My 40th birthday was looming. I wanted to do something special to mark it, but the idea of a big party where I was the center of attention sounded awful to an introvert like me.
Still, though, I wanted to celebrate with friends and family. I knew I didn’t want presents, experiences that I would remember forever sounded more appealing. So, instead of a flashy celebration, I planned two incredible trips.
It started with a road trip in southwest Africa with my family
“You’re going where?” everyone asked when we announced our intention to drive 1,500 miles around Namibia in 15 days.
We smiled at their reactions. The first trip took place in April and had been planned for months, with several route iterations exchanged between us and our tour operator. It was timed to fit between my husband’s 40th in December and mine in June.
We were tired of kid-centered vacations, often involving waterslides and family-friendly resorts. This was about us, and it needed to be something different.
Of course, any travel with kids requires both mental and logistical preparation, but a road trip with this amount of driving was next level. I downloaded hours of age-appropriate audiobooks and scheduled a variety of activities to fit their physical stamina while scratching our travel itch.
Emma Morrell
We climbed the dunes around Dead Vlei early and tumbled down the slopes toward 1,000-year-old black petrified trees in the salt pan, but settled for observing Sossusvlei’s tallest dune, Big Daddy, from a distance. In Swakopmund, we found kid-friendly restaurants, took a 4×4 tour instead of windsurfing lessons, and browsed gift shops rather than going dolphin-watching.
In Etosha National Park, we spent most of our time devouring ice cream at the campsite’s watering hole. Elephants lumbered from north to south in front of us, while giraffes ambled to the water and cautiously lowered themselves to drink.
For accommodation, we kept it varied, sandwiching guesthouse stays between nights in the tents that unfolded from the top of our car. Every evening, we gathered around a barbecue or firepit to journal, toast marshmallows, or just watch flames dancing in the receding light.
It felt like a perfect balance between our pre- and post-kids travel identities. My family’s trip to Namibia in 2019, booked with Namibia Tours and Safaris, cost $5,000, excluding flights.
Emma Morrell
For the second celebration, I met up with friends in Paris
Ten weeks later, and five days after my actual birthday, I was on the move once more, only this time on my own. I was headed to Paris for a reunion with my besties from school: three girls I’d known since we were 5 and who now live in the US, UK, and France.
I was exhilarated to be traveling solo again. The foray to France would conclude my birthday celebrations.
We all met at my friend’s house in Saint-Germain-En-Laye, a serene suburb of the French capital. The plan was just to sleep there — for the single day that we could be together, we wanted to meander around the City of Lights.
Our only commitment was an evening dinner reservation. Beyond that, the day was ours. Never mind the landscape, in terms of planning and travel companions, this was about as far from Namibia as I could have imagined.
The sun beamed down while we explored Montmartre, where winding, cobbled streets were lined with pastel-painted buildings and topped by Sacré Coeur Basilica’s brilliant white walls.
There, we sipped on glasses of crisp rosé wine, watched market-goers pass by, and gorged on onion soup topped with gooey layers of melted cheese.
From Montmartre, we made our way to the Arc de Triomphe, then walked the length of the Champs-Élysées — complete with a tourist-priced cocktail to fuel us through a tree-lined Jardin des Tuileries, and on to the majestic Eiffel Tower, all while relishing some extended time to catch up properly.
We found our restaurant tucked down a back street behind the Musée du Louvre, basking in the luminous evening light. The only feeling better than dining on perfectly cooked steak frites was the overwhelming gratification of lasting friendships. Chilled Champagne fizzed for toast after toast.
The two trips in three months were an extravagance I felt lucky to experience. The differences between a 15-day adventure in Africa with my family and a one-night stay in Europe could not have been more striking — yet they were the perfect way for me to celebrate.
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