What a Multi-City Road Trip Has Made Me Think About Maine

I recently set off on an 8-day road trip around the midwest with my best friends on a converted school bus.

If there’s one positive thing that came out of our weird years living through a pandemic is the ability to work remotely and I am grateful for the opportunity to be able to get work done on the road.

Before I get into the main point of this article, I’ll break that part down for you real quick.

I get asked all the time how I’m able to work from a bus and the answer is quite simple: Loitering in coffee shops, stealing wifi from hotel lobbies, hot spotting my laptop with my iPhone, impressive self-governance skills, and deep love for my job.

Road Trip From Maine

This multi-city trip has brought me to North Carolina and Tennessee through multiple cities, spending only a day or two in each spot.

And yes, sleeping on a school bus.

Having grown up in Maine, I had always dreamt of leaving. I wanted to see and experience more, so I traveled to multiple states, lived in Vermont and Miami, and traveled abroad on multiple occasions to settle my travel bug.

While traveling actually flares up my need to travel even more, it also humbles me.

Everything I had always wanted outside of Maine, I realized I actually have back home.

I want good, diverse food, beautiful landscapes and scenery, cities covered in cobblestone and brick, the smell of fresh air in the middle of nature, fun local music, and new restaurants and places to try.

While on the road, I’ve noticed the things that stand out to me most are the things I love about my own home.

The tiny little towns hidden within beautiful natural landscapes; the dive bars with friendly locals and talented musicians; the incredible food; the old cities that still hold their historic charm.

Portland, Maine

While Southern hospitality is indeed a real thing and everyone has been extremely kind, warm, and polite, I do miss and appreciate the open-mindedness of Portland, Maine.

Driving through the south and midwest of our country, you see a lot of interesting stores and flags scattered everywhere that don’t portray the most inclusive or nicest messages, and while you may see that in different parts of our own state, you don’t see it often in our city.

From comments overheard at the bar, you know that in these areas there are fewer people who are inclusive and open-minded to those who are a little different or think differently.

These places are exciting and beautiful and I am so happy to have these experiences and I will spend the rest of my life traveling but my heart and soul will always be in Maine, where we have a little bit of everything I love.