My most memorable trip

In 2005, I planned a trip to USA where we wanted to combine business meetings around USA with visiting of our Work and Travel program students in North Carolina and a family in Los Angeles.

Back then, we were not very experienced travelers, and 16-day trip to US where we had to visit 9 cities, became quite a challenge to organize.  I made a very busy schedule, organized all business meetings, booked all hotels and cultural visits and decided to reward myself with a beautiful new red suitcase

The more I planned this trip, the more challenging it became. It all started because I felt guilty, I forcefully send my daughter to work and travel USA program at the time when she was about to turn 18.

The 18-th birthday my daughter met on the bus from New York to North Carolina, where a large group of our students was going to work for summer.

I was worried and missed her. The truth was, I wanted to go to America to meet her in a challenging situation. Justifying the trip, I planned many business visits across USA.

A week before departure we received a disturbing news, a hurricane started in the Atlantic and it was supposed to hit the Outer Banks immediately after our visit. We had 20 students there in the program and among them was my daughter.

But before our visit to Outer Banks we had some business meetings planned in New York and Boston and the hurricane was not supposed to reach islands yet so we had enough time to see our students at work places and try to talk them over leaving the program earlier and go to safety.

We chose to fly from Kiev to New-York by UIA and then had to make 9 domestic flights by American Airlines so I relied that there won’t be a delay and we can be everywhere on schedule.

When we arrived at our first destination New York, where we had to spend 2 nights, it turned out that my luggage did not arrive. I had to say that my new red suitcase was my only luggage and I was left only with my handbag.  The next flight from Kiev was arriving only following night, so we went straight to the hotel, expecting that my luggage should arrive at least on time for our next flight to Boston in 2 days.

I was very tired after the transatlantic flight and went straight to bed to rest for our next day meeting.

Probably every traveler at least once in his life faced with the loss of luggage, or even worse, the loss of money, cards, phone. When you are far from home, every loss feels overwhelming.  For me, that happened for the first time and was my worst extreme experience away from home. I regretted that I didn’t take the necessary things with me in my hand luggage, which I always did afterward. Because my schedule was rather tight and filled with business meetings, I didn’t understand at the time how I would cope with the situation whether I should cancel some important meetings. What would I wear, waking up in the morning? How would I look without makeup?

When the morning came, I rested and felt more like myself, began to act quickly so not to spoil my trip. I coped with the panic and the situation fully in a couple of days, only when I realized that I would have to deal without luggage for a long time. Shopping became very focused, like never before. I learned to navigate quickly in an unfamiliar city and buy only the most necessary things.

Next afternoon I received a call from the airline and was informed that they can deliver the luggage to New York only next day. Earnestly, I was desperate, my carefully planned trip failed because in the morning we needed to fly to Boston with a different airline. Frustrated,

 I left them a detailed schedule of my flights and hotels for the coming days and decided to enjoy my remaining time in New York.

We received a great welcome from all our partners and had a marvelous time. In New York, we were visiting Kaplan language school whose office was in Empire State Building/ After the meeting they gave us VIP passes to the roof, which allowed us to go up past all the queues and admire evening Manhattan from the tallest point. We went to see Time Square and admired the mirriards of light that came from lighting advertisement. Nowadays, it annoys us to see so much of it around, but back then, it looked like a miracle.

We spend two wonderful days in Boston which I consider being the most European cities in North America, the only one where you want to go for a long walk. We visited our partner's Embassy school of English situated very close to Harvard. Just being in Boston Cambridge inspire you to achieve new horizons and astounds you.

In North Carolina, we got into approaching hurricane Ophelia and left peninsula at the same time when they announced the state of emergency. Some of our students were finishing their contracts by that time and leaving too. The other stayed, my daughter inclusive, persuading us that the warning was just for tourists and they feel locals wanted to remain.

I left for Chicago with a heavy heart but relaxed when I landed and received her sms that all students decided to leave and they were on their way to Washington.

My luggage caught up with me in a week in Los Angeles. Fortunately, we stayed there for several days. When I finally got my recently beautiful new red suitcase, it was without a wheel and a handle. I had to go shopping again so that I could bring my long-awaited clothing back to Kiev.

In Los Angeles, where we stayed with relatives in Hollywood, we met Leonardo DiCaprio, who was such a close friend of the family, that they all received episodic roles in Titanic. 

We spent the day at Universal Studios and visited Santa Monica.

In San Diego and Santa Barbara we again visited Kaplan and Embassy schools and summer camps on the college grounds. After seeing schools and enjoying the architecture of Santa Barbara our partners offered to join their weekly corporate soccer game. Back then, they called themselves not Kaplan but Aspect language schools so we played the first and only game Aspect International against Aspect Ukraine and I scored my first goal.

In San Francisco, we walked along Golden Bridge, rode an open touristic tram in downtown and took a boat tour to Alcatraz.

Even after 13 years, I still remember the trip like it was yesterday. However, the most vivid memory was my luggage found after a week of my journeys, a bright red suitcase, without a wheel and a handle.

Nevertheless, it was very bright and enjoyable journey. Our trip turned out to be very eventful, filled with amazing meetings, beautiful places and my little adventure with lost luggage just added more color.

Since then, I always travel either with hand luggage or with hand luggage and leave nothing important in the baggage. It is amazing how one event helped organize itself for all subsequent trips.