When our children were young, we took two or three vacations to Hawaii every year. The ease of getting there from Los Angeles and the family-friendly resorts made these trips exceptionally enticing. We also went on cruises to the Caribbean and Mexico. I’d lump all these trips in the “sun and fun” category, and I can say that we enjoyed each and every one of them.
When our oldest was going into fourth grade, I began to feel a little guilty. As a travel editor, the world was my oyster. Yet, my kids weren’t seeing more than a few tropical islands and ports. Although I’m culturally challenged, I knew I should be exposing my kids to more. It was time to venture out.
The initial criterion for choosing destinations was where we could fly non-stop. My kids were good travelers, but why push it? So we started with New York, New Orleans and a cruise down the Mississippi. Later, we felt comfortable dropping the non-stop requirement, visiting London, Venice and various parts of Asia. We didn’t spend too much time in museums, but at least we stopped by. There’s a certain amount of history you pick up just by visiting the tourist sites. We still had fun, just a different kind of fun than we’d have at the beach. We didn’t give up Hawaii either. We just went there a little less often.
I think when we began expanding our travel destinations, our love of travel grew even larger. While the varied experiences did not turn our kids into true historians, I do think it contributed to them becoming avid environmentalists. Also, they don’t view the world in terms of borders and differences. They see it as one beautiful planet with wonderful people populating all parts of it.
It’s all about balance.
