Hola, Oppo!

"TheRealBicycleBuck" (therealbicyclebuck) 04/19/2019 at 07:02 • Filed to: None

0

25

From my daughter who is currently in SPAIN!

As a reward for three grueling years of Spanish class , the kids get an opportunity to take a week-long trip to Spain on their parents’ dime . Alright, let’s be fair, the kids do earn a portion of the cost themselves.

Our daughter is the first in our family to take an overseas trip and it’s killing my w ife! She’s already making plans to drag me over there at some point in the near future. Maybe if I get to drive some cool cars....

facw > TheRealBicycleBuck 04/19/2019 at 07:28

1

My AP Spanish teacher often did a trip to Spain for students after graduation, but skipped it my year. I was disappointed, as it would have been fun.

I also missed out on the school trip to England (only offered to those in the “combined” English + global studies course, but not for those of us in honors English + honors global studies). And in middle school, the French students did a trip to Montreal, but they somehow neglected to do a similar trip to Mexico or the Caribbean for kids taking Spanish. Longest school trip I took was a two night excursion to Colonial Williamsburg/Jamestown/Yorktown in elementary school.

Meanwhile, I still haven’t ever been to Spain. Could plan a trip this summer , but I hate travelling alone, and all my friends are busy with babies.

TheRealBicycleBuck > facw 04/19/2019 at 07:33

1

Our school had a week-long camping trip in 6th grade, but we didn’t even leave the state. In high school, the band took a trip once every four years. We worked our asses off to raise funds to go to Florida and march in a parade. We did get to go to either Disney or Epcot center while we were there, so that made up for the long bus ride.

facw > TheRealBicycleBuck 04/19/2019 at 07:37

1

Hmm we didn’t do camping, but we did do an overnight outdoor-ed thing. Don’t remember how long it was, but I don’t think it was more than two.

For our senior year class trip we raised money to go to Darien Lake (an amusement park near Buffalo, a three hour drive), but though we did apparently raise enough cash, the school wouldn’t let us go, so we ended up with a picnic at a state park 20 minutes from the school (and then blew an excessive amount of money on other s enior week stuff).

E90M3 > TheRealBicycleBuck 04/19/2019 at 07:37

1

I never got an opportunity to do something like this. I think I could have convinced my parents to do a study abroad but they never offered the classes I needed and I didn’t want to prolong my time in college. I did think it was a bit foolish that my dad made me get my passport my second year of college. I rectified my lack of travel by taking a two week trip to Germany and France after college. 

facw > E90M3 04/19/2019 at 07:49

2

Getting a passport quickly is enough of a pain that I think if you can afford it, it’s probably always a good idea to have a valid one, especially once you are old enough that they renew every 10 years.

E90M3 > facw 04/19/2019 at 07:56

1

I agree it’s good idea to have one regardless. My parents paid for it, so the cost wasn’t an issue for me. If I hadn’t, my first employer, Schlumberger, required us to have one; they would have paid for it since they could force you to travel internationally. 

TheRealBicycleBuck > facw 04/19/2019 at 08:11

2

My daughter’s trip resulted in the entire family getting passports “just in case.” My wife didn’t inform me of this need until two weeks before the trip, so we ended up paying premiums to get them expedited. I’m really hoping it was a waste of money. I don’t want to make any emergency trips to Spain.

vondon302 > TheRealBicycleBuck 04/19/2019 at 08:20

3

You need to go. Used to be a Caribbean vacation guy cause our winters suck. After one trip to Europe I’m hooked. Looking at 3 weeks in Germany next summer.

Can’t find my Spain pics but there is alot of cool cars.

TheRealBicycleBuck > vondon302 04/19/2019 at 08:39

0

Perhaps some day. I have lots of other things to pay for other than travel.

vondon302 > TheRealBicycleBuck 04/19/2019 at 08:47

1

True but time waits for no one. My ten day Netherlands trip cost  me and the wife 3200.

TheRealBicycleBuck > vondon302 04/19/2019 at 08:55

0

That’s a valid point, but it’s a matter of priorities. Right now, travel is pretty low on the list.

DipodomysDeserti > TheRealBicycleBuck 04/19/2019 at 08:58

0

*¡

My wife first travelled to Spain as a high school junior, then again as a senior. I probably never would have gone overseas if it wasn’t for her. We’ve now backpcked through Europe both by ourselves and with our kids a few times. She’ll have a great time and hopefully be instilled with a sense of adventure and travel.

My wife took my kids (3 and 1 yo) to NYC by herself for a wedding years ago. My dad, who grew up in NJ, was nervous about my wife navigating the C ity on her own. I knew she’d be fine, as she figured out how to navigate European public transit as a teen. She had no issues getting around NYC with two little ones in tow.

vondon302 > TheRealBicycleBuck 04/19/2019 at 09:07

1

Them damn priorities.

Adulting is depressing. 

TheRealBicycleBuck > DipodomysDeserti 04/19/2019 at 09:23

0

My wife and daughter were in NYC just a few weeks ago to visit colleges. They had a bit of trouble with the subway at first, but got it figured out. The Spain trip is through a touring company, so I’m not as concerned about it as I was about NYC.

She will be the better for it, that’s for sure. Next up is a mission trip to Puerto Rico. She’s becoming quite the world traveler.

DipodomysDeserti > TheRealBicycleBuck 04/19/2019 at 10:05

0

European public transit is much better than anything in the US, so she’ll be fine. If she has any sort of martial training, a trick I always use when in Europe is to carry around a padlock with a bandana tied around it. DIY urban flail . I only had to interact with European cops once, and they didn’t recognize it for what it was.

Eric @ opposite-lock.com > facw 04/19/2019 at 10:09

2

The process of getting them for children sucks and the 5-year expiration sucks, but being able to travel outside the country is very valuable. They’re handy to have anyhow.

facw > Eric @ opposite-lock.com 04/19/2019 at 10:11

1

If nothing else, having my passport has probably meant not having to dig up my birth certificate/social security card a few times.

TheRealBicycleBuck > DipodomysDeserti 04/19/2019 at 10:29

0

We’ve never given her any martial arts training. I’ve shown her a few things over the years, but never any formal classes.

Are you tying the padlock to the end of the bandanna to use it like a sock with a brick in it?

DipodomysDeserti > TheRealBicycleBuck 04/19/2019 at 11:05

0

Yes, a discrete madball.

TheRealBicycleBuck > DipodomysDeserti 04/19/2019 at 11:44

1

Hmmm. Madball. I’ve never heard that one before!

DipodomysDeserti > TheRealBicycleBuck 04/19/2019 at 13:01

0

Madball is a cue ball in a sock. They’re also a great band. Not commonly known weapons. I only know about them because I grew up with people like this:

We all carried guns, though. Much more effective.

TheRealBicycleBuck > DipodomysDeserti 04/19/2019 at 13:47

0

Not quite my crowd. Where I went to high school, the guns being carried were more like these:

DipodomysDeserti > TheRealBicycleBuck 04/19/2019 at 13:57

0

Growing up in a city in Southwest we had a mix of both. the wood on those . I’ve owned a couple of bolt guns. Had a Mosin Nagant once that I bought for $40, and a Remington 700 in .308. One of my buddies was a Marine sniper, and he had a bunch of nice stuff. He had a McMillan stock on one of his rifles that cost twice as much as my whole gun.

TheRealBicycleBuck > DipodomysDeserti 04/19/2019 at 14:38

1

I don’t own any bolt-action guns. I have a couple of shotguns and a pistol, but they don’t see much action since I don’t have a good place to shoot. 

Eric @ opposite-lock.com > facw 04/19/2019 at 18:03

2

I also appreciate that they’re easier to replace, may be replaced unlimited times, and are therefore semi-disposable. SSA cards are limited in replacements, birth certificates can be extremely difficult to replace, licenses are generally annoying to replace, etc. They’re not dirt cheap, but they hit way above their complexity to obtain in value, so I think they’re worth the $1.21/month they cost. Not to mention the fact you can travel to most of the world on one without first obtaining visas.. .