Call me Kalia #TravelBrillantly

Call Me Kalia

Imagine having a tour guide made just for you. No need to fret about going at inconvenient times of the day, seeing something you saw on your last trip three years ago, or even a large group of individuals. A tour guide that fits straight into your pocket. That is why Kalia was invented, so you can have a customized experience, without the insane cost of private tours.

I created  Kalia because my family had traveled a lot when I was a kid, continually seeing something. They always pushed us for the time to make it to the next event or showing that my parents preferred to see. It tired me of missing out on what I wished to see, due to the poor planning that had taken place.

Years later, Kalia had developed into one of the biggest travel must-haves in the country. She was becoming essential to anybody who traveled. Even though she was my creation, and I had traveled with her, I never went out of the states with her. My wife Kally had wished to take the kids to Belize. A place where neither of us had been, but our neighbors Garett and Carrie Creedmore had gone there last summer and had not stopped talking about it.

So after a great conversation, we agreed to pack up the kids and take them to Belize, and use Kalia for the first time out of the states. I grabbed Kalia's box from the desk and pushed the button bringing the hologram into view.

"What can I do for you today, Preston?" Kalia chimed as she appeared.

"Kalia, book a flight to Belize for the family, for July fourteenth through the twenty-first.," I stated.

"That's a fantastic spot for a family vacation Preston. Your flight is July fourteenth at eight a.m. I also booked you a rental car and a hotel room."

"Thank you Kalia," I said as I pressed the box dismissing Kalia.

"You're welcome, Preston." static took over her voice as she disappeared into nothing once more.

I told Kally that night over dinner I had Kalia book a trip to Belize. The girls stayed at a friends home for the night. We wanted to make it a surprise for them, this was the first time they would travel out of the country.

The day before the trip we told the girls we would travel to Belize, I don't think I ever saw my two girls get more enthusiastic over anything before. They hurried away to their rooms talking about all the details of the trip to Belize as they snatched their bags.

"Well, that went well." I chuckled at my wife.

"I thought it thrilled me." she snickered as she pecked my cheek.

Kalia had reserved us an Uber for our departure on July fourteenth. They arrived on time at five-thirty that morning before the flight. Samantha and Audrey were texting, snapping, and tweeting about the trip. I rolled my eyes at the array of selfies being taken in the backseat of the car.

"Will we have our daughters away from their phones on this trip?" I teased my daughters.

Both of their heads popped up "We have to take pictures and post about this dad!"

My wife couldn't help but laugh as I threw up my hands up in surrender for suggesting such a cruel and unusual punishment to teenage girls.

After dealing with traffic, and the bustling airport we made it to Belize. I heard my daughters gasp at the sights and giggle as they took pictures.

"Thank you for this trip." Kally thanked me with a hug and a kiss.

"Anything for you, my love.," I responded.

We made our way to the rental car office, gave the young women at the desk my name and they called the valet to bring it up to the door.

"Thank you, ma'am." I nodded as I walked to the door to await our rental. Kally and the girls following close behind us. The valet loaded our luggage into the vehicle as we piled in ourselves.

"Have a great day, Mr. Gibson" the valet smiled as he handed me the keys to the car.

"Thank you, Jeremy, take this." I grinned as I handed him a generous tip. His face lit up when he saw the amount. I predict he's probably a college kid trying to save up and every small bit helps.

I placed Kalia's box on the console and pressed the button bringing her alive.

"Hello, Preston. Hope your travels have been kind." Kalias voice sung through the car.

"They were great, Thank you Kalia. Can you give us directions to the hotel?" I asked.

"Of Course! I think all of you will love the hotel I booked. Oceanfront views!" she gleamed. Her body changed into a map showing us the way to the hotel.

We arrived at the hotel twenty minutes later, and we were not disappointed. Kally and the girls gawked up at the hotel, silently begging to hurry inside to see what it held. The bellman rushed outside to the car and got permission to unload our bags. I handed the keys to valet as we made our way to check in.

The next day we went to see Shark Way Alley, Samantha's pick. Before we went sightseeing, we went to a local favorite for breakfast called Le Petit Cafe. It was a small family cafe nestled in the city. Kalia had directed us to it, she had planned the entire trip for my family.

That week my family grew closer than ever. All thanks to the artificial intelligence I created. It all started with the simple words of "Hello, you can call me Kalia." I still remember hearing those words like it was yesterday.