Find Food
Food is a huge requirement on any trip. Not only is it necessary for sustenance but it is also necessary for fun. Yes, I equate food with fun. I admit it, I am a foodie. My favorite thing to do on any trip is to try new foods. I love that I am in a new place, with new people, and I love learning how other people feed themselves and enjoy their meals. I truly believe that you can learn a lot about people by eating the food they make.
When I travel, I arrive with a list of places that are on my 'foods to try' list. I already have that list ready for this trip. It is full of lots of tasty, healthy and fun places that have been suggested to me by my friends or found on yet another one of my smartphone apps. I am not going to share my list with you, but you get the picture. I have also been sure to include lots of fun places to stop and eat along the way. My friend and I will be well fed and we will have extra en route fun to boot!
Keep Fatigue at Bay
Yet another huge thing for me in regards to my MS is my fatigue. I have it with me every day. I know that it will come out, raging, if I don’t give it the care and caution necessary to keep it at bay. Usually, I ride in the passenger seat during our family road trips. I will relax, take photographs of the passing scenery and take a nice long nap in the air conditioning as the miles roll past.
This time, I will be driving, so the benefit of an on-road nap will not be available. We will have to head out early in the day, after a good breakfast. The driving time for this trip is somewhat short, only five hours, so we can have lunch along the way and land at our hotel before dinner. This way I will still have plenty of energy to enjoy a night out on the town and I will be able to avoid any unwanted night driving. My vision is affected by MS and night driving can feel like a nightmare. Nightmare = not fun.
Have Fun!
Finally, don’t forget the whole purpose of the trip. You are going on a road trip to have fun. It isn’t called The Great American Road Trip for nothing — you have to use the miles that you have. You are getting out of your routine and into this big, wonderful world that we live in! It is your responsibility to enjoy every minute of it that you can!
I am planning on having a great time! I am planning on getting into all sorts of wonderful trouble with my wonderful friend. I am going someplace to make some memories and I refuse to come back home without a few great stories or without meeting a few great people to add to the many that I have already met in my life. This road trip is a reminder that my journey is not over, that my world is not contained within the boundaries of my home, that my stories are not boxed up and locked away as past event.
I have a journey in my future. I have many journeys in my future. I have a road trip in my future.
