Airplane food. Though often the butt of many an unfortunate joke, this scoffed-at cuisine stands alone in my mind, not because of its flavor or its lack thereof, but because of its sentimental value. That chewy, cardboardesque croissant, those ice-cold dinner rolls, the oh-so-yummy mystery meat— all new to me. Believe it or not, airplane food was the first among a series of firsts that spanned my trip to France, and for this reason it will remain etched in my memory like the grooves of a coin.
With bellies full of microwavable chicken, oddly colored salad and God knows what else, my family and I embarked on our journey.
â–º SEMI FINALIST 2012 TEEN TRAVEL WRITING SCHOLARSHIP
And by “journey,” I mean our small yet hectic trek to Paris. Imagine a family of four—all of whom dazed from both jet lag and one-too-many melatonin —wandering confusedly through the metros, their over-sized luggage dragging at their feet. As comical an image as this may seem, let’s fast forward. Our destination, Paris, was not what I expected, though this was not necessarily a bad thing. In movies, on TV, even on those crisp and vibrant postcards, all you see is the good. The flowers and the architecture and the beautiful young couples. But, as is the case in all cities, darkness lurks about like a cat on padded paws. Litter, rain, poverty—you name it. However, these less-than-idyllic characteristics of Paris simply added to its realness, to the experience, and although my once-lofty vision of the city was tarnished by these things, a new, slightly-less-perfect Paris lay waiting to be explored.
Of course, we visited the city’s hot-ticket tourist venues, whether it be Le Tour Eiffel, Notre Dame or L’Arc de Triomphe. And while yes, they were in fact beautifully beautiful, marvelously marvelous, and wonderfully wonderful, I found that the most amazing spectacles were engrained in the culture itself. Take, for example, the courtyards: On just about every street corner, we found a small yet eclectic green space, complete with both foliage and benches. If you wanted to simply grab food to go— whether it be street falafel from Le Marais or Pain au Chocolat from Rue de Rennes—you could find somewhere to sit, relax, and chow down, if only for a short while.
Just as with the courtyards, other aspects of Parisian life surprised me in the most pleasant sense of the word. The strong European coffee, those teeny little cars, the abundance of attractive, well-dressed men. It was all so very new, yet so very real and vivid and bright. I found myself less enchanted with the tourist sites and increasingly awestruck by the cafés and the flowers and those little details that we, as travelers, often overlook. Even though the trip was relatively recent, I find that with each passing day, images of Sacré Coeur and Notre Dame fade from my mind like ink from an old, forgotten manuscript— easily and without remorse. On the contrary, certain memories—from our trip to a local market to our mastering of the metro—are as clear as day. Permanent. That being said, I have one piece of advice, and it has nothing to do with airplane food, mind you: Enjoy traveling. Do not rush from site to site, viewing everything through the faulty guise of a camera lens. Soak in the details, however minor they may seem, and try to—as that old cliché so simply states—take time to smell the roses.
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Grt place to visit.. This place is located after entering the Ranthambore National Park.. However, to visit this place u can evn get your own vehicle…
John, glad you liked the story. This park is in Ohio where the weather can be unpredictable! It’s warmest between late April and November, but even April has the risk of some snow. If you’re camping with kids, the safest bet is June to August, because it’s warmer and there’s little rain. Enjoy your trip.
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Game Lover
It’s truly magical being there. I love the art this country offers. Their wall arts and crafts are just lovely.
Hi Maggie,
You always share to the world with something new and different destinations. Thank you so much for sharing.
The history of Cuhahoga valley national park seems interesting and must be a new experience when we observe scenes of National park from their scenic campgrounds.
which season do you think is the best time to visit this national park?
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Wow, what a nice article. Makes you feel like you should pack up and go immediately. It seems Linblad runs a good operation and trips are kid friendly. Is there a list of particular dates that are family friendly or are there kid activities year round on board the boats. Any other advice on travling with kids to Ecuador and Galapagos would be really welcome.
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Hello Michael, glad to hear your family is interested in a dude ranch holiday.
Since your kids are older and, hopefully, everyone in the family rides, you have lots of options. The Dude Ranchers Association is a really helpful resource in sorting through the many types of ranch vacations. For example, you can go here: https://duderanch.org/by-activity-amenity and search for ‘Advanced Rides’ and “Cattle Drives’ and that would get you some real working ranches that would have more of the lifestyle you seem to be looking for. One of our authors recommends the Hideout in Shell, Wyoming for this type of trip.
Looking for a real ranch experience with horseback riding (lots of it) and time in the open air with my son (15) and daughter (12) and my wife (49). I am 62. We live in NJ, my children have been sheltered but I grew up in a small coal mining town in Pennsylvania. I want my children to see another side of life.
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Great destinations for First Night and New Year’s Eve! Check out our favourite ones in Europe: https://tapsy.blog/?s=new+year%27s+eve
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Of course, you can do travel freely and easily through these two countries yourself, but I enjoyed having the trip curated for me, including well-chosen local guides, comfortable transportation on call and some superb private tours, such as a Khmer cooking class or historic walking tour of Saigon, with flexibility in the itinerary for our group of five to follow their own paths, such as making an emotional detour to the moving Genocide Museum housed in the old S-21 jail in Phnom Penh.
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I enjoyed reading your Italian family vacation story, and thank you so much for these tips. This surely gonna help us achieve a stress-free vacation in Italy. Great blog!
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For Richard re: dual citizenship US-Nicaragua… can I use the same to travel back to Nicaragua with the same Power of Attorney (Specific to Minors) since wife is staying back in Nicaragua to keep eyes on the house.
Hi Richard, In our travel experience, this type of document should work well for your travels, but if your wife is available, it can’t hurt to download the sample forms we have online and also have her fill out and notarize one for your trip with your child. The agency responsible in your case will be the carrier — we assume an airline — and if they can make a note in your travel record that they have approved the Nicaraguan documents you should be fine on both departing and entering.
Safe Travels!
Wow, great!!! it could be a great fun out there.
very informative article Travel forums provide first hand experience and advice to travelers and are a great source of information and travel tips.
As a signal parent, your life, world, actions are based on your childs well fair. Not your happiness or anything that has to do with you.
It should list where they are going, the dates that they are allowed to go and grant your permission for that trip. You want to include your address and phone number and probably the contact info for the adult traveling as well.
The grand archways and the paintings of Lord Krishna and his cows are a visual treat. Wander through areas opened for tourists and you shall witness the impressive aura and architecture of the Royal state of Rajasthan.
Thanks for Sharing
Hello guys my wife and I have dual citizenship US-Nicaragua, I’m planning to travel to the US with our son also dual citizenship for 3 weeks, with a Power of Attorney (Specific to Minors) from Nicaragua, can I use the same to travel back to Nicaragua with the same Power of Attorney (Specific to Minors) since wife is staying back in Nicaragua to keep eyes on the house.
Congratulations to the winners! A question to all the professional travelers here, how are you planning the route ant the places to see while visiting a new country? As for me I just google the most touristic and popular places. It works mostly, but there were a few times when I realized that I have seen only some the places this country or city is famous for, and that’s sad. On my last trip to Armenia, I decided to take a tour and it was quite productive. It’s much more informative when somebody is telling you history and some interesting facts. If someone wants to save their time – make sure to ask them to help if you’ll ever be there.
Curitiba é uma lugar lindo, além de ser considerada uma das melhores cidades para se morar em Brasil.
Realmente a muito o que conhecer por lá, como também diversas outras belezas do nosso brasil.
Principalmente as praias do Brasil que são muito procurada por inúmeros turistas internacionais e nacionais.
As Praias do Litoral Paulista, divididos entre Praias do Litoral Norte e Litoral Sul.
As mais conhecidas são as Praias de Ubatuba com mais de 100 belas praias no litoral norte paulista.
Já no litoral sul, a região mais procurada são as Praias de Guarujá, a região conta com 23 praias de pura beleza e preservação ambiental.
nice article, i also read about Celebrate Christmas Eve 2018
Aloha!
I would like to add my baby equipment company, Nana’s Baby Equipment. I serve the entire island of Kauai with aloha!
Mahalo,
Sharon Hackleman
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Was an honour and pleasure to host you both in the Maori Whakata/Welcome to Wanaka. Welcome back anytime to this wonderful part of the world.
Kia Kaha/Stay strong
[http://www.wanahaka.co.nz]