Things I Learned on Vacation

Hey friends! I'm baaaaaaaack! As much as I missed this little space, it was a welcome break. I'm back with a fresh perspective and a full heart. I'm still catching up so bear with me as I muddle through, but I did want to share a few things I learned while I was away.

1. Leave yourself a little time before (and after) vacation to get re-adjusted. 
I had to burn some vacation days before I lost them come June 31st, and with work life being a bit finicky lately, I decided to add a day before and after my actual vacation to use them up without too much fuss. Mind you the 2 extra days were both Mondays, but usually I would work them just so I'd have more vacation days to use later. Like the majority of the 9-5, Mon-Fri working class, I hate Mondays. Being off allowed me to run extra errands beforehand and have an extra day to take care of getting groceries and an extra day to prepare to return to work afterwards. This was by far the best idea/thing I learned from this vacation.

2. Clean up before your leave.
Usually I just leave my apartment in packing disarray and "deal with it" when I return. I read this tip right before I left, so I decided to try it. I did laundry (including my bedding), tidied up everywhere, swept/mopped,cleaned out my fridge and took out trash. You guys, it made coming back so much more pleasant! I didn't worry about what I'd have to do when I got home because everything was done. Yeah, I'd have to unpack and do laundry, but everything else was clean/tidy. I cannot express how much of a relief this was! I'll definitely be doing this before every trip now- and sleeping in fresh sheets after a vacation just made sleeping in my own bed that much better! (I can't find the exact link, but this one offers some pre-vacation tips too!)

3. It's okay to take "me time" on vacation with others. 
I used to have a hard time with this. I just assumed that if you were on vacation with someone, or a group, you had to spend every waking minute with them. Newsflash: you don't. I think I first learned this tip on group trip to India a few years ago, but it was reinforced during this trip. Whether you're with one person or several, you're "allowed" to take a break from everyone and just be by yourself/do what you want. Even if it's a "romantic getaway," it's still your vacation, and you don't have to spend every waking minute with them. I loved spending time and making memories with Blue, but I also appreciated the solitude and space spent alone reading my book, staring at the ocean, and/or not talking. Being afforded that luxury while still being in a committed and loving relationship without worry is sometimes the best gift of all.

4. Manage your expectations. 
I sometimes have a hard time with this one, particularly if it's somewhere I've been before (like Puerto Rico) and/or have read a ton of reviews of somewhere/something (which I usually do...to excess). Honestly, I didn't have any expectations for this trip other than the Key West sunset cruise that I booked in advance, and spent ample time researching the best "bang for my buck" company to go with. (For the record, it did NOT disappoint. Definitely a highlight of the trip!) Not having many expectations for this trip made it that much more enjoyable when we stumbled upon ridiculously good food or an awesome place.

5. Leave room for spontaneity. 
I love to plan things, and vacations are my very favorite things to plan. I make detailed (read: down to the hour) itineraries and travel agendas, including driving directions, reservation numbers (when necessary), where to go in terms of importance/time order, etc. But for this trip, I had only planned the day trip to Key West (loosely, minus our sunset cruise reservation). Blue made it clear that she wanted to just chill- eat good food, have a few drinks, relax. So I found a few options for all of these things, but nothing was set in stone so we had the freedom to change it up if we wanted to, which we did. For instance in Miami I really wanted to see the Wynwood Walls but other than that I didn't care what we did. So we went there, but also spent ample time at the hotel pool and beirgarten, and the night eating Cuban food and taking in the people watching on Espanola Way. And it was fantastic.

6. Budget for extra expenses. 
Remember that post I wrote last week about how I don't like checking bags, so I try to keep packing to a minimum? Well, I still agree with that. However the bag I chose, though it did have extra space so I could squish it down, didn't exactly meet TSA guidelines for carry-on, so I had to check it for an extra $25 (each way)! And I didn't check beforehand, but the second hotel we stayed at in South Beach was valet parking only- and extra $40/day (luckily we only stayed there one night). And we were so excited when we arrived at our final destination that we went a little crazy at the tiki bar on the first night. Oops! My point is, always budget some wiggle room for hidden fees and extras!

7. Carry cash.
I included this one as one of my life lessons, but it's never been truer than on vacation. You don't know the lay of the land and you don't know when you're going to get to an ATM (let alone one that doesn't include extra fees), so carry cash. This is also important because in the service/hospitality business, it's always polite to tip those who are taking care of you. And they don't exactly take cards!

8. Be flexible. 
We rented a car and driving took up a lot of time. Like I said, I didn't really have a plan or itinerary for what we do do in Miami. We had a late flight on Saturday so we could spend more time in Miami, but we didn't know what we really wanted to do. I suggested going to Little Havana, the Cuban district of Miami. However this was another all-outdoor area, and after sweating our asses off at Wynwood Walls the day before, we both decided we didn't want a repeat, especially before getting on a flight- ew! So we headed to Coconut Grove, a shopping/entertainment area that one of Blue's coworkers mentioned, and it was the perfect place to grab a bite to eat and relax out of the heat for a little while before heading home.

9. Take care of nagging tasks before you depart. 
I had to run a bunch of errands before taking off, but I'm so happy I did, because I was able to truly relax while on vacation knowing that everything was taken care of. For instance, I have a bill due on the 15th and they don't have online/auto billing, so I made sure to mail it out before I left. My landlord updated the lease on my apt, so I made sure to send that out too. My phone storage was at capacity, so I needed to either update my plan or upload my photos to my computer (so I could take more on vacation!). It was such a great feeling to get those things out of the way so I could truly focus on enjoying my vacation.

10. LET GO!
I can honestly say that I looked at my email exactly once during vacation, and that was after I posted last week so I could answer a few of the comments I got. I didn't check work email once. And you know what? It was AWESOME. I strongly suggest that if you're prone to checking in to work while on vacation, you stop. You deserve a break. Take it!

What are some things you've learned lately?