Around this time every year, when the warm summer nights give way to cool autumn mornings, I find myself taking a look at all I’ve accomplished throughout the year and trying to find sources of inspiration to aid in goal-setting for the near future.  This, of course, takes many forms.  Sometimes I bury myself in travel memoirs.  Other times I watch documentaries or look up articles on a particular area or country.  Occasionally I check out the international safety ratings to see which countries are currently off-limits.  And then there are times when I do a combination of all these things.

I particularly like taking some time to revisit my travel journals.  It’s nice to keep those exciting experiences alive by reminiscing and getting lost in nostalgia.  Especially when searching for providence, I always make a point of reading the quotes I’ve collected which speak right to my heart, and sometimes my soul.

It is amazing how a few simple words can take us out of place and time, only to inspire us to contemplate new places and new times.  What a treat it is to allow our thoughts to drift along the fine line between fantasy and future plans.

In my opinion, an existential look at travel is very important.  Two great quotes I always come back to are, “We do not take a trip, a trip takes us,” and “Let the world change you and you can change the world.”  I know that romanticism tends to be a big part of my life, but make no mistake, I’m not an armchair explorer who sits around and waxes philosophic all day.  However, these quotes are great for opening the mind to think of something larger than oneself; to acknowledge that forces greater than thee are at work and we as individuals should be along for the ride with our senses acute and hearts wide open.

This mindset can be easier for some to achieve than others, and the subject of travel can be more complicated than it needs to be in some cases.  There are so many people I know who love the idea of travel but always seem to give reasons or excuses of why they cannot.  Whether it is money, family or their pets, the examples are familiar and recurring.  I, on the other hand, prefer to make excuses of why I should travel and how much importance should be placed on it.  The goal is to get excited about travel and then actually have the experience.

This brings to mind two more very meaningful quotes that I turn to time and time again.

“Travel is a way to give to the soul – experience the exotic, engage in other cultures, challenge your beliefs, and connect with who you are.”

This concept comes into play for almost every journey I take, especially journeys out of the country.  My small suitcase may be heavy, my days may be long and my feet tired, but my lungs breathe deeply and my heart is always light. 

Along similar lines comes a Frank Herbert quote: “Without new experiences, something inside us sleeps.  The sleeper must awaken.”  I believe this holds true for everyone.  Many things happen when we travel.  We step outside our carefully constructed comfort zones and put ourselves at the mercy of strangers, both foreign and domestic, especially if independent travel is the plan of attack.  We tend to be dazzled by our new environment, picking up on minor details we are usually numb to back home.  And, at least for me, a wave of mysterious energy seems to wash over the body, allowing for hours of exploring before the desire to rest and recharge.  If we fail to give ourselves these gifts of travel and experience, we remain numb and blind.  Without the opportunity to be enlightened, exercise our skills and knowledge, or utilize our senses, we fail to live as truly awake beings.

For the record, I want to make clear that I am not just talking about exotic travel to faraway lands that require exorbitant amounts of money.  My personal goal is to visit one new country and one new domestic location each year…not too crazy.  And with public transportation and cheap hostels, each trip I take is VERY inexpensive.  My point is that any new experience that brings you to a new environment is good for the mind, body and soul.  Understanding how nourishing travel can be is great, and being in the right frame of mind to appreciate a new experience is wonderful, but actually seeing a dream come to fruition is priceless.

My mantra for independent travel is a quote by Emerson, “Do not go where the path may lead – go instead where there is no path, and leave a trail.”

I’m not a resort or all-inclusive type of traveler.  I enjoy doing research of an area, looking at a ton of possibilities, then narrowing my focus to a few items that pique my interest and then trying to figure out how to put all the puzzle pieces together.  Attacking a trip from multiple angles is necessary to ensure I’m fully aware of all the wonderful things a new area has to offer.  I look up pictures and maps and articles and travel guides.  Finally, when I have put the puzzle together, and I know how to get from point A to B and so on, it is then time to budget, order tickets and count down the days.  I love knowing that each trip is unique to me and I’ll be able to enjoy my time in each location because I have purposely picked the areas that will fill my days.  Although I have been known to partake in a day excursion to get a history lesson and quick transportation to a few significant locations, I love having the option to make my schedule whatever I’d like it to be.  Having an entire trip planned out and almost every hour spoken for sounds exhausting and boring at the same time.  Knowing that I’ve carved a unique path from start to finish gives me a great sense of accomplishment, and a thirst to keep carving more in the future.  And true to the quote, I keep most of my travel info so I can be a resource for those individuals who may need a little insight before being courageous enough to take the plunge for themselves.

Home sweet home?!?

Henry Miller says that “ones destination is never a place, but a new way of seeing things.”  Ahhh, herein lies my personal challenge.  Sometimes my destination list is so long that I lose sight of how to properly see my current location.  This area will continue to be a work in progress, but what a wonderful project to have!  To assist with this challenge, I regularly use my favorite quote, which perfectly sums up my approach to a life dedicated to travel and experience.  T.S. Eliot writes, “And the end of all our exploring will be to arrive where we started and know the place for the first time.”  What a wonderful notion.  I sometimes struggle with honing my ability to treat the area in which I live as an exotic place all its own.  I try to keep my senses open to fully capture the state of being and find extraordinary in the commonplace, but I have noticed that it is always easier to appreciate home when you are coming back from an experience in a distant land.

And so, with Fall having just arrived and a few months of travel research ahead of me, I leave everyone with a final quote for inspiration.

“The world is a book, and those who do not travel read only one page.”