My biggest *fear* of 2013 was that I wouldn’t get to leave the country and do anything exciting after all the money I spent traveling last year. I’ve been in a travel daze for 6 straight months, getting lost in books about faraway countries & wandering the travel department of the bookstore, planning itineraries in countries I’d like to one day visit.
In the last year and a half of my life, I’ve visited places around the world that I have dreamed of all my life. I spent more money than I had, but it’s been beyond worth it. I’ve caught a travel bug! I’ve been thinking of ways to make 2013 a travel year in its own way, even if it won’t be to more distant lands of my dreams. I’ve said many times that I want to travel the whole world, and that includes some smaller places too.
This year, it’s going to be about making the best of smaller opportunities. So far, I’ve got four cities lined up between March and August, and something tells me I’m not done for 2013 yet!
March- New York City
I’ll be booking 3 nights and 4 days in a city that I’ve been in love with for years. I’ve been twice, but the last time I properly visited was in 2008. In September 2012 I stopped in for one day to see a concert (which was amazing!) but it’s time I go back and spend quality time in Manhattan with some good friends. It’s in the middle of semester, I can’t really afford a trip in a month, but I miss the feeling of packing a bag and being in a new place- even for just a few days. This is a VERY needed getaway!
April- Boston
I think I mentioned this a couple weeks ago, but I’ll be heading to Boston in early April to see Andrew McMahon in concert! He is one of my absolutely favorite musicians, and I haven’t seen him live in 3 years now. A week or so ago, we also added a second concert to our trip (the night before Andrew’s), so I’ll be trying to soak in a little bit of Boston for the first time as well as two shows! I don’t know either of the artists I’m seeing on the first night (Andy Grammer and Parachute) but I’ll get to know them before then. I love roadtrips for concerts, so this is bound to be a really great few days out of the city before finals hit hard.
June- Toronto
A city I’ve been to many times, it’s been YEARS since I’ve had the chance to hop a bus and go back to visit. So far, my only big plan is to see Ed Sheeran and Taylor Swift, but it’s a whole weekend of music events when we’re there, so my friends and I will probably make an adventure out of it. This trip isn’t very far from home, but I’m particularly excited because so many of my favorite things will be happening all at once. Music, traveling, and adventures with friends!
August- MIAMI!
Last year, I went to Brazil with my mom, sister-in-law, baby nephew, and brother. We traveled 24 hours there and back, hung out with family at the beach, and I got to soak in an entirely new culture that I fell immediately in love with. It was a super unexpected trip, and one that I won’t forget anytime soon. I didn’t grow up with many family vacations (in fact my last one was when I was 13, and I can’t even remember before that if I ever had one?!), but it looks like it may be becoming a spontaneous tradition of sorts since my nephew has been born.
Earlier this week we booked an apartment in Miami all together once again for one week! It’s not so far from home, but it’s a beautiful city that I’ve never been to (other than plane layovers) so I’m excited to explore the beaches, enjoy some cheap shopping, and just get away for a week with my family. I can’t quite explain how amazing it was to spend 3 weeks in Brazil last year with some of the most important people in my life, it was at times frustrating and confining, but mostly it was wonderful, rewarding, and I loved waking up everyday so far away with the inability to be truly homesick. I can’t WAIT!
August is usually the month I like to travel in, so who knows if I go straight home after Miami? A week is certainly not my usual norm for being away from home, and I think I’m going to look into doing something else from there. But who knows?! Right now, I’m just thrilled to have adventures to look forward to almost every month for the next little while. The anticipation of a trip is almost as great as the trip itself!
Where are you traveling to this year?!
I love Parachute! If you love Andrew McMahon, you’ll love them too!
Really?! Ok, good! I’m going to give them a listen ASAP. I want to be able to really enjoy them when I see them live
Aw this is so awesome!
My advice for Boston: be WELL PREPARED if you are planning on driving in the city. It is very old and VERY convoluted (plus the drivers are f’ing nuts, seriously), road signs don’t make sense, and you can end up going round and round and round for hours (it’s happened to me). If you can, try to park somewhere and use public transportation (the T and buses are pretty good). Coming from a New Englander
Boston is the one city I refuse to drive in!
Oh man, thank you! The friend that I’m driving with has been several times for shows, so I trust that she knows her way around, plus she has a few friends there. I’m sad to not be there long enough to really explore, but I think it’ll be nice to just be out of Montreal before exams! Guilt-free concert enjoyment! lol
When are you coming?!?!
I’ll keep you posted as soon as I talk to my friends about the Friday!
I’m green with envy, literally. I checked myself in the mirror and I’d changed colour! You deserve it girl! Can’t wait to see the pictures!
Hahaha you are so hilarious <3… To be honest, I was kind of crossing my fingers that I’d make it back to Europe this year, but life has different plans, time to explore something new!
I cannot wait until Europe is on that list again.
We’re driving up to Baltimore to fly to Germany and I really want to squeeze in a NY trip. We’ll only be 3 hours from the city and I’ve never been. But honestly, that city intimidates me. I couldn’t imagine driving in it. lol
I can’t wait to go back to Europe TOO! I was *kinda* hoping I’d get to visit Eastern Europe this year, maybe stop through Italy for some pizza and gelato again, but it just doesn’t make sense in terms of money. Maybe next year?! Two years in a row to Europe, I’m already pretty lucky!
NYC is really intimidating to drive in. Usually you just drive in, get the stress over with, and walk/take public transportation the rest of the time. You HAVE to stop in, it’s worth it just for a visit to Times Square!
Oh, I am insanely jealous of your travel plans! As of right now, the only travel I have planned is my cruise in the fall. I’m hoping to hit 4 different countries if possible so I guess that’s not SO BAD but I don’t know if I’ll be able to afford anything else!
I would totally recommend doing a cruise when you’re in Miami, if possible! The 3- or 4-day ones tend to be “party cruises” which can be a lot of fun. Haha. At least that’s what I’ve heard! If I could tag along, I totally would!!
You SHOULD come, if I take a cruise! Right now, we found a potential 7 day one which is a tiny bit more pricey, but it goes to Roatan, Belize… UGH, I’m getting really excited about this idea, and so is my friend Agnes! I was like “come meet me in Miami!” and I think she’s really liking this idea too. I’m getting antsy because something tells me it could really work! It also seems like there isn’t a lot of cruising options in August, maybe it’s not popular cruise time? i couldn’t find much other than Carnival (the one I looked at is with them, leaving from Miami on August 10th!)
This post makes me insanely happy! I can not wait to hear all about your trips! You need to make it down to Southern California, eventually
This is what I have planned for the year:
March-Shanghai, China
June-Bryce Canyon, Utah for backpacking. I am also strongly considering a half-marathon in Vancouver.
July-Portland
November-Boston
December-I am hoping Colorado to enjoy the snow!
YOU’RE GOING TO CHINA THIS MONTH THAT IS INTENSE GIRL… I can’t wait to hear all about it!! You’ve got so many amazing plans this year, my goodness!
I have the travel bug SO bad.
I hear ya! Me tooooooooo. ha
Looks fun! And at least you’re getting to travel abroad.
Yeah! I mean I’ll be honest I’m sad not to see any crazy foreign countries in the mix, but for now, it’s better than staying here for a whole year. At least I can move around a little bit!
I’ve been to New York and Boston each 5 times. Like you, the last time I was in NYC was in 2008. Boston will be two years in March. Two cities I can always go back to. NYC because it’s NYC and Boston because my BFF lives there!
Sigh. I’m inching to go to Boston this year since I go every two years. So far what I have tickets and lodging for is Paris/Amsterdam and Portland.
PARIS AMSTERDAM! Girl, you’re gonna have so much fun I can’t even wait. I’m so jealous. I think I had a dream about Paris recently… I was also looking up flights going to Asia (cause, I do that sometimes) and they all had layovers in Paris and I was like “Okay what if I just stay there instead” LOL.I miss it very much. It was such a wonderful city .<3
That is awesome that you’ve got some trips to look forward to this year! My year is so up in the air. Originally I was going to go to a friend’s wedding in Oregon in July but now I am not sure if I can do that because I Feel like if I am going to take a trip, it should be a trip home to visit family around the 4th of July. But we will see. i need to decide soon so I can start looking for plane tickets. I have multiple trips home scheduled and also plan to visit NYC and Boston, and then other areas around Charlote that are driving distance away. I will not leave the country this year, and I don’t know that I will next year either as, again, my life is so up in the air. My plan had been to go to Paris next April and then go to Italy (assuming I pass the CFA in June), but now I might be trying to move back at that time as that will a year after my move to Charlotte so I don’t know what I will be doing..
I think with your new schedule and life, things will start to settle down once YOU get settled in Charlotte and are able to figure out your expenses and what you can afford. I really hope you can go back to Paris though, if anyone deserves that kind of trip, it’s you! You work ridiculously hard!!