We went to Columbus because I love the television show “Secrets of the Zoo”. It ran for five seasons beginning in 2018 and spawned “Secrets of the Zoo Tampa”, “Secrets of the Zoo North Carolina” and “Secrets of the Zoo Down Under”. Down Under was resurrected a couple of years ago for an additional season and depending on what you’re willing to believe on the internet, there MAY be a Season 8. I was (am?) addicted to these shows – loved seeing the animals and the folks who cared for them. I’ve definitely seen all the episodes of all the show and most of them more than once.
The original Secrets explored the behind the scenes lives of the animals, the zoo keepers and the zoo vets. They also shared each episode with The Wilds, a safari park and conservation area about 90 minutes from Columbus. It looked as fascinating as the zoo.
When Guinevere passed away, YA and I were suddenly free to travel together – something that hadn’t happened for about 5 years. We decided that going to Columbus to see the Zoo and the Wilds would be perfect.
As is my norm, I immediately got a binder out and made tabs for air, hotel, rental car, cat boarding, zoo, Wilds and miscellaneous.
YA used her work “points” for the rental car, spent some On the Fly cards for the air and got a smokin’ hot rate at a hotel using her Iatan status. Turns out we even got Comfort + seating because she’s got a gazillion Delta miles. I asked her for confirming emails for everything so I could print them out – she begrudgingly did this commenting that it wasn’t necessary since she had all the info on her phone. Even the kitty boarding place sent everything via text and email. But not to be outdone, I dragged the binder with us to Columbus.
Because we were leaving at an ungodly hour from Minneapolis, YA set up Lyft transfers (cheaper than the off-site lots at the airport). Once we got to Columbus, she did all the driving because it would have cost extra every day to add a driver. So I let her choose the car. I didn’t even know what hotel we were going to before we drove up. She had handled that as well, including making sure it was a double/double configuration.
Really the only thing I was in charge of was the Zoo and the Wilds. Even those were handling with QR codes (used our MN Zoo membership to get a discount) and getting emails with links and receipts. Just had to flash my phone at the entrance of both.
Suffice it to say, YA was mostly in charge of everything during the trip and I didn’t open my binder one single time. It felt kind of freeing but sigh… the times they are a changin’.
How has travel changed for you over the years? For the good or for the bad?
Trail Baboon 
Like you, I have turned over much “details” work over to the s&h and manage a lot with my phone.
I am at once in awe and glad to know that I still can figure things out the “old-fashioned” way.
I do have concerns about about things it’s getting difficult or impossible to do without electronics. The invasive behavior of AI into our communication makes me feel like it will be awhile before it takes over. So klunky!
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I view AI as an invasive species. I know it has legitimate uses, but the speed with which scam artists are exploring it’s potential for nefarious purposes is alarming. Fact checking has become a tricky proposition.
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Google Maps is a good thing for me.
Driving at night is becoming more difficult. Driving on rainy nights is the worst.
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There was a time when we could travel abroad and not pretend we were Canadian.
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Snort!
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Get matching t-shirts that say “We’re so sorry!” on the front.
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I haven’t traveled enough to notice a difference. Most of the traveling I’ve done has been in a car, and most of that has been in MN, WI, or MI.
When we went to Ireland a couple of years ago, I spent a lot of time selecting preferred seating for all five of us. I purchased the tickets and my friends reimbursed me. Every time I checked back to look at the seats, it showed our chosen seats as available. It drove me nuts. I finally had to call Delta to make sure we were getting the seats we wanted.
You are so organized, VS! A binder might have helped me with our Ireland trip. I did learn to use my phone a LOT!
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