It's Me, Again

Ch. 40 (Dylan)

Waking up on our last full day in Tanzania was bittersweet. I, of course, was looking forward to another new day with Kate as my official girlfriend, but I didn't want this epic vacation to end. This place will always hold a special place in my heart.

Our game drives are over and this last day is just a relaxation day, which is probably going to be really needed considering tomorrow begins our long journey home. One last sunrise on the deck followed by breakfast and then a full day soaking in the sun and cooling off in the various pools. It's the first day of this entire trip that hasn't been go, go, go. I don't think either of us realized how badly we needed a day to do nothing and not have to be at a certain place at a certain time.

This whole vacation has been like a dream - from doing a little exploring of luxurious Dubai to traversing the Serengeti and seeing animals I thought I'd only ever see on nature shows. On top of that, this trip has brought me and Kate back together again. Like, for real back together. Basically, this trip has been the trip of a lifetime and I want to remember every second of it. I just hope the magic of these 10 days together doesn't fade when we land back in New Jersey. I always hear stories of couples that all seem to be doing great prior to vacation, have an amazing time on vacation, and then break up shortly afterwards. I don't know what the statistics are for couples that get together while on vacation. But, I try to put that out of my mind and enjoy this last day on a continent I never thought I'd get to travel to, let alone in my first 21 years of life.

We spent the last day by the pool, eating, and we even sprang for a couple's massage. Any future trips together would be hard to top this one. After one last dinner with Lizzie, we spent the night hanging out at the hotel bar and then in our suite just talking and joking around.

The next morning, all packed up, we said our goodbyes to Lizzie. The girls cried and hugged for a few minutes. When it was time to go, I put an arm around Kate and she buried her tear stained face in the crook between my shoulder and chest, and we walked to the prop plane that would take us back to the international airport.

As much as we hated to say goodbye to our vacation, the grueling hours of travel back home had us more than ready to get back home, showered, and in our own beds. At one point during the flight home, I was wide awake and Kate was snoozing. She looked cute even when she was sleeping with her mouth open.

Our hot air balloon date over the Serengeti was incredible, but Kate's little joke was right - how would I ever top that? I know she wouldn't expect me to, but still. For now, I needed to at least think of a nice first date back home. I sifted through a dozen different ideas in my head. I wanted something easy, but meaningful. Then, I had a total lightbulb moment. I would recreate our very first date, but make it nicer.

Kate and I had been friends since we were in elementary school, but didn't start dating until we were 15. With no licenses and limited amounts of money, our first date was a play in the park at a nearby large park that did summer theater programs, followed by dinner at Cheesecake Factory. My mom dropped us off at the park for the play and then her dad drove us from the park to the restaurant, allowing us to leave our lawn chairs in his trunk. At almost 22, I would not be having our parents drop us off so that would already be an upgrade. At 35,000 feet, I still had access to WiFi, thanks to modern technology, so I started doing some research on my phone. We would still go to Cheesecake Factory for this date recreation, just for old times sake and also I'm not made of money especially after this international vacation. But instead of seeing a play in the local park, I would take her to a play in Central Park. This would all be a surprise of course. I smiled to myself, satisfied with my idea.

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It took a few days to get over the jet lag. Thank god I took a few extra days off before heading back to work. Kate and I hung out almost every day the first week we returned and none of our friends seemed to be surprised in the slightest that we were together now.