Right now I’m planning out a trip I’m not going to take for another six months.

It’s not for quite a while but it feels very important because it is the first traveling I’ve done in a couple years. Actually it’s the first trip I’ve taken in two years since I went to NYC with friends in June 2013.

(Fun story, exactly two years later we become roommates! Travel buddy and bestie and roommate!)

From age 18 to 27 I traveled a ton! My whole life revolved around traveling and where I’d head next.

I traveled a lot of places from East Coast to West Coast to New Zealand to Europe. I lived in multiple states and multiple countries and traveled as much as I could manage to afford (and sometimes beyond that).

 

I learned about how to travel cheaply and how to stay healthy on long flights. I learned how to stay safe while traveling alone and how to travel with people. I learned a lot about myself and who I wanted to be.

For the last two years however, I focused on staying put. On putting down roots. On not leaving or moving or going on adventures. My big adventure was learning to stay in one place.

It’s worked well. I feel happier than I’ve ever been. I love living in Memphis, I love our active life options, I love being near family, I love my boyfriend, I love having my best friend as a roommate. I’ve built a life here that makes me super happy every day.

But…. but… I still feel that wanderlust.

I want to get away. I miss traveling. I miss seeing new places. I miss trying new foods. I miss new discoveries and different people and exciting adventures and days where everything goes wrong.

(Yes, so much can go wrong when traveling – I’ve been lost for hours in a country where I understood nothing, broke down crying at a bus stop because I had no money to get back…. but it’s all worth it.)

It sounds quite indulgent to say “I miss traveling.” That is definitely a first world issue and I recognize the privilege evident in that kind of statement. Writing this whole post feels like a humble brag and I know being able to travel at all or take any kind of vacation is such a luxury.

I also know that traveling so much during college and right after was a priority for me and I sacrificed other things to make it happen. Student loans, slower career growth, etc. were the price I paid to travel so much during that period. There were tradeoffs but I’m also grateful for all those experiences. I know I’ve been incredibly lucky to have traveled so much already!

While travel wasn’t my priority over the last few years, I realized recently that I miss it. I’m ready to add back in a couple trips each year. Instead of traveling as much as possible, I’m hoping to bring back some balance and allow myself to take a trip every so often.

I’m now planning two trips for next year since it’s the year I turn 30 and must be celebrated. I’m planning a snowboarding trip and a cruise trip. These are the two things I’ve been wanting to do the most and can’t wait to do. I’ve missed snowboarding fiercely and going on a cruise sounds so fun! It’s going to be a great year for sure and I’m so excited to travel once again!

After writing about travel I can’t wait to get back to planning that first trip. There is definitely a lot more planning involved these days because this new version of Mary’s Worldy Travels involves things like budgeting and saving. It’s a whole new type of travel when you are a more responsible adult!

Where will you be traveling to this year or next? I’m open to cruise suggestions if anyone has been on an amazing one before!!