I’ve travelled to 40 countries with my aging parents. It's 'the best investment I've ever made'

A travel to Egypt — the archetypal my member and I took arsenic adults with our parents — rapidly went disconnected the rails.

After spending Christmas successful the Sinai Peninsula, we drove our rental car backmost to Cairo. At the hotel, a well-dressed man, whom my begetter mistook for a edifice valet, offered to determination our car. "Thank you," my begetter said with a smile, handing implicit the keys. The lone happening that the imposter near was a 10-foot skid mark.

That car heist unleashed a bewildering bid of encounters. First, we had to person the car rental bureau that we were not trying to swindle a Toyota from the company. Then we had to conflict the constabulary — who arrived astatine the edifice astatine 3 a.m. — equipped with dusty books filled with thousands of mug shots — who insisted connected baksheesh, oregon a tiny bribe, earlier issuing the transgression report.

Then we had to put for the bare necessities, similar buying underwear, since our luggage was stolen on with the car. At slightest we could get comfy Egyptian cotton. 

We considered going home, but alternatively we accelerated our sojourn to Kenya, the 2nd destination connected our itinerary. I volition ne'er hide the astonished absorption of the Kenya Airways unit erstwhile the 4 of america produced a tiny integrative container of apparel arsenic our sole check-in "luggage." 

That archetypal African escapade became the template for 2 decades of globetrotting with my parents.

We ventured to unfamiliar places astatine slightest erstwhile each twelvemonth — often twice. Significant others, friends, and aboriginal my son, joined immoderate of these vacations, which yet spanned much than 40 countries.

The lone regularisation we followed was to bash thing caller each time. In doing so, we soon noticed a pattern: We Millers are magnets for mishap.

Our 2nd African escapade was adjacent much disastrous.

In Zimbabwe, we decided to raft the mighty Zambezi beneath Victoria Falls. This country is considered among the biggest and baddest whitewater rafting destinations successful the world, with aggregate Class V rapids with names similar "The Mother" and "Oblivion." 

We were hanging connected with achromatic knuckles and clenched teeth arsenic our raft navigated a nasty conception called "Stairway to Heaven," which drops 30 feet implicit a 50-foot distance.

Then our raft capsized. The lone happening worse than going down the Stairway of Heaven successful a raft is going done them without one. My stepmother and I were swept downstream. I was excessively preoccupied with avoiding the boulders scattered passim the churning stream to attraction astir the crocodiles that populated the waters.

Then it got hyper real. Pulled into the almighty whirlpool, I gasped for aerial and struggled to enactment afloat successful the swirling vortex. I did not deliberation that decease was inevitable, but I instantly acknowledged it arsenic a possibility. 

I don't cognize however but someway the vortex spit maine out. I past swam to calmer waters and recovered the raft and the remainder of my family.

That occurrence happened 25 years ago. Forever seared into my encephalon is the representation of my begetter atop the capsized raft, his angelic achromatic buttocks shining precocious supra the water, which had stripped him to the ankles.

That ravaging rafting travel was an accident, but nary of those household adventures happened without intention.  

Each jaunt required superior readying and scheduling to happen. I had a demanding firm vocation astatine a large Hollywood workplace that progressive predominant concern travel. So sometimes I piggybacked household trips connected apical of enactment trips; different times I forced a spread successful an different crowded calendar.

Usually, I planned a twelvemonth successful advance, making definite to artifact disconnected clip for household first. We were dedicated astir traveling together. This prime clip with my parents is, by far, the champion concern I've ever made.

These shared experiences immeasurably enriched our lives and strengthened our relationships. You go a antithetic family, a tighter family, aft roadworthy tripping crossed Central America. The joy, laughter and tears that emanated from our trips are halfway to our household fabric.

We inactive laughter astir Cairo. We whitethorn person mislaid our belongings, but we gained thing acold much valuable.

Usually, I projected travel ideas — and my parents were unfastened to astir immoderate adventure. Conversations typically went thing similar this:

Me: Have you been to a camel fair?
Parents: They don't person those successful Kentucky.
Me: If you lone sojourn one, I perceive Pushkar's the place.
Parents: When are we going?"

Then we would displacement to readying mode. We favored offbeat and distant destinations, often combining aggregate countries and authentic experiences into 1 trip.

But sometimes things got excessively authentic.

At Tikal successful Guatemala, we booked a jungle lodge adjacent to the past Mayan ruins. We were stunned erstwhile we opened the doorway to a sparse country with 2 metal-framed beds, soiled factual floors and a azygous lightbulb dangling from the ceiling.

The furniture linens were stained acheronian beige and sweat rings adorned the pillows. It was decrepit — a daze amplified by our past hotel, the luxe Blancaneaux Lodge successful the Belize rainforest and erstwhile retreat of movie manager Francis Ford Coppola.  

I covered each aboveground country connected my body, caput to toe, with covering earlier going to furniture that nighttime — noting yet different Miller misadventure successful the making.

We inactive laughter astir a roadworthy travel successful Cuba, wherever our effort to thrust the magnitude of the land — from Havana to Santiago de Cuba adjacent Guantanamo — resulted successful hours of driving successful circles.

These were pre-GPS days. There were nary roadworthy signs, and everyone pointed america successful antithetic directions. We went circular and circular successful hunt of the then-two-laned "national highway." The wit of it each nourished our resilience to transportation on.

Then determination was the mother-of-all-camel fairs, a solemnisation that occurs each November successful the tiny municipality of Pushkar successful the Indian authorities of Rajasthan. Every year, impermanent but awesome tents are erected to accommodate visitors.

We started these household flings erstwhile I was successful my mid-20s and my parents successful their 50s. As the decades passed, the adventures became little bold, occurred little often, and happened person to home.

Then the adventures stopped. 

Thank goodness we made the effort to research the satellite unneurotic erstwhile we did. The world is: There is simply a constricted model of opportunity, and that model often closes sooner than we think. 

This vacation season, if your household rhythms are drifting into a default setting, and if you're funny astir the world, present is simply a thought:

Mix it up.
Make beingness interesting.
Get retired and astir with your loved ones.
Go beyond your comfortableness zone.

This volition not hap accidentally, and it volition instrumentality immoderate effort. But you whitethorn beryllium eternally grateful if you do.