Travel Series

It has been the case that we’re always answering questions about travel. We traveled extensively BS (before Sophia) and are planning to really pick it back up as soon as she is a little older. We find ourselves sharing our itineraries, dining destinations, worthwhile sites, museums, etc.

I started thinking about our unquenchable thirst for travel while sorting through the thousands of pictures we’ve amassed. Why is it that we travel, what do we get out of it and what are we willing to forgo to satisfy this ever-present need. So here goes:

Some people live to eat and we live to travel, to see and immerse ourselves in different cultures and traditions. In doing so, we get closer to understanding what are the universal building blocks of humanity — those characteristics that define everyone regardless of their ethnicity, nationality, color, and creed. I cannot profess to have amassed a complete understanding of this just yet (and maybe, I never will), but I believe that family, love, hatred, and a mother’s nature to protect are a few of the universal building blocks of humanity.

Furthermore, there are not enough words in the world that can deliver the same message and incite the same emotions as when immersed in a culture. Perspective is defined in lightening speed when you see hunger, poverty, squalid living conditions juxtaposed with unimaginable wealth. One cannot appreciate what they have until they see someone who has nothing. Incidentally, I can say that I finally understood why the king of France was guillotined after I visited Versailles for the second time.

That said, art (on a large scale), music, and theater are incredibly inspiring. You can spend one day seeing a poor peoples’ plight and feel disheartened by how such is possible in today’s world and then the next day be awed by the ability of the human mind and hand to create masterpieces.

So this is why we can’t get enough; why travel has been, is, and always will be our passion. Lastly, these are the rules, inspired by our travels, by which I live:

• Live your life to its fullest, seize the day at each and every sunrise
• Understand your fortune and be grateful; there are those who are hungry, thirsty and ill
• “Tell me what you eat and I will tell you who you are.” (Anthelme Brillat-Savarin)  Eat local, drink local, sit outside and do a bit of people watching.
• Beauty and braun are fleeting, your mind is forever so feed it with travel experiences, books and music
• Never make mean-spirited comments, even in jest, there is always someone smarter and better looking
• Take a chance on something each day. You only live once.
• Travel will free you from prejudice, bigotry and narrow-mindness but only if you let it.

A snapshot of our travel history in the years (a full decade — TEN) we’ve been together is forthcoming shortly along with a top X list.