For our annual Mother-Son vacation, Lucas and I went to Victoria, BC in July 2022. We spent five days there, exploring by foot and bus, eating ice cream, and relaxing in our Airbnb. And I had a lot of time to think about what I want future vacations to look like for me.
MORE NATURE
One of the first items on the very loose itinerary I created was awalk through Beacon Hill Park. The trees in BC hit different than the ones in Edmonton, and I was in awe every time I saw a new one. They are huge, and weird looking, and I love it. We also spent an hour wandering around a regional park one day, which was a great plan, but poorly executed. I would love to be able to spend more time in nature on these trips, whether it be at a park close to our residence, or something further afield that takes a bit more planning. I know this isn’t Lucas’ jam though, so I will need to figure out how to help him enjoy these times as well. Once he is older and feels more confident on his own in a new city, this would also be a good opportunity to take a break from each other for a few hours.
MORE WALKING AROUND THE NEIGHBOURHOODS
After we finished up in Beacon Hill Park we started heading back to our Airbnb, and I recommended we walk through the neighbourhood instead of back on the main, busy street. And that was the best choice. I got to see how people converted their boulevards,, some wild ass flower choices in front yards, and the curbside recycling program in action. We passed a park that was mostly devoid of children, but had some great murals. I got to peep into some houses which is one of my top favourites pastimes. And it absolutely forced us – in a gentle and non-toxic way – to slow down and enjoy our time moving through the space.
MORE CHILL TIME
I have a little family of introverts. Being in public, in crowds, and just generally interacting with folks in the world drains us of energy. We need that quiet time to recharge. Lucas and I took daily siestas in our apartment, where we each decamped to our beds and relaxed in the method of our choosing. Video games for him and Netflix or reading for me. Having an entire apartment made that easy, but so would headphones or ear plugs. I have made the decision to stop renting from Airbnb, especially in locations that are obviously and dangerously impacted by a housing crisis. It felt really insulting to be paying a tonne of money to stay in an apartment that could have been rented out to any one of the houseless folks we saw crowding the streets on nearby Pandora (street????????)
MORE VIDEO DOCUMENTATION
The more I have been working with video these past few months, the more excited I get about the possibilities! My videos are not fancy, they have no special effects or theme music. And often times the text is crooked and the transitions are sloppy. But it is so much fun to create and then to watch and re-watch our memories coming to life.
NEXT STEPS TO GET MORE
Lucas graduates highschool and turns 18 next year, which makes me wonder how many more of these trips we have in our future. I have a big, huge, grand one planned next year to celebrate all the big endings he will be experiencing. And beginnings too. But what next? When I was 20, would I have wanted to go on a one-on-one trip with any of my parents? I’m not sure, to be honest. Will Lucas, now that we have set this precedent, this tradition? According to the blog, he and I have been traveling together like this since 2017. Six years isn’t nothing, and I won’t spend time regretting that we didn’t start sooner. There were good reasons that we didn’t start sooner. All I can do now is make a plan and put in the work for this tradition to continue for as long as possible. And then be okay if it changes, or stops, or morphs into something even lovelier.
FURTHER READING AND RESOURCES
I keep saying this isn’t a travel blog, but I write a lot about our travels! Here are some posts about trips, how I document trips, and a blast from the past on the old blog!
- Weekend trip to Calgary (2021)
- Camping in Crimson Lake Provincial Park (2020)
- Scrapbook of our trip to Medicine Hat (2019)
- (Camping) Adventure in Lesser Slave Lake Provincial Park (2018)
- Adventures in Jasper – A Mini Album (2017)
- Tell A Story – Mountain Climbers (2017)
- Disney – A Debriefing (2012)
And finally, here are some thoughts about Airbnb written by other folks:
- Airnb is more successful than ever. Why is everyone so mad at it? (Washington Post)
- Why are short term rentals (like Airbnb) bad for communities? (HND Realty)
- Colorado high country commissioners blast Airbnb report that disconnects short-term rentals from housing crisis (The Colorado Sun)
- Homelessness efforts? (Airbnb community thread)
- How do you keep your listing from attracting homeless people? (Airbnb community thread)
And finally, some other stories about homelessness you might enjoy, and that I definitely did:
- The world’s homeless need a ‘Carebnb’. Do we care enough to provide one? (Driving Change)
- Homeless (Resilience)
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