 |
| My mother and I in Paris, France 2008 |
I’m a solo travel addict, not only because I enjoy not answering to anyone else but I have found that it’s hard to depend on other people. Folks “commit” ahead of time, all gung-ho to make things happen and then, whomp whomp, life gets in the way and they have to cancel. I have had this experience with many friends but the one person who is always “ down” and ready for a jaunt is my mommy.
 |
| My mother and I in Rome, Italy 2009 |
I can’t claim that my mother and I have always been close. I am the eldest and only daughter of three, so growing up I was subject to much harsher rules. I felt totally oppressed under the watchful eye of my mother and grandmother. Looking back,I am grateful for their attentiveness and protection of my virtue, but man- oh- man, 20 years ago I was annoyed beyond belief and couldn’t wait for my escape.
Years and miles away from the nest provided enough room to nurture a friendship between my mother and I.In addition to loving and respecting her, I grew to like her as a person. If my mom was not my mother, I would choose to know her and have her in my life. Many women can’t that say. Despite our blossoming friendship she does suffer from bouts of mom-ness
 |
| My mother’s popular “ewww” face |
- Protective: Once in France together, a handsome older Parisian called himself checking me out. My mother out of pure instinct rolled up on the poor man and said “Stop looking at my daughter’s butt!” Then for good measure, turned to me and said “You might bean adult but you will always be my child !”
- Prudish: While out to dinner together on Valentine’s Day she leaned over and asked “You think these people are going to think we are lesbians or something ?” le sigh
- Naive: In a grocery store in Berlin, a handsome German chap, who recognized my frustration, took my basket and found every item on my list. She was like “Wow, Germans are nice!” My reply “Um, no they aren’t, he’s a dude and I’m cute.” He wrote his name and number on my shopping list when she wasn’t paying attention.
 |
| Grandma, Mom and Me in Prague, Czech Republic 2010 |
Aside from the occasional cock blockage, traveling with my mom is a-okay. Being able to discover the world with my mom is such a blessing. It also warms my heart to teach my mother so much about travel and the world. I still remember her expression the first time she had creme brulee She called home and told her friend it was better than sex! (TMI Mom, thanx!) We try to plan trips together once a year and they usually coincide with both of our birthdays. So far we have explored London, Berlin, Rome, Paris and Prague together. Last year in Prague we brought along my Grandmother. That was interesting to put it lightly. LOL
Have you ever traveled with your mother? Would you consider it?
Be sure to share any family travel stories in the comment section below.
Checkout my facebook page for more pictures of my adventures with my mom!
You can also follow me on twitter @nicolenewblack if you can’t get enough
 |
No related posts.
I took my Mom and my kids to Brazil. It was the first international trip for all of them and we loved it.
I wrote about it Here:
http://thetaoofme.com/2009/04/10/taking-teens-and-thier-grandma-half-way-around-the-world/
And Here:
http://thetaoofme.com/2009/04/15/day-two-out-and-about-in-rio-de-janeiro/
My kids have both come down to Brazil with me again since then, and I'm hoping for a visit from my Mom next year. Brazil is now a big part of all of our lives. I love how the world has opened up for us, and how I see my kids starting to fit into it as they get older.
I love your post and would really enjoy reading about that trip with your grandmother too!
@thetaoofme thanks for posting the link. I will share it on twitter! the grandmother trip was cool, she traveled well and is actually more easy going than my mom. but the dynamic between the three of us is hilarious.
Hilarious! Only mom's can get away with such fierce cock blocking in Paris! I have a very similar travel background, I usually go solo because friends can't commit but my mom has gone with me a few times and we had big fun. I took her to Nassau one year and though I'm very familiar with the famous Caribbean man sexual aggressiveness, it never occurred to me to warn my 60-something year old mom. She does look good for her age but we literally could not get out of the airport because all the older men were on her like weave on Beyonce. She turned to me in confusion and asked it it was money they were after. Umm, no, mom it's something else they're interested in!
Aww that's so cute that you two travel together! LMAO at the TMI comment! I totally admire your fun life of travel! I yearn to travel and it's sooo next on my plate
You and your mom are too cute! The story about the creme brulee is too hilarious. My mom isn't as funny as yours, but she is ALWAYS down to come visit me wherever I am living.
Aw, that is too cute. Unfortunately, my mom hates to fly. We are planning on doing a cross Canada train trip on viarail though.
LOVE Mommy – daughter stories, my mom is often my road dog as well. We are two lucky sistas. Love reading your blog, keep up the good work.
Love this! I am currently on my first international trip with my mom. We are visiting Istanbul and Dubai for 2 weeks. So far so good. Funny post!
http://www.pintsizedinFluence.com
thanks everyone for the words of encouragment. my mom is hilarious!! i need to share a link of our vegas shenanigans haha
@pntszdinfluence wow istanbul and dubai sounds great!! girl i have a 10 maximum with my mom, then we start to tapdance on each other's last nerve
@rhona train travel is AWESOME. i prefer it actually. so comfy and soothing! that's a great idea for next year. my mom and i took the eurostar to paris from london. it was great
Oh you're living a dream of mine! My mom has visited me here in Norway, but that was back when I was a student and money was tight. We did manage a trip over to Sweden though, but that kinda sorta didn't count since Sweden and Norway are so similar, even the language!
I have plans to take her travelling around Europe and South East Asia as soon as I settle into my new job and can actually afford to travel again!
@shells traveling with my mom is great! this year i think we will take the plunge to scandi. since my boyfriend lives in copenhagen she will come to berlin and we will fly here together. too bad copenhagen in october isnt that great, but its worth a visit. we can also head to malmo by train.
i dont think my mom could get down with south east asia, haha
I’m solo travelling right now in Paris for 3 mos, South of France and Italy. I used to take annual bus trips w my Mom when she was younger (she’s almost 90 now) and we had a blast … going by bus in Canada means no carrying bags and just enough of an itinerary to be informative w free time to explore and eat where we wanted. Those were the days. Your post brought it all back – and specifically thanks for a the humourous take!
gardenbre recently posted..shutting it down
Loved this post, too funny, your mom is hilarious.
yeah my mom is a clown. she comes in october. we are probably going to hit up another city in germany cause we have cousins that live here now. my whole family are a bunch of jokesters
[...] really like this one – talking about what she learned while traveling with her mother – click the blue link to read [...]
I went to Slovakia with a family friend for 2 weeks this summer to visit her relatives and my mom joined in on the trip. I’m an avid traveler and I blend in and have fun wherever I go. My mom had never been anywhere except to Canada once as a child, so this trip was way out of her comfort zone. She’s also a big homebody and doesn’t like trying new foods or anything which made the trip kinda tough. Other than that we had a lot of fun drinking wine and laughing and being the only two not speaking Slovak : ) If I had to choose though I’d prefer to travel with friends or go by myself so I could avoid trying to find American food places to please her!
I have traveled solo for years. I agree that friends have good intentions of joining, but all seem to bail when the date arrives. I enjoy traveling alone. I feel that I am more open new experiences and people when I’m solo. If I am with people, I tend to only socailize with them. So, I went to Paris with my Mom and little sister in 1997. I convinced my Mom that staying in hostel was economical and made the trip affordable. I have to admit we had a great time, but my favorite moment was when we were in a restaurant that was frequented by Langston Hughes and Heminway and we had to use the facilities – So, I went first…. and it consisted of two porcelin foot prints on the floor with a hole in between. I looked down and laughed….thinking my Mom is going to flip when she sees this. So, I go back to the table and dont tell her anything….she cos back with wide eyes….saying, “There is a hole in the floor!? What am I to do with that?” I said…make sure you pull the cord.
She also the entire trip used her guide book like a Bible and made us listen to all the details of each site we were at. She was our “tour guide”. I would do it again for sure. What I loved….she saw that traval can be affordable and has since been to Morrocco, Italy and Spain. Me, I am at 25 countries and still counting. I am all about Central America right now. The Euro is too high!