Have you ever found yourself in the right place at the right time? Or had a very unexpected surprise traveling? Maybe you were amazed at how great something was that you thought was going to be a bust. Whether your travel surprise is during European travel, during a family vacation, or travel to Cocoa Beach or the exotic island of Saint Lucia, travels surprises happen. Let me share a few of our more memorable examples of amazing travel surprises!
Cocoa Beach – This was a great travel surprise!
When many people think about Cocoa Beach they tend to think of the beach or how close it is to Disney and Cape Canaveral. Did you know Cocoa Beach, at a point in the time in the very near past, was the location of a world-famous surfing competition? Well, we sure didn’t!
Imagine our surprise, while settling into our perfect Cocoa Beach rental during Easter week, to find literature about a surfing competition, conveniently located a short 5 minutes walk away – remembering of course that we are land-lubbers. Our kid’s idea of surfing is making waves in the bathtub. So, to the beach, we go.
To find this event is not only a surf competition, it is an annual Cocoa Beach scheduled event that has been held for over 50 years. This unique Cocoa Beach event features (and I quote) “amateur divisions for all ages, longboard and shortboard events, and a dog surfing contest”.
No, I didn’t stutter. Have you EVER seen dog surfing? I gotta tell you, it is a blast. And some of those pups are pretty darned good! If you enjoy surfing. Or kids. Or are dogs doing weird things?
Mark this Cocoa Beach event on your calendar for sure. Free parking, free admission, and a great day at the beach with crazy fun memories! Just, make sure to get in the water to get a unique perspective of your favorite Fido riding his board in. What a great way to enjoy your next family vacation!
Speaking of the Space Coast…
If you are a space nut, you will love this surprise!
The last in a series only comes once. Thus… the last-in-series moniker.
So, on one of those select occasions when we were able to do a Disney family vacation, we just happened to be sitting at a Hollywood Studios outdoor stunt car show during the last Space Shuttle launch. Close your eyes and paint your mental image… Leaning back in your bleacher seat, lightly shadowing your eyes from the sun. Hearing the roar of motors around you. And seeing the last space shuttle streak by overhead.
Talk about being in the right place at the right time. Even better than having the experience, I was able to have it during a family vacation with grandbabies. Priceless!
Any mystics in the group?
I enjoyed writing about the wonders we found wandering the streets of London, but here is a story I didn’t include in that article. European travel offers lots of opportunities for travel surprises…
Some places on Earth are believed to have special powers. Crop circles “appear”. Strange lights flash in the distance. But few places on earth have mystified people for centuries like Stonehenge. Believed to be 4000 to 5000 years old, these circles of massive stones are just plain interesting.
Beliefs about this unique place range from it being a historical burial ground, to the stones having healing powers, possibly configured to amplify sound, or potentially an ancient celestial observatory.
Regardless of where your beliefs lie (if you have any…), a visit to Stonehenge on the eve of the Summer Solstice was memorable. Not because I may or may not have any of those beliefs… but because so many people do!
It was pretty incredible to see campers and tents lined up, and people milling about waiting for the sunset. Waiting to do… whatever it is that those with their special beliefs do. Not something we get to experience in the American Midwest very often. Just another interesting aspect of European travel.
I want to pause here for a moment
Reader, don’t think you have to be somewhere special or unique to experience that sensation of a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity. That same sense of wonderment can come from watching a toddler’s eyes go wide when seeing a polar bear do the backstroke, pushing off the window right in front of the toddler’s face….. and the paw was bigger than her face. Yep, been there, and done that on a family vacation at a local zoo.
And the family still talks about it now, 20 years later. Family vacations can be pretty cool.
Remember how you felt the first time ocean waves brushed gently over your feet?
I don’t, but the childish glee grandbabies share when they experience it is absolutely precious.
Speaking of a family vacation, I remember the time we took our very squeamish teenage daughter fishing. Seeing (and hearing) her reaction when she caught the tiniest little fish (seriously, I think the hook was bigger than the fish). Running down the path as fast as her scrawny legs could take her, swinging that poor little fish the entire way. And screaming – Get it off, Get it off, Get it off…
Nope, she won’t ever live that down. Ask me the story about the jumping spider… That child was a hoot.
Moral of the story…
You don’t have to be on a big trip or spend a lot of money to have memorable experiences.
But if you are lucky enough to be away from home, sometimes events just work out. Just think about the memories you could create on your family vacation.
Have we had any travel surprises during our European travels?
Of course, we have! Like our travel surprise on St. Patrick’s Day.
I didn’t think anything about being in London on March 16. Really. It didn’t hit me until late in the soggy morning of March 17 when we stumbled into a pub to get out of the rain and possibly a bite to eat. Only to see the entire pub doused in green, with green beer everywhere. Now, one would think that when we scheduled European travel over St. Patrick’s Day that I would have considered the possibility. Not so much.
Being in Dublin would have been better, but who am I to complain? Just being able to be in Great Britain over St. Patrick’s was pretty special. And hey, I ended up with a grandbaby out of the deal. Yet another story…
How about Rome over Holy Week?
Believe it or not, that was during the same London trip in 2013. It was an amazing week to be experiencing European travel. Yes, you can read about being in Florence over Holy Week and how cool it was to have backstage passes to the inner sanctums of Florence’s churches. Ever tried European travel during Holy Week? It was interesting, to say the least.
And as cool as that was, it can’t come close to being in Rome on Easter Sunday. Having the opportunity to attend a papal event in Rome’s Forum on Saturday or service on Sunday. To be one of the multi-thousands (at least a 4-hour line) to get into the Vatican Museum and Sistine Chapel.
Even better to be lucky enough to have access to a quick entry and skip that 4-hour line… only to proceed through the Vatican Museum, and Sistine Chapel, and get kicked out of St. Peters Basilica for Easter service. I mean, who is lucky enough to get kicked out so the Pope can come in? Just another thing that can be experienced with European travel during Holy Week!
Whatever your religion may be, he is an important man and hey, who am I to make him late? And even if that had not happened, just to be in Vatican City – Rome – Roman Forum during Holy Week is a pretty incredible opportunity. Completely unplanned but still incredibly cool.
This is a shameless plug here – but Viator (otherwise known as TripAdvisor) may help you skip the lines! Save time and money with Skip the line tickets for top attractions around the world.
The Coup‘d Gras of Travel surprises – Carnival in Saint Lucia.
For us, that meant Carnival in Saint Lucia, and oh, what an event that was. First, let me set the scene.
Saint Lucia is a small island at the very southern edge of the Caribbean, very near the South American coastline. The island is known for its Pitons or twin mountain peaks.
The landscape is lush, and there are several low mountains beside the Pitons, but climbing the Pitons is considered to be a “must-do” when visiting the island. Stick with me – Carnival was NOT at the top of the Piton.
Papa Joe and I decided to be typical tourists and climb the more accessible Piton – you can see them behind us in this photograph. We had our excursion booked, travel arranged, and gear prepared. When out of the blue, a hotel employee timidly asked us why we chose that particular day to climb when there was going to be a parade going by the resort. Presented it to us as if the parade might be a little bit of a big deal.
We debated – a parade (parade – shmarade. Seen one, seen ‘em all). Or fulfill our likely once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to climb the Piton. Something in us said to throw caution to the wind and enjoy the parade. If it was a bust, we would just spend the day at the swim-up bar and pool. No biggie. Man, did we ever NOT know what we were getting into!
Saint Lucia Carnival is a great travel surprise
First, let me share Saint Lucia’s description of Carnival “Pumping rhythms, sexy costumes, and the people dancing under the warm Caribbean sun; welcome to Saint Lucia Carnival! Almost on the heels of the annual Saint Lucia Jazz and Arts Festival, Saint Lucia’s cultural landscape morphs into a flurry of chrome-plated steel drums, feathers, and beads. No matter where you are or who you are, Saint Lucia Carnival is something to behold.”
Well, alrighty then. How do you say no to that? If truth be told, the description is probably mild. Nowhere does it say the steel drum music is pumped onto the streets by speakers loaded on flatbed trucks? Or that the parade lasts hours. And I don’t mean 1 or 2. I mean, starting around 10 am and still going strong into the mid-afternoon. We had so much fun I didn’t care about standing that entire time.
Nah, who am I kidding, I was wining. Sorry – the Saint Lucia Carnival definition of wining is “‘wining’, is a local Caribbean-wide term used to describe the rotational movement of the hips either to the left or to the right, whichever way your waistline can go really”.
Me “wining” is not a pretty picture, but frankly, my hips just wouldn’t listen to the rest of me saying “nooooo, you can’t do that”, and I was GLAD!
Hopefully, that won’t be a once-in-a-lifetime experience, but one never knows.
Time to finish our travel surprises
It’s simple. Hopefully, you agree Papa Joe and I have been able to experience some pretty cool stuff, in some amazing places. But, if the truth must come out (and it must), the stories of amazing experiences/opportunities/whatever you call it with family far out-weighs all the great adventures we have experienced around the world. And it is for one very simple reason.
The polar bear and poor little fish experiences are fond memories because I chose to treasure that moment, that person I was with. Because I took the time to make that person a priority, to do something with them.
Your experiences/opportunities/whatever-you-call-it may be at a local park. On a short weekend getaway. Or in an amazing tropical paradise. The commitment and whatever sacrifices required to make a family vacation happen – it is all worth it.
Regardless…. take advantage of being with that person in that place and time. And treasure those memories that you make.
Live every minute to its fullest.
And don’t regret taking a chance – if you don’t, you may miss your fish/polar bear/Carnival.
This article was first published in September 2018. It was updated in October 2019 and July 2020.
Leave a Reply