Planning a Trip
So… you are going on a trip overseas! Congratulations! I know you will have the BEST of times.
So… whatcha gonna do?
That right there is the heart of any trip, eh? Planning it out and making sure that you have stuff to do each day. I do this as well but I do something that is a little different. I add ‘Pad Time’ into my plans for each day.
Pad Time? It’s exactly what you think it is. Padding. No… not Paddington the Bear. I mean you add a little flexibility with your schedule throughout the day. I mean… you are on vacation, right? Act like it! Who wants to go from one thing to the next… constantly racing and pushing yourself to SEE EVERYTHING and you are just SPRINTING through the city. You can do that. I just like to have fun and be relaxed when I’m overseas. Everyone is different… I guess.
Like happening upon an impromptu Street Concert… !!!
I like to think of it as giving yourself freedom to have chance encounters. To explore and possibly have an even better time had you prepared something in advance. Should you go straight to your next thing you are going to or should you take the longer way? These are the kind of things I mean when I’m talking about Pad Time.
Let me give you an example. On my last day in Paris, my friends and I all decided to hop on the Paris Metro and then get off at a random stop and see where we might end up. It was amazing. We all promised not to use our phones and we just explored. It was one of the best things I remember doing on that trip and will always remember it. We grabbed some beers at a bodega and… since we were in Europe… cracked them open and started walking and enjoying our fine adult beverages. It was a beautiful night in Paris. We saw some church ruins that we would have never seen if we hadn’t done this. We also inadvertently went into a secure complex’s outside area and some security guards asked us to leave… but it was fun! We did end up at an amazing Craft Beer bar because CLEARLY we were meant to.
Serendipity.
It's fun! So… to come clean… I am actually in the process of planning a two week trip to Europe right now! I leave in 19 days. I will be in Spain. Barcelona area to be precise. I will be making some trips out of the city and I am loving every minute of all the possibilities that can happen. It’s what I live for.
Barcelona!
You can BET that I will be adding Pad Time to each and every day. I have been to Barcelona back in 2019 but… that city is HUGE. I know I didn’t hit everything. I guess figuring out where I want to go… is always part of the fun. And hey… if you know of somewhere amazing in Barcelona or areas around there… hit me up! I’m always looking for recommendations.
I will make sure to keep everyone up to date on this trip… I can already tell that it’s going to be an amazing one. Oooooh tapas… how I miss thee. And Sherry. I think I got the vapors! I’m just joking… or am I?
