Our trip to San Francisco to See Wicked finally came. The play was great. The hotel, magnificent. The city, wet but beautiful. We had a very nice time. And I learned some things about myself along the way.
1. I may like the IDEA of the big city, but the reality of it isn't exactly my idea of fun. We drove around for miles looking at the architecture, which, of course, I love but I couldn't help wondering where there kids play or where they plant their tomatoes, or when do they get to see their own roses bloom and dig in the dirt and I was very much grateful for my little bit of earth here in Utah.
2. You only need to ride on a trolley car once to appreciate the experience. Sardines, and pickpocket warnings make me so grateful for the fresh air I can breathe just by walking out the door.
3. I'm a little bit of a fraidy cat when it comes to deserted streets at 11 o'clock at night. My fight or flight reactions kick in, every person is examined suspiciously, and my mind automatically plans my escape route-- especially when I don't know where I was going which, by the way was most of the time downtown.
4. My phone works really great as a GPS. But a GPS doesn't help if you don't know where to go. I'll plan things a little better next time. Unstructured time means you miss stuff you thought you wanted to see.
5. I have no idea what stuff in the real world costs. We rented a car because we got a great deal and spent more to park it ($50 per day) than we did to rent it because parking was at a premium.
Rob and I were discussing whether I'll be able to handle places like New York and Europe, if I got so frustrated with San Francisco, but my friend C assures me that New York is much better. In any event, I will definitely plan better, understand that it takes longer to get places on public transportation, and plan EXACTLY what I want to do. Plus, frankly, I missed my kids and kept thinking "Nate will love this." Or "I can't wait to tell Matt and Maggie about this." Maybe I'm getting a little older and the wanderlust I used to feel so keenly I realize is only fun when it's a shared experience. But sometimes you just gotta get away without the kids, too.
Practicing Alternative Dispute Resolution Finding humor in the daily Stuff; Occasionally waxing poetic and philosophical; Preserving a history for my family
3 comments:
I think after living in Utah it makes one a little handicapped because they don't know what to do when all the streets are on a grid of north and south. I think living close to a big city is best because then you can go to the city when you want, but don't have to live with it on a daily basis. Yes, Europe is expensive. We paid more for our rent for a small apartment then we pay for a house 3 times that size. We paid more for garbage in in 4 month then we pay all year here in the states, but then that may explain our global warming issues. The best is a ticket for the movies is more than it cost to just buy the movie when it comes out on DVD.
Oh, Gail! You are a wanderer in your soul (which is the best kind of wanderer, in my opinion). Let me know if you ever make it out to the big city. I'd offer to host, but I'm not sure about my 300 sq ft studio accommodating your big and lovely family!! :)
I think it is wonderful that you were able to get away without your kids. We have always taken ours and just this last trip realized that it might, just might, be more fun without them...
Our big wake up call was Miami, within an hour Dave had his wallet stolen and Allie had her cell phone stolen!
In Ocean City Maryland a few years ago,the boys had money stolen at an ice cream counter by an employee, and Allie had her camera stolen. We just don't have that kind of theft where we live. It feels so safe here in Alaska.
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