Vibing my way through Europe
Mar 29, 2024
I'd like to apologize to my family for my before-approach to European travel. I was the self-appointed freaking master of the three-ring circus, making sure all the itineraries were set, everyone got to do everything they wanted. It was a thing of beauty to see my skills all come together as I maximized on schedules and timing and pricing and... not on the experience.
My family nearly left Momzilla in the canals of Venice to trade in for a different model (alas, I was spared when they realized I had the tickets to escape the city).
It's vastly different now.
My daughter said something this week about how we are "vibing our way through Amsterdam," and I think that hit the nail on the head.
We met in Amsterdam for her Spring Break (she came from Denmark, I came from the US - "kinda" meeting in the middle).
We had the basics:
Air transport, knowing there is a great metro system, plenty of things to do, scheduled the one not-to-miss day with a dear friend and then...
We winged it.
We totally went with the flow, vibing through the city. When we felt like it, we did it. When we didn't, we skipped it. We went to a grand total of 1 museum (ok, 2 for me), and hit what we wanted.
We worked all sorts of coffee shops and bars.
I made up new characters and accents and played them as long as I wanted. In the photo, I told the barista I was "Anya," in some Euro-vague accent.
I never used the word "vibing" before -- it's far too hip for 48 year old me. But I see how it fits here. Going with the flow - but our flow, not anyone else's, not even the prior-planning-version.
The best question I need to ask more frequently:
"What will success look like today? How will we know when we've achieved it?"
Yes, I totally learned that in coach training. And yet, it is magical to consider in the day-to-day -- what does success look like today? You define it. Always.
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