Lessons from the Road

We had a National Lampoon Family Vacation kind of beginning to our cross country trip. Of course, it would have been more fun for us if Chevy Chase had actually come along.

Here's our RV on Day 3:

Yep. We broke down on day 2. After more than a day of waiting to find out what the rental company was going to do, it was finally towed to another Cruise America location and we were given a replacement RV. That was after spending more than 3 hours sitting in a truck repair shop with our kids and 24 hours of really poor customer service. I won't go into the details because they'll bore you--and the company still has a chance to make it right with us. 

I'll just say that I understand things go wrong with vehicles. I'm not unreasonable. But the least the company could have done was tell us what they were doing to resolve the problem. Instead, they dodged our calls and left us and the truck repair company waiting....waiting...waiting...

So... the first (reminder) lesson: roll with it when problems arise while traveling because what else can you do? We made the best of a lousy situation and now we're on our way to our destination, albeit behind schedule. 

The second, perhaps more important, lesson: be thankful for what you have.

When the RV made a terrifying noise on the highway, I was certain we were going to break down right there with no real shoulder to safely hold us, on an interstate with tractor trailers racing by. I was scared for my family's safety. 

But that didn't happen. We managed to exit the highway and get to a truck stop. Honestly, I was thrilled my family was safe. I tried to focus on that when customer service was frustrating me the next day. (And truth be told, I failed some of the time... it was a hard day and I'm far from perfect). 

I'm thankful my family is safe.

After 2 hours at the truck stop, with no response from Cruise America in sight, my husband was able to get online and find a campground nearby. A quick phone call later and we found out they had a site for us. We limped into the campground, parked the RV and went straight to the pool to cool off. 

I'm thankful for technology that allowed us to easily find a place to stay that night.

Everyone we met in person was friendly and helpful-from the Hejamada Campground where we stayed, to Pullen's Truck Repair who did their best to get us on the road, to Mark's Service Center, Inc. who provided us with a replacement RV. And there were some lovely people at the KOA in Erie, OH who refunded our money (against policy) when we missed or reservation because we broke down.

I'm thankful for the kindness of strangers.

Through all of it, our kids showed us (AGAIN!) how resilient and patient they can be, even when we start to get frustrated. 

I'm thankful for my patient, resilient children

Maybe you're traveling this summer or maybe your not. Either way these are lessons for all of us, everyday. When you start to get annoyed, I hope you'll remember this post and "roll with the punches" and be thankful for what you have.

What lessons have you learned while traveling?

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Travel Tuesdays: When Things Don't Go as Planned

Many times during travel there are bumps along the road. Sometimes those bumps are dangerous or serious. Most of the time they're just annoying.

During our recent trip to Salina and Sicily, we had two annoying bumps.

My family was enjoying a quick dip in the Mediterranean when my daughter was "stung" by a jelly (fish). She had two angry slashes across each ankle and was screaming her head off. Here in Massachusetts, I know about local jellies. There, in the Mediterranean, I had no idea. We sought medical attention and learned we needn't worry. The doctor applied lidocaine and gave us a prescription for more. My daughter's crying stopped and we went about our vacation.  

Our second doctor's visit occurred about 5 days later. My daughter had some sort of rash or bug bites that were getting worse. Within a few days, all of us had symptoms. We were itchy as all get out. So off we went for more medical attention. We learned it was nothing dangerous or contagious and followed medical advice about treatment. (Quick aside... this visit was made easier when the owner of the apartment we were renting helped us see the doctor and translated our communications. We had been interacting with him daily and knew he was a kind man. The lesson: Don't be afraid to ask nice people for help. I'd help a stranger in my town who needed it. Wouldn't you?)

Now, I won't tell you I wasn't worried or concerned as these incident were happening. We've all heard about deadly jellies. And mysterious rashes while overseas are no small thing. But as soon as we realized there was no danger, I let it go.

The other owner of our apartment kept telling us how sorry she was that our holiday had been ruined by the rash. (We really were itching non-stop. I won't pretend it was fun). My response to her was this: "No one is in danger. It's an inconvenience. At least it's better than almost dying in West Africa." (This was an exaggeration, but only slightly. I was referencing the time my husband and I almost didn't get out of Niger. First, our car broke down in the bush. Then, there was a near crash in a taxi. That same driver then almost hit a military guy holding an huge gun- an AK47 maybe. That was followed by a heated discussion and much yelling on the part of the military official). Seriously, a rash? No big deal!

I say this jokingly, but I mean it. Unless you suffer a serious medical need or are in real danger, try to keep travel inconveniences in perspective. And, just think of the stories you'll have to tell when you get home!

What's your funniest/scariest/ hardest travel story? Please share it!

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