Time and Travel

"There's never enough time to do all the nothing you want" – Bill Watterson

Boiled down to its essence, this quote means, "Re-entry stinks." I'm just back from a two-week vacation that was awesome. There were blue seas, bright sunny days, too much good food, way too much good wine, and lots of laughs. New friends were made, memories cemented, inside jokes and bad photos happened, and not one travel mishap occurred. I am beyond grateful for having been able to take a trip that was two years in the making. Saving, planning, and then going was fabulous, and who doesn't love some fabulous at the end of a long, hot summer?

My first day back in the office though? That was tough. On top of all the backed-up emails, projects that were off track, and missed memos, there were a scary few minutes where I looked around at my co-workers and asked, "What is it I do here again?"

That was likely the jet lag talking. On a good day, my math skills are remedial; throw in jet lag and it's comical. Telling time, a skill I've had since kindergarten, suddenly became difficult. "Well, we left Rome at 3:00, which is 9:00 here, so that means now it's…pancakes. It's pancakes o'clock."

 

Travel really does change one's outlook, and not just in terms of time zones. When you go places you've never been, it's like a door to a hidden room of treasures opens up and you get to oooh and ahhh over everything that's in there. Like those big white luxury yachts? I've watched Below Deck, I've seen shows on that wealth channel about these boats, but I'd never been near one. Man, they're big. And nice too. A cruise on one of those babies is going on my lottery list, which is like a bucket list, only it's not about getting things in before I die. It's about a silly dream that's fun to think about, which always beats contemplating one's demise, don't you think?

For the record, Italy and Greece are both beautiful countries, with nice people and phenomenal historical sites. They are also both wicked hot and crowded in August. Being American, I'm sure we stuck out like sore thumbs, but still, we were welcomed. Tramping around the Acropolis, the Tower of Pisa and the Greek Isles is both exhausting and exhilarating. Where else can you walk on the same bit of earth that Aristotle walked on? See the land the famous general Pericles fought for and walk some of the same steps as the Apostles? Also, there was plenty of book reading and balcony sitting and staring at sunsets, it wasn't all highbrow history.

One part of the trip that surprised me was seeing how other families interact. Growing up, my family was loud and Irish. Which is kind of the same thing, come to think of it. Many of the families on our boat were Italian, or British or Australian. One family on a beach on the island of Mykonos was surprised to see the Americans hollering, "Polo!" every time they yelled at their kid Marco. There are only about a dozen words in Italian that I can speak and understand, but somehow, the language of families transcends translation, and Marco was definitely in trouble. After a few smacks from Papa, he smartened up, the family posed for a lovely photo together, and they were all laughing like fools, once the Marco Polo game was explained to them by their fellow cruisers. The British families used many of the same slang terms I heard growing up and an Australian family we had breakfast with most days had great stories of "schoolies" (summer break) and "Muck up day" which happens at the end of a school year, right before final exams and involves costumes and pranks.

The coming back though? While difficult, it's part of the price we pay to see these amazing parts of the world, and for me, it's worth it, even if I do miss the endless cruise ship buffets, the daily tidying up that someone else did for us, and the sound of the waves outside my window. Traveling will always be a priority for me, whether it's a quick weekend with absent friends or a carefully planned tour of islands, white sand beaches, and big boats. There is nothing that I find more centering than going off to some new place and seeing what's there so that when it's time to come home, while there is less in my piggy bank, there is way more in my memory bank. So, home again it is, for a little while anyway. Now, does anyone know a good hotel in Sorrento? That's just one of the places I'm going back to, someday.