Ireland: Meeting in the Middle

I woke up A text from my mom wakes me up. The bright screen in contrast with my dark room made me rub my eyes and squint at the message.

“Left or right?” I was given the option of two different hiking boots. I chose the left. Another text comes in. “When do you fly out again?”

I wasn’t done traveling. My mom and I were planning a 12-day hiking and road trip around the coast of Ireland. She needed advice. Apart from driving on the right side of the car, we each had our own challenges on this trip. It was her first international trip, causing anxiety and overplanning on her end. My challenge was just getting outside and doing the cheaper things. When planning the trip, I looked over to see my mom was booking a night in a castle. I knew it was going to be a little different than my camping or hostel trips. But, we were good travel partners who balanced each other out. I had been on two international trips a few months before Ireland and had experience navigating foreign countries and their quirks. My mom had the planning capabilities and the ability to bring me back to Earth on what could go wrong if I wasn’t careful.