By EDGE Woman Speaker and Professional Registered Parliamentarian, Azella C. Collins
The travel brochure highlighting a trip to the Middle East was highly enticing. The itinerary included visits to many historical, cultural, and historical sites. We would visit Dubai, the Burj Khalifa, and Abu Dubai, see the pyramids, the Sphinx, Cairo, and cruise the Nile River from Aswan to Luxor.
I perseverated for days before I decided to go on the trip. The decision to travel with the group was based on the bang for the buck, I would stay in four-five star hotels; the price, including airfare and a sim card, was fantastic. This solo traveler decided to join the group.
My first trip with a group of women started on a warm balmy day in March. We were to meet at the hotel in Dubai by 7 PM. As I entered the meeting room, there were thirty-two women with great smiling faces.
The group leader and our travel guide introduced themselves and shared the itinerary for the next fifteen days. The next day our travel guide led the group of relatively puzzled and well-rounded travelistas into the world's largest mall. I was right behind him, and the sound of his brown sandals hitting the marble flooring that covered the mall seemed to bounce off the stores' glass windows.
I discovered that waiting for the group to board the bus to various sites was torture. As I walked with the group, constantly following the group, my face reflected my slow death, dismal, and unfriendly attitude.
On day three, I made a personal decision to develop my people skills, both to avoid the disappointment of not learning something new, to learn a few new social skills, and meet new people.
I went to the mall with two pencils cocked between my two ears like guns, ready to fire. I was determined to stay focused throughout the tour and write down every word the guide uttered and everything I saw. However, I constantly felt myself drifting, and while my mind wandered, the group advanced significantly ahead of me, and while I missed the sighting of a KFC restaurant in the Middle East, I didn't miss Tim Horton's.
I ran up to the group just in time to hear the guide start his lecture about the gold souks we would visit. Instead of listening, I thought about letting the attendant know I was returning to the bus. I saw a man paint a Picasso-like rendition of birds. I, therefore, fell behind on the lecture, and so went the endless cycle: fall behind, try to catch up, fall more behind. When it came time to write in my travel journal, I stared at the piece of paper consisting of smudged squiggly lines. Frustrated and disappointed, I retreated to my room to seek refuge.
I then realized that I, too, was part of this environment. I was an observer and needed to pay attention to the guides and socialize with the group.
On the next tour, a visit to the many mosques, I intentionally lagged behind my fellow travelistas to get a more comprehensive, broader perspective of each mosque's environment.
I vowed to engage all of my senses and attempt to take in the vastness of it all. My pencil flew across the page. I described every beam, gold-tone pole, silver banister, meditation room, and rug display.
The next twelve days were terrific. I enjoyed Dubai, Au Dubai, and the cruise down the Nile. Most of all, I developed friendships with many of the ladies.
On this trip, I had a paradigm shift. In the beginning, I believed so strongly that group tours were worthless. This trip was a "journey" from resistance to developing social relationships.
I have a new perspective on group travel and developing social relationships.
Are you reluctant to move out of your comfort zone? Try it. You can do it.
About Azella:
Azella Collins has served as parliamentarian on local, national, and international levels for Kiwanis, nursing, medical and dental groups. She was the President of the Illinois Association of Parliamentarians and has held various offices in the Registered Parliamentarians of Illinois Unit. She has also served on the National Association of Parliamentarians Education Resource Committee.
As a consultant, Azella has helped boards establish their nonprofit business plan as she facilitated their strategic planning and operational processes utilizing various strategies and gap analyses.
Azella has made over 175 presentations during her career as a Professional Registered Parliamentarian. She has presented to various nonprofit boards ranging in size from 16 -30 and has served as a conference/convention parliamentarian for audiences from 50- 1500. Her presentations have been enjoyed by audiences across the globe, including throughout the United States of America, Japan, Spain, Australia, Canada, Ghana, South Africa, England, and Malta.