To Travel With Another

Dearest Rachel –

Ever since the accident which took you “home” at the end of a day trip in the midst of the Covid lockdowns, you’re aware that I’ve been doing (and telling you about) a lot of traveling. These are things we always meant to do together one day, but were precluded from doing for one reason or another. If it wasn’t a lack of time from my job, it was a lack of funds. Once both of those were resolved, we then had Chompers to take care of. Add the pandemic into the mix, and travel became a far-off dream for “when the dust settled,” with the inherent assumption that it would at some point. But of course, it didn’t; not in your lifetime. So I’m stuck doing so on my own.

Well… not entirely on my own. True, I’ve done plenty of solo traveling since you had to leave – most of my time spent abroad has been on my own, in fact (with the cruise throughout Asia taking up the lion’s share of that time). That’s been more than enough opportunity to conclude that, while it has certain liberating aspects – I can go where and when I want without looking over my shoulder to keep track of someone else, for instance, and I’m less self-conscious when trying to film myself as I make my way through wherever I am – it’s not ideal either, as far as I’m concerned. Alone time is one thing, honey, but when it’s 24/7, it gets to be too much.

Of course, then there’s the question of who to travel with. Obviously, I’d much rather be out wandering the world with you, but that’s out of the question. Likewise, ‘Megumi,’ assuming she even exists; thus far, she hasn’t shown up, and while there have been a couple of women I would be willing to cast in the role, there are those I don’t dare ask, and those I have, aren’t interested in the part (which is why I’m hesitant to ask anymore). I have traveled with friends – or in some cases, merely attempted to – this past year, but by and large, that’s a juggling act with other people’s schedules, and given my tendency toward “book me a trip now, before I change my mind,” someone with other, real-life commitments couldn’t be expected to keep up with me.

These leaves the most obvious traveling companion for me; our son, Daniel. The thing is, much as I’d like to drag him to this place and that, his list of places he’d like to go is considerably shorter than mine (which is weird, as I’ve seen more than he has; you’d think there would be more he hasn’t seen that he’d want to. Then again, there are things that I’ve seen that I didn’t feel like I got enough time with, and would like to go back to, which he hasn’t experienced), so there are some trips that he’s just not interested enough in to make it worth either of our whiles for me to insist on.

For instance, consider the trip we’re about to take off on next week. While I would really like to check out the cruise line’s newest, largest ships with him, they ply the waters of the Caribbean (it’s in the company’s name, after all), and while we may not have seen everything in the region, we’ve seen enough that neither of us is particularly keen on any of the destinations, as such. But while that wouldn’t preclude me from hopping on a ship now and again, under the criteria of ‘the ship is the destination, and it’ll take the entire week just to explore it,’ I’m not sure that flies with Daniel. In fact, it’s because he’d rather be on a ship he’s been on before (in this case, the Brilliance of the Seas, a sister ship to the Serenade, which is going to be familiar to me to the point where I’ll have the layout memorized almost as soon as I’m aboard) that he wants to go on this trip; the fact that some of the destinations are new to the both of us is somewhat secondary.

Now, the fact that he’ll be traveling with me in November might suggest that he’s open to other possibilities, but that’s not really the case. At this point, he has two countries (apart from America itself, but we’re already here, after all) that he’s willing to visit, thanks to having been there and wanting to return – Japan and Israel. With the church teaming up with the same group that we traveled with in 2018 (and Daniel and I were on in 2022), he’s more than willing to join me on another such trip, especially since there’s always something new being literally dug up to from visit to visit. Like the proverbial river of Greek philosophy, it’s never quite the same place twice. Moreover, we’re still trying to prevail on Kerstin to see if she’s willing to join us, which will add yet another wrinkle to the dynamic. Hopefully, this will shake out before we fly out next week, as we need to settle accounts before then.

And what of Japan, you might ask, especially since we always dreamed of taking him there, to tell him of our individual experiences there, and see if he might fall in love with it to a similar extent as one or the other of us? And as much as I’m sorry you couldn’t stick around long enough to see that I got him over there, it’s true that he’s developed his own affinity for the place. It may not exactly resemble yours or mine, but that’s because no one experiences any place quite the same as anyone else. We all have our own baggage we bring on our journey; and I’m not referring to the physical luggage we roll behind us in the airports and hotels. But in any event, yes, he would like to return there.

Which brings me to to the latest plans that we’ve made, that I mentioned in passing yesterday. It so happens that one of the YouTubers we’ve been following – I think maybe from even before your departure, but it’s been so long that I’ve not entirely sure – has been leading tour groups to some of his favorite places (he’s joked that thus far, he’s inadvertently covered the entire Axis at this point). It’s as much general sightseeing as it is visiting historical sites – particularly since this one, he developed such an affinity for, that a two-week trip for him turned into a six-month stay. Yes, Jack has developed an affinity for Japan, which he intends to share with whatever followers he has that are willing to join him.

This, as it happens, include Daniel and me; I just signed us up, like that. If any such trip could get Daniel’s immediate approval, it would be this one. So, this is how we get back. It’s not the Japan Rail trip I dreamed of – the only places we’ll get to are Tokyo (which you can never get enough time to see) and Nagano (which, for all the places we did visit, this isn’t one of them. Mostly because you can’t get to the mountains by cruise ship) – but it’s yet another small sampler between now and then. To be honest, I’m thinking that the social dynamic might be as interesting as the trip, per se; this converts a para-social relationship to a social one. As a result it may be more the audience than the play that truly intrigues. But that remains to be seen.

For now, I figured I would fill you in on the development, and over the next eight months, you’ll hear more about this as I do. Until then, keep an eye on the both of us, honey, and wish us luck. I have a feeling we’re going to need it.