We were to depart from Dulles International Airport, at 5:00pm, and arrive at Mexico City International airport at 9:30pm. Those were the simple instructions given to my eight year old sister, my eleven year old brother and me. This was to be our first flight to Mexico by ourselves, without our parents guidance through crowded and busy airports. “Be sure to stick together and carry your passports at all times.” Everyone at the airport could hear my mother repeating herself once again, as is natural for her when she is worried. “Yes mom,” I replied. “don’t worry.'” There was really no need to worry ; I took my job as oldest sibling very seriously and made sure all three of us arrived safely, together, and with our passports to Mexico still intact.
Though it had not been first visit to Mexico, at our arrival to Mexico City Airport, all three of us were mesmerized by the sound of Spanish bouncing off of the buildings walls. It wasn’t until we heard the distinct voice of my grandmother that we stopped starring at everyone around us. Yes, we were fine, and yes, we were hungry, but yes it was late and, yes we all needed to get out of the insanely crowded airport. After the hugs and kisses, and the “My how you’ve all grown!”s, the ride to the city of Toluca was enveloped in peaceful silence. Though this was primarily because my brother and sister had fallen into a deep nap, the ride had become even more silent under the vast, star filled sky; with stars I wouldn’t even dream of seeing back home.
Morning found me snoring on a comfortable bed at Toluca. The smell of lunch was already flooding the apartment my aunt and uncle shared. It didn’t take long before I was at the kitchen, being lavished with typical lunch dishes by my grandmother. The smell was enough to make you smile, and the taste made you float in mid-air. Definitely not pancakes or a McDonald’s breakfast meal, but much better. This was typical of the region, where people grew everything in their backyards and sold it to make a living. Scrambled eggs with chorizo, accompanied by warm tortillas; gourmet cooking on a gas stove. After lunch, we headed for our ultimate destination: Luvianos.
Now I had been in Luvianos before, a long time before. And, I was looking forward to being back. Memories of the locals smiling and selling fresh fruit from the mountains, and those of children inviting me to play tag or hide-and-seek were all I could think of. Yet when we arrived, I was shocked by all I hadn’t remembered. The smell of warm wet earth mixed with that of corn, the heat radiating from the homes where warm bread had just came out of the oven. I had forgotten how it was to walk through the streets and greet everyone with a friendly smile. I had forgotten the children playing without any shoes, and the dusty streets. Not only that, but I had forgotten what it was to live without some of the commodities one takes for granted at home.
Here, people were content to be alive, to have dinner at the table every afternoon, without letting go of their dreams and aspirations. I had forgotten how easy it was to enjoy life, and most of all, I had forgotten how to be thankful. Once I noticed what I had lost, I tried to teach my siblings what I had remembered riding in to Luvianos. Both my brother and sister were intrigued by the way the children played without toys, made their own music and also at how much work they had to do in order to live. Not only did I help my siblings see how easy it is to live, but how hard too. And most importantly, we all learned how to be thankful for what we have been given and share it with everyone else.
Magnolia Flores of Glenn Dale, Maryland won Honorable Mention for this essay.
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Cute. Made me hungry. Have you gone back since?
WOW ITS REAL BEAUTIFUL..
Much better place in Palawan… like El Nido and Club Noah in taytay
Congratulations on your son's upcoming graduation!
For all the information you'll need to plan a houseswap, please search the familytravelforum.com site for "house swapping" or "home exchanges" and you'll find some recommended services that specialize in this.
Let us know how it goes! thanks
Angela, you can read more about the requirements of the Western Hemisphere Travel Initiative at this link:
http://www.familytravelforum.com/how/vacation_deals/227-News-Families-Have-Cheaper-WHTI-Options-for-Kids-Land-and-Sea-Borders.html
According to the WHTI website, you are required to obtain parents' permission, and we quote from them:
Groups of Children:
Beginning June 1, 2009, U.S. and Canadian citizen children under age 19 arriving by land or sea from contiguous territory and traveling with a school group, religious group, social or cultural organization, or sports team, may also present an original or copy of his or her birth certificate, a Consular Report of Birth Abroad, a Naturalization Certificate, or a Canadian Citizenship Card.
The group should be prepared to present a letter on organizational letterhead with the following information:
* The name of the group and supervising adult,
* A list of the children on the trip, and the primary address, phone number, date of birth, place of birth, and name of at least one parent or legal guardian for each child,
* A written and signed statement of the supervising adult certifying that he or she has obtained parental or legal guardian consent for each participating child.
Thank you for your post. We are looking for a family vacation in France for my son's senior graduation and this sounds just perfect! I've never thought about house swapping or how that is done. Could you please give me more information on how one would go about doing that. I am very interested. I'm glad your family had so much fun.
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This sounds great! I’ve always wanted to go to New Orleans.
Wow, I didn’t know that the disabled were shunned in Jamaica. This was informative and heartwarming!
“I was served a sublime slice of humble pie.” I liked that a lot. You have a bunch of great one-liners in here. Really well written!
Backpacking’ll do it. Great title!
I highly recommend another excelent option to do bike tours in buenos Aires, Buenos Aires City Tours on Bike | Urban Biking.
Thank you very much,
Regards,
Guille
Nepal is good destination for adventure lover. We can announce proudly we have more then 13 highest mountain among the world. Nepal is not famous just for mountain it is famous other adventure activities too. Like river, natural beauty and different culture, society, and many religion too. Nepal have very good destination for trekking, hiking, peak climbing, paragliding, bungee jumping, and other more we offer all above activities at suitable price for you .we would like to be your family member, and Thing positive be positive Nepal will be your's Home and I will be your family member if you choose me .hope see you at my place with your sweat smile.
Sandesh Sharma
http://www.nepalvillagetrek.com
nepalviewtrek@hotmail.com
+9779841397842
Really a fabulous article……………
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I like the bit about the B- movie vampire. Interesting!
Wow. I can’t imagine doing anything like this! Have you climbed more since?
Funny. Cool story!
good afternoon
wowww beautiful… nice place
thanks for sharing this camp, i think i should visit it with my family.
good read, thanks for this article
We have eaten at the restaurant and had drinks at the bar at this Ritz. Both times we left saying they need better customer service. Not up to Ritz standards in our opinion
Would visiting this resort cost me a lot?
Hi, we have been in Athens last summer with our 2 children. It was great!if you are traveling to Athens, there are many attractions for families e.g> Copa copana Park, Allou fun park,Hellenic Cosmos, the cultural center which is a child-oriented museum with exhibition halls, its really great! and many other things for family, try this> http://www.facebook.com/cityofathens?ref=ts,
our senior group from penn estates would like info on a day trip to your facility as we have in the past. please forward info price etc for us to plan and open dates
We love KBH. We have returned many times and are always treated great and have a wonderful time. Price is great too.
This is definitely the wave of the future and will be a demand for traveling business people. I think it has a great design and works well for its intended purpose.
This is devastating. Well-written and insightful, though. Nicely done.
Wow, amazing. It’s interesting that this stuck out in your mind so well even after travelling to so many different locations. Well done!
This IS really good. You have a very captivating writing style; it brought be in at the very beginning. The rose thing was amazing. Well done!
what a joyful clever piece
i can see myself there
i think i dream when i see this beach
but i live in egypt
i love it so much. it's my dream. but now i dont have any money:-(
Please confirm my reservation for Aug 23 in the name of Hansford and Bortels. My question is: is the dining casual as in shorts and sandals? Thank you, and again please confirm my reservation.
Thanks yahoo.
Sounds like fantastic, chaotic fun! Take us along next time!
Hilarious review. I'm not sure I would go but your honest review makes it almost tempting.
This place sounds just great. We had a similarly cultural and fun weekend at Kutscher's in the Catskills and perhaps some of their guests go to the Doral Arrowwood on alternate weekends!
Thanks for sharing what sounds like a great cheap family vacation.
i hope travel to uroup but i am poor i dont have more money ,
Nice article…I appreciate the effort for posting this…
In my experience, babies usually like the sound and smell of someone they miss, and may stop crying.
maybe your partner can make a tape/phone message of their voice, and leave behind some clothes, like pajamas, that they might feed the baby in. Having that to offer the baby might comfort her.
Another option is giving baby something warm and moving, like the feeling of being rocked in someone's arms. our son loved being wrapped in a blanket and held on top of the clothes dryer (turned on low), which moved a bit, made some sounds, and seemed to help him stop crying.
Otherwise, just wait. It is sure to pass.
wah it is v amazing and wonderful resort
Nepal is a very popular destination for trekking and expedition. The range of treks in Nepal varies from a short gentle hike through terraced foothills to lengthy expeditions to Mount Everest’s summit. Depending on your level of fitness, stamina or experience, you’ll find an adventure of your lifetime. The Himalayan regions of Nepal contain some of the best places in the world to go trekking. You can choose from treks like Everest base camp, Annapurna or Langtang to less popular trekking options including Mustang or Kanchenjunga Base Camp.Trekking is the gift of Nepal to the world in adventure tourism. To be one with Nature, to regenerate one's own confidence, to relive oneself, to appreciate Nepal's exquisiteness, to interact with its generous and responsive peoples are some of the places of interest of trekking in Nepal. Trekking is one long-lasting activities that draws reiterate visitors to the country. Consequently, Nepal is the definitive objective for the trekking supporter. for more information log on to nepal travel information website: http://www.nepalvisitors.com
no!!! the best beach in world is boracay!!!! ^_______________-
thanks n v informative
i'like porto saint georgo in italy why not in your list?
Funny. I enjoyed the bit about Notre Dame, the Eiffel Tower, etc.
This gave a wonderful picture of Dublin in my mind. I went to Ireland eight years ago; his brought me back.
I am also curious: what writing program were you on?