The Ups And Downs Of Vacationing

Vacationing can be "fun" and "relaxing", but has everyone forgotten about all the stress that happens in between? I recently went to Las Vegas with my family, and you wouldn’t believe the amount of stress that was piled onto my shoulders that weekend.

For one, there was the ride there. I’m not sure what the experience on a flight would be like, but I can tell you that sitting in a car on a road full of angry, sleep-deprived people in a traffic jam for a good five hours isn’t exactly a pleasant experience. I mean, the first hour was alright, but every minute afterwards felt like boredom took a physical form and was jabbing me in the stomach repeatedly. Sure, I could’ve just stared at my phone or iPad for the majority of the ride, but the thing is, they were both dead as can be, leaving me to drown in infinite weariness.

Finally, we got to the hotel at around 12:00 a.m. However, the maids were cleaning the rooms my family and I were supposed to stay in, so that meant waiting a good 30 minutes before a room would open up. Of course, they took quite a bit longer, and we ended up waiting until 3:00 a.m. for our key cards.

I eventually woke up from what seemed like eternal slumber. Then, with a jolt in my stomach, I realized I had many pending assignments to turn in, each specific deadlines. To make things worse, the Wi-Fi at our particular hotel was for paying guests only, and $10 is a lot of money when you’re a cheap person.

So I was able to do a measly job with all my assignments-- good enough that it could be considered passing. I decided I’d do the rest when I got home-- there wasn’t much else to say, considering I’d only then realized I needed my textbooks to do over half of my homework, which was conveniently sitting on my desk, all the way back in Arcadia.

The rest of the trip consisted of an exhilarating amount of time taken away by posing for photos. I mean, it’s alright grinning with maybe two or three nice backgrounds, but I really don’t need any closeups of me eating a Subway sandwich.

The day went on, and my feet ached. I must’ve walked through so many hotels, I’d lost count. That day was also the day the wind decided to be extra feisty, so every time I went outside, my hands were glued to my beanie, for fear of having it fly off my head having to chase it down.

But there were good parts of the trip too. All the food was great, and we visited some amazing places, including the M&M chocolate factory itself. I saw many things you only get to see very few times in your life, including the fake Paris and the “mini” Statue of Liberty. I learned about the different aspects and views of different people, and how each individual has their own life planned out their way.

Even if my vacation was painful, stressful, and uneventful, I still learned many lessons and saw many things that I’m never going to let go of.