I was looking at national holidays the other day—and we tend to have a bunch of odd ones as well as some significant ones—and March 1st is Plan a Solo Vacation Day. I’ll be honest, it’s not something I’ve ever considered. I can’t even go to a coffee shop by myself. Not that the girls wouldn’t let me go alone. To be honest, they beg me to go alone. It sounds something like, “Can you go away,” but I know it’s said in love.
Actually, I simply don’t want to go by myself, so I know I wouldn’t be able to do a vacation solo. I’m simply too used to having people around. All the time. Every minute of every day. Even when I hide. I have friends who take vacations by themselves, but I can’t do it. When I see something, I want to share it with one of them, if not all of them. We’ve taken trips where one of the girls and I had to go off just the two of us, and to be honest, it felt a little off to me because it’s always the four of us. Oh, I had fun, and enjoyed the time I spent with the one I was with but felt strange not having the others there.
Anyway, enough of my excuses. Let’s see what I found out about vacations. First off, the “vacation culture” started in 1830 with the establishment of railroads connecting key spots. I mean, let’s face it. I hate taking long trips in a straight shot by car now. Can you imagine what it was like in horse and buggy? In 1910, people start fighting for paid vacations, and in 1919, vacations become a legal right. Pack up the kids and get out of town!
But why a solo vacation? Well, according to what I found, it creates independence. Your time is your time, and you don’t have to justify it or run your agenda by anyone. Feel like doing something, then just go do it. I feel this one, I’ll admit. Especially when it comes time to pick where we want to go for dinner. You think it’s hard when there’s only two of you, then you should be in my shoes. It’s impossible.
Still, I’d rather spend a few minutes arguing about where to eat than eat alone. And, to be honest, I’m not all that eager to meet and eat with strangers. I’ll stick to the group outings, but that doesn’t mean you have to. Have you been on a solo vacation? If so, leave me a comment and tell me where you visited and how it went. I’d love to know.
Until next time, happy reading!
Robbie