Thursday, December 12, 2013

The Merits of Road Trippin'

Over the river and through the woods, to grandmother's house we go.
The horse knows the way to carry the sleigh, in the white and drifting snow...

merits of road trippin'
looks like we lost our horse...
Well, after having recently road tripped over 2400 miles with 4 kids, I do wonder if there are any merits to road trips. Seriously, we arrive home, and I totally swear off doing that trip ever again. Ever. At least until the next time. 

People haven't always road tripped. There were no roads. And if you traveled even 150 years ago, you kind of stayed where you ended up for the rest of your life. There was no popping back home for the holidays. Unless home was within a 5-10 mile radius.

Yeah...my last road trip would have taken weeks-if not months. If I survived. Snort.

Travel has come a long way with the advent of blacktop, interstates, hotels w/ pools, dvd players in vehicles, headphones and heated seats. We are still a ways away from "beam me up, Scottie" travel, but...
antique car at Henry Ford Museum

Who's going road trippin' this holiday season? Are you excited? Well, let me lay out some perks for you...

You could call this The 5 Meritorious C's of Road Trippin'....

1. Cost. With the average gallon of gas costing $3.15, and the average plane ticket costing 100 times that amount, cost is definitely a plus in the road trip category. You can drive a family of 4 or 6 almost anywhere, much cheaper than you could fly them.

2. Coffee. This is such a perk of road trips. Thermos coffee. Starbucks coffee. Local coffee joint coffee. Gas station coffee. No road trip is complete without multiple cups of jo. From the morning wake-up cups to the afternoon pick-me-up cups to the late night keep-me-up (please!) cups. Good coffee. Mediocre coffee. Just plain awful coffee. Coffee is an integral part of a road trip. Amen?

3. Construction. Construction cones. Colossal cranes. Closed lanes. Congested traffic ways. Conceited drivers. Cautious speed limits. Is any road trip complete without construction?

4. Countryside and Cityscapes. Road trips are a great way to see places that you wouldn't see staying home or by flying. Majestic mountains. Flowing rivers. Endless cornfields. Sky scrapers. Iconic images-like the GateWay Arch and the Sears Tower. Oceans. Stadiums. Factories.

5. Conversation. There is nothing that promotes good heart to heart conversations quite like a road trip. You are stuck with this person or persons in a confined space for x amount of time. It is good for the soul. Good for relationships. (Maybe not parent-child) Almost every road trip, Mr. Hippie and I cover our history, our present and our future. We dream and remember. We problem solve and plan. A annual road trip or two keeps our relationship sparking good sparks.

Plus, with road trips, there's no worry about missed flights, closed airports or lost luggage. Win-win-win.
family in antique car

 If that doesn't induce you to take a road trip, I don't know what will...Who/where are you going to visit?