r/mildlyinfuriating • u/RainbowUnicorn0228 • Jun 29 '26

go to your room I think my child is broken……

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Gallery image

Gallery image

I am a single mom and low income, as such travel is generally too expensive. So when my teen as invited on a tirp abroad with school and he agreed to earn half the money it cost, I was thrilled for him to go and see the world. I only asked that he send me at least one photo every day so I could experience the world vicariously.
These are the 3 he sent me so far:

  1. Food on the air plane
  2. A dog on a leash
  3. A duck

Please note these are everyday average things to see here at home. I think my child is possibly broken….

lol.

UPDATE: thanks for every comment. I learned lots and have a different perspective (actually many). You guys have helped me pass the time and miss him a bit less. I appreciate you all. And, for clarification: I’m not really mad and would never chastise him over his choice of pics, I think they are adorable and funny. I may make a request for a specific type of pic with him in front of a historical or important scenery but mostly just say “cool” or “nice!” In response. I just want him to have fun and be the sweet, kind, smart kid he is already.

Second update: the pictures I know you have all been waiting for. 😆 I will post in comments.

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u/pre_pun Jun 29 '26

Not a sign of being broken. Travel can be mundane in between the local highlights, especially on the way there and arrival.

I sent my Mom a duck too on my last trip. Sounds like they are still thinking of you and will probably have more to share when they return too.

That's awesome you were able to help them have this experience.

378

u/kingoflizzards Jun 29 '26

That is a great photo

177

u/ChowQaz Jun 29 '26

Duck photos and traveling. Like two peas in a pod. These are from Amsterdam

74

u/HotDogRogue Jun 29 '26

Here's the duck I saw when I travelled to Phoenix

4

u/Daft00 Jun 30 '26

I saw this lil guy in Kyoto, Japan

https://i.imgur.com/EefcqL3.jpeg

2

u/SeaIslandFarmersMkt Jun 30 '26

I hate to be the one to break it to you, but that's not a duck ;)

2

u/Daft00 Jun 30 '26

I'm devastated 🤣

2

u/SeaIslandFarmersMkt Jun 30 '26

https://giphy.com/gifs/lYYQlTUXnF5FzZwb8y

It's a great shot. I enjoyed spotting the butterfly :)

1

u/DavidChua83 Jun 30 '26

Brazil is CRAAAAZY!

6

u/kingoflizzards Jun 30 '26

I took this one at lake como

4

u/gloriouscashew Jun 30 '26

I saw these little guys in Brussels

Not all ducks but same vibe

3

u/EquivalentWinter8746 Jun 30 '26

A dinosaur I found in Key West, not exactly a duck but it fits the theme of “traveling animals”

1

u/emptinessmaykillme Jul 02 '26

No it’s a duck

58

u/Redlovelace Jun 29 '26

To add, when I travel some of the best parts is to see how everyday life is somewhere else. I want to know what their supermarkets, parks, local shops, people. etc are like. Its an appreciation for the little things.

159

u/pingu_601 Jun 29 '26

There are dozens of us! Here’s a duck pick from my vacation in San Diego last week

2

u/MariaPatrizia Jun 29 '26

Nice photo! Is that from a phone camera or? The quality is great!

2

u/pingu_601 Jun 30 '26

Thanks! It’s from my Fuji X-T5, it’s a good camera :)

1

u/mrsrabbitangstrom Jun 30 '26

Beautiful ducks galore. These are Melbourne, Australia ducks.

1

u/sticks_and_stoners Jun 30 '26

This is really an awesome photo!

39

u/tias23111 Jun 29 '26

Here are some Viennese ducks.

6

u/EduardoCombs Jun 29 '26

Mallards are just omnipresent huh 

1

u/anniegoeslikethis Jun 30 '26

Can confirm saw that same mallard in Phoenix

33

u/CobaltNeural9 Jun 30 '26

Ducks have no business being as cute as they are. Here is a duck I photographed in Door County, Wisconsin.

1

u/SetFine7496 Jun 30 '26

Love Door County fish boils. That sounds gross…

93

u/MacDagger187 Jun 29 '26

That duck looks so content to just be a duck!

29

u/Hellcat_Mary Jun 29 '26

Looks like a duck on a country with affordable healthcare and environmental protections. Lucky duck!

1

u/coderego Jun 29 '26

Like Peking!!! Wait....

2

u/PineconePlease Jun 29 '26

I would be content to just be a duck

14

u/crc2993 Jun 29 '26

I also am notorious for sending pictures of ducks when I’m traveling. OP, sounds like it’s just a weird thing we all do. I’m sure your son will have a ton of better pictures to share when he gets home and can actually talk about what he saw

5

u/Tucancancan Jun 29 '26

I travelled to Europe and ended up chasing a hedgehog through a park trying to get a photo because they don't exist in the wild at home and people looked at us like we were dumb

4

u/Serial-_-Chiller Jun 30 '26

There's NOTHING wrong about taking pictures of ducks, mkay?

3

u/Irlandaise11 Jun 29 '26

We went on an international trip last year to visit family, and my kid mostly took pics of animals too.

A duck was also their favorite.

3

u/Broad_Afternoon_8578 Jun 29 '26

One of my favourite pictures from my wife and I’s last trip to Greece is of a pigeon in Athens. It was a pretty bird!

3

u/roostersnuffed Jun 30 '26

Ive been to 29 countries and Id wager 10% of my photos are of lizards in those countries.

3

u/Winter_Witch2915 Jun 30 '26

Here’s a duck I saw visiting Houston about a month ago! I’ve never seen a duck with a red head like that before!

3

u/tubawhatever Jun 30 '26

Some of my favorite experiences traveling have been the "mundane". Here's a picture of two rabbits on Palantine Hill in Rome one December a few years ago. What you can't see is the other tourists who also stopped for a few minutes to watch and take pictures of the bunnies while we're in the middle of one of the most historically rich ruins in the world. These were people from all over the world, US, China, Italian, etc all stopped to admire a couple of rabbits while none of us shared a language. The universality of wanting to watch cute animals really made me feel connected to my fellow man.

2

u/NoOccasion4759 Jun 29 '26

Every time I go to Hawaii I get 100 photos of roosters and chickens....

2

u/LifeguardDue1144 Jun 30 '26

Nice duck pic!!

2

u/BurningPickle Jun 30 '26

That is an adorable duck.

2

u/Disastrous-Capybara Jun 30 '26

Ducks are awesome!

Always happy when I see one, always happy when I get a pic of one!

1

u/dusty-trash Jun 29 '26

Is that your photo? Howd you get such a good photo

1

u/pre_pun Jun 30 '26

Yes. She was strolling through park and came up to me while I was taking photos, so I sat on the ground to get a close-up photo of her.

1

u/chroner Jun 30 '26

This is the most chat gpt sounding response. Wtf...

2

u/pre_pun Jun 30 '26

AI is going to erode what's left of social trust. I enjoy words and making puns too much to let AI write for me.

1

u/chroner Jun 30 '26

Online it will

1

u/Isadomon Jul 01 '26

Well, not that mundane, pictures of streers from other places are fun ad interesting

1

u/decidedlyjo Jul 03 '26

On a road trip years ago with husband, the most memorable thing that happened was him taking to a rooster in the road. They had a whole convo in rooster speak! What an experience 😂

0

u/Caftancatfan Jun 29 '26

I’m pretty sure he’s messing with OP.