Despite our owning several books and magazines with titles like "100 Places To Visit Before You Die", we don't travel anywhere for the sake of checking off boxes.  In fact, when planning travel, we often have to think outside the checkboxes.  The places we want to visit may be out of reach for the moment due to finances, weather, family circumstances, or other factors.  The good news is that there is often another equally viable travel destination that we had not considered.

Our intention was always for our second Europe trip together to cover France and Spain.  I had lived in southern France a long time ago, and Maria was eager to revisit Paris, but we had not been to the City of Lights as a couple.  Maria is also a big Salvador Dali fan, and the charms of northern Spain seemed like a logical conclusion to our planned trip.  Between my French skills and her Spanish, there would be virtually no language barrier on the trip.  By traveling in mid-June, we would enjoy warmer weather and still be on the outer edge of shoulder season.

Then 2020 happened.  We had to cancel Europe and went to the Southwest US instead.  In 2024, we decided it was time to try Europe again, and again we sought to travel to France and Spain.  For whatever reason - airfares to France spiking due to the Olympics,  the holidays, or general inflation - every itinerary we explored was prohibitively expensive.  While we were exploring alternatives, family and friends recommended Portugal and we were sold almost instantly. 

The nature of the trip required flexibility in many ways.  I wanted to take trains as much as possible because I was tired of driving so much in Florida, but knowing it would be a winter trip with coats and sweaters to pack, and by extension heavier luggage, I agreed that we should rent a car.  My fears about parking and driving in crowded Portuguese cities with narrow streets were allayed with a little pre-planning of the best routes and parking garages.  In some ways, traveling over the holidays may have helped our driving as there was less traffic for work or school.  Although some attractions such as the monastery and tower in Lisbon's riverside area of Belem were closed when we visited, we were able to explore them from the outside and find parking where there normally wouldn't be any spaces. The highway driving in Portugal was second to none with very little traffic, no accidents or trash to be seen on the roads, and first-rate rest stops/fuel stations right off the major roads. Throughout the trip, we found mesmerizing coastlines, enjoyed numerous sunsets, and lucked out with mostly mild weather that even locals said was unusual for that time of year.

It was not easy to plan the itinerary.  With no practical flights out of Tampa or Orlando, we had to be very creative about our departure point from Florida, which ended up being Fort Lauderdale.  We had to stay the night in Fort Lauderdale before departure and after our arrival back in the US, arrange to park our car for two weeks through a third-party parking service, and pray that the car would be safe there (it was).  We had to negotiate hills, steps, and streets made of cobblestone and tile, and thus manage our energy and time with so much to see.  In the end, we chose where to go based on what interested us, even though we did ask others about their experiences.  

Finding another way can also apply to living overseas as well as traveling.  When I was looking for jobs in South Korea,  I was convinced that I wanted to live and work in Seoul as a seasoned city slicker.  That plan didn't work out, and as an alternative I ended up spending 5 years on Jeju Island during one of the most wonderful and transformative periods of my life.  Together, Maria and I continue to find other ways to travel as a couple.