I originally wrote this for The Roadless Travel Blog on July 4, 2012. I was, at the time, teaching full-time as an NC-PACE instructor for the US Navy, and I penned this on a port visit in Cannes, France.

I am once again out to sea with the US Navy. This time, however, instead of teaching aboard the USS George Washington (CVN-73) out of Yokosuka, Japan, I am aboard the USS Hué City (CG-66) out of Jacksonville, Florida. I boarded the ship in Jacksonville on June 19 and we set sail on June 20. As I write this, we have just completed a trek across the Atlantic Ocean, through the Straight of Gibraltar, and into the Mediterranean Sea. We are currently moored off in Cannes, France, and I am waiting for “Liberty Call. Liberty Call” to sound over the 1MC (the ship’s intercom system) so I can begin my adventures in and around France, and so I can eat some food that isn’t cooked in the ship’s galley. This port starts today, July 3rd, and will end on July 7th. While I am certainly excited about traveling, yet again, to another country that I have never been to or ever thought that I would go, I approach this military-funded mini-vacation with a faint bit of melancholy in my demeanor. The reason for the bit of dolefulness is quite simply the fact that I will be, for the first time, spending America’s birthday in another country.

I love my country, and I love the culture that surrounds the way that Americans celebrate stuff, especially the 4th of July. It is a holiday that is the perfect mixture of who we are as a nation. First, there is the history of our country that we have the opportunity to reflect upon. The fight for political, religious, and personal independence birthed our great nation, and now it is the model for all other nations on how to mold, mature, and maintain a democracy. Then, and maybe most importantly, there is the food. The 4th of July is synonymous with backyard barbecues, and since I come from Kansas City, barbecue is in my blood. In fact, I am pretty sure that my plasma would make a pretty good marinade for a couple chuck wagon steaks or a set of spare ribs. Therefore, a holiday that sets barbecue as it’s main dish is a holiday that I (or any meat eating hominid) would be hard-pressed to miss.

Then there are the fireworks. As Americans we love a good party and what says “The party is here!” more than explosives and beer? Filmmaker Michael Bay isn’t the only guy who likes to blow things up. Hell, I can’t tell you how many times as a kid my step-brothers, Kevin and Patrick, and I nearly blew off our own hands, blew out a window at the church across the street from our house, or nearly lit our neighbor’s house on fire due to some explosion that went off a little too close for comfort. The fourth of July is, undoubtedly, all about the ability of a bunch of freedom loving individuals to get together and blow stuff up, and by “blow stuff up,” I mean the evening’s firework show. And it doesn’t matter whether that show is held at the local baseball stadium with an accompanying F-18 fly-over, at the lake with some drunk fool shooting bottle rockets out of his boat, or in the driveway with a bunch of folding chairs circled up and one person elected as the grandmaster of ceremonies. This is the fourth of July.

But, hell, there is more. If barbecue, beer, and explosive (and often illegal) fireworks aren’t enough to get one in a celebratory mood for the 4th, then there is the music that is often heard blaring from the front porches and back yards of citizens gearing up for the festivities; it’s often an eclectic mix of country, classic rock, and often a little soul and hip-hop. I mean, nothing plays better on the 4th of July better than a little Bob Seager’s “Mainstreet,” Tom Petty’s “Free Fallin’,” Don McLean’s “American Pie,” Toby Keith’s “Made in America,” and of course, Ray Charles’ “America The Beautiful.” What’s more, it’s often in the parks, front porches, backyards, and other outdoor locations where the music, barbecue, and fireworks are drawing fun-loving crowds of all shapes and sizes.

For about six years running, I have spent the 4th of July at the University of Redlands in Redlands, California. The University’s main lawn plays host to a wonderful fireworks show, C-17 and F-18 flyovers, a group of professional parachuters strategically landing in stadium, and a hoard of onlookers grilling, gaming, and having an all-around good time. I will miss this. I will be in France playing the role of an overly-excited tourist and traveler this 4th, but I will undoubtedly miss the celebrations like the one at the University of Redlands. I will miss my family; I will miss my friends; and I will miss the sights and sounds that fill the air as America celebrates yet another birthday.

I am grateful for the opportunity to travel the world, but the old adage still rings true, “there is no place [quite] like home.” I will enjoy my time in France, but I will undoubtedly miss The United States as it celebrates the anniversary of its Independence Day.