Just the other day, I wrote that my regret for 2010 was not traveling as much as I would like. Today’s #reverb10 prompt pushes that farther, asking us to describe, “How did you travel in 2010? How and/or where would you like to travel next year?”
I was lucky enough to travel a lot growing up. Every year we went somewhere, even if it was just tacking on to one of my dad’s business trips. (That’s how we spent vacations in Cincinnati and Newark.) But my parents really valued travel for opening up new worlds to us, so we also did a relatively traditional whirlwind European tour when I was 12, and then moved to Hungary for a year when I was 14. While living there, travel was so easy – Vienna (with fresh strudel) was just a 90 minute drive away, and we drove all over Central Europe on weekends and our frequent school breaks. Heck, my math team went to a competition in Morocco.
As an adult, it’s been a bit more difficult to travel, especially having the funding and time off to do so. And other travel priorities pop up, such as weddings and business trips. (Though I’ve been pretty good about trying to add a day or two on many business trips so I can explore a bit.) In 2010, my only travel was a wedding in New York (the weekend before classes started, so I couldn’t add on time) and a business trip to San Diego.
Next year will be different. While school complicates things (and also may lead me to Asia in late summer), I just need to reset my expectations. Though big international trips are my favorite way to travel – I love spending a few days completely immersed in a new area, exploring until my feet are numb, people watching and wandering – they’re not as conducive to my schedule and budget.
So in 2011, I’ll make an effort to go on more small trips. Ideally, I would love to do my Ireland trip, and I’ll start researching how flights align with my very limited school breaks. But then, I’ll shoot to take two or three long weekends elsewhere, places I haven’t been before. Maybe Boston or Portland. Maybe I’ll see friends living places I haven’t been. I’m going to Indianapolis for the Indy Mini Half Marathon in May. While I was born there, I haven’t been back since I was about 8 years old – I should spend an extra day exploring.
I haven’t figured it out quite yet. But 2011 will be a good year for traveling.
This post is part of #Reverb10, a month-long project to reflect on the year nearly gone. Read all my #Reverb10 posts, or learn more.
Adventures of the Former Elginista 
We need to talk about Portland!! And I think you should definitely put Asia down for next year!
I think Asia will happen – the class if figuring out the logistics, and I’ll get class credit for it. And yes, we will certainly talk about Portland!
Have you been to Phoenix? Sean and I did a 5 day stay there (in Scottsdale, actually) and loved it! I kept checking the travel package websites and found a deal we couldn’t pass up that included airfare, a rental car and a stay at a 4 star hotel. I can recommend all sorts of things to do 🙂
I’ve been to Phoenix a few times on business, but never really explored it for fun – that’s a great idea!
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