It has often been said that, if there’s anything constant in this world, it IS change! And may I add that, when you are on the go, like we travelers almost always are, change happens at an even faster rate.
Nothing illustrates this more than the embarrassingly funny incident I had to endure in Chicken, Alaska. We had only been RVing for several months. Having successfully driven across the Alaska Highway from Calgary, Alberta and happily spent a cool summer month in Alaska, we went back to the Lower 48 on a different route. It was through Chicken, Alaska and the Top of the World Highway to Dawson City in the Yukon before we dropped down to Glacier Highway in BC. The road to Chicken, Alaska was all gravel and, although the town’s summertime population is thirty-two, at wintertime, it is only seven!
Town of Chicken, Alaska |
Then I remember the folly of resisting local ways. During our 2009 three-week tour of Mexico, we parked our RV in Teotihuacan where the most visited pre-Hispanic ruins of the oldest civilization in North America are located, approximately 25 miles northeast from Mexico City. On a day trip to Ciudad de Mexico, we took the public bus. With a population of eighteen million, it is one of the most congested cities in the world. We loved our tour of Catedral Metropolitana, Templo Mayor, Plaza de la Constitucion, and Palacio Nacional and the shopping at Avenida Central. We ended our day with a visit of the only authentic castle in North America, Chapultepec Castle, which is now a Museum.
Catedral Metropolitana in Mexico City, Mexico |
Last year, I went to Australia to babysit my youngest grandson in Melbourne where my daughter and her husband had migrated. The cheapskate that I am, I opted for the lowest fares which had long layovers in Guangzhou, China. I foolishly hoped I would get two chances of touring the second largest Chinese city (first is Shanghai). On the way to my tour of duty, the seven-hour layover wasn’t long enough to warrant a city tour. Travel time would already be four hours. I decided to try on the way back when my stop would be all of twelve hours. But that story would be for another time.
Baiyun International Airport |
It is hard to make a near-seventy-year-old woman be more flexible. But I love to travel so I would have to keep on trying. There’s no giving up here. I finally realized that anything can be handled with better preparation, some prior knowledge, and a hefty dose of great attitude!
No comments:
Post a Comment
Leave a Comment