When we bought our return tickets to Budapest through Ireland, the cheapest ticket by a significant amount was on my birthday, I wasn’t too bothered. I mean, I would be flying to Ireland on my birthday. Things could be much, much, much worse.

After we made it through security (with every step in the long line I was regretting this birthday-travel decision more and more) and arrived at our gate, we discovered our flight was delayed.

No big deal. Happens all the time. We still had plenty of time to catch our connecting flight in Philadelphia.

Finally we got on the plane, and as we were getting settled, we discovered that the radar was out over Montana (that’s my home state, thankyouverymuch) so no eastbound flights could go anywhere. We waited on the plane for over an hour, eventually they shut off the engine, and then–finally–we got moving again.

Then. I guess turning off the engines had triggered something, because one thing after another kept breaking–so we were sent back to the gate and told to disembark. At this point, I was getting stressed about making our connection. We watched in dismay as the minutes ticked by and we missed our red-eye to Shannon in Ireland.

As we worked out what we were going to do, begging them to find us another flight, we heard over the loudspeaker–our flight had been cancelled. And the next flight to Ireland that American Airlines would put us on had us leaving the next day, with an extra layover.

After receiving our $24 dollar meal voucher (so generous!), they sent us on our merry way to a hotel.

It was disappointing, I won’t lie–losing one whole day of our seven-day trip to Ireland. We rescheduled things and tried to make the best of it–it was still my birthday.

The next day we got up bright and early, excited to finally make it to Ireland.

Can you see where this is going?

We made the first leg to Phoenix okay. But…

It was so hot in Phoenix, the plane was too heavy to fly (severely simplified physics here). So, first they asked eight people to get off and take a later flight. Time dragged on as they figured this out. It got hotter. Suddenly there was something wrong with the air and so it got even hotter.

The minutes crept by until it seemed like there was no way we would make another connection to Ireland.

AGAIN.

Finally, they asked 35 more people to get off the plane. This time, they were offering vouchers for free flights, and since we had already missed our chance to go to Ireland that day (or so we thought), E and I quickly decided to get off. Might as well get something out of it!

We grabbed our vouchers and talked our way onto a flight that would still get us there a day and a half late, rather than two days late. So we flew into Dublin rather than Shannon, and drove too fast in rainy weather so our B&B wouldn’t charge us an extra night.

Of course, somehow our luggage had beat us, so we detoured to Shannon to grab our bags the next day.

Sadly, a million more things went wrong on our trip–I sprained my ankle by being stupid on some cliffs, inns didn’t have power, roads were closed, we got lost a million times, and more. It wasn’t exactly the relaxing birthday trip I had hoped.

And still, we were in Ireland. We walked on grassy cliffs and drank Guinness in lively pubs. We stayed a charming B&Bs and stopped at whatever vistas snagged our attention. It was still, essentially, the Irish road trip of my dreams.

So what, you may be asking, is the morale of this story?

Well, for one, that travel is not always glamorous–in fact, sometimes it completely sucks. And, in some ways, my 29th year started off on a rocky foot. But it also started with an important lesson about life–it will never always be smooth sailing. No matter how horrible the situation, you always have a choice.

You can make it a funeral, or you can make it a party.

It’s up to you.

(Bring it on, 29!)

The post Rolling with the Punches + Turning 29! appeared first on Amy and the Great World.

1. Do NOT think that arriving two seconds before the train leaves will guarantee you a seat because you have tickets. It doesn’t, and you will have to sit in the stairwell.

^^it was a novelty for about 20 minutes. the next three hours, not so much.

2. If there are one hundred wines to taste at a wine tasting and you already paid, do NOT taste all one hundred. You will feel the pain, no matter how much fun it is at the time.

^^and then all of your pictures will be even blurrier than this.

3. Do NOT assume every bathroom will have toilet paper. They don’t always, and you’ll discover this lack of toilet paper just when you need it the most.

4. Do NOT avoid looking in your shoes if you are afraid of cockroaches. Stepping on one is much, much worse that finding it first.

5. Do NOT think your bus pass is good for everywhere just because some rando told you it was. It could get you kicked off the bus in the middle of nowhere and that bus driver will not have sympathy for you unless you can pay up.

6. Do NOT expect that flavors will be the same, even if they are the same color.

^^although it clearly says paprika on this one, so I don’t deserve much sympathy.

7. Do NOT think that just because the street happens to be quiet, it is an okay spot for a mini-tantrum. That old guy definitely saw you throw your water bottle in a rage from his window.

8. Do NOT assume it’s beef. It might not be beef!!!

9. Do NOT assume that cobblestones will be softer on your feet.

10. Just because it is cute, does not mean it is clean.

^^but when a puppy is THIS cute, who cares how dirty?

11. Do NOT think it is always best to be over prepared, especially when you are the one responsible for carrying that preparedness all over the world and back.

^^I’m trying really hard not to wince.

12. Do NOT assume the wetness on the floor of your shared hostel bathroom is water. It probably isn’t.

13. Do NOT think that it will not matter if your backpack is so stuffed it is crooked. It will especially matter on the back of a motorcycle taxi.

14. Do NOT think it’s a good idea to wear a white tank top when visiting a place known for its “red dust.”

^^yes that tank top used to be white.

15. Do NOT agree to a “little jaunt” on any trail, anywhere, especially if you are wearing rain boots, unless you know exactly what it will entail. It will not be a little jaunt to you and it will hurt for days afterwards.

^^the time I climbed a mountain and was told it would be an easy little jaunt.

16. Do NOT underestimate the value of making friends with beer.

^^obviously my new BFFs.

17. Do NOT think it “doesn’t matter” where you sleep because you “can sleep anywhere.” You are not as young as you used to be, son.

18. Do NOT assume that just because you are drunk you are actually any better at karaoke, especially in a different language. In fact, you are probably worse. But get up there and have fun anyway, because its way easier to karaoke at that moment in time.

19. If the beach you are visiting has a bunch of cute raccoon pictures, run. This means that they are using live raccoons as zoo animals and that does not make for relaxing time on the beach.

^^we drank lots of drinks really fast in the shade to avoid the raccoons.

20. Do NOT think the gorgeous, remote places you see on the internet are completely real. Sure, they exist, but there are likely ten thousand other people clamoring for the same shot as you. Push on through and you’ll get that shot, and it will be great, but you will step on a few toes.

^^how cute is Germany? Even with the crowds? I took about twenty shots trying to get one without twenty people but no such luck.

Question of the Day:

What are some things you’ve learned about travel?

Welcome to Travel Tuesday!

The post How NOT To Travel, Part 3 appeared first on Amy and the Great World.

1. Do NOT overuse the thumbs-up. It’s not always cute. (Okay, maybe not ever).

2. Same goes for that peace sign.

3. When riding in the back of a truck full of buckets of crabs, due to the nice people in Thailand who love to give you rides, do NOT think that balancing your leg over a bucket will not get you pinched. It will.

right before the incident. ouch.

4. Don’t bring flip flops, socks…and no other shoes.

5. Do NOT expect the man next to you with a bowl of noodle soup to drink that up quietly. That just isn’t the way of the world.

6. Do NOT assume the meat you are eating is chicken.

7. Do NOT try haggis for the first time before getting on a night bus. You will vomit. (Also, eating chips and candy right after the haggis and directly before the bus might contribute to this, too).

8. Do NOT expect the same hotel you stayed in five years ago to be the same. It probably has an entirely new name and suddenly feels ten miles away from everything that you thought it was so close to.

9. Do NOT expect your room to have a flushing toilet. If there’s a large bucket full of water with a small bucket inside next to the toilet, that is the flushing mechanism. Be prepared.

10. Do NOT think that if you give someone a mean funny nickname in English they will never figure out what you said.

11. Do NOT assume your international phone card will actually work.

12. Do NOT assume the tea your host mother is giving you to help you adjust to the altitude is without mind-altering properties in high volume.

13. Do NOT assume the cute wedges you had to bring will work on the cobblestones.

14. Do NOT assume your rolling suitcase will also work on the cobblestones.

don’t except these to work on cobblestones, either. but aren’t the cobblestones cute?

15. Do NOT think the cute little boys running at you with a bucket of water shouting (in Carnivale season) are not going to douse you in water because you’re a foreigner. They will. With glee.

16. Do NOT assume everyone you are with is carefully reading the signs like you are. You may accidentally leave them on the subway when you get off (at the right stop).

17. Do NOT assume everything with “ice cream” in the title will be delicious. There are lots of different kinds of milk out there, my friends. Like yak milk.

18. Do NOT assume you won’t get lost on a tiny island so it’s “okay not to pay attention” to where people are leading you. At some point, you will need to get back on your own, and you will get lost, no matter how tiny, because suddenly everything looks totally familiar and yet unfamiliar at the same time.

19. Do NOT think that Couchsurfing is always a good idea. If you try it in Cambodia, and you sleep on a mat surrounded by dead bugs and shower with a cockroach, you have been warned. Free is not always best!

20. Do NOT try Indian food for the first time in Cambodia.

actually, you probably should, because this still makes me laugh. (sorry, cuz!)

22. When someone on the street begins to dress you up, laugh loudly, and take pictures, expect them to ask you money for this experience.

don’t ask if I paid for this, please.

23. BEWARE of the beautiful macro-shot of that amazing flower. Things, like bugs, live in those, and are just waiting to come at you.

thankfully, a thing-free flower.

This is letter H for the A to Z Blogging Challenge. Whew, almost halfway through! Let me know what you think so far

The post How NOT To Travel, Part 2 appeared first on Amy and the Great World.