No RESERVATIONS or concerns

June 19, 2011
Sunday

Our apologies to Anthony Bourdain..


Several things have become obvious since we have been on the road. Things will break. It is really nice to have FULL HOOK ups. And the most obvious is that the idea of having reservations is ludicrous.
We started our trip with the intention of staying here in Michigan for 3 weeks. We thought about going to Indiana before we headed east towards Pennsylvania around July 6 or 7. We then heard there may be another wedding on July 23, so we scratched the idea of making reservations in Indiana AND Pennsylvania; since we now were looking at a tour of Michigan to fill the time between weddings.
Then we were told the second wedding would be August or September. Again any thoughts of reservations and planning ahead were put aside as tentative schedules were changing daily. Let me go back to the original plans for a minute. Initially we had made plans to attend a family get-together at Mary’s brother summer cabin in northern Michigan. That was to have taken place the weekend of July 4. We started looking at reservations—only to hear the dates were changed to August 23. ARGH!! Reservations were just not the way to go. The family get-together is now scheduled for August 6-7.
With events that change daily, sometimes hourly, reservations on the road do not seem like a workable idea. Most reservations require a deposit of some type to hold the space. There are also more campgrounds that want Saturday and Sunday reservations on the weekend since the likelihood of having someone wanting a space for just Sunday is iffy at best.
Someone had asked about using reservations on a forum we frequent. We thought about this and wondered why one wouldn’t have reservations? Many places fill up during the tourist season, and it is always nice to have a place waiting for you, especially after driving all day.
But we have learned during our maiden trip how elusive it can be to make definite plans and reserve a place when you are on the road and have no solid itinerary. Suddenly, the idea of being on the road full time and having a schedule feels a lot like a full time job—too many expectations and obligations to be somewhere at a certain time.

Tim and Mary

On the road in Michigan