What To Do To Make Milestone Birthdays Memorable

It’s almost Virgo season, which means my birthday is right around the corner. Some people opt to do nothing for their birthday. Me, I believe in celebrating like it’s your last one, until it really is the last.

This year’s birthday is extra special as it is a milestone birthday. I don’t always plan it, but historically mine have been memorable in an interesting way. For example, on my 16th birthday I got my license and pulled over by a cop proclaiming my license was expired when the ink wasn’t even dry. I yelled back that he needed to get his eyes checked while my boyfriend in the passenger seat apologized profusely for my behavior. Clearly, I had yet to learn what not to do when talking to the police.

For my 18th birthday, I ditched my 12:00 AM curfew and stayed out partying until 3:00 AM without telling anyone my plans. I figured, if I was old enough to serve my country and vote, I was too old for a curfew. I was proud of myself for making my first adult decision until my mother snatched my car keys the next day, proving I still had some growing to do.

Ibiza – picture by Jose A.

One of my most memorable milestone birthdays was ten years ago when I went to Ibiza and Madrid with a group of people I didn’t really now. That year I learned two very important travel tips. First, know whom you’re traveling with or pay the consequences later. Secondly, make sure to check that the chicken is fully cooked, otherwise you’ll be in bed for the entire trip with a nasty case of food poisoning. Needless to say, by the time we made it to Madrid I was so done with my travel partners. I ended up in one of those hysterical crying calls to my dad from the airport explaining why I needed him to pay for a flight to London, as I didn’t budget for drama.

If only tears still worked to get my father to pay for my trips, but then again it really doesn’t matter, as I still have no clue how to make this birthday memorable. Do I rent a house in Costa Rica with a small group of friends? Maybe a girls’ trip to Sardinia would be fun? Should I consider staying in the United States to accommodate my dear friends who now have one of those accessories called a kid? Or do I say screw them all and go for a solo trip? I’m so torn and running out of time.

La Boca – Buenos Aires, Argentina

What’s worse is that I want to go everywhere! Ok, so not everywhere as I have no desire to go to Tijuana, Mexico, but I do want to get out of the country. But where do I go? I’ve done most of Europe, though there still are places I’d like to visit. I’ve stepped my little toe into South America with a few trips to Argentina. Well truthfully, those should be called trips to Buenos Aires as I could never tear myself away from the dancing, men or shoe shopping to explore outside of the city limits. And then there is Africa where they might as well put my face on a milk carton saying, “Have you seen our lost sister?” I have yet to make it to the continent, but I want to one day. So back to my original question, where do I go for my birthday this year to make it memorable?

I had the great idea to pose the question on social media. But then I remembered I’m not at Carrie Bradshaw status yet, so I may only get a few responses. To my surprise, I got a lot more responses than expected. Heck, I even had people suggesting places I had to look up and I do pretty well on those Facebook world traveler challenges.

All of this obsessing over traveling has made me realize my travel wish list is hella long. Longer than I thought it was and even longer with the new additions from my social media family. However, it did spawn the brainchild for a my new monthly feature entitled ‘I Hella Want To Go To ______.’ Each month I will fill in the blank until I run out of blanks to fill. If you are still reading and I’m still writing by the end of my list, we’ll both have our AARP cards and can then travel on super discounts.

As for the destination of my birthday celebration this year, well you’ll have to wait until September to discover my final selection. Until then, here are a few places I’m considering. Tell me where you think I should go?

Happy Birthday Virgos!

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