Recharge your soul with a travel experience
January is almost over and we’re going into the second month of 2011. The holidays are over and the New Year’s resolutions are slowly getting pushed to the back of our to-do lists. I don’t know about you, but sometimes I feel overwhelmed by the list of things that need to be accomplished or even just preparing for that next trip.
Many times people think the life of a travel writer is full of glamour. It can be at moments and I know that I’ve personally had some amazing experiences that no one would even believe if I told them. Other times trips are non-stop go-go-go with no time to take in the actual feel of a destination, the same way any other traveler would.
I did recently get to spend a week on the island of Lanai in Hawaii with my husband, and I was so glad he was able to travel with me. While the destination itself is a dream, the getting there part wasn’t exactly optimal. Thanks to American Airlines and their maintenance problems, our flight from Dallas to Honolulu was delayed over two hours. This began a chain reaction of events, including missing the last flight of the night to the island of Lanai. We ended up spending our first night in Hawaii not in a beautiful oceanfront suite at Four Seasons Lanai Manele Bay, but at Ohana Airport Hotel.
While I could go on and on about the delay in our trip and the disappointment of not making it to our destination, I recognize that this is not an uncommon experience for many travelers. In fact, all my husband and I could do was laugh at the events as we walked from our hotel to a nearby hotel to use the food voucher provided by the airline (the hotel restaurant wasn’t open for us to use the airline provided voucher). We had a leisurely walk under the interstate past what looked like a junk yard. This experience was borderline Griswold Family/National Lampoon Hawaii Vacation.
Fortunately we made it to Lanai and only had one night at the Four Seasons Lanai Manele Bay, but oh, what a resort! Due to the time difference, I woke up early and walked outside in the dark to listen to the waves crash on the nearby rocks. Fortunately I had packed my Rayovac LED flashlight in my suitcase.
Below is a time lapse video of the sun rising over the bay at Four Seasons Lanai Manele Bay. It was a much needed respite from the craziness of getting to Hawaii and it gave me some reflection time to recharge my soul. My favorite part of travel is getting to experience those few moments of quiet and reflection before the world completely wakes up.
What have you done to recharge in the New Year? Be sure to check out Rayovac Batteries on Facebook for ideas and coupons to help you keep yourself charged for 2011.
This post is sponsored by Rayovac.
