Take time to travel—it’s worth the travel time it takes.

 

I love to wander to new places I’ve never been. Even though traveling requires effort, takes time and is physically and mentally challenging, to me it’s worth it because it enriches my soul and expands my mind.

I’ve just returned home from exploring the islands of Corsica and Sardinia in the Mediterranean Sea. It was a celebratory trip! Spent with my girlfriends Moi and Mel, with me turning 60, and Moi, turning 50. All three of us love traveling and seeking new adventures. I chose our destinations for this trip because they are unique, and far off the usual beaten path. Perfect for wandering and discovering!

from left: Moira, Me, Melinda

When traveling, a nice way to contribute to a trip’s success is to find just the right role for yourself. I like to be the planner and put together the foundational itinerary—let’s wander here, and get there this way! And all the other things involved in a good plan. When it’s my husband and I, it’s easy, because he lets me do everything and I just check the itinerary with him. With friends it’s different. They either get involved with planning or participate in other ways. 

Getting to Corsica took an unexpected turn, and ended up being a major event for me! My international flight canceled, and so I had to find new flights. And, find a hotel. Next day, I waited for my new afternoon flight to Frankfurt. Once I got to Europe, I had to wait another eight hours in the Frankfurt airport to catch a flight to Luxembourg, stay overnight there and then, the next day fly to my final destination of Corsica where my girlfriends awaited my arrival. Two days of travel! Two vacation days lost!

When flights are delayed or canceled, it sucks. But, that’s part of the journey, too. And a reminder that it’s out of our control. The best thing to do is to try to make the best of the situation. So, I booked a nice hotel in Luxembourg. Had a driver pick me up at the airport. I skipped the extra time and hassle of shuttles or cabs. Once I arrived. it felt like my trip was beginning. The hotel was a delight, and at check-in, I was told that my reservation included dinner, also a delight! After freshening up in my sweet room with a balcony that overlooked the quaint streets below, I went to eat my supper. I sat outside sipping a glass of Prosecco and watched people stroll by while enjoying a three-course meal of salmon ceviche with caviar, grilled trout and rich chocolate lava cake. Yummy! Since I had never been to Luxembourg before, I spent the morning wandering the city. I learned that it’s the richest, safest country in the world. The city has a beautiful old fortress (UNESCO World Heritage site) up high on rocky cliffs with incredible views of the Alzette river and mixed European architecture houses. I found my way down to the river by allowing my body to lead me in any direction. I walked along old cobblestone streets, through alleyways and construction zones, and strolled up a path that cut through fresh smelling organic herb and vegetable gardens lined with rows of crudely built gardening storage sheds. I worked my way up and out of the valley below and continued walking in a large circle around the city towards my hotel, stopping first in the large Municipal Park, which grew tall pine and olive trees and colorful flower gardens and displayed artists’ sculptures that stood out against the deep green landscape. Back at the hotel, my driver was waiting to take me to the airport. The road we drove through to get there was lined with lush trees and shrubs growing wild on both sides of the street; I felt like I was leaving an enchanted forest. I have such good memories of my short, side-tracked visit to the tiny country of Luxembourg. It’s definitely a place I would travel back to, and worth the extra time it took to get me to my final destination. 

Luxembourg

I was almost there! My quick fifty-minute flight to Corsica was on a semi-small plane (holding around sixty passengers). I sat in a window seat and looked out at two oversized black propellers that seemed ill-fitting and cartoonish. It was picturesque as we flew over the Mediterranean Sea. After landing at the Bastia airport, I walked through the gate and was greeted by my friends, waiting to welcome me with hugs and kisses. I had finally arrived! 

a warm welcome

All that extra travel was stressful and time consuming, but worth the effort. When the girls and I got to our hotel in Corte, Corsica, I was delighted to see that it was situated by a gushing river, tucked in the mountains. Our rooms had wooden decks, then crossing the soft grass, you reached the cocktail lounge just above the crystal-clear water below. The mountain air and sounds of the river flowing and tumbling over rocks were enough to erase any bad memories of my exhausting travel. 

Overall, our vacation was very enjoyable. The girls and I got along fine. This is our third trip together and we fell into familiar roles. Mel was our tour guide, with hiking destinations and scenic drives in mind. Moi was our driver, racing through the narrow city roads and cliffhangers as a true European does, with confidence and swiftness. And I sat back and enjoyed just being there, happy to be doing anything, as long as it was an outdoor activity connecting us with Mother Nature. 

 I was excited to explore and learn more about these two islands I had been wondering about, and, to share time with my good friends. Corsica, where Napoleon was born, is the fourth largest island in the Mediterranean, nearly half of it within a park that is famous for different levels of hiking expertise. We specifically traveled there to hike in the mountains and that is exactly what we did nearly every day. We trekked up to glacier lakes, through pine forests, up steep rocks, to pebble beaches, and up and through old ruins and forts. On one hike we kept hearing the “coo-coo” sound of a Cuckoo, a common migratory European bird which has many myths and meanings surrounding it, from having good or bad luck, to hearing the sound means it’s the start of spring or a greeting call, to meaning a person is “silly” or “crazy”.  We decided our bird was saying “hello” to us three silly women. Ha ha. Throughout our trip we had mild, cloudy weather, and at times it was misty with light rain. We had a lot of wind, too, which would occasionally push the clouds away to reveal sunny skies for a bit.

Corsica

Before we knew it our time in Corsica was over and we headed to take the ferry over to Sardinia. It took an entire day to travel to our next destination, the city of Cagliari at the south end of Sardinia. Up early morning, we drove two hours to the ferry port. After getting our tickets and returning our rental car we nearly missed the boat and, had we not run to catch it, we would have. Lesson learned: arrive early!

Ferry to Sardinia

In the Italian city of Cagliari, Sardinia, we spent time walking through “Castello”, the city’s historic walled Old Town, and within it visited the Museum of Archeology to learn more about the country’s past. We drove to see the UNESCO prehistoric defensive structure called “nuraghi”, and walked into its dome-like rock structures to feel what it must have been like to be a soldier standing guard to protect the nuraghi people (who are presumed to be the country’s first inhabitants) in these small, dark spaces built 2000 years before Christ. We admired the enormous fig trees that stood tall and wide within the botanical gardens and walked underground through the tunnels and caves hiding beneath the trees’ roots. We strolled for miles along the seaside ports which led us to the country’s famous pristine, white sand and turquoise blue water beaches, which were fairly empty pre tourist season. Come July and August the towns and beaches will fill up with thousands of European tourists enjoying their summer vacations. Everyday, we packed a lunch of crusty bread and cheese sandwiches, little cakes and fruit to eat when and where we landed when we got hungry. Time flies when you’re having fun and our time on the islands had soon come to an end. 

Sardinia

My journey home, when I wrote this, took me from Cagliari, Sardinia to Frankfurt. Then an overnight in Frankfurt, and an early morning departure for Chicago. Then Chicago to Phoenix! I admit I had major anxiety waiting for my gate to appear on the airlines’ screens. I want my ride back home to be smooth sailing after such an exciting arrival. Mel left on a morning flight to Rome. Then Moi’s flight to Milan in the afternoon was delayed three hours, so we got to enjoy each other’s company waiting together. That was nice for me, because otherwise, I would have been waiting by myself, usually not a bad thing since I like a bit of alone time to read and reflect, but, if it weren’t for Moi’s delay, I would have had a long time to wait at a small airport with not much to do. 

Moi’s Milan flight finally left. As I sat alone, my thoughts switched back and forth, from “Will my plane arrive from Frankfurt so it will leave on time here?” To, a “whatever happens, happens” mindset, forcing myself to be present in the moment. Writing this while I waited helped re-focus away from airline delay messages, gates… and back to memories of our fun trip. 

 I’m glad I forged ahead through the stress and anxiety to get here. There was a moment when I almost bagged the whole trip and flew home. But that wouldn’t have been fair to my friends, or to me!! Sometimes, putting in the extra effort produces special results, as this trip did. My girlfriends mean the world to me. Without them, my life would feel empty. Of course, my husband and my dog were greatly missed. We talked everyday and I’m excited to be reunited with them. But, the time I spent creating new memories together with my “sistaas” was priceless. As all my trips have been.

 epilogue...

I made it home! My flights were all on time. I was overjoyed to see my husband and dog. I missed them a lot. As I write, I’m tired and happy to be back in Arizona. I also feel good to have made the effort to take this trip. Traveling does take time, it's hard to be away from the people and things you love. Through good and bad experiences, I believe traveling is worth the time it takes. Now, my mind feels full of lots of new ideas for future paintings. I have fun memories of times shared with my girlfriends. And, I feel proud of myself for not giving up, being brave and making the best of kooky, unexpected change-of-travel plans. Will I keep traveling? You betchya. I’m a crazy Cuckoo bird who loves to fly to new places! And, I’m going to continue to take the time to travel again and again and again, as long as I can. Because you’ll never know unless you go! 

Arrivederci!