Intentional Travel in 2013

I have many fond memories of traveling with my parents as I was growing up. I remember how fun brunch with the characters at Disney World was. I remember being amazed by the water at Clearwater Beach, FL, because it was the first time I ever saw fish and my own feet in the ocean since I grew up going to Ocean City, MD. The water was warm like a bathtub, there were no big waves to knock me over, and I could walk out so far because it was perfectly shallow. I remember Dad losing his wallet and not realizing it until he went to pay for breakfast at a restaurant. It was later found in his pillowcase. I remember the Hemlock Inn, in Appalachia somewhere (I believe), and the room was musty, damp, and it was just gross. I also remember a motel somewhere up in New England, some sort of castle motel chain, and my brother and I had bunk beds in the room but the top bunk was barely far enough from the ceiling for even a small girl like me to crawl in and lay down. There was the haunted bed and breakfast in Lunenberg, Nova Scotia, and that awful and embarrassing incident at the bed and breakfast in Lookout Mountain, GA.

Heinz factory in Pittsburgh, PA

From more recent travels, I remember camping about 30 minutes past Bar Harbor, right on the coast. It was only August but the nights were so cold that we had to sleep with our thermals on under our pajamas and winter coats on overtop. We thought the wind would blow the tent right over. I remember camping in Bahia Honda, FL, when a deluge arrived overnight and flooded nearly everyone’s campsite to the point they had to leave in the dark. I remember missing our train stop in the Netherlands and having to figure out how to get back to where we needed to go. There was the time my husband slipped on a mossy rock at the base of a waterfall during a rainforest hike in St. Lucia and broke our camera … the day before our wedding.

Dogfish Head in Rehobeth, DE

I could keep going and going. You see, travel provides us with memories that could never be had by sitting at home all the time. I believe it is so important to get out and see the world, to experience her wonders. Even the “bad” situations that arise tend to be the ones we look back with and feel fondness for. I remember a good meal from travels through the photographs I took. I remember moments because they imprinted themselves in my brain, which is admittedly much more a steel sieve than trap.

River Liffy, Dublin

In 2013, my goal is to travel with intention. We are planning a trip to Austin Psych Fest in April. We are planning a trip to the West Coast in September, namely to visit family in Grants Pass and Portland, OR. To fill in the space before, between, and after these trips, my goal is to take the kids to visit as many historic attractions and museums in our local area. I started this week by taking the kids to the National Watch & Clock Museum in Columbia, PA. We are taking the kids to the Smithsonian for Lotus’ birthday. I am choosing to make a list for intentional travel so my kids can hopefully look back as an adult with their own memories of travel and exploration as a child.

Angel Orensanz Foundation, NYC

I’ll be starting a new page on my blog called Intentional Travel. I will be adding to and crossing off items from the list throughout the year, as something new piques my interest or as we visit.

En Bas Saut Rainforest, St. Lucia

What are your travel goals for 2013? What kind of memories do you have from traveling as a child?