Memories of a summer trip

Well, here I am again after a rather long absence. In the past few weeks, we flew across the Atlantic and spent a lovely vacation in the land of quaint barns, wide open spaces and colossal cities – better known as the USA.

I used to think that there was not much difference between Western Europe and the States, yet with each passing visit I realise more acutely just how big those differences are. But it’s all good because variety is the spice of life. So no complaints from me – except that the grocery stores are too cold.

Vacations pass way to quickly and we always come back with that niggling feeling that we didn’t quite do and see all that we had planned. And my husband will probably blame me for that. But I am not a typical tourist. I don’t mind if I don’t see everything as long as I have time to linger in a place. I am always a dreamer but that characteristic seems to surface even more when I am on holiday and enjoying myself. There is no sense in rushing around. ‘Savour the moment’ is my motto. Yet at the same time, it doesn’t make sense to travel thousands of  miles and see nothing at all. And then there’s the Mischief Maker who, at nine, has his own ideas of the places he would like to visit. So I suppose we try to reach a balance without driving each other insane.

So what did we do while we were there? We visited Washington DC, saw the monuments and tried to fit in as many museums as we could. We fell in love with a Space Shuttle. We rode a pedicab. We drove to the Ozark mountains and some of us fished (not me) while the rest of us lazed about (that would be me). We made friends with a dog called Shadow. We tried some Moonshine. We ate fresh blueberries for breakfast at a farm that was miles away from anything and anyone. We enjoyed special moments with family and old friends. We shopped (and shopped some more). We chased dragonflies. We had fun. We spent time together. We made memories. Because that’s what vacations are supposed to be about.

More on our trip next time. Hope you’re all having a wonderful summer.