Trips

I don't remember going on many trips when I was growing up. With four children on a single income (plus what income my mom got from selling on eBay), there wasn't exactly tons of money to go around. Occasionally we'd visit family, but most of our outings were experienced closer to home.

Trips of any kind became memorable events for me. Whether camp or actual vacations, any time spent away from my house counted as a trip to me.

A few years in a row, I attended a week-long summer camp in Lubbock, Texas. My mom was usually a counselor, so I could always find her if I needed something. The first year, the theme was boot camp, and we wore kid-friendly fatigues and attended morning workouts. It was then that I decided that I had no intention of joining any branch of the military.

Years later I went to Six Flags over Texas with the youth group. My Dad went on that trip. One of my favorite memories to remind him of is when we stopped part of the way there to get breakfast at McDonald's. Even back then, my anxiety was at a high and he ordered my breakfast for me. But he returned with a cup of orange juice. If you know me, you know that I can't stand the stuff. He remembered as he sat the juice down before me, and promised to get me another drink before we got back on the road.

My Dad has always been one for a deal and bought two huge sodas for us at a discounted price. Unfortunately for him, he drank the entire thing before we arrived at the theme park and had to run to find a bathroom as soon as we got there. We were more mindful of the size of our drinks after that.

I served as a page in the Oklahoma House of Representatives for a week when I was 11, I think, and that was one of my first outings without my parents. However, I still had a trusted adult in the form of Ms. Liz, my youth leader who worked in another Representative's office. I would sit with her to eat lunch sometimes, and she would check in on me. That was about the farthest I'd been from a trip with my parents, and I admit that I was thrilled by the experience.

We traveled to Trinidad and Tobago, where my mom is from, when I was 16 or 17 to attend my great aunt’s wedding. While the island, food, and people were beautiful, I couldn’t help but find myself wishing that I could be on a trip with people my age, doing things that I wanted.

In college, I got my wish.

A group of us, one who had been and three who hadn’t, decided to go to NYC. It was the first time I’d traveled that far without my parents, and let me tell you, it was an experience. Random bedtimes, wandering around the city at 1 am, seeing Broadway shows for the first time…it was amazing. We’d even decided to make reservations to a fancy, expensive restaurant and dressed in our finest to enjoy the night.

This same group of friends, plus one, went to Cancun, Mexico, a month before I started my first year of teaching. It came with wonderful memories of its own. We took a boat ride to an island, passing Ricky Martin’s private island on the way. I got to snorkel for the first time, looking under the water to see an underwater museum of statues on the ocean floor. My friends touched sharks - I passed. There’s only so much adventure I can take.

One of my favorite parts of the trip, though, was our trip to McDonald's. (Yes, McDonald’s again.)

After a long day of traveling, getting our bearings, deciding who was brave enough to drive the rental car in another country, and getting settled into our Airbnb, we decided the safest bet for dinner was McDonald's. All we’d have to do was point at the sign and say the number of the meal that we wanted. Right?

Nope.

Upon getting in line, we realized that we had to separately choose our entree, side, and drink. No numbers. As I was the only one of us who remembered anything for high school and college Spanish classes, I was volunteered as the one to help all of us order.

Between me, the manager, and the poor girl behind the counter, we got everyone squared away and figured out how much to pay. When one of my friends decided they wanted to order more food, I staunchly told them that they could figure it out themselves, I was done.

After that, life got busy. Finishing grad school and working full time as a teacher had all of my attention - never mind my funds. I would take a bus or drive up to NYC from time to time to visit a friend and to see Broadway shows, but that was the extent of my traveling.

And then, last year, my boyfriend started asking where I’d like to go for vacation.

At that point, it had been nearly eight years since I’d been on a trip. I’d been planning a trip to England and other parts of Europe in early 2020, but obviously, that trip didn’t happen.

We settled on Tennessee and Kentucky, planned the trip, and drove down.

All of the trips I’ve taken with friends have been fun, but going on my first “baecation” is one of my favorite memories. We hiked, visited little souvenir shops, played mini golf, went ziplining, and traveled through caves. Getting to spend that time away with him was amazing, and pushing myself to get through the hikes and the caves was a personal triumph. Cap it off with a hot tub and wine under the stars in the mountains, and you’ve got a recipe for escape that I had so desperately needed.

I haven’t been on a trip since that one in April. Life is busy again, time and funds are a little tight. But I do look forward to the next trip, whether it just is with my boyfriend, my siblings, or a group of friends.

Now that I’ve experienced a broader range of trips, I’m happy that I have all of these experiences to look back on.