20K and a Year Away

Well, it has been months since I last wrote. This new lifestyle does not lend itself to adventures on the open road and swashbuckling. Ok, I wasn’t swashbuckling before, but now it is really off the table. I was reminiscing over what I was up to this time last year. What a difference a year can make. I flip back in the photos and have little strings pulling my heart toward adventure and seeing the world. I know that will all be part of my future, but I sure do miss it right now, especially after I just paid the electric, internet, mortgage, and water bills.

The last few months have been crazy at work since I took on those extra responsibilities and the jobs that come with them. I was making graphics and posting things right and left on the city pages about the big holiday celebrations and have not posted a single thing of my own. I think I am suffering from social media overload, and it isn’t even my stuff. There was a tree, some elves, a snowman… it is all a blur now.

Part of my negotiations for taking on my new tasks got me more vacation time. Of course! I don’t think they realize how much more that means to me. I am not dumb, I will take the extra money, but give me time off and I will be even more dedicated to my work. That is a good compromise if I have to be in a job. Yes, we all know I would rather not be working at all, but it is better than not getting the extra time. And, yes, there are times I contemplate the concept of “sugar daddy.” I’m not going to do it, I was just thinking about it. As those who know me already know, I would rather be my own sugar mama, but a girl can think about things, right? Hahaha!

Now that I have more days in my planning calendar that I can use, I have another trip on the books! I am heading to Milan in March! There is nothing about Milan that is on any list of mine, bucket or to-do, but the ticket was just over $500 roundtrip – and not even one of those 20-hour tickets from hell. So, heck yeah! I am going to Milan for spring break.

There are two things that brought this on. First, the extra days off from the employer, thank you very much. And, second, Axel decided to go see his dad over spring break. He decided to stay home for Christmas and then fly out there to visit later. That meant I would be here by myself for the week with no teenager to bug on his week off, so why not see what was out there?

Let me just paint a picture of what was out there when I started looking. Absolutely nothing! Horribly inflated plane tickets. Ridiculously long layovers. It was chaos. There was no way I was going to pay those prices, ever. But, I reallllly wanted to go somewhere and kept the search going at all hours. Then, one day, peeking below the little marker for the price for Rome at $1700 was a tiny little $5… I saw that and zoomed in at the speed of light. It was to the north. It came into focus and announced itself – Milan $535. What!?! Italy for 500 bucks. I AM SO THERE!! It took a little moving, moments of heartbreak, and major fare-stalker flexing, but the end price was $556. I can live with that, in Milan. HA!

Now, do I know anything about Milan? No. No, I don’t. I only wear black and never dress up, so the fashion capital has never really been on my radar. This seems like the perfect time to learn a few things. And Italian. I need to learn all of the Italian language in 2 months. Completely doable. Hahaha! I will learn what I can, especially the words that get me fed and to and from the places I want to visit.

I asked Lawrence if he wanted to go with me, and of course, he did. This was also an opportunity to show him how to get the best deal on a plane ticket. I was watching those tickets for days. It was 500, then up to 900, and then down to 800. He was ready to buy the $800 tickets, but I held him back. Prices were going to go down. There is no way they will stay at Christmas levels forever. And then, while we were grabbing lunch at the Thai place, it happened. We got drunken noodles with a side of tickets to Milan! The best lunch! And, that extra $300 we saved on airfare paid for our rooms.

I am still a go for Greece in July, too. As a matter of fact, I have reserved my Airbnb in Athens and another on an island closer to Thessaloniki in the northern Aegean Sea. I still don’t know how to get there, but I will figure it out before July, or maybe after I get there. If all else fails, I will rely on my Greek tutor to draw me a map.

While I am in Athens, I will be 10 minutes from the Acropolis. While I am in Milan I will be 15 minutes from the Duomo. I get giddy thinking about it. The island I will be staying on in Greece is Σαμοθρακυ – Samothrace, in English. It has hiking, swimming, waterfalls, beaches, and ruins. I am not sure if I will have the emotional strength to leave after 5 days, but I will just remember that it snows there and that will bring me to my senses very quickly.

On the planning list for the end of 2023 is Spain. Matilda and I wanted to go to Spain when we were in Lisbon but didn’t take the leap. I think a week in Madrid and/or Barcelona would be great. I would like to go to Lima, too, but I can’t seem to find a time when the tickets and my time off coincide. I will keep the flight alerts going, just in case. Last, but never least, I want to try to get a long weekend, or a week, in Panama because I love that place. I think I can make that happen, I hope, but again, it all comes down to timing. Speaking of Panama, my friends Lorraine and Rob are just getting there today! Bon voyage! I hope it is the best trip ever!!

For 2024, I have Asia on the list. So far, Matilda and I are looking at Vietnam for January – Axel is thinking he wants to go on this one, and Japan in July with Meaghan’s oldest. That is going to be epic! I sure hope he’s studying Japanese because I haven’t even started.

So, as I take a little stroll down memory lane, I get a little sad that I am not out there chasing down the dream. But, I remind myself that the dream is still alive and kicking and that every one of these little excursions helps feed the travel monster and save me from the dark side – not that I dislike the dark side, I just imagine it is cold there, so not for me. Although, I have seen many memes telling me they have pie and cookies, which is a huge draw. But, cold is a no-go, no matter how delicious their baked goods are.

As I wind this up, Axel and I are super excited for next week. The girls are both coming to hang out with us for two weeks! Matilda has a huge list of food she wants to gorge on while she’s here. We will try to make sure she goes back to Korea a lot heavier. What do you think about rollerskating rinks? That is still a big thing around here. Who knew? We might go for a skate and see what bones we can break. (Which makes me think of my broken heel bone from my Panama travels – which is another story for another time.) I also found a VR gaming place for groups to play in their own world together. That sounds like a good time gone bad with motion sickness, but SIGN ME UP! HA!

Happy New Year to everyone out there! Happy travels – even if it is just around the block as you make your dreams happen – no matter where they take you, they are worth every step! I hope your year is filled with all the adventures you want and then some!