Taking hints from staycationing

I live only 35 minutes by car, one hour by train to a major world city. That has prepared me for traveling any where. When I'm in the mood to escape my boring town, I jump on a train to Chicago.

My train stops at some of the major tourist sites--Shedd Aquarium, Museum of Science and Industry, Art Institute and Millennium and Grant Park, etc. From the end-of-the-line stop, I can walk to Navy Pier, Water Tower Place, Willis Tower, wherever my stamina takes me.

What amazes me most though is that so many people I know won't take advantage of public transportation to travel to Chicago. That may explain why they are so resistant to travel other places. Public transportation really comes in handy especially when you're looking for bargains here and overseas. I travel to Chicago for less than $12 round trip. You're lucky if you can park your car in Chicago for only $12 an hour.

I use public transportation daily so I'm used to it. I know some of the ins and outs, and most of all, I'm not afraid of it. I have learned not only to endure it but to embrace it. It can be very entertaining. Sometimes I'm a supporting actress in a Forest Gump-like movie listening to strangers confess their secrets. Other times I'm a spectator watching a comedy routine or even an impromptu championship fight. It's all how you look at it.

K.I.S.S. works

When I finally got my courage up to travel to Europe alone, the first thing I did was troll the web for advice. I looked for everything from what to wear to where were the best budget places. I bookmarked lots of travel webs and read lots of reviews. The most helpful site was tripadvisor which gave me what actual travelers encountered and what they recommended. You have to always account for your own taste as you read it.

Then I started doing the fun part--planning. My original trip would have been over two weeks and included four times as many stops but I edited my plan. I think I made a wise decision. I was overwhelmed by my overachieving dreams and it almost derailed my whole trip.

So my first advice is research, research, research. My second advice is keep it simple.

Yes you can afford to travel

Last year I took a trip to England and Rome. It was 12 days long and it costs me about $2000. That isn't cheap but that isn't expensive for a European trip, People tell me all the time, they can't afford to go but I know "Yes, you can." All it takes is research, planning and budgeting. I want to go to Peru and see Machu Picchu and the Nazca lines. It won't be cheap but I know it isn't impossible.

What I plan to do in this blog, besides the cathartic mutterings and political rants, is to show people that it is possible to travel if you really want to. What I have found out is that most people choose not to travel and there's nothing wrong with that (yes there is). But if you really, really, really want to travel, I will show you option. Did I mention I make less than $20,000 a year and I don't use credit cards? But yet I went on my own and had a wonderful time. All will be revealed.

To fly or to sit, that is the question

Yeah, yeah. I know. It's been 2 and 1/2 years since writing on this particular blog. I come back to it now because it really is my monologue or my dialogue with myself. I need to clarify some things that only I can clarify.
For example, I have learned that possessions tie you down. I wish to travel and it is so much easier without a house, a dog, children, a job, a husband. But just the sound of all that weightlessness sounds depressing.
So what do I do? Do I put off being anchored to be unstable and travel for a while? Or do I accept predictable stability and stay put?