guest post by Sydney Doolittle
I feel very fortunate to have traveled over the years to some magical places, sometimes on my own, sometimes with friends, and occasionally with family. I have to say, the vacations I took with my family were some of the best and most memorable travel experiences I’ve ever had.
The details of the trips generally become blurry over the years, the exact names and locations of the towns we visited disappear from memory, and the inevitable family disagreements that arise at some point during the week fade into the background. But the overall feel of the trip, the excitement of seeing a new place for the first time, and the love and gratitude felt for each other and for sharing such incredible moments with my family, never fades away.
About 5 years ago I had the good fortune of meeting Valeria, a friend of my father’s. We went out to dinner and she brought Cindy, her own friend, along. My father and I are certified yoga instructors and I was a Personal Trainer at the time. We got to talking over dinner and Cindy told us about a company she owned that was based out of Turkey.
It was called Sun Fun You Mediterranean Voyages and it was a vacation company based on a yacht that led active travel tours in Turkey and Greece. It sounded so cool! Then Cindy went on to mention that she was actually looking to hire one more Personal Trainer/Yoga Instructor to lead the on-boat fitness portion of the trip each morning and evening, for one of her excursions in the Mediterranean.
Before she even asked, I jumped in, “I’ll do it!!” I even raised my hand at the table, as if she didn’t already know it was me speaking to her. “Great!” She said, “You’re hired.”
That following fall I flew to Turkey to meet up with the boat, the crew, and the rest of the guests to teach yoga and fitness classes onboard the Turkish gorgeous gulet, now called the Athena A. What’s more, I talked my dad and aunt into coming with me.
I don’t get to spend loads of time with my family these days, they live on the East coast and I moved out West after college. So the opportunity to spend a week together in the Mediterranean onboard a beautifully crafted gulet, was an incredible treat.
As if it wasn’t already enough to be hired to teach what I love in a new and outrageously beautiful setting, my dad and Aunt agreed to come with me! I was thrilled.
To me, there is nothing more extraordinary, more eye opening, more engaging and moving, than travel. You only get one chance to see a place for the first time and that is utterly priceless. Luckily, there are quite literally millions of new places to be seen - more than one could experience in a lifetime - and we can continue to experience the newness and richness of destinations as often as we wish.
As a young woman, I used to travel on my own quite a lot. I met new people, journeyed with them for a while, and then parted ways when I wanted to do my own thing or move at a different pace.
I loved all of my trips and wouldn’t take them back for anything. The calm, serene beaches of Bali, dangerous and winding biking trails deep in Bolivia, blissful yoga pyramids and retreats on Lake Atitlan, and the ancient cities in places like Matera, Italy. I learned and grew from all the places I visited and the people I met, and I returned home a more present, vibrant, and aware person because of it.
However, after many years of traveling alone, it started to lose some of its charm. The sunsets were less exciting, the cobblestone streets a bit less appealing, and the hikes and bikes rides were not quite as thrilling. I loved meeting new people in these new places, but I had begun to realize that the experience of seeing a new place WITH the ones you love and sharing life’s beautiful moments together was so much more worthwhile. This feeling started to tug on my heart strings and I responded by slowing down in my solo travels; I began to seek out trips with friends and family more often.
Almost as soon as I put that thought out into the universe, I met Cindy at dinner with my dad that night.
My trips these days are almost always taken with friends or family. The sunrises always seem more brilliant, the discovery of new cities more joyful, and the unusual foods more delicious. Each day of these travels is honestly, just a little richer.
To experience a place for the first time is a beautiful thing. To experience a place for the first time with ones you love, is an unforgettable adventure of a lifetime.