When travel plans are sabotaged…

One of my passions is travel.   If I ever win the lottery, I won’t spend it on fast cars or mansions or designer clothes (well, maybe one outfit and a slightly bigger house and room for a horse, and a car that is newer than my 17-year-old SUV) – just first class tickets on airplanes and a full itinerary without running up a credit card balance.

When I travel, I tend to travel hard and fast.  Friends and family have told me, “Hey, we are on VACATION here!”  “This continent is already conquered!”   “Step away from the car and give me the keys and go place your towel on the beach.”  It’s probably true that I don’t really need to see two cathedrals, an aquarium and a museum or botanical garden before breakfast.  But I am of the mind-set that I might never get to this part of paradise again, so I should see it all now, right?

I have been blessed to cross about 30 states off my list and a similar number of countries.  With 27 vacation days in my benefits bucket at work I decided to look around and see what is up next.  In the past two years, I went to Scotland, Ireland, Montreal, Quebec City, Hawaii, California Gold Country and the Berkshires.  (I think it was a post-COVID “get me out of this stupid mask and onto a plane!” mentality.)  It was time to tackle a few more states.

I have several friends who have escaped California for the Carolinas in the past few years, as well as a cousin in the Raleigh area, so I thought that it was time to explore the South. 

I love history, and my brother is a major Civil War buff.  We went on some great trips, including battlegrounds, when we were both unattached and could do some fun ramblings around this great country. He had raved about areas like Savannah and Charleston, and I was eager to get the trip on the calendar this fall.   I would avoid humidity and enjoy some fall foliage and the beautiful landscape of areas like the Smoky Mountains.

So…I started working on my itinerary – fly into Atlanta and stay for three nights.  See the Coca-Cola plant, the Carter Library, the High Museum, aquarium, Stone Mountain and other intriguing sites.  Meander up through Western North Carolina and take the train through the Smoky Mountains.  Stay at a darling little cabin on the bank of the Tuckasegee River in Bryson City.  Get to Asheville and wander through the lavish Biltmore Estate and grounds.  Spend several days in Raleigh with cousins and friends.  Head south to Myrtle Beach, Charleston, Hilton Head and Savannah, again seeing more friends and experiencing Southern hospitality and mansions.  Finally, regrettably, come home and – not regrettably – cuddle the dogs and plan the next trip.

Well, I planned for humidity and the fall foliage…but did not plan for Hurricane Helene.  Tropical storms don’t care that you booked your flights, your VRBOs, your days off, your car rentals, your freeloading off your friends.  They are just going to show up and wreak havoc and upset your lives.   They are going to leave you with lots of mud and floods, homes that are gone and blocked roads.  And loss of life.

I spent the past few days rearranging my itinerary.  Not going to Atlanta.   Not going to Asheville or Bryson City.  Cancelled several vacation rentals and one rental car.  Requested a refund from Biltmore for my prepaid ticket.   Rebooked flights and (yes, this is a first world problem) splurged for first class because my new direct flight to Raleigh had only middle seats in economy and nothing in economy plus.  I usually book trips way in advance and can’t think of the last time I sat in the middle seat unless I was with Peter, and it was okay to lean on him.  Not going to invade a stranger’s space.  Unless he’s cute and single and of an appropriate age. 

I had my trip reinvented and whittled down from three weeks to two.  And then my long-time friend in Myrtle Beach broke a wrist and just had surgery.   I can’t expect her to heal and host me at the same time.

Back to the VRBO website.  Whew!  Found an ocean view property in Myrtle Beach not too far away from her so I can spend time with her and pamper her and help her heal and enjoy seeing her for the first time in years. We worked together way back when, at my first post college job. The property does look pretty darn nice as well.

I am excited about the revised trip – I still get to see cousins and several very important people in my life.   The Atlanta – Asheville portion can wait.  I do want to express my thoughts and prayers for all of those who have lost homes, lives, or the lives of others close to them.  Seeing the devastation that has crashed the South is horrific and I can’t imagine having to rebuild your life – or even scrambling for food, water, shelter and power – we have it so good here…until we don’t.    I don’t want to take my many blessings for granted – we forget to be grateful for what we have until it’s taken away from us.

It’s time for me to finally finish that disaster kit that I have been working on for oh so many years.  I have the 25-year-shelf life food for a few weeks and some water.  It’s a start.

I can’t wait to see my East Coast buddies – it’s coming up quickly.

I am also exploring options for donating to support those in the Carolinas, Georgia and Florida. If you have recommendations, please share so we can make a difference to those in need.