Why I Didn't Go to Europe this summer...

Exactly a year ago, I made myself and my parents a promise live on air, on episode 44 of the Travel Like a Boss Podcast. I promised that I would surprise them with a trip to Europe for the summer in 2015. I was in Vienna at the time of the recording and loved it so much that I knew I wanted to come back again, and knew how much my mom and dad would love to see it as well.

I've always known seeing Europe was a dream of my mom's and I honestly felt bad that I got to see it before they did. My goal was to work hard for the rest of the  year, increase my income and take them with me in 2015...it's now the end of the summer and we never made it to Europe this year, and here's why I broke that promise.

Remembering the Trip:

A big part of breaking that promise is that I honestly completely forgot about it until now. Time has flown by so quickly this past year that I can hardly believe it's been exactly a year since I came back from my last trip to Europe. 

If it wasn't for me reminiscing and relistening to Episode 44 of the Travel Like a Boss Podcast I never would have remembered what I had said on that episode. I've actually kind of forgotten how cool europe is and how bad I wanted to go back again and live there in 2015.

If you haven't seen the travel guides, here's what I did in Berlin and what I did in Prague last summer and why I wanted to go back so badly. Here's the original podcast episode on youtube if you want to listen along for what you missed.

Travel Mindset, Places and Styles:

One thing I didn't take into consideration when planning a Eurotrip with my parents is how different their idea of traveling Europe would be compared to mine.

I had loved my exact itinerary so much that I wanted to retrace my footsteps and take them on the same trip again the following summer. I knew they would love how beautiful it was, eat some great food and it would still be affordable as my trip didn't break the bank. But then I realized that their idea of Europe, especially my mom's would be completely different. The reasons why I chose places like Vienna, Budapest, and Prague were because they are beautiful places with tons of history but are still affordable to travel.

My mom's idea of Europe would be France and Italy. My biggest issue with this isn't necessarily the price as I'm finally able to finally afford it now for the first time in my life, but it's the principles and reasons behind it. To my mom, the sole reason she would want to go to Paris is to be able to tell her friends she's been there. She would ideally like to buy a Louis Vuitton purse from their flagship store at 101 avenue des Champs-Élysées as a way to show off she's been there.

We have such a different mindset and I know it would lead to us arguing over it. I know it's not her fault, and she's not a bad person for thinking that way, as she's not alone. The majority of people I know back in the U.S. would have the same mentality as it's what the media and society has instilled in us...just like keeping up with the Kardashians we often don't feel worthy unless we have something else others don't have and when we do get it, it's our chance to rub it in the faces of everyone who hasn't. It's our way for feeling superior, special, or at the very least...not like a loser. In fact, living back in California I must have met over forty girls with genuine LV purses that haven't even ever been to Europe which is even worse as the cost of that pursue could have paid for their entire trip.

Sampling some Chocolate in Berlin, Germany

Traveling too Much?

I didn't ever think I would get tired of seeing new places, but 2014 was intense. If you listened to that podcast episode, both Anton and I burnt ourselves out with travel. The funny thing is, even though he still mentors we with both my dropshipping store as well as my new course I haven't seen him in almost a year.

In 2014 I went from spending a month prior in Cambodia, to traveling down to the South of Thailand a few times for diving trips, to Saigon to cowork, back to the U.S. for a wedding, up to Canada for weekend, back to Thailand, and then to both Borneo and South Africa for safaris. It's insane to think that in less than I year, I've seen more places than a lot of people do in their entire lives....and even though it was incredible, it was just too much.

In 2015 I decided to tone it down to rest and recover a bit, and instead of going to Europe this summer or back to the U.S. to visit family, I had my parents and sister meet me in Koh Lanta, Thailand where we spent 10 nights staying in a family villa on the beach. We also took a trip to Taiwan afterwards together as that's where both of my parent's grew up. I was tempted to move to Europe again this summer as that was the plan but honestly, I just wanted to chill out in Chiang Mai. 

I would say aside from everything else, the main reason why I didn't go back to Europe this summer was because I was exhausted from traveling too much. I also knew that since my parents spent so much time flying to and from Thailand and Taiwan back to the U.S. just a few months ago, they most likely wouldn't want to do another international holiday so soon. 

The little planes show where I've been last year

Travel Plans in 2016

Even though I disagree with what the idea of travel should be it doesn't change the fact that I love my parents and want to be able to show them the world. Even if it ends up costing 3x the amount that I personally spent when traveling Europe...and I have a feeling it will I want to be able to show my parents Europe before they are too old to enjoy it.

I never thought I would be in a position in life where I'd be able to take care of them or at least be able to do nice things but hard work really does pay off. I'm glad I got to see my parent's this year, and was able to pay for the villa rental, their local flights and for a lot of the Thailand trip in general, but by this time next year, I'd love to be able to be able to splurge with the entire family in Paris. 

So if you're reading this, Europe, we're coming for you. Better a year late than never!

Best of luck to everyone reading this with your business and travel plans! Is there a promise you made to yourself or your family or a place you'd like to take them one day? Leave a comment below and announce it to the world, as once you do, it'll be a commitment that you'll figure out how to make happen!

Warm Regards,

Johnny

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