Excitedly looking forward to a family trip to Zermatt and Zurich, Switzerland. But also NOT excitedly looking forward to the long flights with a toddler. I'd love to know if there are any articles out there to help parents overcome their fear of judgement as they travel with their toddler, or tips on how to pack/what to pack to make the journey a little more comfortable, if that's even possible. Thanks Sonya.
Hi Rachel! Thank you for the idea on travelling with children and fear of judgment. Also, people who are judging parents travelling children forget they were once a crying baby themselves. I am loving all of these suggestions and will reconfigure the calendar for next year based on the suggestions. I am so excited for you and Leif to take Lily to Switzerland!
Commenting from a two-week housesit in Asheville, NC! This a great way to travel frugally, as it involves providing pet care in exchange for a free place to stay. Consider covering it in 2024!
Hi Carla! Yes, I like that idea and I would be happy to have you share your stories, experience, and tips. I'll email you to set up a time to chat for some time in the New Year. You've had some great experiences with Trusted Housesitters and more people should know about this option.
This issue was a delight to read, Sonya! It was also fascinating to read your planned pieces for next year! I can’t wait for your issue on travel in pre- and post-communist countries having spent most of last year in the Balkans and having just moved to Kutaisi in northern Georgia.
If you haven’t read Stasiland by Anna Funder, I would highly recommend it, too.
Wishing you a restful and uplifting festive season. Here’s to a fulfilling, wondrous, and peaceful new year of life, travel, connection, and creativity xx
Hello Aoife! Welcome, thank you so much for the kind words and I might want to ask you more about your experiences in the Balkans and now in Georgia. I've wanted to visit Georgia for several years. I am excited about having a content calendar as I think it will produce better work and foster more discussion and questions. :)
Thank you for the book recommendation, I added it to my list of want to read and I always welcome book recommendations here!
I hope that you also have a wonderful holiday season! I love your sign off, I am going to use that, "Here’s to a fulfilling, wondrous, and peaceful new year of life, travel, connection, and creativity." It's the total package. :) Thank you for being here and I'll be in your inbox right before the New Year.
Hi Sonya, sorry for the uber-delayed reply. I would be honoured to have a chat about the Balkans (I’m very in love with the region) and I would absolutely endorse planning a visit to Georgia -- it’s worth the trip! And if you do, please message me and we can meet up. Hoping you’re having a cosy one xx
I love you schedule for next year! So much to dive into and things I’ve wondered about. Expanding my mind 🙌🏽 you asked about what you’d want to learn more about earlier on in the newsletter and then your schedule answers the question.
In terms of your questions about travel next year. The only trips we have absolutely planned are ones we do every year to spend time with family--are these even vacations, please advise. More like trips, right? But you mention LA. I have similar feelings about LA and I really had expected to hate it. I know I probably couldn’t live there, but I love visiting. We’re going in May. And for my birthday this year, my husband said a hope for me in this year of my life would be for me to go somewhere just because I want to see a place (see previous comment about all vacations, really being trips) and I’ve always wanted to go to Vancouver.
You're so welcome, Kaitlyn! Thank you for responding. I am glad the topics sounds interesting and will hopefully be informative. I don't want this to be dry - some topics are dry by nature - I want to share my interest in them with others.
Do I think visiting family or places I've lived are vacations? Not necessarily. They can be incredibly stressful and expensive but also really fun. I think if you do more managing of your own behavior and worrying about other people's thoughts and experiences than your own, it is not a vacation, and this can happen while visiting family. You're the therapist so you know what I am talking about. :)
It would probably help if we changed our mindset about visiting family and try to make it a vacation. One can have fun anywhere and earlier this year I published an interview I did with Jessica Day Cabrera who is writing a book about vacationing better. Her definition of vacation is one that I like because it just means fully disconnecting, not thinking about work or responsibilities as much as possible. This is going to be difficult to do, but your question makes me want to think of EVERY getaway from now on as a vacation. Something to ponder!
Also, a long weekend in a hotel 30 minutes from your home where you are totally disconnected can be a vacation that your brain and body needed. I suppose even staycations can be vacations if you change your mindset and play tourist in your own city or town.
As for LA, I have friends there and I have started to train for the Los Angeles Marathon that is on March 17. I am not officially signed up but will make that decision after the New Year. I need a few weeks of training before decidiing since it has been eight years since I've run a marathon. None of my friends who live there are in the entertainment industry so I've always had really genuine experiences in the city that have made me love it. Yes, it is VERY spread out and traffic is horrendous, but there are a lot of things to offer. Would I live there? Unsure. I like Victoria and its size a lot and I hope Canada will keep me! But, Los Angeles has culture, museums, great food and restaurants, jobs, sports teams, the beach, the mountains are close, wine country is not far and neither is the desert, interesting neighborhoods and stores, lots of outdoor dining weather (I know it gets hot there), and then if you care about Hollywood and such, you've got that too. I hope you have a great visit in May!
I hope you do visit Vancouver! It is a pretty city and I can make some recommendations if you do go. Lauren might have some too. I have not lived there in Van but I have been a few times.
You're so right about turning any trip into a vacation--it's a mindset, after all.
A marathon-oh my! I can't even imagine the mental and physical resilience that requires. I've just starting getting into running and I'm spent so quickly--however I will say that I can get the appeal now that I've found a way to gradually grow the practice and get the form and sensations down.
Just reading your list of all LA has to offer has me longing for it all. I can't wait!
Oh it is always nice to hear someone just started running and is enjoying it. I've been running for over 20 years but I've gone through a couple of periods where it was not fun. I took space and came back to it and running my first one in 8 years at 42 will be a lot different than my last one. And I should have clarified that prior to the race, I'll be staying in LA for two weeks to house sit so I can also acclimate a bit and I've never spent that long in the city. Since I work remotely, it will be fun! I'm excited for your trip there too. We'll have to compare notes.
Excitedly looking forward to a family trip to Zermatt and Zurich, Switzerland. But also NOT excitedly looking forward to the long flights with a toddler. I'd love to know if there are any articles out there to help parents overcome their fear of judgement as they travel with their toddler, or tips on how to pack/what to pack to make the journey a little more comfortable, if that's even possible. Thanks Sonya.
Hi Rachel! Thank you for the idea on travelling with children and fear of judgment. Also, people who are judging parents travelling children forget they were once a crying baby themselves. I am loving all of these suggestions and will reconfigure the calendar for next year based on the suggestions. I am so excited for you and Leif to take Lily to Switzerland!
Commenting from a two-week housesit in Asheville, NC! This a great way to travel frugally, as it involves providing pet care in exchange for a free place to stay. Consider covering it in 2024!
Hi Carla! Yes, I like that idea and I would be happy to have you share your stories, experience, and tips. I'll email you to set up a time to chat for some time in the New Year. You've had some great experiences with Trusted Housesitters and more people should know about this option.
This issue was a delight to read, Sonya! It was also fascinating to read your planned pieces for next year! I can’t wait for your issue on travel in pre- and post-communist countries having spent most of last year in the Balkans and having just moved to Kutaisi in northern Georgia.
If you haven’t read Stasiland by Anna Funder, I would highly recommend it, too.
Wishing you a restful and uplifting festive season. Here’s to a fulfilling, wondrous, and peaceful new year of life, travel, connection, and creativity xx
Hello Aoife! Welcome, thank you so much for the kind words and I might want to ask you more about your experiences in the Balkans and now in Georgia. I've wanted to visit Georgia for several years. I am excited about having a content calendar as I think it will produce better work and foster more discussion and questions. :)
Thank you for the book recommendation, I added it to my list of want to read and I always welcome book recommendations here!
I hope that you also have a wonderful holiday season! I love your sign off, I am going to use that, "Here’s to a fulfilling, wondrous, and peaceful new year of life, travel, connection, and creativity." It's the total package. :) Thank you for being here and I'll be in your inbox right before the New Year.
Hi Sonya, sorry for the uber-delayed reply. I would be honoured to have a chat about the Balkans (I’m very in love with the region) and I would absolutely endorse planning a visit to Georgia -- it’s worth the trip! And if you do, please message me and we can meet up. Hoping you’re having a cosy one xx
No worries on any "delay" you can respond when it is convenient for you. I'll be sending you a message about the Balkans!
I love you schedule for next year! So much to dive into and things I’ve wondered about. Expanding my mind 🙌🏽 you asked about what you’d want to learn more about earlier on in the newsletter and then your schedule answers the question.
In terms of your questions about travel next year. The only trips we have absolutely planned are ones we do every year to spend time with family--are these even vacations, please advise. More like trips, right? But you mention LA. I have similar feelings about LA and I really had expected to hate it. I know I probably couldn’t live there, but I love visiting. We’re going in May. And for my birthday this year, my husband said a hope for me in this year of my life would be for me to go somewhere just because I want to see a place (see previous comment about all vacations, really being trips) and I’ve always wanted to go to Vancouver.
You're so welcome, Kaitlyn! Thank you for responding. I am glad the topics sounds interesting and will hopefully be informative. I don't want this to be dry - some topics are dry by nature - I want to share my interest in them with others.
Do I think visiting family or places I've lived are vacations? Not necessarily. They can be incredibly stressful and expensive but also really fun. I think if you do more managing of your own behavior and worrying about other people's thoughts and experiences than your own, it is not a vacation, and this can happen while visiting family. You're the therapist so you know what I am talking about. :)
It would probably help if we changed our mindset about visiting family and try to make it a vacation. One can have fun anywhere and earlier this year I published an interview I did with Jessica Day Cabrera who is writing a book about vacationing better. Her definition of vacation is one that I like because it just means fully disconnecting, not thinking about work or responsibilities as much as possible. This is going to be difficult to do, but your question makes me want to think of EVERY getaway from now on as a vacation. Something to ponder!
Also, a long weekend in a hotel 30 minutes from your home where you are totally disconnected can be a vacation that your brain and body needed. I suppose even staycations can be vacations if you change your mindset and play tourist in your own city or town.
As for LA, I have friends there and I have started to train for the Los Angeles Marathon that is on March 17. I am not officially signed up but will make that decision after the New Year. I need a few weeks of training before decidiing since it has been eight years since I've run a marathon. None of my friends who live there are in the entertainment industry so I've always had really genuine experiences in the city that have made me love it. Yes, it is VERY spread out and traffic is horrendous, but there are a lot of things to offer. Would I live there? Unsure. I like Victoria and its size a lot and I hope Canada will keep me! But, Los Angeles has culture, museums, great food and restaurants, jobs, sports teams, the beach, the mountains are close, wine country is not far and neither is the desert, interesting neighborhoods and stores, lots of outdoor dining weather (I know it gets hot there), and then if you care about Hollywood and such, you've got that too. I hope you have a great visit in May!
I hope you do visit Vancouver! It is a pretty city and I can make some recommendations if you do go. Lauren might have some too. I have not lived there in Van but I have been a few times.
You're so right about turning any trip into a vacation--it's a mindset, after all.
A marathon-oh my! I can't even imagine the mental and physical resilience that requires. I've just starting getting into running and I'm spent so quickly--however I will say that I can get the appeal now that I've found a way to gradually grow the practice and get the form and sensations down.
Just reading your list of all LA has to offer has me longing for it all. I can't wait!
Oh it is always nice to hear someone just started running and is enjoying it. I've been running for over 20 years but I've gone through a couple of periods where it was not fun. I took space and came back to it and running my first one in 8 years at 42 will be a lot different than my last one. And I should have clarified that prior to the race, I'll be staying in LA for two weeks to house sit so I can also acclimate a bit and I've never spent that long in the city. Since I work remotely, it will be fun! I'm excited for your trip there too. We'll have to compare notes.