A 26 Year Promise of Travel | New Year's Eve Travel

Amsterdam - New Year's Eve Trip 2011

If you were to hear my husband tell the story, there would be violins playing in the background and a romantic sunset off in the distance.  Sorry to burst your bubble dear sweet husband of mine, but the story has to be told with facts.

We found ourselves year after year in a rut for New Year's.  Yes, we had gone to many New Year's Eve parties, dinners, homes of friends, and of course, living in Boston, our city's "First Night" celebration.  But then the rut occurred.  I often refer to this as the Velveeta rut, referring to our early days together when someone I know could eat Velveeta and spaghetti day after day after day.  Thank God his palate has improved significantly and so I figured, so could his New Year's Eve palate.

And so the proposal to him ensued, one that might make others laugh at the mere suggestion, but it had to be done.  Instead of sitting around our house watching others celebrate New Year's on our television, why not embrace the celebration in the best way we know?  Through travel!  My proposal was to visit a different city every year for New Year's Eve using the letters of the alphabet.  The rules were simple in that it had to be a city we had never been to previously and that was all.  To my surprise, he embraced the idea although he now refers to this as his "26 year promise of travel" when he tells the story.  We've been married long enough that I'll let him keep his delusional version of the truth because it doesn't hurt him or me and well, I do love him.

Berlin - New Year's Eve Trip 2012

In 2011 we began our 26 year journey with a visit to Amsterdam for the letter "A."  For 2012 we ventured off to Berlin for the letter "B."  I can tell you that I had no idea where we were going until about October as narrowing down cities became overwhelming.  Where would we go?  Bangkok?  Buenos Aires?  Bali?  The high cost of airfare certainly made our decision easier as well as how long it would take to get from point A to point B since we only had six days from December 26 until January 1 for travel.  Whereas I have to research every single facet of a potential trip into the ground, my laid back, easy going husband might consider getting an app for his iPhone or iPad on the way to the airport.  Mix our two styles together and you get one amazing New Year's Eve trip and this year was no different.

While our "26 year promise of travel" might not appeal to everyone, knowing that I will travel off to distant lands at least once every year with my husband for 26 years makes me genuinely happy.  I love the uncertainty of not knowing where we will travel, but the certainty of knowing that I will be doing it with my very best friend and the love of my life.  Nothing gets better than that and there is no better way to start off the new year than to come home after a whirlwind tour of a new city.

I encourage everyone to make a commitment to travel for 2013 and if you are considering the 26 year promise of travel, let me know.  I would love to hear where you are going so keep me updated.  All the information about our New Year's Eve 2012 trip will be up shortly.

Marian Krueger
Email: mkrueger@travelshopgirl.com