How I got interested in travel
When I was young, my parents took me and my brother camping in a pop-up tent. That went on until my brother was calling “kitty kitty” after a bear, and kept wriggling his arm out of the tent at night.
After that, we did some vacationing in the Poconos, but in time-shares where you don’t have to worry about little kids chasing bears or getting their hands bitten off at night.
When we were a little older, we traveled to Disney and a few other places, and then we all went to Europe. My parents had made different lists of things to do to keep us busy, and found out quickly that we loved climbing church bell towers and castles. We would count the stairs on the way up, and the way down, hoping to get the same count. I don’t think we did very often, as we were distracted by gargoyles and the views out the windows with some frequency.
So we toured Germany and Holland and France and other countries, climbing our way though many major landmarks and staying in B&Bs ordering “kalte Milch” in the morning.
The Eiffel Tower, Notre Dame, Neuschwanstein, and numerous other castles and bell towers tired us out. Madurodam enthralled us. Dachau sombered us. We enjoyed hearing of Mad Ludwig’s antics as we went to many Bavarian castles.
Somehow we all survived this first bold trip led by our brave parents and then continued to take others (although generally closer to home).
The US national parks were a frequent destination, as well as places like Myrtle Beach, Cape Cod, and the Poconos. And now I find myself seeking out new things around the world. So, I look for deals (like $300 non-stop to Paris and $600 to Singapore and India, like I’ve recently found) and just go off wherever I can.
