There are some vacations that I will never forget and mention in passing years and years later. Some of these top 5 are in the West, 1 central, and 1 international. Continuing to see through this type of lens here are the top 5 vacations I've had:
5. Camp Sawtooth 2001- this was the best time I had at camp- the total camaraderie and friendship making and all the continual meaning making with the program and the people who took a hold of the program were great. I will never forget campfire there, the trips to Baldy and Easley's and the groups friendships that I made, the conversations I had, the dinners, all of it was simply breathtaking and I still think about it sometimes years later.
4. Triennium 2001- the other 2001 trip on this list, Triennium was a totally wonderful selection-only Presbyterian youth "camp" at Purdue and it was life-changing in many ways- the first time at a college campus for more than just games, the first time in a college cafeteria (novel and pretty fun), the amazing games of ultimate, football, and basketball, the friendships I made there and the Quarry group was pretty wonderful in that I had connections with others who saw me for who I am- I still think about it some as well.
3, National Parks Trip 2006- Simply because of many reasons- the first time staying in a hostel, the amazing 9-mile hike, the best meal I've ever had in my life, and the bonding time with my Mom and my oldest sister over cars, games, creating new memories, and being on the beach and seeing many natural wonders. In my next blog after the Hot Bott 100 I will do a top 10 Ian and his Mom moments and three contenders came from this vacation. Also it's the only time other than the DD Council conference that I saw California and I saw some world-renowned places that time and took amazing pictures- simply wonderful.
2, East Coast Trip 2011- Wonderful for several reasons: I got to see New York (didn't like it too much but I had always wanted to see it until then), got to take many different types of transportation (which was a kind of to do list goal), got to see different kinds of faiths, got to chat with my Aunt, my cousin-in-law, and many other great family members and for a bittersweet reason: it was the last time I saw my late Grandma. I feel fortunate that I got to go on this trip for all those reasons and more and I am lucky that I was able to try to do all the things I was able to do there with Jamaica, this trip, Seattle, and another great trip 2011 was a travel year for the books.
1: Brazil 2004- With Jamaica DQ'ed from this list as a service trip, I have got to say that Brazil was totally the best way to spend my 21st birthday- seeing museums, getting souvenirs (some of which I still have), making a great scrapbook of memories, seeing my Aunt's family, seeing a volleyball game at the Olympic exhibition level, and continuing to see all the various things that make a new culture tick and getting cultural primers on this- all of these things made it a wonderful experience and I am glad that I went- also I enjoyed all the card-playing that my family did- the Skip-Bo tourney was a true rags-to-riches event and I loved being a part of it including the 4th hand I did to win a game which I still bring up in passing- the divide between rich and poor is wonderfully vast and I got to see real poverty for the first time overseas there- a true life-changing trip.
There are many contenders as well- a few of the Seattle and Portland trips- the trip to Baker City with my Mom and sister, the vacation to North Idaho, and many others- I am a well-traveled man and I look forward to many more adventures. Stay tuned for the Hot Bott 100 over Spring Break and the top 10 Ian and his Mom moments in April. AutBott signing off.
