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When my mother, sister and I backpacked around the world when I was but fourteen years old. This may seem a bit young to most people contemplating a young teenager venturing out and backpacking around the world for an entire year, but in retrospect we may never of taken this quality and lengthy a trip if we had waited for a "better" time.

For starters, the reason we were able to travel for that long is my mother was an elementary school teacher and was given a sabbatical to travel the world, for the whole year. So we may not have had much money to do this trip, we simply knew we had to keep the cost within an average teacher's monthly wage. For those unfamiliar with "sabbatical," this means the company pays you your normal paycheck, but to travel, in the hopes you will become a more well-rounded and educated person able to give back more to your employer -- which in our case was to become a better 3rd grade teacher with more to offer her students. Sabbaticals of this type for this duration are unheard of these days or at best extremely difficult to qualify for. Again, if we had not gone during that year we may not of gone at all.

Another reason to travel while you can or in the here and now, is simply because this world is changing at such a rapid pace when you figure in politics, American relations, wars, etc. We were able to not only go through Europe, but extensively through Africa. At the time we were welcomed into every country including countries now on our State Departments black list -- countries like the Sudan, Uganda, Libya, Kenya, etc. Kenya you may still be able to travel to but the crime and hazards now out weigh the risk of going at all, perhaps in months to follow this will change. Goodbye to some of the world's best game parks and going on Safari's in those countries. This is not to be condescending or depressing, but to let you know that wherever you plan to travel in this world could politically shift making the country off limits for years to come. "Travel while you still can" is our motto here.

Then there are the countries that are so annihilated and worn torn, one can never go again, at least not in our lifetime. I am referring to our travels through the Middle East. Oh how much fun it was to traverse the back-streets of Afghanistan and Pakistan. Not anymore my friends. The beautiful mosques of Iran- not now anyways.

Of course we can all still go to mainstream travel hotspots like Cancun or perhaps the South of France, but gorgeous Mombassa Beach in the Red Sea--a little too dangerous for us now, especially with a family in tow. Research your destination and go while you still can.

Thankfully with the Obama Administration our reputation as Americans is on the rise -- thank God, because that is half the battle. How we are perceived as American citizens makes all the difference in the world. I mean who wants to travel to some exotic locale only to find we are despised there. Not a pretty scene.

One last note: A recession is actually the best time to travel as the crowds are thinner and the hotel industry and airlines are all slashing rates. It's simple supply and demand. This leaves you with no excuses in planning your next fabulous trip. Research your destinations for safety and planning sake, though now is one of the greatest times in history for budget travel, so go ahead and pack the bags and take that long awaited trip... As always, we at Get A Trip.com wish you the very best and look forward to meeting you down the happy road of travel destiny...Get A Trip.com: Official Blog

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