Travelling with my dad...

Since his children have left the house, my dad, who instilled in us a love of travel, has set forth a straightforward policy for which party assumes which costs when we travel with him. In sum, the child is responsible for travel to/from the destination (generally airfare), while the father picks up the tab for "ground costs."

Over the years, the definition of "ground costs" has evolved and been pushed to the limits. For example, we were in Ireland together, the week before a wedding (back in the US) which we both were going to attend. To prepare, we both needed haircuts. The question then became: is a haircut which took place in Ireland but has nothing to do with the Irish experience and is solely for an event that is in the US a "ground cost" associated with the trip?

We still argue the merits of the landmark 1998 "Dublin haircut" case.

The split in costs works well when my dad says "I'm going to destination X, who wants to come with me?"

There is the flip side to that which occurs when the child wants to go to destination Y. A case in point is Cuba in July 2006. The opportunity has arisen for a special trip to Cuba in July. The price is a bit steep, so the basic logic is, "if we can convince our father of the merits of the trip, then the costs go down to only the airfare."

Now, it's not as simple as saying, "Hey Dad, want to go to Cuba?" That can work,but it's weak. Keep in mind that there is another "cost" of travelling with my dad. When you do go somewhere with him, there is a pre-trip syllabus consisting of books, movies, lectures and other pre-trip enrichment that is required so that we can arrive in the country with the "Destination of the Mind" mentality, e.g. "Norway of the Mind" or "Ghana of the Mind" meaning you are ensconced in thinking about the destination in all its cultural, political, and economic facets.

Knowing that and knowing what makes my dad tick from an interest perspective, you have the potential to build a compelling case for why he should go to destination Y, i.e. Cuba, and then of course, by extension, why it makes sense to foot the bill for those who wish to travel with him.

Here then, is my recently submitted proposal for the value of travel to Cuba in 2006 (I have left out the estimated benefits for each though it was a component of the original proposal).

Meaningful Event (Area of Interest)
-75th anniversary of Bube/Zayde’s [his parents] honeymoon via Cuba (Epstein family history)
-55th anniversary of completion of “Old Man and the Sea” (Literature)
-45th anniversary of Bay of Pigs invasion (US History and current policy implications)
-80th birthday of Fidel Castro (August, 2006) (discussion of various forms of economic systems)
-105th anniversary of Platt Amendment which ceded Guantanamo to US (US History)
-Jewish Cuban history [post Inquisition and WWII refuge] (Jewish history)
-Social action to aid Jews of Cuba (Good works/Chesed)
-Opportunity to legally smoke Cuban cigars with sons (Family bonding)
-Visiting Cuba despite travel restrictions (Unique, differentiating travel experience)
-“Cuba of the mind” (Father-child bonding)