Last night we pulled the trigger on a couple of round trip tickets to Inverness, Scotland for a week-long journey. Now the work of planning a trip can begin, and it reminds me exactly how many pieces there are to international travel. It is also the first time in as long as I can remember that the planning will be for two instead of just little old me. That adds a layer of excitement in the form of the anticipation we both feel to go on this adventure together.

As is my style, I am focused on the big picture of getting there, getting around to see as much as possible, and getting back in one piece. After years of this part of my mind laying dormant, it has fired back up in dramatic fashion. The possibilities are incredible and only limited by the constraints of the amount of time we have to explore.

Our plan is ambitious and will see us covering a lot of ground in a week. It will be a proper road trip filled with the requisite and frequent changes in landscape you’d expect. The distances look small on the map but I know they will feel gigantic because it is in a different country. It’ll also be the first time either one of us has driven on the left anywhere legally, so that adds an exciting layer of novelty.

It is still months away but I am filled to the brim with anticipation and excitement to finally get back out there and start seeing more of this big beautiful blue planet of ours.