Unplanned Vacations

           I have become a random person in my thoughts and actions to a certain extent for two reasons. One, I'm a little bit of an odd person and never know what is going to happen in the future, so why make plans? Two, my parents indirectly raised me to be this type of person. I say indirectly because I have observed this characteristic mostly when we are on vacation. Most families plan their vacations in a least a month in advance; they know what they're doing, what/where their hotel is, and many other "little" details which are present when planning a vacation. My family is not ordinary, and I know that many people say this, but in my case it's true. When we take a vacation, we usually don't know if or where we're going until about a week in advance. One vacation specifically, I thought we were going to a beach in South Carolina, but we ended up taking a road trip to the  Grand Canon. The plan was to go to as many destinations as we could across five states - Utah, Arizona, Nevada, New Mexico, and Colorado. We found hotels as we traveled. We went into towns to eat at local restaurants. We traveled before the sun rose and got back long after it set. Basically we went where the wind took us.

             I know it sounds crazy to most people, but I wouldn't trade these experiences for anything. I love traveling like this because it's an adventure everyday, the opposite of my routine life. I like the idea of really experiencing what the culture or area is like, completely, all long as you can everyday. Why go on a vacation to sit in the hotel or at a pool? I don't understand why people spend all that time and money traveling when can they can do that at home.

            Great experiences have come from randomness, including one night traveling within Utah's National Park in Bryce. One night after going into the park and other attractions, we heard that a group of astronomers were having an event for the public. Curious, we went and found that a whole area filled with telescopes and wires which were being viewed by the community. It was great; I saw and learned so much, including the experience of seeing a star dying and learning about how it dies from a professional astronomer, while looking in a 10,000 dollar telescope (which I almost broke when tripping over the cord as I left). This, like many other examples make my vacations so memorable and I it makes me more appreciative of how spontaneous life can be. If you still don't understand what I'm trying to say, here it is: be open to adventure. Go out of your comfort zone because you never know where it can take you.; remember that the experiences of life are in your hands.