The Joys of Extended Travel.....

...or the lack there of. Perhaps I should have titled this "“The Spoiled American"”. Either way, it comes out the same. I love to travel. I love going new places, meeting new people, seeing new things, getting a taste of different cultures. I'm a history nut, especially ancient history. So I've been to Mexico to see Mayan ruins with my husband, Great Britain tgawkuk at castles, question standing stones, check out Roman ruins with my daughter. Learning to drive on the "“wrong"” side of the road is a real experience. But those really cool trips only happen once a year. Then, there's my twice annual trip to Texas. My family lives down here, so of course, I have to come here. If they lived in California, squawkqawk, but I'd go at least once in a while. But I love Texas, so I come here to see how much the kids have grown, how bad their attitudes have gotten, and take them shopping. They know when I hit the Texas state line... they can sniff out the Bank of Grandpa. Do these kids go around the rest of the year in their birthday suits? Since I am usually here for at least 8 to 10 days, I stay in Candlewood Suites, which is close to where they live (you didn't think I'd actually STAY with them, did you?). I like it here, except when the hairdryer doesn't work. Messes with my daily coif! The people are friendly, and very helpful when an ol broad has stupid questions. Dallas changes so much every six months, it's a wonder I ever find my way around. I also get Priority Club points I can use for future visits. Now comes the “spoiled” part. The drawback of staying in an extended stay type hotel, I have to make my own bed. I don't get fresh towels every day, and in order to save enough to take afore mentioned short people shopping, I get to fix my own meals. Eating out frequently gets extremely expensive. Although, I do have to have the required Sonic cheeseburger, and the doubly required Mexican meal, which is no where near like any I've had in Wisconsin. Ok, a Texas sized steak has to be worked in there somewhere. But that's it! Oh, and Waffle House! No one makes a waffle like Waffle House, a pecan waffle, or hash browns.... covered, and scattered. Naturally, being female, I always forget something. Usually, it's something small that can be replaced quite easily with a trip to Kroger, or WalMart. Not this time. I brought plenty of clothes to take on the cruise, with one exception – shorts. Now, what kind of person comes south, and forgets to bring shorts? So, for the first time in years, I went to Kohl's. Yep, they've got 'em down here too, and they look just like Target. As a matter of fact, I think Target is much cleaner.