Travel means a lot of things to different people. For some, it means adventure. For others, relaxation. For many, it means stress. I travel for work on a weekly basis. I sit in airports, on planes, and in hotel
lobbies watching all the passengers and guests, imagining their stories. Are they business travelers like me? Families traveling with children could be
visiting elder relatives or coming to Florida for a vacation. Young men and women in groups could be
traveling for sports teams or for their first vacation without parents. Anxious passengers demonstrating they don’t
typically fly, could be traveling for funerals or job interviews. Everyone has a story. I sit and watch and live vicariously through them
for a few moments of time to feel what travel means for them.
When you travel via plane for work, it begins to feel as
routine as commuting daily through traffic in a car. You deal with rude people who are always in a
hurry. You encounter inexperienced travelers
who are completely clueless in the entire process. And of course, the airport security workers
that are coming to the end of their long overnight shifts just trying to keep
the traffic flowing. It becomes repetitive. Monotonous.
Another flight, another safety message, another city, another hotel room
alone, another takeout meal.
But then, you get that rare opportunity to do the same process
you always do for fun instead. Suddenly,
when I am packing my bag for a vacation rather than another work trip, I start
to get that same excitement I once had before it became my way of life. Now I get to be the person wearing
athletic-leisure wear through security instead of my ‘uniform.’ I can sip champagne while waiting to board
instead of an early morning latte. I can
read a book for pleasure instead of another presentation to review. The entire process, that has been done a thousand
times before, now feels fresh and exciting.
What makes it even more exciting is when you get to do it
with friends. I’ve had the great fortune
to do many domestic trips with various groups of friends throughout my
life. Girls weekends, couples’ trips,
framily vacations. This would be the
first time that I’ve been able to take it to the next level, by traveling
internationally with friends, allowing me to cross another item off my bucket
list.
While work travel can become tiresome, it does come with
some perks. These perks lead to international
flights being covered through points, access to tickets to a highly
sought-after event and a hotel stay in a fabulous hotel in a beautiful
city. All we had to do now was a little
bit of planning to have a whole lot of fun.
Luckily, one of the friends going on this trip was an even bigger
planner than I am, which made the preparing process much easier.
Our international adventure lead us across the pond to spend
a few days in London followed by a road trip through Ireland. During our trip I was able to disconnect from
my day to day routine and overindulge in a lot of delectable foods and some of
the best beer and whiskey I’ve ever had.
Instead of sleeping alone in a hotel room, I was sharing a home, a lot
of laughs and stories with some of my favorite people. We got to see amazing views, experience a
little bit of the culture, and most importantly create memories that will last
a lifetime.
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