Side Trips Part 3

Time to cover more of the many side trips I took over my years of business travel

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       Early in my career I was not savvy when planning trips. I managed to put myself in northern Michigan in February and Houston in August of the same year. Those trips taught me a lot about planning and how to travel smarter, in addition to providing some fun diversions.

In Michigan the temperature was around -10 degrees F and the first thing I learned was that after it gets below 0, it pretty much feels the same – effing cold! That cold had an advantage though as Lake Huron was frozen very solidly. On my drive up from Saginaw I saw signs for Bay City (of Bay City Rollers fame? – if you’re under 55, Google the band) and Saginaw Bay so I headed for the water, rather the ice. Seeing fishing shacks and pickup trucks well out into the bay I eased my rental car onto the ice for a little spin – not literally I’m happy to report. It was surreal to be out on the ice of Lake Huron. Certainly, a once-in-a-lifetime experience for this Jersey guy. After getting a picture of me on the ice I jumped back in the car to thaw out and headed to my next destination.

On the opposite end of the spectrum was Houston in August. I don’t recommend it even with good a/c. As luck would have it, my hotel was next to an Elks lodge, and being an Elk at that time, I decided to stop in for a couple of pints after dinner. There happened to be a birthday celebration in progress for one of the lodge’s officers. They welcomed me in as a visiting member and insisted I join them. A very unexpected and fun time that made me glad I overcame my shyness and ventured there. I was treated like a regular in the lodge and as a bonus the bartender told me if I was around the next day and wanted to use the pool before they opened, she would be at the lodge and would let me in. I enjoyed a nice quiet swim the next afternoon after completing my sales calls, and spent another fun evening at the lodge.

Crossing the Atlantic to one of my favorite international side trips, we go to Germany. I was working a trade show with some of our newest products. In conversation with the representatives from the local sales office, I mentioned that I dreamed of driving on the Autobahn. Without hesitation, one of them told me he had to go back to the office later to get more literature for the show and that I could drive his car. Wow! I was psyched. Then I found out it was a stick shift, and it was parked in a very European way – wedged between cars in a sort-of parking area. Somehow, I got it out without stalling and without touching the other cars – step 1 complete. Now to get out of the city and onto the Autobahn. Nerves quickly disappeared as he gave me tips on the laws there and encouraged me to drive as fast as I wanted when allowed. Traffic was light and I was able to hit speeds well above what is allowed in the US.  A great memory from one of my first European trips with that company. As a side note, Holger and I are friends to this day, and I am still amazed that he had that much confidence in me after only. a few hours at the tradeshow.

One last side trip from my Six Sigma days. We had a week of training in Seattle, and I was asked if I would be interested in joining 3 of the local guys in the class for a fly-fishing trip on the Yakima River. I’d never fished that way before, but the guys were cool, and I was up for an adventure. As we got closer to the training date, the guys started dropping out one by one until I was the only original member left. Now I was going for a full day on the river with 3 total strangers. The adventure just got bigger. The 3 guys turned out to be very nice and made sure beforehand that I had the borrowed gear I needed. They picked me up at the hotel before dawn for the long drive to meet with our guides and get on the water. The scenery from the river was amazing, the guides were great, and everyone helped me learn to fly-fish. I did get a little nervous though when I caught the first – and it turned out the only – fish on the trip. The guides had fun teasing the other guys about that. Once again I was glad I pushed my shyness aside for yet another adventure.

Over my career, I always tried to find time for a side trip, even if it was just getting away from the group to go out on my own for a walk, dinner, or a drink after. Getting to see and do new things and meet new people made all those business trips more fun and provided experiences that I never would have gotten if I stayed on the beaten path – which for business travelers, is usually wherever your meetings are and your hotel. When you travel, whether it’s for business or pleasure, seek-out side trips, they make travel more fun and will give you fond memories.

Happy Thanksgiving to all of you celebrating the holiday.

I hope you get to enjoy time with family and friends.

As I will be doing just that, my next post will be in the first week of December.

www.RetiredandInspiredat55.com  11-20-2023