12,000 euros for a month dream vacation. Batty or smart?
I've never been rich and I'm not. I do not think I'm even trying to swim in the money because the idea of limitless consumption is totally suspect to me. Nevertheless, I have for a single one-month trip with my family 12,000 euros on the head and still find: This was one of the best decisions of my life.
You DO NOT have to stretch yourself to your blanket
It went very well in my education. But I would never have heard a sentence: YOU MUST ALWAYS RUN FOR ITS BLANKET! Over and over again, four siblings were taught us this modesty. Of necessity, I know meanwhile, because my parents had hard times and four children are not cardboard. This deep-rooted modesty did not really bode well for me. Salary negotiations are a horror (you do not want to ask too much), and it took many years of adult life, until I understood: You can think of very big dreams, that they come true, because they do sometimes. Even if they are galaxies away from their own blanket, after which you can actually only stretch.
Dreams come true. Point.
So, when I had a specific wish for my children, it was the belief that dreams could come true. Without ifs and withouts. Since the day we learned that we expect offspring, we saved saving our kids that. After all, you can talk a lot, but we wanted to show them how to believe in something big and also to do something about it. Our plan: One month, as much savings as possible, everyone can wish for everything.
When little kids dream ...
When our children were old enough to tell us about their great ideas, we listened well and told them about our own dreams. For example, our smallest daughter wished to visit a very specific dolphin in an animal clinic. She had seen a movie about the animal called "Winter" and had made the firm decision to become a delfindoctor. Our son showed us a palm picture at IKEA. "DA!", He cheered and tried to touch the picture. and my husband confided with sparkling eyes that he always wanted to go to Disneyland. From these many small moments a mosaic slowly emerged and the mosaic a travel route. Already the planning and our enjoyment of it was more beautiful than anything we pinched to even start like Croesus in our adventure.
Florida and the Caribbean
We flew to Florida on my birthday. At minus 11 degrees we climbed into the plane, at 25 degrees we got out a few hours later in Miami. We visited the Dolphin Winter, cuddled in Disney World with Stitch, sailed in sunsets, danced in beach bars, saw real manatees, let the soul dangle, got to know interesting people from all over the world and every dollar to jump, our desires cost.
For the last ten days, we flew into the Caribbean, sipping coconuts there, climbing the palm trees, plunging into the waves and getting closer than ever before. Sounds hedonistic? It was. And yet, the journey was far more than an expensive treat. We got to know very different worlds, because we took enough time, met people who let us share in their lives and created common memories that can never ever be taken from us.
What we have learned
Did our mission work? I think so. When we look at photos or talk about our experiences, it still makes us incredibly happy. And when our kids talk about their dreams, it sounds as real as any other calendar entry. But the journey has taught us so much more than to believe in great things. Recently, our youngest had the idea to send a Christmas parcel to Juan's family, a hotel employee in the Dominican Republic, instead of getting as much as they normally do. Juan had told us that many children in the Caribbean state do not have toys and garbage play. A little later, my daughter suggested that she do without plastic, so that the animals do not die so painfully in the sea.
I never regretted it
When my children made these suggestions, I realized what the real value of this journey was: taking care of yourself and believing in yourself is one thing. But to see the world in all its fragile beauty and to protect it and the people in it, that is the basis of all the dreams and desires of the future. I do not know if we all would have internalized that if we had not left.
As for the 12,000 euros ... Maybe that was overkill! But I would spend it again and again. For exactly what we did, even though others might have bought a fancy car or 30 outfits.Luckily we do not all dream of the same.
