What Is a Must Do?

Sitting on the stone wall of the Arno River and lazily watching the crowds of people stride, walk, run, and push in front of us, Rick and I heard a Dad speak. With an elevated voice, possibly out of desperation, he barked, “We must see this. Stop complaining”. We noticed that he was responding back to his family who followed in single file behind him, lagging slowly as they made their way through the shuffling hordes of tourists.

We must see this. What did he mean? What was so important that a Dad would drag an uninterested family to visit?

Living seasonally, Rick and I have a bit of a disconnect with rushing. There is no rush. To do anything. Eat. Wander. Tour. Coffee. Well, maybe coffee. I do rush to have a great americano. But this was different. And we know that many tourists or travelers feel the same. There is a heightened sense of time when one travels.

Guests spend 2.5 days in each location they visit. That’s it. So if you have an “agenda”, you have to motor quickly and have a full day planned to see, do, watch, experience.

This idea of Must Do items came up again a few days later when we took our road trip to San Marino and decided to drive back to Cortona. We adored Jeanette when we stayed with her at Casa Chilenne, so strolling down the street, we decided to visit her at her B&B. And she just happened to be standing outside chatting with a neighbor. Whisking us inside for a cappuccino and her fresh apple cake, we had a lovely afternoon chat. Family members had recently visited her from America and the cousin told her that they had to see the Uffizi Gallery on this trip. Jeanette questioned, “Who is your favorite artist in the Gallery?” “It’s art?” yelped the cousin in disbelief. “I don’t know. We were just told that it’s one of the must do’s in Florence.”

How can a traveler spend time and money to travel and not come armed with SOME interest? Why are you in a country or a city? Do you like other cultures? Art? Medieval history? New food surprises? Why are you here if you are so unprepared for what you might experience?

A friend said that she didn’t want to involve her children in their family planning process to Switzerland because they were “on vacation.” From learning? Of course they should be consulted and given one location or region to discover. What can you bring to the table for the rest of the group? One must get the individuals on a trip involved in the planning. At least to get them excited about the journey! Everyone should want to go where the family has decided to holiday. One shouldn’t be dragged kicking and screaming anywhere! Especially not to one of the prominent art galleries in the world. And especially a delightful country. Good grief. Make your own plans. Choose your own museums. Instead of the Uffizi, that cousin should have taken their son to the Galileo Museum. The point is to read and discover and then choose your own journey.

Sitting on our river wall again the next day in Florence, Rick and I gazed concertedly at the travelers and city dwellers striding in front of us. Many looked so disconnected and bedraggled. But every once in a while we spotted a family who appeared to have a sense of wonder and excitement. And this made us smile. Like Bilbo Baggins in The Hobbit, they are remarking, “We are going on an adventure!”

Stiamo andando in un’avventura !