John Steinbeck, noted American author, once said,

 

         "A journey is like a marriage. The certain way to be wrong is to think you control it."

 

    Without dwelling on Steinbeck’s reflection on the state of marriage, he is definitely correct when he maintains that travel is full of "bumps in the road" and unforeseen problems and occurrences. Even the most meticulously planned trip can descend into nightmarish catastrophe just because of unexpected events.

    I recall our trip to Greece and Turkey. Lee was extremely nervous about going to Turkey since there had been a bombing there right after we booked the trip, but she spoke to a girl who worked at the American Embassy in Istanbul and was reassured that there was little to worry about.  "Just try not to call attention to yourself and stay away from large gatherings" said the girl. All was great until our last day in Istanbul. We were walking down Istiklal Caddesi (a crowded pedestrian shopping area) when we found ourselves in the midst of a parade, with people carrying Turkish flags, etc. Lee was frightened, but I simply got flags for us to wave and, as soon as possible, ducked into a store and waited till the parade had moved on.  

    Serendipitous circumstances don’t have to be negative. We stumbled on a village festival in a small village in Portugal which was delightful, and caused us to change our plans, to stay and enjoy the festivities.

    So, think less about control when on a trip and more about adapting to whatever happens.