Travel Life Lessons

Sometimes, it is in travel as it is in life.

Bring only what you can carry. When I was planning my trip, I made sure of three things: that I could lift my suitcase to be weighed at the check-in counter, that I had no carry-on bag to be hoisted to the overhead bin once I boarded, and that once I landed, I could roll my suitcase with me to the escalators in the train stations all the way to my hotel lobby.

I wanted to be able to carry and move all my things by myself. And getting help would be a bonus. I didn’t want to stand helplessly surrounded by pieces of luggage. There was an instance on the plane when one girl approached her seat pushing what looked like a solid seven-kilo red hard suitcase, stood there, and asked the flight attendant to lift her bulky suitcase to be placed in the overhead bin. I was judging her a little. It was one thing to ask for help, it was another to expect it.

Know that there are different ways to get to your destination. I landed in the Narita Airport and decided to take the N’EX Train to Shinjuku. I got my ticket from a booth in the airport and boarded the train ten minutes later. I wanted the train experience because it was part of the thrill, but I knew going back to the airport to come home would be different, so I planned it another way. I booked a car to take me from Shinjuku to Narita to take my flight home.

When you’re lost, look at things a different way. The Shinjuku train station is one giant maze and to get my bearings, I’d look for the South exit and take it from there. There was one time that I couldn’t find the South Exit. There were arrows pointing to the East and the West exits. Then I had the presence of mind to ask. I was told to take the escalators up to go to the South exit. I was in the exact place I needed to be but just one floor lower. I don’t know if anyone gets this but when we are lost, we often decide whether to go left or right. But once in a while, consider going up a floor.

Being on your own doesn’t mean being alone. There’s a whole community that makes our travel exhilarating just as there’s a whole community that makes our every day easy. There’s a person behind your ticket, your luggage, and your safe landing just as there’s a person behind your laundry, your groceries, and your safety.

You don’t get anywhere alone.

Xoxo

Butch