Italian Alps from Palazzo Del Gabelliere
Vogogna
November 25, 2017
Joe-and=Rosita=in-Curacao

Joe and Rosita in Curacao

In 2002 the company I had been working for for 22 years went through a merger and laid me off. They were very generous and offered me a 90 day notice. Halfway through this period I landed a new job and they were also very generous in letting me work out my 90 days so I could get a nice severance pkg.
My wife had always wanted to go to Maine so I decided to take her there for a short notice vacation before starting my new job. I went in to see a local travel agent and I told her I wanted to go to Maine. She promptly says you should go to Boston. Now I know Boston is a nice place to visit but during 22 years of marriage I don’t ever remember my wife expressing a desire to visit Boston. I told the lady, no we want to go to Maine, can you help me go to Maine. She said Boston is a very nice place to visit and you should reconsider. I again stated my desire for some assistance in traveling to Maine. To this she said, Why don’t you fly into Boston, spend a day or 2 there and then you can drive up to Maine. To this I told her, “ That might be a plan, let me go home, run it by my wife and I’ll come back to see you in a couple of days”.
I got up, went home and promptly got on the internet, did some research and booked my own trip to Maine. When I started looking on the internet I was at first convinced I would not be able to book everything and I would have to find a different travel agent. But I was able to figure it out and book flights, rent a car and book a couple of nice Bed & Breakfasts. So now my days of using a travel agent are probably over. I won’t say I will never use one because you never know future circumstances but I don’t plan to. I remember that Sean Connery’s next James Bond movie after he stated he would never make another James Bond movie was titled “Never say Never”. Please don’t take this as a recommendation to not use Travel Agents. Most travel agents do a great job, but for me I discovered I really enjoy the research part of finding places to go and how to get there. And evidently this one agent had an agenda  to book trips to Boston.
Since then I have booked several trips and most have been for domestic travel. We have driven Highway 1 in California from San Deigo to Napa Valley. We explored a good bit of the Central Rockies area in Colorado, went to Seattle and the Olympic Peninsula and to Hawaii. We ventured out to the country to Curacao, a great little Caribbean Island to visit. In 2013 I was fortunate to go on a company trip to Barcelona Spain for a week. Rosita had been trying to get me to go to Europe and mainly to Italy for Thirty years and I always found a way to avoid going. In my younger days I was not a fan of flying and I think this was the main reason for my hesitance in going. Now I’m ok with flying and have even been known to enjoy some flights. So now I am hooked on Europe and have been back twice. More about how I travel on my agenda in later articles.
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12 Comments

  1. The Travel Maker says:

    As a travel agent myself, I love this story. It reminds me of a time I went to purchase a new car. I was single, early 20’s, and I was set on getting a standard shift, Nissan Sentra. The salesman told me “what you need is an automatic.” Needless to say, he didn’t get the sell, and I got my standard shift Nissan Sentra! Never settle for anything other than what you want in life.

    Great stories, keep them coming!

    • Joe Henley says:

      I’m glad you liked the story. That is where the title of my blog came from. Always travel the way you want to, not on someone else’s agenda and you are right, it applies to everything in our lives.

  2. Your Maine Boston story is funny. You’re a great story teller! My husband and I have been enjoying all the written details you include about the photos you take on your travels. I consider myself to be an artist and also an observant person. But you almost always call something lovely to my attention.

    • Joe Henley says:

      Hello Suzana, I’m glad you like the stories and post. I will try to keep it up and make them informative and entertaining. Thanks for dropping by and posting a comment.

  3. Very nicely stated! This is a great site. It’s packed with useful information and advice for travelers. Highly recommended.

  4. I didn’t know my uncle was a writer!

  5. Kay Moredock says:

    Happy day to you and your friends.

  6. Very inspiring story. Love your blog! I just began a blog myself http://www.ontravelmode.com I’m in New York City. Let me know if I ca ever help in any way. Happy Travels!

    • Joe Henley says:

      Hello Alex, Thanks for stopping by. I dropped in on your site and it looks very good. This site is very new so I might take you up on your offer one day.

      Happy Travels
      Joe Henley

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