Where Shall We Go?

What a year, right?!

Masks, no masks. Rapid tests, tests that feel like they touch your brain. Lockdowns, empty shelves. 1, 2, 3 vaccines. Protesters. Racism. Violence. Unemployment. Creative thinking. “I need to go somewhere!”

That last one is all me. I’m not used to being still. I’m not used to being stuck at home, unable to roam this beautiful earth freely. I’m sure many of you feel the same.

I had to figure out how to explore so that I could satisfy the wanderlust deep within. I think my wanderlust was getting hangry…

I did fly during the pandemic. Mikaela—then three years old—and I got a plane in October 2020 and flew to Texas to visit friends. Miraculously, she kept her little mask roughly 87% of the time. Nine or ten months later, she asked if we could go on a plane again. I think “Mikey” likes it.

I’ve got a couple trips planned for next year: Caribbean cruise and several days in Bali. But I feel the need to go somewhere now, Thanksgiving weekend, and the week after Christmas during Kwanzaa. Her preschool is closed those days, so it’s forced vacation time, basically. But where shall we go?

I get emails practically daily about flights all over the world. “Thanksgiving weekend— <$199…” Ooo, yes! Or how about “Maui—$400s” Even better! But “excludes Christmas,” awww sadness.

How about a scenic route via train? Amtrak and Rocky Mountaineer have great packages.

Hmm…how far is Disney World? A quick Google search revealed 14 hours of straight driving. “That’s two days down, several days there, and two days back. That’s doable…during the busiest week of the year…” Been there, done that, I thought to myself and laughed. Not a problem.

Covid procedures? Masks, potential negative tests: nothing that bad, really. I’m vaccinated for this very reason. Just takes a little extra planning and scheduling. We can do this!

The hardest part? Deciding where.

I’ll gladly take suggestions and keep you posted.