My Typical Vacation

| by Jason | 13 Comments » | Reflections

Vacation with My Family

Vacation with My Family

We have been enjoying ourselves while vacationing in Myrtle Beach, South Carolina with my family for the past 4 days.  It’s early Thursday morning and we are now boarding a flight to Miami, Florida to visit with Aracely’s family.  I still feel full and slightly ill from overeating and we are both confident we gained few pounds. Our decision to leave for Guatemala on August 27th, 2024 was based primarily around vacations we already had planned with family.  We had originally struggled deciding on a departure date.  The three scenarios we created were as follows:

• Leave immediately (May), before we consider changing our minds

• Leave late August, after the booked vacations with family

•Leave towards the end of the year (2009) in an effort to accumulate more savings

After a month of debating we agreed on the second choice.  It made the most sense to us and for our families.  Our vacation was originally scheduled for a half week in Myrtle Beach with my family and a half week in Miami with Aracely’s family.  Instead of flying back to the New York area from Miami, we now have booked a flight on American Airlines to Guatemala City.

Uncle Jason, Aracely and the Boys

Uncle Jason Aracely and the Boys in Myrtle Beach, SC

I am trying to imagine the radical contrasts that will exist between these last 4 days and our backpacking journey.  We ate like kings, we slept like kings and we were chauffeured around like kings.  It might not seem that way today, but after a month in Guatemala, it will probably be an accurate description.  Who wouldn’t enjoy a vacation like that?  These are the vacations I am accustomed to.  We rented cars, went out for dinner and lay on the beach most of the day.

My expectations for the year long trip are based on reading and following other backpackers on-line.  That is the extent of my backpacking knowledge.  Yes, I have backpacked the Grand Canyon, but it was a tourist location where the culture was familiar to me.  Backpacking in foreign lands from city to city with no reservations doesn’t even compare.

I have enjoyed this vacation with my family very much, but its time to try something different.  It’s time to challenge myself culturally, experiencing how others around the world live.  Thanks Mom and Dad for the wonderful vacation. I am plenty fed and plenty relaxed for the long journey ahead.

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Tags: backpacking, travel

Written by Jason

Co-founder of TwoBackpackers.com. Jason has been traveling, writing, taking photos and creating adventure videos since 2024, when he departed on his first year long travel backpacking journey. Jason is a full-time blogger and social marketing guru trying to find the way. Visit my website

13 Responses to “My Typical Vacation”

  1. Dave says:
    August 20, 2024 at 22:01

    Getting down to the wire now – exciting stuff! I’m excited for you! Clearly :)

    Reply
  2. corina says:
    August 20, 2024 at 22:47

    it’s difficult to get out of typical vacation mode..at least it has been for us! tracking our spending is a reality check. after all, there is a limited budget unless you plan to work on the road. we’ve been traveling for 5 weeks now and we’re still learning the ways of the backpacker. it’s hard not to want to do everything when everything feels like a once in a lifetime opportunity.

    Reply
    • Jason says:
      August 21, 2024 at 07:19

      Corina, it’s going to be a challenge for us to say, “no” to some things that just cost too much money also. It’s always going to seem like a vacation, but clearly backpacking won’t compare to what we just did in Myrtle Beach. I hope you guys are having a blast!

      Reply
  3. Rob Paris says:
    August 21, 2024 at 04:18

    I’m loving the beard!

    Reply
  4. Gadi Glogowski says:
    August 22, 2024 at 09:10

    We hope you guys enjoyed your vacationing with the family. Now 7 months into our trip it would be very nice to go to a more familiar place to vacation for a while with the family.

    Reply
    • Jason says:
      August 23, 2024 at 13:31

      It was a great way to end our time with them for a while. Although it will be a shock to go from that kind of vacation to backpacking. Again, thanks for the iTouch app suggestions!

      Reply
  5. Yourbeard says:
    August 22, 2024 at 20:03

    Jay, I think the choice of facial hair will benefit you once immersing yourself in the culture of Central America. As they say….”When in Rome.”
    Good luck. Call your old college roommate if you need an “extraction” back.

    Reply
  6. Nomadic Matt says:
    August 23, 2024 at 13:21

    4 more days. Enjoy your trip! I’ll be following from Europe

    Reply
  7. Daniel says:
    September 3, 2024 at 10:04

    I’m glad that you guys had a chance to fatten up before hitting the road. I’m sure you’ll find yourselves road-thin after a few months!

    Reply

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