You saw him. You met him. You fell in love. But many people-myself included-don’t think you really know a person until you’ve vacationed with him.
For many world travelers, meeting a travel companion with benefits is on the top of their list for would-be mates.
Bur for those of you who didn’t think before you leaped, here are three tips to ensure your vacation is memorable for more than the all-night fights and held-over grudges.
photo credit: Claudio Soavi
1. Talk it Out
As with other aspects of your relationship, communication is the key to enjoying a vacation with your main squeeze. It is important for each person to be included in major trip decisions-such as which hotel you chose or if you will rent a car. Additionally, make a commitment to remind each other to stay positive when things get rough on the road.
photo credit: timpeartrice
2. Be Flexible
Speaking of getting rough, you should realize that no matter how much you’ve researched your trip and planned this vacation that unexpected things will arise. Attractions might be under construction, restaurants might be closed, your hotel bathroom might be too small. Get over it. Focus on the time you and your honey are getting to spend together and pledge to make the most of each day of your trip.
photo credit: daviddesign
3. Split Up Already… but just for a day
So you have one more day in Calabria … he wants to visit the ruins at Roccelletta, you want to go to the open-air market in Catanzaro Lido. Well, then get going! This may be the only chance each of you gets to do these things. Agree ahead of time that you won’t get defensive or pout if you want to do different things. Sure you want to vacation together, I get that but a few hours apart won’t kill you … and the anticipation of getting back together might kick those romantic nights into overdrive.
What are some tips you can share from traveling with your significant other? Have you learned any lessons the hard way?
Don’t forget to check in with Robin and see what she has going on today and leave a comment on any post this week at My Bella Vita for a chance to win a prize with Settimana dell’ Amore!
Until Next Time … Buon Viaggio!
Volunteers craft homemade treats for shelter animals
Oakland Tribune December 31, 2008 | Paul Thissen Flour. Eggs. Baking sheets. Cookie cutters. Wooden rolling pins. An oven set to 350 degrees.
The tuna is the first indication that the treats being baked in the kitchen of this Lafayette church are not for people, but for their canine and feline friends.
The half dozen employees of a dog-sitting company got together Tuesday to make the treats and distribute them to animal shelters in Berkeley, Dublin, Martinez and Walnut Creek. They could have gone bowling — or done anything else. But for their group activity, they decided to make treats for animals who don’t (yet) have owners who can afford their company’s services.
“We’re just the little elves today,” company founder Paul Mann said. website homemade dog treats
Dori Young, a franchise support manager for the company, looked up the treat recipes online. But she didn’t like them, so she modified them.
Starting with a cornmeal base, they made tuna treats for the cats and cheese treats for the dogs, all cut into shapes such as hearts and stars. They looked like cookies. Perhaps that’s why Mann decided to taste one of the cat treats — a feat his employees had been joking about but had not yet attempted.
“Yum. It tastes like cornmeal with a little bit of tuna in it,” he said. “But there you go, the cats like it.” Founded in 2002, the company now has franchises in 37 states and about 4,000 employees, mostly part-time pet-sitters. These six employees made up more than half of the corporate staff based in Walnut Creek. Tri-Valley Animal Rescue in Dublin depends on donations of food and treats from people and businesses, said Field Services Supervisor Anthony Owens. web site homemade dog treats
“We take donations all the time; that’s how we survive,” he said. “That’s how we maintain our budget.” Most of the treats that come in are store-bought, he said, not homemade. Occasionally, a Boy Scout Troop will make toys, he said.
But Tuesday, they got a delivery of the treats produced in the kitchen of the Lafayette Christian Church.
The group gathered there because Young has been a church member for three decades, starting when she grew up in Moraga. She lives in Antioch now but still attends church in Lafayette. For years, she has been volunteering there, often cooking in this kitchen for events such as senior lunches.
She never expected she would be using the same equipment to make dog and cat treats, she said.
Paul Thissen
I have trouble with #2- but I wholeheartedly agree with spending a day to yourself- especially the longer your trip is. You each get to experience what you want and this can prove very healthy!!!
That is my favorite tip, as well. Couples often don’t want to do this, but it can be a good thing for the vacay… and your sanity!
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Fantastic tips. I shall remember them when I travel with my loooovah.
I do not have a boyfriend as yet but I’m all about positivity these days.
‘atta girl! I’ll be positive with you!
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good tips. it’s so important to maintain a sense of humor when directions fly out the window and you can’t agree on which way to go.
Sounds like you have experience with that, Linda!!
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I really love travelling with my husband and #2 is a huge part of that. We are able to be much more spontaneous (and a little more indulgent) than we generally are at home.
Related to #2, allow time for just doing nothing – it is sometimes more enjoyable than seeing the sights.
Great point about allowing time for nothing. I’m REALLY bad about wanting to fill every free minute with something. My husband is better about wanting to relax on a trip. We need that mix!
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Marco and I need even MORE tips. . . the first time we ever traveled together, I was pretty sure I was going to have to leave Italy and take the train back to Paris before the part of the trip where we were scheduled to go meet/stay with his family.
We do particularly badly when DRIVING is involve. He is a traditional Italian male who thinks women are ninnies, and I’m an Oklahoma gal who grew up driving 600 miles with my mom and brother to my grandmother’s in New Mexico . . not to mention 20 minues down a dirt road in my dad’s pickup every week for piano lessons. I’d be like “WHO owns a car here and drives all the time (me) and who has never owned a car as an adult yet feels free to criticize all the time?!??!”
hmmmm, can you tell this is a sore spot?!
: )
Ouch. No comment.
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All good tips. #3 also gives you new stuff to talk about over dinner, as you swap adventures. Even if somehow my husband’s time apart is always more interesting than mine. “D
Maybe he is just a better story teller?? Maybe he really sits in a coffee shop the whole time and invents a good story to tell you! lol
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