Things That Suck About Travel

I love traveling.

It’s really amazing how easily we can get around nowadays. People used to spend months (and possibly die) traveling from Europe to America, and now I can land at Heathrow after a short 7 hour flight. In college, we could road trip from the corn fields of central Illinois to the sandy beaches of Florida in less than a day. New places and faraway friends are so easily accessible, traveling is nothing to us now. While we don’t have to worry about dying from scurvy/a rogue tidal wave on a month long boat ride or getting trampled by oxen on a covered-wagon trek to the west, traveling is not without its imperfections.  I’m always thrilled when I arrive at my destination (especially if it’s a beach), but there are still those moments where I may not be the most pleasant companion. But with good reasons (I think):

Dehydration. I don’t know what it is. Whether I’m flying or driving, it’s not that I don’t have access to water. I always throw multiple bottles into my car, plus there are numerous opportunities to stop at a gas station. And I always buy a bottle once I’m through security at an airport. Even when I get wherever I’m going, I don’t seem to drink enough water. Admittedly, I think I generally consume more water than the average person (probably 6-10 bottles per day depending on the weather), so when I’m away from home, I’m always thirsty.

Bad weather. Whether it happens when you’re en route (and possibly delays you) or when you get wherever you are going, rain/snow/sleet/all types of precipitation ruin everything. Fact. I know it can’t be sunny all the time, but I wish it could be. At least when I’m on vacation.

Sitting next to a smelly person on a plane. You can’t get away from it. You’re squished into this teeny tiny seat that doesn’t even have enough room to stretch your legs without smashing your purse, and any attempt to direct your nostrils away from the odor is really obvious. And if you are already prone to motion sickness on landing/take-off (like moi), the b.o. makes it much, much worse.

Gawker traffic on the highway. I’m sure this has happened to all of you, too. You get stuck in a sea of brake lights for an hour, and your sweet release comes when you pass an accident. It’s not that the accident is blocking anything, it’s that everybody and their brother slows down to try and see what happened. Stupid gawkers.

The unexplained traffic jam. The only think worse than a gawker back-up is when you emerge from the sea of brake lights for no apparent reason. It’s like everyone spaced out, and all of a sudden remembered to start moving again. No apologies, no explanation. Grr.

Unfamiliar beds. It doesn’t matter how comfortable it is, it’s not yours.

Unfamiliar radio stations. Have you ever been driving through God knows where and are unable to find anything but local talk radio and static? I have. It especially sucks when I haven’t downloaded new music in awhile and just want to try and catch the new whoever, or the Hubbster wants to listen to the Cubs game.

Alex isn’t there to make my coffee. Nuff said.