How to plan your next vacation

- From planning your first trip to navigating a new city completely alone, this episode we get into everything travel. What kind of traveller are you actually? How  do you plan a vacation without losing your mind? and is solo travel maybe one of the best thing you ever do for yourself? Consider this your sign to book the flight.

Vacation planning tool: 
https://www.lambus.com/de

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Transcript

SPEAKER_02 0:00

Welcome to this week's life course.

SPEAKER_04 0:04

Yeah. Today's subject is um what subject would travel be?

SPEAKER_02 0:10

I don't know. Break?

SPEAKER_01 0:13

This is your captain speaking. Uh this is Amy, and in the cocktail with me today I have Lydia, Lydia McKenzie. Hi gosh. We're gonna take you on a journey today of a summer break and how to plan that summer break, and hopefully it'll be a nice 35-minute flight, and we will cruise right into our fail stories. Listen in and figure out how Amy uh almost got lost in a foreign country. And uh Lydia's gonna tell us about her uh fear of flying and how she overcame that. We also get into some advice, obviously.

SPEAKER_04 0:46

We'll help you out a plan vacation, and uh, if you're a woman listening, we have some extra tips for you.

SPEAKER_01 0:53

Yeah, so buckle in and uh enjoy this ride. Captain over.

SPEAKER_03 1:02

Nice.

SPEAKER_00 1:11

What's up, A students?

SPEAKER_03 1:15

On the microphone, you got Amy and Lydia. Woo-woo! We're back with another Thursday episode, as always. We're back with this will be on the test. Will this be on the test? Some of it might. I mean, if you listen to it. So make sure to grab a notebook and because this will be on the test.

SPEAKER_04 1:46

Okay. A few weeks ago I posted on our Instagram um about my Monstera. So basically, I really want a Monstera. I've really wanted a Monstera, and so I I told my co-workers in the hopes that somebody has one and will give me a little seedling. What do you call them? Like a leaf?

SPEAKER_02 2:03

Yeah, I don't know. Seedling. Seedling? That seems correct.

SPEAKER_04 2:06

Yeah. And so one of my co-workers had a Monstera and she cut me a leaf. Nice. Now, I'm not sure if it's correct the way that it was done, because one of my other friends said that you need to like cut the leaf with a little Yeah, with a bulb. Yeah, it doesn't have a bulb. So we'll see. It's currently in water, it's still looking good. It's been in there for two weeks. Okay. It's still green. Roots or anything? No roots yet. Okay. So I'll keep you guys updated. Nice. I hope it works out because I really want a Monstera and I don't want to spend 60 bucks on a Monstera. That makes sense. So that's that. I told you guys I'd update you, and that's the update.

SPEAKER_02 2:44

First update. Of money.

SPEAKER_04 2:46

Of money, hopefully.

SPEAKER_02 2:48

I have to water my plants all the time right now.

SPEAKER_04 2:50

It's so warm right now. It's so warm.

SPEAKER_02 2:52

They get water daily because they they look sad otherwise.

SPEAKER_04 2:57

Okay. But we're not talking about we're not talking about plants today. We're not. We are talking about vacation. Would you rather take a solo vacation or travel with all of your extended family?

SPEAKER_02 3:12

Who's all my extended? Is that like y'all and your significant others? Is that cousins?

SPEAKER_04 3:17

Is that I was wondering also if it's like okay, so I think it's just our side. So it's not Tarek's family, also. It's not your partner's family. I think it's all of us uncles, aunts, cousins.

SPEAKER_02 3:33

I I've traveled by myself. I like traveling by myself. It's a little lonely sometimes, but just trying to figure out dinner plans with that many people gives me anxiety. Anxiety.

SPEAKER_04 3:46

Yeah, the thing we get along with them. It's funny. Oh, I love my family. It's just there's just so many people to coordinate, and then there's like so many different opinions of what to do. Yeah. Different expectations, just different different budgets, just everything. It just gets so complicated.

SPEAKER_02 4:02

Yep.

SPEAKER_04 4:03

Yeah, I think I agree. I wouldn't want to go on vacation with the whole extended family. I think going to see them and then you go on vacation yourself, or you like have certain aspects of the vacation where you spend together, that's fine. Yes. I think traveling alone is fine for a certain amount of time. I agree. But yeah, it can get lonely. I'm so lonely. Anyway, would you rather to move on from that very quickly? Would you rather have to plan every vacation you take or every taking every vacation you take is planned, but you don't get a say in it.

SPEAKER_01 4:46

No.

SPEAKER_02 4:51

I like to have control.

SPEAKER_00 4:54

Yeah.

SPEAKER_02 4:55

Um, I like to plan vacations with flexibility in them. Okay. But who's planning the vacation otherwise?

SPEAKER_04 5:03

Your partner.

SPEAKER_02 5:04

Okay. That would be fine for me.

SPEAKER_04 5:06

What if it's a travel agency?

SPEAKER_02 5:08

No.

SPEAKER_04 5:09

Why?

SPEAKER_02 5:10

I'm scared they're gonna give me like a all-in-cruise cruise where you get to go to four cities. And I'm like, that is I bad for the environment. I don't believe in it. I would do a cruise if I could go see the Northern Lights. Otherwise, I would hate being stuck on a boat and just going to cities because that's kind of like the opposite of what I want from a vacation.

SPEAKER_00 5:32

Yeah, yeah, yeah.

SPEAKER_02 5:33

Um, so like Tarek knows what I want from a vacation, that's why that would be okay. But if it's like every time you go, somebody else plans it for you. I think I would struggle with that, and I'd rather plan all my vacations.

SPEAKER_04 5:47

Last year we went to Scotland, Dominique, and he planned everything.

SPEAKER_02 5:51

That is really nice.

SPEAKER_04 5:53

It was so nice. And it's so much effort to plan. Like I appreciated, I said thank you, but only now planning this next vacation with him, do I realize how much work went into that?

SPEAKER_00 6:04

Yeah.

SPEAKER_04 6:05

So I'm torn. I don't love planning a vacation.

SPEAKER_02 6:10

I think if the option was either I plan it or Tarek plans it, he can plan them. That's fine.

SPEAKER_04 6:15

Yeah. Um, yeah, but if it's a random person that's true.

SPEAKER_02 6:23

Because I think there are different vacation types.

SPEAKER_04 6:25

I think I would go on way less vacations if I had to plan them by myself. I think I'll go with they plan it for me. Okay. I think so. I'm very torn, but I think it could be interesting. You do things that you maybe wouldn't otherwise.

SPEAKER_02 6:42

Yeah. Maybe you learn that cruise is is I think I'm very type A, I think that's what it's called, where like I like to do things. And if my vacation plan is like just chilling, yeah, that's just chilling, I would enjoy my vacation less, and that would be sad. So like in order to get the most out of it, I like to know what I'm like what I want to do.

SPEAKER_04 7:06

Yeah, that's fair.

SPEAKER_02 7:07

Um, would you rather go to a country where you don't speak the language or don't like the food?

SPEAKER_04 7:12

Okay, so I think for the soul of this question, people don't speak English. Yeah. You can't communicate with people. Like there's no workaround with translating technology. You just have to like use your hands to kind of figure out what you what they want from you. I would not speak the language. Food is such a big part of a vacation for me. Like I remember vacations because of the food. Oh my god, same. Going and trying what like their specialities or doing a cooking class is so cool. Oh yeah. No, I'd have to not be able to speak the language, and then I'd be a hermit and not really experience the culture, which is a shame.

SPEAKER_02 7:53

I don't think you need to speak the language to experience the culture necessarily. Like it helps, it's a big leg up for sure. But you can go and like hang out with or like be in their space without understanding everything.

SPEAKER_04 8:07

It's yeah, it's definitely I think it's less deep. Oh if you don't speak the language, or not like don't understand even certain words. Like I don't speak Spanish, but I feel like knowing some words can help you understand situations. But yeah, you could still, that's true. You could witness it, let's say. I don't know how much you can experience it, but witness it for sure. I do think language is a big part of culture, but food is just food's life.

SPEAKER_01 8:36

Food is live.

SPEAKER_04 8:38

Food is live, bro.

SPEAKER_02 8:39

Yeah, but that being said, I've I've been on vacations where the food wasn't amazing, but the place was.

SPEAKER_04 8:45

That's true. I mean, last year Scotland I love you guys, but you got a weird cuisine. Yeah, you got some good dishes that I really like, but I wouldn't go to Scotland for the food. Like Italy, you go for the food. Oh yeah. Scotland, really beautiful nature, and some dishes which are good. Yeah. Okay. No, I'm going for the food though. Yeah, I love a food vacation. Yeah, same. Okay. So as the last episode, I found a Reddit post to see what people struggle with on vacation. Um, and I found somebody who wrote, I would love to go on a trip later this year, but I have never planned a trip before, and I have no idea where to start. I live in New York and would love to go to Oregon, Washington. Um beautiful states.

SPEAKER_02 9:36

Oregon and Washington. They're beautiful to visit.

SPEAKER_04 9:38

Okay. Sorry. That is the goal at least. Um, I am not old enough to rent a car, which is one of my biggest things right now, that's prohibiting me from starting to plan it. So any information is appreciated. Thank you. So thinking of this person, I feel like there's two situations. Because a lot of people in the comments then started talking about budget. Yeah. I think there's either the situation where you have fixed vacation dates, you know where you're going. Yes, or you have flexible vacation dates. Yeah. And if you have flexible vacation dates, it makes it a little bit easier if you have your heart set on a certain place. Yeah. Because then you can go to that place when it's there's not as many people there if that's what you like, or when the temperature is how you like it, um, when it's more affordable if you're on a budget. That just makes that easier. That's a really good point. Yeah. And if you don't have flexible dates, you might have to, depending on your budget, especially, you might have to shift how long you'll be able to stay somewhere. Yeah. And it's a little easier if you don't have your heart set on a specific place. If you're like, hey, I want to see beautiful beaches, then you can look for places that have beautiful beaches and see where a low season is the time where you're going. Um, so those are like the two things that I find. And then if you're if you're not sure what the low and high season is, you can just Google it really. And you can also, if you want to find a place with beaches or nature or hiking opportunity, you can just Google nice places to go on vacation for a hike.

SPEAKER_02 11:10

Yeah. Also, before you book in low season, maybe Google why it's a low season because sometimes it's rainy season or seaweed season, and that's when it smells at the beaches. So that's also a good thing to check out.

SPEAKER_04 11:20

Those are like the two starting points, I feel like, that you have to think about which one is you.

SPEAKER_02 11:24

I think regarding budget, it's also worth questioning like what kind of traveler are you? Like I don't mind staying in a hostel or a room in someone's house in an Airbnb. Yeah. When I'm with someone.

SPEAKER_04 11:37

Yeah.

SPEAKER_02 11:37

By myself, I by myself, I'd rather stay in a hostel.

SPEAKER_04 11:41

Yeah.

SPEAKER_02 11:41

With someone else, I'm fine staying in an Airbnb. Or I like camping. Or I like going to nice hotels. But like depending on the budget, those shift quite drastically.

SPEAKER_04 11:52

I think if you're a first-time traveler, it could make sense to just go the official route, even if you're it's gonna be like maybe a shorter vacation where you go the official route, which is gonna be more expensive for the days spent there, but there's a sense of safety.

SPEAKER_02 12:05

Yeah. So and honestly, in a lot of cities, like the hostels aren't necessarily more expensive than a campground. Yeah. I think when I started traveling by myself, the first few times I went to London, I went to female-only hostels because I felt more secure there. Yeah. And then I wasn't uncomfortable sharing a room. But if it was like a 14-dorm, mixed dorm, I was like, oh, I I don't wanna like I just I didn't feel comfortable sleeping with a bunch of male-female strangers. I felt more comfortable sleeping with a bunch of female strangers. Yeah.

SPEAKER_04 12:39

I think on the note of like safety and security, if you're a first-time solo traveler, it makes sense or it makes me much more comfortable if I know I'm visiting a friend who lives there. So, like this person is writing, they're going they want to go to Oregon or Washington. Maybe like go to a state where you know somebody is there that you could you don't have to stay with them even, but just even knowing if shit hits the fan, I have somebody who's there who could help me out.

SPEAKER_02 13:08

I think I often have this, even not like a friend, but two years ago, Tarek and I went to Oregon in Washington, which is why I said it's beautiful, it's really a beautiful area. Um, and we had a friend of ours had family in well, one person was in Washington, and then we drove up through Canada and her family was in Victoria. And it was just like, here are their numbers. They know you're traveling around this time. If you don't want to reach out, that's absolutely fine. But if anything happens, like they know you're important to me and they're gonna be here for you.

SPEAKER_00 13:41

Yeah.

SPEAKER_02 13:42

And I think that's kind of nice to kind of check with your community. Hopefully, you won't need it, but if you do, just to know that like there is someone there looking out for you.

SPEAKER_04 13:51

It's so calming. And then also you know somebody who can give you advice on like if depending on how close you are, the best advice you're gonna get is from somebody who lives there, usually.

SPEAKER_02 14:02

Yeah. And also, like, I mean, this person said they can't rent a car. Um, like if shit hits the fan and you're stranded somewhere, it is kind of nice to have a phone number from someone who's around who even could be like, look, I have a friend that lives near there, they're gonna come pick you up. And like it's very inconvenient, but that's some like that's a very nice safety net to build for yourself before you go on a trip.

SPEAKER_04 14:23

On this whole like not being able to rent the car, I imagine this is quite annoying in the US actually. But maybe for her it makes sense to then just like visit a city first. I think when you're starting planning a vacation, less is more. And so maybe the first vacation you're like, okay, this year I'm gonna go to, I don't know, New York City. Yeah. And maybe if I have time, I'll take a train out. I think they have relatively good train connections for the US.

SPEAKER_02 14:51

I would say in the US I would recommend buses. I went from Boston up to Vermont and stuff with the bus, and it's quite comfortable. I just the Greyhound bus, they're not that expensive. And then I that's how I traveled around the first time I went on a solo trip in the US because I couldn't rent a car either. Okay. Yeah. I think that's a really like you don't have to stay in one city. I would say buses are fine. On that note, it's just I'm more comfortable going on the bus during the day. Yeah. In most countries.

SPEAKER_04 15:24

Yeah. I just think the whole thing you don't have to stay in one city, yes, but also like to touch back on that, less is more, especially when you're starting out traveling. I feel, and this is yes, this is also just my personal view. I feel seeing all the cities in like a certain amount of days, yes, then you can kind of cross it off your list if that's your goal and your style, but I end up stressing out if I know there's too much planned in the itinerary, and then therefore I can't enjoy the city that I'm actually seeing in that moment. So I prefer to go to a place and have a day or two there. And I think if I were starting out to travel, like the first solo trip I did was to Mexico, and that wasn't even a solo trip because I went to visit Amy, and there I knew the first two weeks I'm gonna be in Mexico City, and it was quite nice because then I just planned stuff in Mexico City.

SPEAKER_02 16:28

And most big cities have enough to do to keep you busy for at least two weeks. Yeah. Um, or the public transport can get you a little bit out so you can go on hikes or like visit monuments around the city. I think it's really cool to go to a city, but then also go a little bit out of a city with the bus and go to like a smaller town in that area for a few days. Maybe not even just a big city, but that's more my style. Like I don't love being in a big city for travel.

SPEAKER_04 16:53

I agree. And then what really helps is um I use Google. I'm guessing there's other maps that have the same feature, but on Google Maps, you can create like a folder of saved places.

SPEAKER_02 17:04

Yeah, true.

SPEAKER_04 17:05

And so you can start like if you're really nervous about the trip, you can look even at the cafes where you want to go and have your coffee or your lunch, and you can save all of these places on Google Maps. And so afterwards you can just click on that place and you have all the places that you saved already. So if one day you're like, oh, I don't know what to do today or where to go for dinner, you have all of these places approved by you beforehand. Also, a lot of bloggers, like travel bloggers, will have these lists prepped. Yeah, that's true. And so you can go and either copy their list completely or you can just take out different aspects of their list.

SPEAKER_02 17:42

I will also just on this note, like if you are traveling by yourself and you're not visiting someone, I think hostels are actually quite cool in this regard, is that you're going to meet other people who are traveling there.

SPEAKER_04 17:53

Yeah, that's true.

SPEAKER_02 17:54

And I mean, sure, you'll get some maybe people that you don't fully agree with, but one of our episodes on on how to make friends. Yeah, our first one. Yeah. And um I do think it's kind of cool when you travel somewhere by yourself. Like I've been to hostels with friends where we just kind of made a buddy who came along with us. Yeah. Because they they tra they're traveling by themselves, we're doing things that they would want to do, and then they're like, Hey, can I join you tomorrow when you're going to do this thing? And I don't know. It's usually quite cool.

SPEAKER_04 18:24

Yeah. I think they're just check the reviews on the hostels, make sure it's a good place where people feel safe.

SPEAKER_02 18:30

Yeah.

SPEAKER_04 18:31

Which I think most of them are. I I don't think there's a lot of like scariness, and I think sometimes that's overhyped, but just check the reviews, make sure people felt safe, or go to an all if you're a woman, go to an all-woman's hostel.

SPEAKER_02 18:45

And trust your gut on a lot of things when traveling. I think there are situations where I'm like, I'm not gonna walk down the street. There's absolutely no reason, but I just felt weird about it. Yes. Did I tell you about the study? No. What?

SPEAKER_04 18:58

But they did a study where they showed women a map of a city and they asked them what streets they would avoid, and women would instinctively avoid the streets with the highest criminal rates. Isn't that insane? That's crazy.

SPEAKER_02 19:11

Like cities that they've been to, or no, not even.

SPEAKER_04 19:14

They would just so show them a card and be like, based on this, what streets would you avoid? And the ones that they avoided were the most like where most criminality. Trust your gut is what that like because that's 100%.

SPEAKER_02 19:28

I've been on trips with other people where they're like, oh, let's walk this way, shortcut to the hotel, and where I've just like started walking and like, no, yeah. And I've been made fun of for this, and nothing's happened, thankfully, knock on wood, but like I also know like I'm not fucking around. If I get a feeling that says not that way, I'm not going that way, especially on vacation.

SPEAKER_00 19:47

Yeah.

SPEAKER_02 19:48

Um, that's just something I think. Not that vacation needs to be scary. I think a vacation, I've I have gone on a lot of solo trips and they've all been really, really awesome.

SPEAKER_00 19:56

Yeah.

SPEAKER_02 19:57

I just think it's it's important to remind you that like you can trust your gut. You cannot go somewhere even if you said you were gonna do this.

SPEAKER_04 20:03

You can, yes, trust your gut, but a little bit of nervousness before you go on a trip is like common. And so I remember before Mexico, I was so sure that it was a bad idea. I was like, and I listened to a podcast that wasn't about travel, and she talked about how she hated Mexico City and it was so dangerous and blah blah blah, and I was freaking out, and then I talked to some people who had been there and that kind of calmed me down, but I was still very nervous.

SPEAKER_02 20:30

Yeah.

SPEAKER_04 20:31

And there I'm happy that I that I um went like pushed yourself past. Yes. But that's not that's not the same. But sometimes I think it can be hard to know what's my gut and what's my anxiety.

SPEAKER_02 20:45

I think so too. I think those two things are very hard to distinguish. I think for me, anxiety is like, and we don't have to get into this. This is not the topic. Um, but it's just like something I want to do and I'm unsure about. Whereas my gut is really more like don't like like an alleyway that would be shorter, that would be faster, that makes all the logical sense. And my gut is just like even like it could be wrong exactly. It's logical reasoning coming why you're like, ooh, Mexico City, but have you heard about the crime rate? And have you heard about this? And have you heard about this? And blah blah blah. And like it's talking yourself out of, and I think being nervous is super normal.

SPEAKER_00 21:28

Yeah.

SPEAKER_02 21:29

And it's good to be ready for that. Like, I have pepper spray, I I am aware when I'm by myself, I don't wear my AirPods and like stuff like this, that it just kind of like I'm more aware. But I don't think you should be scared to go on vacation. No. And I think there's a lot of beautiful places, and most people are really excited to show off their their hometown, their their where they're from. And that's also the cool thing about going to a hostel or going to an Airbnb, like you get in contact with someone from there. Yeah. Um, I do think it's fun to travel with a buddy if you can. You don't have to. Like I really like solo travel. Um, my solo travel is probably more meticulously planned what I'm going to do. And my buddy travel is usually more like flexible. Yeah.

SPEAKER_04 22:18

I on the meticulous thing, I think again, if you are traveling for the first time, this is also based on our personalities, I think. It is calming to know that there's a plan. Yeah. And I am going to I'm going to promote a website at this point. Um, Lambus. We can add it in the show notes. I've never heard of this website. I love this tool. Um, I wrote them an email. I was like, I'm gonna promote your tool on our podcast because I love it so much just for your information. I want to google it right now, but I'm holding back. It's this website where you can plan a vacation and you can plan with other people too. Oh. And it's really cool, like if you're doing road trips or if you're going from one place to another, basically. That's its strong suit because you can plan your route and you have so many options at each destination. You can add your accommodation, so you can also add in a file. So if you get a confirmation from your accommodation, you put it in there and you have everything in one place. It's a free tool. It's a free tool. No, you can put in this is why I love it so much. You can add the address of your accommodation, you add the dates when you're gonna be there, you can add things that you want to see, and it's connected with TripAdv with TripAdvisor, so it shows it's so cool. And like I said, somebody else can edit it with you. That's quite awesome, actually. Yeah, and so that's how Domini and I went with our van. We went to Scotland last year for four weeks, and we planned everything with that. And this year we're going to Sweden and Norway with the van, and we're planning everything with it again. It's so cool. I can highly recommend this tool. Nice. Yeah, I will add it in the show notes. And it's really pretty. You like have the uh you have the map and you see your route, and so you also see if the route makes sense. Uh it's just love.

SPEAKER_02 24:18

Nice. I didn't have this tool when we uh planned our road trips and stuff, but yeah. I also like to not have everything planned. And I think this is a nice thing to remember when you're planning a vacation, is you don't have to do everything. Like you don't have to do something every day of your vacation. Yes. It's fine to just chill and read a book or I don't know, just chill in a new place is also okay. Like you don't need to see everything and do everything because yeah, that's a lot of pressure.

SPEAKER_04 24:51

And you don't have to do everything that you set your mind to do in the beginning of the vacation, too. Maybe you think, oh, there I'm gonna go look at this. And you see it from afar and you're like, that looks ugly. And then you don't go. That's totally fine.

SPEAKER_02 25:05

I've also had the opposite. When we were in Washington, we saw a mountain from like in the distance, yeah. Mount Rainer, Rainier, I'm not sure what it's called. Uh, and we were like, ooh, that's such a pretty mountain. Like, I'd love to go hike up that. And then we kind of like we knew the route we were going, but we didn't have everything like accommodation-wise, fully booked. And then we managed to like extend one area so that we drove back over that line and ended up going there just because we saw it from the distance and we were like, that looks so cool. Very nice. And that wasn't planned. So I think that's quite fun if it's a little dicey, I would say, to not always have your accommodation planned because that can be very stressful in the trip of like, fuck, we need a place to stay tomorrow night. Um but it also makes it an adventure. Yeah. Uh I also will just sorry, quickly, if you're going by yourself, you can also like I have also gone and done like a surf camp or some kind of camp where you're staying with people who are doing the same thing as you can. Yeah, yeah, that's really cool.

SPEAKER_04 26:06

You go also for the beginning of a vacation and then you meet people there.

SPEAKER_02 26:09

Yeah. I think that's quite cool because you have the accommodation and activities all in one, and that can kind of take pressure off that you also don't have to plan everything. Like you have the first week just done.

SPEAKER_04 26:20

And yeah, you have the first week done, you'll meet people there that maybe will come and travel with you, or they have tips on where to travel.

SPEAKER_02 26:26

Because they've been there for a while.

SPEAKER_04 26:28

Yes, you can ask a surfing instructor, that's a really good tip. Um, some of my friends do this, and I honestly just never think of it because I I don't know, it never comes to mind. Travel agencies are still a thing. They are, and there are some really good travel agencies where you can go and be like, this is what I like imagine my vacation would be like. Can you help me out with that? Maybe if it's the first time you're traveling and you're really nervous about planning it, instead of not going, go to a travel agency and ask, what would it cost me to do this? Yeah. And I mean, I think you can also yeah, just go ask and for their advice. It's what they do. Usually people are very accommodating.

SPEAKER_02 27:12

Yeah.

SPEAKER_04 27:13

Um, and I have friends who have also the first time they went to Asia, they did it with a travel agency because they're like, look, it's just such a foreign culture to me that's smart. Yeah, I'm just so happy if somebody can help me who knows about it. So I think for sure, or Mexico City, if you like, there are dangerous areas of it, and if you don't know where those are, maybe it does make sense to get a professional to help you with it.

SPEAKER_02 27:35

I think so. I think travel agencies, I don't know how expensive they are, but I would be willing to use a travel agency.

SPEAKER_04 27:42

But there you like with the expenses, you can go and be like, what will this cost me? They'll give you a price, and then I'm guessing you just have to expect that it'll be a bit higher than what they say usually.

SPEAKER_02 27:53

Probably. But um I also think your first vacation, like I think there are different types of vacationers. And I have learned through different vacations what types of am. Yeah. But it's from doing things that sometimes I do things on vacation that I don't like that I really think I would enjoy. Yeah. And then I do it and I'm like, oh, this isn't fun. This is not fun. Um so I also think to kind of take pressure off there of like you need to figure out your vacation type, and then if you're going with a buddy, you need to figure out your combined vacation type. And then if you're going with someone new, like it's good to know how you like to travel. But like, I didn't think I liked camping because I went on a very unorganized camping trip with Neomi and on it. It was a lot of fun, but it was also like it was a great vacation. None of us enjoyed camping, and then I went camping with Tarek, also not like super well organized, but we just we thought we were staying in a tent for five days because that's the limit I said, because I was like, I am not staying in a tent longer. And then we ended up staying in a tent for almost three weeks because it was just like it was fun, yeah, and it just worked.

SPEAKER_04 29:08

Yeah. Um, I love camping.

SPEAKER_02 29:10

Yeah, me too. Sometimes.

SPEAKER_04 29:12

Yeah.

SPEAKER_02 29:12

In the right environment, not in a thunderstorm, those are scary. Um, anyway.

SPEAKER_04 29:18

I think if you're solo traveling for the first time, I'm really excited for you, honestly.

SPEAKER_00 29:23

It's so cool.

SPEAKER_04 29:24

It's such a nice way to get to know yourself. And if you're solo traveling, yes, it can be scary in the beginning, but you get to do whatever you want. Yep. You'd think, hey, it's too warm now. I want to go into the shade, go into the shade. You don't have to ask anybody if that's okay with them. You want to eat dinner at 4 p.m. Go, girl. Nobody like I think it's it can be a really nice thing to be so selfish in a moment. And it's not even selfish, but just like do what you want to do for yourself. I think so too.

SPEAKER_02 30:00

I also like if you're traveling by yourself, I'm really excited. I also remember in middle school, one of my teachers told me the best way to know whether you want to like stay with your significant other sometimes is to travel with them.

SPEAKER_00 30:13

Yeah.

SPEAKER_02 30:14

Cause like you learn thing of things about their personality type and like how they deal with certain situations. Cause sometimes travel is also a little stressful or something doesn't go the way you want. So it's also kind of a fun thing to do with someone else, see your relationship in a in your not everyday.

SPEAKER_04 30:33

Yeah.

SPEAKER_02 30:34

I I was gonna say challenge, but it's not necessarily a challenge. It can be, it can be, but it's not always.

SPEAKER_04 30:41

I think it's normal to have um adjusting time in a travel, also. Yeah. And then you kind of get into the flow of it.

SPEAKER_02 30:48

Yeah. I think it's similar, like when you come back from a nice vacation, you have that those like growing pains almost of like, oh, that was so nice, and you're scared you're gonna forget it or you miss it. And yeah, that I think that's also just kind of the nice part of traveling, is like there are a lot of places I really want to go back to that I probably have to wait a few years, and that's sad, but it's also so lucky that I got to go to those places. Yeah. Okay.

SPEAKER_04 31:18

Funny stories?

SPEAKER_02 31:20

Yes.

SPEAKER_04 31:20

So I went to go visit Amy in Mexico.

SPEAKER_02 31:24

Yeah, it was great.

SPEAKER_04 31:25

It was great.

SPEAKER_02 31:26

She helped me take care of my foster dog.

SPEAKER_04 31:29

Um, but no, that actually wasn't my first solo flight. My first solo flight was to Thailand. Yep. Yeah. Before so about a year before that, I flew to Thailand by myself. I was meeting people there, but it was the first my the first time ever flying by myself, which is crazy. Um, and I was 23. Yeah. And I was so scared.

SPEAKER_02 31:53

Yeah.

SPEAKER_04 31:54

You were also scared of flying before that. Yeah, I didn't like flying at all. I would get really nervous on the flights, and then I was like, oh, now I have to fly by myself. I was so scared, I cried my eyes out at the tr at the airport. Domini was there with me, and I was just like, oh, I was not having it. Um, Naomi, we were living together at the time. She made me like a goodie bag for the flight. It was so sweet. She got me an eye mask and like candies and like this face wipe. It was so cute. Somehow, once I got on the plane, I was like, look, I said to myself, I was like, look, you're doing this. You might as well embrace it. Guys, when I tell you, solo flying is like a spa day. It's so nice.

SPEAKER_01 32:42

She did a 180. And we were all like, what happened on that plane?

SPEAKER_04 32:47

I was like, I'm gonna embrace it. I'm in here for 10 hours, might as well make it okay.

SPEAKER_02 32:52

Also, sorry, your first solo flight was a 10-hour flight, which is just insane.

SPEAKER_04 32:58

Yeah, that was maybe a bit much. But let me tell you, I ordered a glass of wine. Nice. I turned on the movie that I wanted to. When it came to sleeping time, you bet yourself I got out those face wipes. I did my skincare. I put on the face mask. I had fluffy socks. Like, yes, it was treating myself, but I had prepared for that moment. I was like, I'm getting everything so that I can be as comfortable as possible on this flight. Nice. And I realized that some of my anxiety that I had while flying wasn't mine. I think I was so stressed while flying, partially because we're a family of six kids. And so traveling was just really stressful with so many kids. Yeah. And then I would feel the stress, and somehow I connected that with, oh, flying is stressful. Flying is something one should be afraid of. Not to like blame anybody, but I think that's like where it came from. And then I realized that it's super chill. Yep. And I'm so happy I did it. Now I would honestly I'd love to just fly by myself. Because you're watching a movie anyway, you're not really talking to people anyway. You don't get any benefit from having the other person there. Yes. Airports are so um well designed. Yeah. A lot of airports are very well designed that you will find where you need to go, and there's so many people around who will show you otherwise. Yeah. So if that's what your anxiety is about, I mean, it's great. Just turn that anxiety into me time. Me time into a spa day.

SPEAKER_02 34:40

Yeah, that's my funny story. We were all very surprised. My funny story was when my first solo trip, yeah, I was 16. So I could have flown as an unaccompanied minor, but it was from Switzerland to uh London, which is like a one and a half hour flight. I've been flying since I was a young kid, it was fine. Um, and I didn't have to fly as an unaccompanied minor, which was super lucky because I got on the flight, got to London, mom dropped me off at the airport here, and dad was picking me up in London, and we agreed that we would meet at a cafe outside. And we get or I get to the cafe and I'm looking for my dad, and he's not there. And I was like, Okay. Um, so I called him because he had a a UK number, I think. And I called him from the payphone and I was like, Dad, where are you? And he's like, Amy, I'm at the cafe, where are you? And I was like, I've walked through this cafe three times. Where are you? And he's like, I'm at the cafe, where are you? And I was like, I'm at the payphone right next to the cafe. And he's like, What? I do not see you. And we were looking for each other, and I was like, I'm waving my hand. You see somebody waving their hand, and he's like, I don't see you. And I was like, Dad, I am at Costa Cafe, where are you? And he goes, What? I was like, I am I'm at Costa Cat Cafe, where are you? And he looks around and he's like, Amy, there is no Costa Cafe here. I was like, Whoops, what? Turns out there are multiple airports in London. Yeah, and I was at Heathrow, and he was not at Heathrow, and he was giving a class in the evening, so he couldn't come pick me up anymore. Oh no. And I had to find my way to him with the trains and everything. And I was like, Okay, and he was like, We're gonna meet at this station. I promise I'm gonna be there. We can both get there in 40 minutes, but we have to get there in 40 minutes, and then we have to go. And he's like, You have to leave now and get on the train because you're not gonna make it otherwise. And I start just like hauling ass, and then I get to the ticket thing, and I don't know which ticket I need, and I'm so overwhelmed, and I just like and then a lady comes up to me and was like, Do you need help? It wasn't even like a ticket lady, she was just like, Where do you need to go? And I was like, I'm trying to meet my dad, and I think he's at Victoria Station, and she was like, Here, here, here, and like made the ticket for me and then walked me to the platform. Um, yeah, but that was really funny because it took us forever to realize we were.

SPEAKER_04 37:11

I remember, I remember hearing this story. Then I was in Switzerland and mom was like, Oh my god, they met at the wrong airport. It's like, whoops. That sucks.

SPEAKER_02 37:21

Yeah, yeah. But it ended up, it ended up okay, and there are always helpful strangers, I feel like. Yeah. Especially if you look overwhelmed. Just trust your gut. I've also gone up to people traveling and been like, do you need help? Yeah. And then had lovely conversations.

SPEAKER_04 37:41

So if you're planning your vacation, guys, now's the time. It's summer. Um have fun. Have fun. Don't overthink it. Uh don't try to do too much. And don't be an asshole.