If you weren't working....
Jan 9th, 2018, 06:55 AM
#22
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surfergirl, I drove across country with my parents and brother when I was 12, in 1963. We went to the deep south because we were relative-hopping. Trust me, your mother was right about some places. I'm not naming names, but there were some towns we northerners would prefer not to have stopped in (they would have preferred we not be there, too). That said, there were also some where the place and people could not have been more helpful and lovely - I think particularly of the Virginia town where we had to wait out the day to get some work done on our car, and the small town in Kansas where a police officer found a doctor to come out on a Sunday to check my earache!
Jan 9th, 2018, 07:10 AM
#23
I've been retired for about 12.5 years. After we left PA to move to Oregon, we haven't been out of Oregon for more than 6 weeks at a time. Last May we went back to the east coast to find geocaches in the 6 states east of NY.
A geocache in the west end of CT marked my 49th state.
We are flying to Maui (Hawaii) in May for our 50th state.
NovemberMoon - You can do all three in an afternoon in Deschutes County Oregon (Bend area).
A geocache in the west end of CT marked my 49th state.
We are flying to Maui (Hawaii) in May for our 50th state.
NovemberMoon - You can do all three in an afternoon in Deschutes County Oregon (Bend area).
Jan 9th, 2018, 10:58 AM
#24
The thing about longer trips I should have know but was surprised to find out (I was in Mexico for a month last fall)...
I had zero issues being in Puerto Vallarta for that long, loved it, but stuff started to fall apart at home. It was an eye opener to realize how much more organization would be needed for the condo, bills, appointments, etc. to be gone longer.
I had zero issues being in Puerto Vallarta for that long, loved it, but stuff started to fall apart at home. It was an eye opener to realize how much more organization would be needed for the condo, bills, appointments, etc. to be gone longer.
Jan 9th, 2018, 02:07 PM
#27
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We retired early ten years ago, and except for 2016, we have gone on at least one three week trip each year plus many shorter ones. But before that, we used our vacation time for at least two week trips.
A SIL moved to Madrid and asked to stay the full Schengen maximum but we declined as we want to be invited back. We will go for three weeks. We have spent considerable time in Spain.
We are going on our first organized tour for almost a month later in the year. After 45 years of traveling independently, we are getting too9 old schlep our own bags. It should be interesting.
I just wrote a short story about the World's Fair and if it published I will let you know.
A SIL moved to Madrid and asked to stay the full Schengen maximum but we declined as we want to be invited back. We will go for three weeks. We have spent considerable time in Spain.
We are going on our first organized tour for almost a month later in the year. After 45 years of traveling independently, we are getting too9 old schlep our own bags. It should be interesting.
I just wrote a short story about the World's Fair and if it published I will let you know.
Jan 10th, 2018, 06:37 AM
#31
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My husband plans to retire later this year, so I've been thinking about this too. The longest road trip we've done is 3 weeks. Denver to Chicago to Niagara Falls to Newport RI to Boston to Denver. We had planned to make a stop at Gettysburg on the way home, but at that point we were just ready to go home. It was a great trip, but I was tired of hotels and eating out everyday.
I think it would take years to see everything in the US and Canada. Yosemite is high on my list, so a just California road trip could take a few months. The excitement of just jumping in the car and going is tempered by the reality that getting a reservation in Yosemite must be made far in advance. I'd also love to spend a month in New York city as well as a couple months in Mexico during the winter.
Looking forward to reading about your travels!
I think it would take years to see everything in the US and Canada. Yosemite is high on my list, so a just California road trip could take a few months. The excitement of just jumping in the car and going is tempered by the reality that getting a reservation in Yosemite must be made far in advance. I'd also love to spend a month in New York city as well as a couple months in Mexico during the winter.
Looking forward to reading about your travels!
Jan 10th, 2018, 07:50 AM
#32
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wtm, we both grew up in NY but have lived in the Bay Area for 45 years. We go back every year for 4 or 5 days, but once we retire, we fully intend to spend at least a 2 or 3 month stint in Manhattan. We have more friends and relatives there than we have here!
Jan 10th, 2018, 01:35 PM
#34
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xcountry, reminds me that we read a sign on a gate in Ollantaytambo. We didn't know what it said, so we continued on our merry way, hiking up to the ruins that most people don't visit. We later got a translation - "Danger. You could die".
Jan 11th, 2018, 09:03 AM
#38
We've been going at it for 7 years now and have nowhere near reached the end of our very long list of places to see. We've done 1 cross country trip (last June-August) and another to Colorado and back. I think that will be it for me for weeks long drives like that. We stay varying times depending upon where we are going. Living in DC we escape DC weather every winter for 6-10 weeks. Then we take 2-3 other trips throughout the year varying in length from 2-5 weeks. It's been wonderful and I have not regretted 1 second of it and look forward to many more years for traveling.
I agree that you have to really organize your life at home. Each trip it seems we learn something else we need to do. We did have a huge tree branch fall on our house & go throough the roof into our DR a couple years ago while we were in Ecuador and thank god for neighbors and good friends.
I agree that you have to really organize your life at home. Each trip it seems we learn something else we need to do. We did have a huge tree branch fall on our house & go throough the roof into our DR a couple years ago while we were in Ecuador and thank god for neighbors and good friends.
Jan 11th, 2018, 01:49 PM
#39
OK this is my first post on the new, revised forum. I am enjoying this thread, because that will be my husband next year. He wanted to retire this month, but I pushed it back a year. Just thinking that with all that time off, he's going to really mess up the house. 
