The Travel Bug, and I Don't Mean Cyclospora
I grab the blue Expo marker and stand at the sliding glass window aka our white board waiting for direction. From the couch, Nate calls out “AUH to SPX, CAI to AUH on Air Arabia 2,981.58 AED.”
I dutifully scribble onto the glass.
“AUH to Tbilisi on Air Arabia, 2816 AED.”
I try to keep up.
“DXB to Tirana but it’s Fly Dubai is 5,358 AED.”
“But hotels are sub $300 a week” I throw into the conversation as I continue to create a chart that captures flight costs, routes and layovers, and miscellaneous factors that could sway our decision one way or the other.
“What about Sharjah to Krakow on Air Arabia for 2848 AED?” Interesting. Perhaps.
I’ll admit it. We have the “travel bug.” Perhaps it was my upbringing as a missionary kid with very specific memories of the older flight attendants on United Air handing me a pouch of goodies and the iconic pair of wings. I can see myself in every sleep position and am jealous of past me’s ability to sleep almost anywhere– scrunched up on the floor, hunched over the tray, propped up against the seat in front of me, sprawled out over two seats leaning against a parent if I was lucky.
Nate came to travel later and he’s described his own awakenings on his blog.
While we’ve had to compromise on our approach to traveling (I’ve calmed down about the “up and at ‘em approach” and he understands I will definitely want to walk to that building in the distance), we both find it of value.
A couple of years ago this piece, “The Case Against Travel” made the rounds on social media and in group chats. Basically, the author claims that, “It [travel] turns us into the worst version of ourselves while convincing us that we’re at our best.”I mean, anyone who’s wrestled with an old man over an arm wrest or hip checked the dude who’s not waiting his turn to deplane or nearly puked entering the airplane bathroom knows the disgusting habits of humans can be quite upsetting. But travel, be it for vacation, work, or a whim, provides a door into another world that we can decide to walk through.
Why strike a pose in front of Old Faithful? Why hold your hand in such a way so it looks like you’re holding the Eiffel Tower between your index finger and thumb?
Maybe it’s a flex. Maybe it’s to show grandma that yeah, this place you’ve only read about in books, truly does exist.
I think back to the earliest modes of transportation. Ya’ll, I do not know if I would've had 15.5 days in me to cross the Atlantic. I am, however, pretty good at a 17hr flight. Movie. Book. Nap. Movie. Book. Nap. Arrivals.
Now, just because we can do it, doesn’t mean we should. I adored my time in the Valley of the Kings, but in the back of my mind, I wasn’t really sure we should be there galavanting through ancient tombs. I think I feel similarly about scuba diving. Should I really be floating around someone else’s neighborhood staring at their friends and trying not to break anything? Maybe rich folks shouldn’t try to conquer Mount Everest.
There is a distinction to be made between being a “tourist” and being a “traveler”. I’ll save my take on that for another day but recommend you listen to this conversation about letting our values guide our travels with Fora Travel Advisor, Lauren Broeseker or this discussion about what it means to see a place through the eyes of a local with Travel Amen Ra.
A passport gives us the ability and the privilege to embark on a journey, to be literally transported to another world. We choose how familiar or “foreign” we want to feel and the extent to which we are open to learning something new.
One of the greatest benefits of having “adult money” and living in the Gulf is that we are in the center of so many flight pathways. The options are endless. Well, endless if you aren’t frugal or particular about being too old for hostels, or not being old enough for cruises.
On the practical side of things, folks often ask us how we decide where to travel and what we do in each location. As teachers, we have a pretty tight window of travel dates, limited by a school calendar and corresponding holidays. Typically, these are some of the most expensive times of the year. We’ve accepted those parameters as a frame for our escapades and build itineraries accordingly.
Factors We Consider…
Do we want to go somewhere new? I keep a running doc of places that seem fun or interesting and we chat about it regularly over dinner or on a morning walk, reordering and refining the list constantly.
Do we want to just play the hits? I’m still chasing after that khinkali fix. Thailand never disappoints. 38 million people can’t be wrong about plov.
How much money do we want to spend? Usually, the answer is “not that much”. If the flight is sub seven hours, we’re pretty willing to take a discount airline. Eight or above? I’m going to need a reclining seat and a plug.
Do we have any points we can use? Unused airline credit from the war. Accumulated Alaska (now Atmos) miles. Amex points we can transfer to partners. We figure a low-cost flight combined with a free hotel is basically a free trip #NateAndHopeMath
Is there something we want to do? Sleep. Eat. Drink. Repeat. Once in a while we’re drawn by the promise of a scuba refresher course (our last spring break trip) or Pyramids (nuff said). Mostly, we’re looking for vibes.
Is the political situation stable? This one is complicated. We chose not to visit Sri Lanka in 2019 in the aftermath of the economic crisis. We were concerned about competing for housing with Armenians displaced from Nagorno-Karabakhbefore travelling there in 2023. We paused trip planning to Albania as protests in the capital seem to be escalating.
Will the flight be cancelled? J/K. This isn’t something we usually consider, but is a new question we’ve added into the rotation since the war began. Thanks, America.
After mulling over answers and shaking our magic eight ball, we’re usually able to pick a spot. The next challenge is negotiating how we allocate our time in said location, but that is for another post. Right now, I need to go click “purchase” on these tickets in my cart. Nakhvamdis (until we see each other again).