56 days to go...

Not much to report, except that I am in the countdown phase of travel planning.

I can tell you how many days until we leave. (56)

I could tell you what airline we're flying and how long the flight will be.

I could tell you how many vaccinations and visas we will need.

I could tell you what hotels we will stay in.

I could tell you what foods I am looking forward to eating, and in what languages I need to learn to say "hello," "please," "thank you," and "where's the bathroom?"

I could tell you which guidebooks I've bought, which websites I've frequented, which movies I've watched and which books I've read or plan to read in preparation for this trip.

But I can't tell you anything yet, because my mother might read this, and despite being my travel companion, she doesn't want to know a thing!

My mom will turn 65 this April, and to celebrate, she wrote a big check and asked me to plan a trip for us, but not to tell her where we're going. She wants to be completely surprised - and to prolong the suspense until the last possible moment, she is willing to board the plane in a blindfold and earplugs, though I'm pretty sure that Homeland Security would frown on that.

This so beautifully illustrates our yin and yang: I savor every moment of planning a trip and would feel completely cheated out of a significant and pleasurable part of the travel experience if I couldn't marinate in travel research for months before departure, but my mom thrives on the excitement and spontaneity of not knowing where she's going. Perhaps this is why we make such good travel companions - I'm a control freak and she's plenty willing to let me run the show!

Enough for now - I have more lists to make and travel forums to read!

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