The Ins and Outs of Travel Transportation

Have you missed me? Because I know I’ve missed all of you!

After disappearing from the blogging world for the past couple weeks I knew it was time to get my poop in a group and connect with you all again. I’ve been up to a bit of exploring and a lot of relaxing. After venturing down to Miami and over to Venice Beach I am back in Michigan and feeling the effects of full force travel-depression. Wah.

I know, enough whining on my end.

One thing I have learned is that the biggest hassle in travel is getting from point A to B, whether it is by train, bus, car, plane or foot as soon as you commit to that ticket, you’re setting yourself up for whatever hell or adventure comes your way.

 I love the people I meet while wandering. You never know who you will end up making life-long friendships with just because you were forced to sit next to each other on a crowded plane. Just last week I sat next to a nice woman from the Bronx, we talked the entire flight, where she told me of her kids, her new grandson and her dreams of moving to Florida in the coming years. One of the sweetest ladies I ever met. At the end of the flight, she invited me to stay at her home whenever I came to New York City. How amazing was that?! It’s the simplest conversations that lead you to the most warm-hearted people.

Here is where I breakdown the perks and drags of ways to venture the world. Since no one I know can transport themselves yet, in order to get somewhere you’ll need to use one or more of these modes. As much as we all hate to admit it they can’t be avoided unless you plan to strap on your hiking shoes and spend years walking or biking around the globe.

Planes

There is really nothing that compares to sitting in a metal tube for hours upon end with crying babies, coughing old men and the constant smell of armpit. Ahhh, heaven.

Drown out the surrounding noise violations with relaxing tunes and if you nabbed a window seat listen to your thoughts from the music as you take in the clouds.

Flying gets you too and from your destination in wicked time. It amazes me how fast those suckers can go. You pay the price to give you more time at your destination and to take the burden off you from the drive that would take you anywhere from a day to a week. But never forget that flying includes checked bags, lugging around carry-ons, delays, crappy yet expensive airline food, long lines and the slight opportunity of a mental breakdown. The worst is when you finally step foot on the plane and it just hits you, you know this is going to be a ride from hell. You’re in the middle of the middle aisle, the three sitting directly in front of you have already had too much to drink, the couple to the right is fighting about who was supposed to turn off all the lights before leaving the house and the baby next to you is attempting to master the art of screaming and pooping at the same time.

Just know that flying is extremely convenient when you want to spend as much time as possible at your destination. It’s fast, somewhat easy and safe. However, it’s probably the least adventurous of all the options. It’s also something that can’t be avoided when jumping over the ocean, unless you plan to add seven days to your trip and take a boat.

When it comes to booking tickets, I’m no price guru (and I’m not sure anybody can be) for airlines. My best advice is too not book right away and research prices often. After watching for a while you should be able to tell when a good deal come up. Don’t wait too long for the perfect ticket, however. If you keep waiting for a $400 ticket to drop to $180, you might be living in la la land and before you know it your trip is in two weeks and your ticket price has skyrocketed to $700. Don’t let that happen.

Flexible dates? Skyscanner.com is a airline sight sent from the gods.

Trains

Trains are probably the most hassle-free way of transportation. Not a lot of delays, not always annoyingly crowded and you don’t have to trust anyone else to get your luggage to the destination. One of the reasons I love trains is because they are extremely cheap, but because they are cheap don’t expect them to be any kind of luxury.

Some are extremely nice, some make me want to sanitize every ten minutes.

The biggest tip for trains would be too research times early and give yourself extra time at the station. Most of the time there are two ways to buy tickets, either before you get on the train or with cash only on the train. Let me tell you a little story:

Last summer Kalee and I were in Chicago trying to catch the latest train possible home. Before leaving we had a late lunch and had to make a quick stop before returning to the apartment and packing our things. Well the “quick stop” lasted way longer than expected and about a block from the apartment I looked at my phone, the time read 4:21pm. Our train departed at 4:44pm. Cue running down the street at a frantic pace where all of the sudden I also realized I didn’t grab the key leaving the apartment, I stopped Kalee and ask if she had hers…nope. We burst through doors, hunted down the doorman for an extra key, flew in door and packed our belongings in approximately 27.6 seconds. Of course the apartment was also on the top floor, so the elevator took a year to get up and down. Outside we basically jumped into the street to catch a cab, where we had yet to make it across town to Millennium Station and the time read 4:35pm.

Usually I hate when cabs drive like crazy people, but this time I was loving it. “Go, diego! Go!”  But during our cab ride we came to another realization. While freaking out over time we had completely forgotten to stop at the ATM to get cash, since all we had were cards. You know what that meant? We’re ticketless for the train unless we had time to buy tickets…which was not going to happen.

We pulled up at 4:40pm and while Kalee was paying the driver with her card, I was at the back, throwing our luggage and school back packs from the trunk to the sidewalk. We had no idea where our train was, so when entering the building we guess whether it was left towards tracks A,B and C or right towards D,E and F. Then Kalee lost her flip flop, which led to a graceful trip.

By some miracle we had ended up at the right track, where we were stopped by a conductor where the conversation went like this:

“IS THIS THE TRAIN TO CAROL STATION?” (Screaming/panting)

“Yes.”

“WHEN DOES IT LEAVE?!” (Still panting)

“30 seconds.”

“Could we get off and buy tickets at a machine at the next station?!” (Slightly more calm)

“Not enough time.”

“And you can’t take cards on the train!?” (Just kidding, not calm)

“Nope.”

“Please sir we just ran all the way here from Lincoln Park in 20 minutes and we have to get back to Michigan because we have class in the morning!” (Can you hear the desperation?)

“No ticket, no train”

“What if we paid when we got off at our station?!” (Last attempt)

“Fine, get on.”

Thank you kind conductor who also looked exactly like the conductor on Polar Express.

Moral of the story…don’t let that happen to you. It sucks. That doesn’t mean you have to buy the ticket days in advanced, but just give yourself time at the station.

Buses

Oh buses…how I loathe you. Tickets are normally more expensive than their worth and there are not a lot of time options; except if you’re traveling within a city, then it’s the complete opposite. It’s not like trains where you can have 6 departure times in one day; usually it’s one or two. Also, bring Fabreeze; ones with bathrooms just tend to smell like a bad fart the entire ride. Gag me.

Be prepared to never be on time. Driving in bad weather or traffic can really slow you down. However buses are cheaper than flying and can still save you money. I love using buses to get into a city, being from the middle of nowhere my driving skills are not accommodated to urban driving. I’m sure I’m not the only one, so if you want to go to a big city but don’t want the stress of driving get yourself to the suburbs on the outskirts and catch a bus the rest of the way in. It may take longer, but you won’t have to worry behind the wheel.

Price also can depend on timing. If traveling long distances on buses the ticket prices can vary, just like airline tickets. Usually you want to purchase tickets in advanced to secure a spot or to save yourself from a rapid price jump and money loss on your end.

Overall buses are great for certain occasions and cheap travel, but be prepared for anything to happen. Need an example? Last week we took a shuttle bus to Miami, where it was accidentally overbooked. For a portion of the ride guess who go to be the lucky person to ride on the floor? That’s right, this girl. I didn’t mind it however, because life is all about the adventure.

Personal Car

Car trips can be extremely fun or extremely terrible. Road trips with best friends are great, car rides with family or children can be a different story. Plus sides to driving include control. You can decide when you leave, when you stop, if the weather is bad or when you’re hungry. A down side? It’s YOUR car. Any damage, any accident, any idiot in a parking lot can ruin the trip. The miles have wear and tear on your car. If you have the nicest car out of your friends, don’t let them talk you into driving everywhere.  The driver has to think of the damage to their tires, earlier dates to get the oil change, more mileage etc. Take turns driving, or if you are the only one able to drive it’s not a bad idea to pitch the idea of not paying for gas to the others. Because in the end if you are constantly driving and you are not only taking the risk of an accident, but you are also paying more overall because of other costs not directly related to the trip.

Driving can be extremely cheap, especially with a group. But if you don’t stop and give yourself a breather every now and again the cramped space is going to turn everyone into a mess. Long drives are not going to be fun unless you let yourself let go and stop to smell the roses every once in a while.

Something that is impossible to have while driving is a solid plan. Don’t book yourself a hotel in a place you could only make it too in perfect weather and roads. Don’t try and say you’re going to eat at 7:00pm every night in towns X, Y and Z. I look at road trips as more of a “sleep where you fall” scenario.

Tips for driving: always keep a sleeping bag in your car, especially when living in colder areas. Always pack a bag of extra food and water because even though you may not think it will ever happen to you, you just might get stranded in a snowstorm somewhere or have to sleep in your car because there are no hotel rooms available for forty miles.

Opening your world to travel lets you open your mind and learn. You never know who you will meet or what city you will end up in. Take the horrible moments and make them a story, take the great moments and make them a memory. Most of all, enjoy the journey because you’ll never have the same experience twice.