The year’s travel calendar was more conservative than it has been in recent years. No big new destinations, no stamps in the passport.
I took a quick trip out to Boca Raton for a weekend. It was nice to see the town I used to live in, although it was strange to think that I went to high school there (briefly) and had a strong emotional tie to the place when in reality there is nobody there who knows me anymore. I did stop to take pictures at Miami’s South Beach on the way there.
The big trip for the year was my long-overdue trip back to New York. I moved to Florida 18 years ago and hadn’t been back to New York at all in that time. As my plane approached JFK and Manhattan came into view I was grinning like a fool. Initially I was slightly nervous when picking up my rental car. I wondered if 18 years of Florida living had softened my brain regarding how to drive in New York traffic. Turns out I had nothing to worry about. I wasn’t even out of Queens yet before I was laughing hysterically to myself and thinking “everyone here drives like me!”
I got to see old friends & family. I got to see Montauk for the first time. Odd for a Long Island boy to not see Montauk until he’s 40 years old. I got to see one of the old towns I lived in, and I got to take a quick trip into the city to have dinner and see Chicago play on Broadway. Yes, I went to New York to see Chicago. Many things were familiar, but I don’t think I said “this is home” until I stepped out of Penn Station onto 7th Avenue. There’s something about that city I’ve always loved.
Thanksgiving was spent in Tennessee with Jennifer & her family. No sightseeing, just time spent in a place where people are happy to see me. I stopped in Atlanta for a night on the way back to see the band Metric play, which was a great show.
Beyond that, I made five trips to Titusville trying to see a shuttle launch before I finally caught one. It was every bit as memorable as the first one I witnessed.
No major new ground covered, but still a good year. 2010 could go either way. I’m trying to get another quick trip out west planned, but the way things are going my next vacation might turn out to be a one-way trip.
It’s been a while, but I’m no stranger to that concept.