiped-out by a human-induced algal bloom, hurt our hearts. We weren’t even sure we’d be able to step out of our beach-side resort without getting sick.

We stalked every website and laboratory report for two weeks. What my husband and I have dubbed our “most favorite place”, looked apocalyptic along its shores! The normally lively beaches were devoid of humans, except those who were part of the clean-up effort. And with so many cancelled reservations, local businesses were struggling to stay afloat.

But our last-minute reservation was un-exchangeable and non-refundable. Cancelling the trip meant taking a loss. And staying home, meant I’d just be working again. My soul needed a break … and I knew my family did too.

Watching the daily reports, conditions seemed to be mildly improving. So, we went-a decision that we made just the day before we left. And when people asked me “Why?” Why we were still driving 18 hours for a beach that we might not be able to sit on and a resort we might have to turn around and walk away from? … My response was: ” I have to try.” I knew our souls needed the break … so I had to try.

And when we arrived, it wasn’t the same beach we had come to love over the last 8 years. The pelicans weren’t diving. The conchs weren’t crawling. There were no dolphin fins dipping in the distance or manatees in the low grassy waters. There was enough dead fish on the beach that the flies were having a feast and a short stroll was about all that was enjoyable. And when the wind picked up in the right direction, you could smell the decay. No beach chairs this time. We didn’t bother bringing our fishing gear either-it didn’t seem fair to assault the marine population any further. We knew better than to get into the water too. Not to mention, the last hurricane had changed the landscape and the powdery white sand was full of shells that the storm had turned up.

But the air quality had improved and we could still enjoy the pool without any smell or effects. Despite the absence of ocean water, a bathing suit was still my uniform that week. The egrets still fished in the near-by lagoon. Sandals worked just fine to protect our feet when we took our morning beach walks.  And locals had built a shell-shrine of sorts where our favorite driftwood “Christmas tree” was reduced to a small stick in the sand. So instead of keeping our shells this year, we used our treasures to add to the shrine. The weather was still wonderfully warm and the humidity soothed our joints. The room, whilst modest, had an amazing view of the gulf with a big screened porch and it was a lovely escape from home. And the sunsets were the best on the planet, as always. And even though I traded my ocean-side beach chair for a pool-side lounge chair, there was still a cold drink in my hand and the absence of hard work or complicated thoughts.

I was glad we went.

We met new friends too; locals, who played games with us under the shelter of the bar when the afternoon storms rolled by and who will be a great asset when my husband and I start looking for retirement real-estate. And we decided to break up the drive home, by leaving the beach a day earlier and adding a stop to see my out-of-state sister. Kissing the faces of my nieces is therapy in and of itself. Oh, and the bald eagle that my husband was hell-bent on seeing in the Midwest, but disappointingly never spotted … soared, low and slow in the afternoons overhead, while we sat poolside.

I am a planner. Every day I have a check list. Every road trip has a daily typed itinerary and every restaurant and attraction has been researched and scoured for reviews. And I swear by my system because it never leaves us wondering what to do. We never leave an area disappointed that we missed-out and we rarely experience a bad eat. I love active and adventurous vacations. Until I need a break anyway. Until my body and my mind get so tired that it spills into my soul. And my family feels it too. Then, it’s time to go sit by the beach.

This time, with no itinerary and reviews, in the form of headline news, that I didn’t ask to read, the reports were horrible. But like I said in the beginning, every trip teaches a lesson and changes us in some way. This trip was a lesson in adaptability. As a mother and a nurse, I know how to adapt. But this was vacation … and a favorite spot to boot! In my mind’s eye, I had already written how it was going to be-and deviating from that plan was hard. It was kind of like going to your favorite restaurant and finding out they’re sold out of your favorite dish. Only this was a 5 day experience and a 36 hour round trip.

Nonetheless, I learned … again … that life is never stagnant. It requires that we always be willing to adapt, lest we miss-out for fear of change. And disappointment, whilst inevitable to some degree, is largely controlled by our own mindset and expectations. We can lessen our disappointments by searching for the goodness in something. I also learned to listen to my soul and to always, always try. A lack of trying due to fear of failure or disappointment becomes the death of the soul. Once again, I learned, once again, I was changed.

It was a surprise bonus week and a historically terrible algal bloom that wrote the lesson this time…wonder what life has waiting for me tomorrow.

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An unexpected love affair

My husband and I recently celebrated our 10th wedding anniversary with a cruise to the Southern Caribbean. Being avid road-trippers, this was a first for us and we selected a route and itinerary that took us to as many places as possible in seven days. Our goal was to use the cruise ship more as our mode of transportation than the highlight of our trip. By booking a cruise that departed from Puerto Rico instead of the States, we managed to get six islands into those seven days, including PR. And I was so excited to get to know each and every one of these islands. I researched each one and planned activities for each. Culture is important to me and I wanted to know the people and their food as much as I did their landscape.

Being that it’s February and winters here can be rough, we arranged to fly into Puerto Rico a few days early so as to avoid any conflicts with the cruise departure from potential flight delays due to weather. We also booked our flight-out the day after the ship returned so as to have one last honeymoon night after the cruise. For three nights before the cruise, we stayed in a beautiful boutique hotel in Old San Juan on Calle de la Fortaleza, right in the middle of everything. Then we cruised the Southern Caribbean and visited five more islands. Upon returning to PR, we spent our last night in a bohemian-style bed and breakfast in the Condado/Isla Verde area, more out-of-the-way, in an up-and-coming art district and close to the beach.

Of the six islands we visited, we discovered that more than food and landscape, language or income level, it was the people that gave each island its true character and spirit. Beautiful beaches meant very little when the people were not welcoming. And with that, Grenada and Barbados were true gems! Whilst poor islands, the people there were so friendly and joyful, that we felt instantly welcomed. We loved both of these islands tremendously and would love to go back.

And yet, it was with Puerto Rico that we had a very unexpected love affair.

One could argue that because we spent the most time there, our opinions of PR might be skewed from our opinions of the other islands. But the truth is, we were enraptured within our first hour there. Despite all the beauties that the other islands had to offer, it was Puerto Rico who really captured our hearts.

In Old San Juan, the air and the architecture were infused with a calming energy I can’t describe. Like Valparaiso Chile, the brightly-colored stacked homes have an unexplainable way of stealing the hearts of many, including myself. And I always find Cuban architecture to be my most favored. The narrow cobblestone streets spoke to my soul the way they do in Savannah and Saint Augustine and I could feel the presence of hundreds of years of culture saturated in their uneven stones. The views from Castillo de San Cristobal, spanning over city and sea, literally took my breath away. And the sound of the deep blue water sending waves crashing into the black boulders surrounding the old city walls smoothed away any sense of tension in my body. It is a beautiful city and instantly it communed with my soul and welcomed me.

Cute Mom and Pop restaurants flanked every street corner and wonderful food was everywhere we turned. From white tablecloth to small diners, they had it all. But our favorite was to sit at the street-side tables where locals screamed out the happy hour specials to passers-by. There, we’d sip our mojitos, (by-far the best we’ve ever had) and soak in the city.

The history of the city/country fascinated us too. We walked the length of the old city walls and visited the original gates and forts that once protected the island from outside intruders. A city fountain, full of statuesque symbols that represent the country, included two goddesses that are said to both protect the island and welcome visitors by sea (a welcome surprise for this heathen in an otherwise very Catholic country). The family is  the center of the culture. And when I discovered that a frog, of all things, was a national symbol, it was a match made in heaven. I love frogs!

But despite all of that … the symbols, the food, the architecture and the landscape … again it was the people who really touched our hearts. Every person that we encountered in a store front, restaurant/bar, walking down the street or selling their goods out of a basket, was kind. They went out of their way to communicate, to explain, to accommodate us, and to welcome us as visitors to their island.

It’s been almost six months since Hurricane Maria ravaged their country. Despite the fact that we knew several of the attractions we had planned on visiting were still closed, it was with purposeful intent that my husband and I maintained our vacation plans. Lights, water and safety were all that we needed to give us the green light to not only visit but to support them through our tourism; and we sought out worthy, small businesses to patronize. We didn’t want to be part of the masses who pulled out and left the country hurting even more than they already were. So we went with the intention of enjoying ourselves and helping out the little man at the same time. We did this for all the islands we visited on that trip.

We weren’t expecting any kudos for that. It only seemed common decency to us. We aren’t wealthy and we weren’t going as missionaries. We merely went there as vacationers, spending the modest amount of money we had on food, drinks and a few souvenirs.

And then the craziest thing started happening. Complete strangers would approach us in the streets to thank us for coming to Puerto Rico and to assure us that they will continue to rebuild. We were instantly humbled.

They told us their stories. One woman we passed in the street, was walking three dogs. And when we stopped to greet them, she explained that they were all rescue dogs that she pulled off the streets after the storms. Three wagging tails that she did her part to save and now calls her “children”. Other people told us stories of people with private planes that air-lifted sick kids out to the United States to get treatment. And they expressed their gratitude to the U.S. companies for coming to help. They spoke of the months without water and without power, how the community came together to clean-up, and they described the sound of the storm when it passed over their houses. A true nightmare, to be trapped on an island, with no way off, when mother nature surges through in historic fury. Their stories were both heart wrenching and terrifying.

They described what it was like to survive a category five hurricane.

What they never did though … was complain.

And more than even that, despite their tragic stories, they remained joyful. As a people who had lost so much, they were still happy! And they were working so hard to continue to clean-up. Nearly six months- and the trucks were still picking up loads of rubble and debris, the electric companies were still repairing downed lines, and some businesses and natural landmarks will be forever changed by the damage; but they merely said “We’re going to be okay! We’re going to rebuild. Thank you for coming here!” And they’d laugh and they’d shake your hand and they’d ask where you were coming from and they’d welcome you like a long-lost friend.

I remember watching some news footage, days after the storm, and how the people of PR came out into the streets to dance. With no lights, no water and some with no homes, they banged on steel drums and shook homemade instruments and they danced. A true example of learning to dance in the rain. I experienced that mirth while I was there. Music always seemed to fill the streets, no mater the time or day. Smiles found themselves on every face you came to meet and laughter and a love for humanity seemed to surround us .

On our last day, after returning from the ship, we were excited to experience another part of the island – along the beach of Condado and Isla Verde. We were impressed to discover that the neighborhood we were staying in, had always been a poor one but had recently been developing into an up-and-coming art district; and small businesses and restaurants were filling in where old dilapidated structures once stood. The Cuban architecture and cobblestone was replaced by wider streets and graffiti art; but the people were just the same. Still coming up to us and thanking us for coming, still sharing their stories and finding reasons to laugh.

There, we again walked the streets and enjoyed the food, but we also experienced the beach. It wasn’t the most visually striking beach we’d seen in our twelve days of adventuring, but again it was the people who brought the beauty. It was a Sunday afternoon and all the locals were down on the sand with picnic baskets and beer – men playing a ball game, lovers snuggling on their blankets, young people enjoying one another’s company … not because it was a holiday. It wasn’t even summer, but just because.

And that night … away from the city center, amidst the tropical foliage outside our room, the most magical sound came when the Coqui frogs began to sing. And with that, I knew … this was a love affair that would have to continue. A love affair with a tropical climate, delicious food, rum and coffee, beautiful architecture, history and above all, beautiful, happy, people.

Like the poor man who will search the beach after the storm, for wood to rebuild his home, I too, will search the world for places that rebuild my soul. I am glad I found Puerto Rico.

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Looking for adventure? 10 Reasons to take a Road Trip !!!

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I remember it like it was yesterday … the first flight we took as a family of four.

It was a 5 hour flight from the east coast to Utah to visit some family and explore the west. The kids were 4 1/2 yrs and 15 months. I wanted to save money so I didn’t buy a seat for the 15 month old. We booked a late flight and kept him awake all day with the hope that he’d sleep on the plane. Despite every good effort, the child who had just recently weaned and found his legs only wanted to run around and when we couldn’t allow him to do that, he was inconsolable. After that trip I decided that we would not be flying again for a very, very long time.  That combined with a desire to see the world and a lack of funds to travel internationally, fueled the idea of “Road tripping.” And now, we’re obsessed!

To date, we have traveled up and down the east coast, driven from MD to TX and back and explored a good bit of the west. On one of our trips we managed to hit 12 states and on another we explored 4 major national parks. When people hear of our trips and adventures and they learn that we drove it all, they’re usually aghast. “You drove all that way!?” “How long did it take you?” “Don’t the kids drive you crazy?” “Omg! What do you do with all that time in the car?!”

So this post is to answer those questions and share with you ….

10 Reasons why Road Tripping is the thing to do!

  1. It’s cheaper! Check the gas prices and do the math … if you have more than two people in your traveling party, it’s almost always cheaper to drive your own car. Saving money on plane tickets and car rentals allows more money to go towards other things – like cool excursions.
  2. My children won’t disrupt anyone else. Can they still be whiney and annoying sometimes? Sure! They’re kids! But they’re mine and I love them unconditionally. If they kick the back of the seat, whine, or are too wiggley … strangers who have no obligation to my children and who paid good money for their seat aren’t bothered. This eliminates a ton of stress on me, as their mother.
  3. It’s more comfortable. We have it down to a science! The kids pick what movies they want to pack. We have wireless headphones so that they can watch a movie while we listen to our music. There’s a cooler packed in between their seats filled with juice boxes, snacks and sandwiches. They each bring their pillow and pack a “carry-on” which is filled with fun activities for the car – a new activity book, travel-sized games, their toys, ear-buds, tablets, etc. You simply can’t carry all those things on a plane. Nor can you put your seat all the way back or lay down across the seats.
  4. It allows for more flexibility. You have your own vehicle and your own schedule. You can choose to stick to your pre-determined stops or be spontaneous without the worry of a flight to catch or a shuttle schedule to check.
  5. It encourages you to explore more places off the beaten path. Airports tend to be the hub of cities and businesses and are full of tourist traps and chain-restaurants. Once you are in the center of those hubs, the motivation to move outside of that area may be lessened because of traffic and time and sheer inconvenience. But if you’re planning a road trip, you simply plan your route based on where you want to go, not just where there’s an airport. We decide how far we want to drive each day and then we look in that vicinity to see where we want to stop and what opportunities there are in that area. Every day we have a new adventure planned. Try it! I promise you’ll find yourself at more parks and cozy little restaurants then you would if your plane dropped you off in the middle of a city. And my experience has proven these places to be our most memorable gems.
  6. It allows for more family bonding. Spending hours in close quarters affords us the opportunity to know one another more deeply and it forces us to find enjoyment in one another when the tendency may be to retreat and be alone. With no pressures of time or being in public, discussions take place that otherwise wouldn’t. Car games to pass the time encourage team work and shared thoughts. We’re in it together and the trip isn’t enjoyable for anyone if someone is acting up – so there’s a motivation to be pleasant and to be a team player. Do we sometimes get on each other’s nerves? Sure, that’s what the independent activities are for. But when those get old, we come back together again. Kids love playing games with their parents and the time in the car gives us a break from life’s busyness. And with a laptop I can get some work, writing and photo editing done while we travel instead of trying to do it at our destinations or when we get back home.
  7. It teaches children the virtue of patience. In a world of instant gratification, road-tripping shows them that the sweetest things in life are worth working and waiting for. A 5 hr road trip for my kids is a piece-of-cake because they know what a 17 hr drive is like. And I’m convinced that the work and wait it takes to travel to various places makes them appreciate our destinations even more.
  8. It reinforces geography and teaches map reading skills. This dying art is alive and well when the Meneses family takes a vacation. Using both digital GPS as well as a simple paper version of the states we are traveling through, we chart our path of adventure; and as a result, learn where these cities and states are in-relation to one another and how long it takes to travel between them. And … it’s another car activity to keep our minds busy!
  9. It creates cultural awareness. Exploring different locales within the same trip allows us to see first-hand the common threads and the vast differences that lie just a day’s car-ride apart. It’s a 10 hr drive from the moonshine-filled, lush Great Smoky Mountains of the twangy Tennessee countryside to the jazz-filled streets of New Orleans. Another 8 hr drive and you leave this architectural gem, infused with Gullah and French influence, and the swampy wetlands of Louisiana turn into the dry, brown desserts and the cowboy culture of Texas. Be it food, way of speaking, common mode of transportation, placement of modern-day conveniences, homeless population, level of crime, or merely the overall lifestyle of the people who call these places “home”, my children can see that there’s goodness to be found everywhere. Our hometown isn’t superior because it’s familiar and there’s more than one way to live.
  10. Planning ahead saves time and money and allows for a more stress-free vacation. Road tripping does require more planning than a one-stop vacation … but it saves you more time and stress once your vacation begins. Friends and family love to tease me about my typed itineraries. But when vacation comes, I literally punch the address into the GPS and off we go! I don’t have to worry about where we are going to eat or if  a certain place is open on Sundays. I’ve already done all that. And if we want to cut something out or stay longer, we can! But we’re not wasting time walking in circles or googling “things to do”. Trip Advisor and Map Quest will become your best friends (they’re free). There’s no moping around the hotel room, “What are we going to do today?” nonsense. And as I said before, you get more experiences and have more flexibility by driving your own car. 

 

Start out small and give it a try! Your first road trip doesn’t have to be across the country. It doesn’t require a ton of money or a travel agent. The planning can be done a little-at-a- time and the hotels booked and paid for one-by-one, in advance, so that when the vacation comes, your expenses are minimal. And, like anything, the more you do it, the better you will get at it!

My family is half-way to our goal of experiencing all 50 states. I am convinced that there is no better way to explore the vast and varied experiences of this country than hitting the open road. There are so many cultural experiences and adventures right here in the US. The sites you will see, the road-side stands selling local fare-boiled peanuts or fresh produce, and the places you will find just can’t be replicated when you’re in the air. My favorite memories have come from these trips. I have snorkeled amazing reefs in the Florida Keys, rode a mule down into a canyon, floated alongside manatees, jumped from cliffs in Texas, ridden on a train through the West Virginia countryside and danced in the streets of New Orleans with my 9-year-old …. and none of those things would’ve happened if we hadn’t taken a road trip.

Don’t get me wrong …. I want to travel internationally and sometimes a plane ride is only practical … but while the kids are still young, while I have 4 tickets to buy – not just 2 and while there is still so much of this country that we haven’t seen, road tripping has allowed us to check-off bucket list items without going into debt and has shown us the many hidden treasures that can be found when you take the long road.

Adventure can be for everyone! Go find it!