Why Do We Go?
 

Folks:<BR><BR>For a slight change from the posts asking for favorite destinations or magical places, I'd like to know why you go, not where.<BR><BR>After a few essentially uninspiring trips to places that seemed to fit all of my careful selection criteria, I slowly realized that I've been looking for a place (a European place to be sure) I could call home. Every place I go to, I take mental soundings of me having morning coffee and reading the newspaper, taking afternoon walks, buying groceries, living in an apartment just there. And also realizing that I've already found my own personal future-adopted-hometown, I may curtail my wandering to new places and happily return repeatedly to that dream hometown until I get to live there permanently (or even semi-permanently).<BR><BR>So I wonder about other Fodorites. Are you searching for something specific or does the call of the unknown draw you? Do you delight in making new lines on the map, or do you search for the perfect view, the perfect mountaintop, the perfect lakeside village, the perfect historical village?<BR><BR>Tell me what draws you!<BR><BR>s

This certainly had the makings for a great new thread - - don't why it doesnt take off.<BR><BR>I am drawn to the unknown and unfamiliar. That's why I'd like to go to Galicia and Bretagne, or separately, to Czech Republic and southern Poland.<BR><BR>Best wishes,<BR><BR>Rex<BR>

I tend to go to places that have a simpler, slower pace than our own rat race. Where people enjoy sidewalk cafes, spending hours in musuems, shopping from small markets instead of huge grocery stores or bulk markets (how scary would it be to see a Costco in the middle of Paris?). <BR><BR>Of course foreign languages are romantic and dreamy to me also!

This is hard to explain to one who does not have the "pull" of the area. My parents were born in Italy, I have never ben there. My parents came here as children or teen agers , so I don't speak Italian. But thre French film, literature, fashion, style led me there.<BR>And, as one who doesn't have the money to do both countries, for that once a year trip, I opt for France with no regrets. One should travel where the heart leads not because you want to boast, that you have been here and there, but even that is ok , if that is where you are at.

Nice question. I like both, the familiar and the unknown. I love returning to Paris, for example, because I feel like I "know" it. On the other hand, Rome was a tremendous thrill since I'd never been there before. There *is* something about seeing a city, or sight, for the very first time that can be wonderfully thrilling. <BR><BR>I fell in love with Nice on my first visit there, in the spring of 1994 and have returned three times since, always staying at the same charming family-run hotel. I love that area and, if I had the wherewithall to do it [insert dream of winning lottery here], could see living there part of every year. <BR><BR>Ina Caro, who wrote the wonderful book, The Road from the Past: Traveling Through History in France, writes in it how she and her husband, author Robert Caro, always intend to visit a different country on each trip to Europe, but always keep returning to France because they love it so much.

All my life I have enjoyed reading and my favorite books were historical -set in other countries,England, France,Italy....so when I was able to travel farther than the states, I went to England and then on to the next place...I have to see all the places I read about over all those years.<BR>And sometimes it is good to be away from all that is familiar so when you come back to it, you appreciate it more~C

At home, speaking my native language, mundane life can become an endless spin job to consolidate or maintain political positions. <BR><BR>When I travel, I have at my utility another language which I am unable to use to do anything but express basic concepts. I cannot impress, nor spin.<BR><BR>In this sense, I can better present myself as I am, rather than how I want others to see me. Rejection rates are high, but the concept intrigues me enough to travel and to not fear learning new languages so that I can express myself in a simple, honest manner.

Travel is following my bliss (yep, I've just watched a Joseph Campbell rerun), and when I travel I always think "what if I had been born here" or "how would I live here"? I grew up in rural southern Ohio, which always seemed not me. So the places that I enjoy are plausible (if romantisized) alternatives - - Paris, Tuscany, the Cotswolds, Athens, etc. I don't enjoy places that I can't picture myself staying in or coming from. For example, I visited Mexico City last year and can't think of myself as either the descendant of conquistadors or of Aztecs. It's an interesting city, but not a place that I can identify with.

I sometimes wonder if the love of travel is not genetically influenced. My father was a world traveler. As a result I toured the USA and Canada a lot as a boy and young man.<BR>While an undergraduate I was encouraged to seek study opportunities in Europe, which I did successfully. I did more traveling that year than I did studying!! Since 1998 I have made an annual trip to Europe to see places I liked the first time, or have not yet visited. I now look forward to each trip.<BR>So it is a given that I grew up traveling, and going to Europe is easy for me to do. <BR><BR>So now the question is what do I find about travel that is satisfying.<BR>First, there are new places to see, which satisfies my curiosity and encourages my interest.<BR>Second, there are old favorites to revisit, with Paris and the Alps being my top two destinations. Third, there are old friends to visit. They are a diverse and talented group whose intellectual stimulation is welcome. Fourth there are new and different foods to try. Fifth there is a wealth of cultural experiences to enjoy. (I am a music lover and seek concerts at every opportunity. Last year in Vienna I had a choice: fancy meals or operas. Operas were the order of the day -- 3 times.)Sixth, I was a European history major as an undergrad and I get the chance to see places I had studied in school. <BR>Seventh, I think travel helps me to become a person I could not otherwise be if I restricted my travels to the USA by broadening my experieces and giving me an opportunity to see different cultures. Eight, at my age, the mental stimulation and travel and the challenge to learn a second language is a mind expander. I am hoping the effort will help me keep my mind in gear for a few more years at least. <BR>I am sure there are others, but that is the best I can for the moment.<BR><BR>

Good question. Someone just asked me yesterday why a)we spend so much time in travel and b)why we don't have a travel agent handle the stuff.<BR><BR>I agree with the above posters--half of it is dreaming of a place we might call home, or imagining ourselves with a different life, different pace.<BR><BR>Also wonder if one's parents might affect the attitude. My husband's mother and my parents had sparsely furnished houses and wardrobes so that they could scrape up the money to "hit the road." And they were always on the move--no week-on-the-beach stuff. <BR><BR>

I first experienced travel as an escape from x-mas and new years hoildays--traveling around Mexico in 1980. I've since spent both those holidays in Tokyo Japan (1 time), Hong Kong (2 times), Madras South India (they have tamil new year in April and the regular Jan 1)Malaysia (has new year in April),<BR>and I've been to a few other Asian countries--Europe is so much like Western civilzation I mean it is Western Civilization out American roots come to life and so I prefer more exotic countries for a huge change and to see how other people live--Europe will be better fro me when I get older I think <BR>

Hmm... a fascination at a young age about our little blue planet spinning around has always propeled me to seek out what is beyond my immediate sight. I totally agree about the intellectual simulation of travel... Afterall how can we truly know ourselves as human beings if we sit at home with only a bird's eye view. (This is not to say that those who travel always have the broadest of minds or views) But one way of completely embracing the human experience is to go and see, do and be in as many different ways as we can. <BR><BR>On that note, I have a question for all you fellow travellers out there. Does anyone have any advice about planning trips that include multiple destinations in just a few weeks? Specifically, I am planning a four week rip to Europe and would like to get some general advice or warnings on how to make the best of my trip. Destinations I have in mind mostly include southern Europe, Italy, Greece, Spain, Portugal, etc. Your advice is much appreciated.

I travel for the love of it as well as to remind myself that the world is larger than myself. I need to be occasionally reminded to keep it simple and jump out of the materialistic rat race that seems to draw me in. Europe seems to ground me. <BR>If I won the lottery today (which is at 85 million here in Florida), I would move to Marbella, Spain....or Rome...or maybe Albuferia, Portugal...but then again, Paris would be wonderful but Barcelona pulls my arm as well. Gee, you get the picture.

S: Good question!<BR>I keep on returning to the British Isles because of Camelot, Prince Valiant, Gloriana, Ivanhoe, Edward R. Murrow's You are there, The Signing of the Magna Charta..... all a major part of my childhood fascinations. I enjoyed Arthur's Round Table and Knights and Castles, therefore I keep on going back to capture some of childhood fantasies. Also, Jane Austin's Regencys, the Bronte's atomospheric Moors..... I have to see them, feel them....literature, history, my loves.<BR>Judy :-)

1. I love new places, new experiences, meeting new people and seeing new things.<BR>2. We live in a very young city in a young country. I have always been fascinated by the antique, the historical, and the truly ancient; to actually see and touch what I have only read about/dreamed about before is a joy I can't describe.<BR>3. Because we're in a positon where we can travel at this point in our lives.<BR>ja

Good question, simple answer.<BR><BR>Because I Can.<BR><BR>It's so easy to get caught up in life... in family, in work, in relationships. I'm in my mid-20's, single, and free. And currently researching a backpacking trip around the world, simply because I Can.<BR><BR>The other, secondary reason for my travel is that it helps to understand the world around us; if i NEVER left the street I live on, Ever, it would be a very sheltered, closed view of the world... Some of us just stay in their towns. Others explore their state/county. Then more of us visit our country... our continent... I choose to see the world. The greater your horizons, the better you can understand your piece of the world.

Sure, the pull is there, but there is nothing like coming back to the clean and modern U.S. after being away on a European trip! I mean refrigerated meat and eggs, clean kitchens, so little cigarette smoking, the list is endless.

I don't know what exactly gave me the travel bug. No one in my family traveled that I knew of. I learned as an adult that my father spent 3 years traveling around the US when he was a very young man. I was sent to Germany while in the service and stayed there as a civilian for a total of 7 years and got a lot of travelling in. I had an uncle, who was Hungarian born, so I had an interest there. Budfapestd out to be the most beautiful city in Europe. I have an intense interest in history, so Europe interests me in that respect I like to visit new places each time a travel (although I'd love to spend some more time in Germany, Hungary and Italy. Future plans are the British Isles as I've only spent a weekend in London. I don't often return to the same places, as there are so many that I've not seen. Home is the US and I live in So Cal for the weather. I will probably retire in New England as most of my family is there and it is one of the most beautiful areas of the US. I have also traveled extensively in the US not so much for the cities, but rather for the natural beauty of so many places. I loved Poland last year and had the experience of having dinner in the house where Dracula was born in Transylvania (it got dark and experienced lightning and thunder whilst having dinner - very spooky).<BR>Regards,<BR>

Why do we go? Because it's there.

The going creates a whole new pathway in my brain, where I can make connections to things diverse, yet universally common, like comparing pictish symbols carved in stone in Scotland to Anasazi rock art in the Canyonlands, or comparing the architecture and wrought iron railings of Montmarte to New Orleans, but even that is just a small piece of it. When you go and then finally settle into really being gone, time takes on a new dimension... the senses are keen to every nuance, every detail down to the match book or museum stub is a work of art. There are some places that I have revisted in my dreams... just as if I was there and touring around, but aware that I'm dreaming it.<BR>Travel gives me a sense of moving multi-dimensionally in the past, present and future. I go because I know I will discover something new about myself and my relationships to people. I go because I know I will be freed up in a way that I can't predict.

I almost didn't open this thread. Silly moi! Thanks s' and you probably already know my answer. But I won't repeat it, simply because you and Dr. Betty have said it more eloquently than I ever could. God bless you both! J.

Perhaps, it is genetic! My parents loved to travel. As a child, I remember them coming back laden with gifts and seeming exhilarated by their trips. My widowed mother, even into her late 70's always traveled to visit her children or to parts of the world that interested her; taking some of us with her. Nothing held her back, not even chemotherapy. She got married again at age 78 and went to Capri and Provence on her honeymoon. With her as inspiration I GO... <BR><BR>I once had a dream where I was in this wonderful, white washed mediterranean-type village, with sweet sunny light and air, neighbors sat out on the porches and were very friendly, and I was wearing some really cool clothes, strolling with sweet, loving friends!! The feeling was one of wholeness and love. I long to find that place and settle there for at least part of the year. So, perhaps that's why I travel. Always, wondering where that place is or if it's even in a physical location....

I'm thinking about this question as I look around at my slightly shabby living room furniture and wonder whether my car will last another 2 years and I have to ask myself, why are we spending almost $10,000 on a family trip to Italy this summer? All of you people reading this understand.. Partly to add excitement to a normal 9 to 5 life of course. I find its very important to me to have something to look forward to--a reward for all of the mundane days spent at work that will involve a complete change of scenery,adventures, new cultures to explore, etc. Why do I pick the places I travel to? Some are places, that for some reason, I've always wanted to see, like Greece which I've wanted to see since I was a teenager (haven't made it there yet, but I will), other destinations come from movies or books I've read. Some I revisit because of the great times I've had there and the knowledge that there's so much I missed last time. Yes, I guess it would be more "practical" to buy a new car or replace some furniture, but our time on this planet is very short, and what a shame it would be not to experience as much of it as we possibly can while we're here.

Cindy expressed some of what I feel. My regular life is pretty routine, and I love the feeling of laying it aside and doing something completely different. Also, I have always been an avid reader and used to enjoy those old damsel in distress mysteries--Mary Stewart, Helen MacInnis, etc. I finally figured out that what I liked so much about them was the settings rather than the stories. There are so many places I still want to see, and then there are so many places I have seen and would like to go back to. How much was that lottery?

I can't bring my money, house or car with me when I die, but I can bring my memories. And what better way to collect those memories than thru travel?

Wayne-well said! I think you hit it right on the head..You can sit around your home and collect "things" and look at them and sometimes show them off-or you can take the same money and spend it traveling,meeting the people out there in the world,seeing the way the rest of the world lives,eats,worships,speaks,thinks,etc-etc-and be soo much richer in mind and spirit!(and so much more interesting yourself!)<BR>At least that is MOHO~

Why do I go? I think because I have to. There is some force inside of me that will allow nothing but going. Still, I think I can provide an explanation of its development. When I was growing up, we traveled very little, except for trips to the beach, mountains, places in Virginia, and one big trip to Florida. My parents still have never been out of the country (except Canada), but they always have had at least some urge to go see things. My father actually drove to Alaska and back from North Carolina a few years ago. I think most of my interest was developed around the age of 5-7 years. I used to pore through the encyclopedias at my grandmother's house where I stayed during the day, I was fascinated by my mother's old school report cut to the shape of Japan, and my grandmother brought me a Mexican newspaper and Mexican flag from a short excursion across the border on a visit to Texas (I was thrilled). <BR><BR>I developed a love of history at this early age, and the most exciting places to me were Civil War forts, Jamestown, and other historic sites. Just driving across the border to Virginia (only 20 miles or so from home) was exciting to me because it was somehow different. I think part of it also comes from a love or interest in things that are different. I love trying different foods, I despise routine, and I don't get trying to be like everyone else. I guess I just have a real sense of and need for adventure. I can enjoy myself and find something interesting most anywhere I travel; I didn't like Cancun or Las Vegas, for example, compared to other places, but I certainly made the most out of my trips there (the latter was for work). When I travel for work, I do and see 5 times more than most of my co-workers. They say there just isn't enough time, but I make the time and plan ahead. Even if it means getting up at 6:00 to go out and take some photos so that I can be at work by 8 or 9 and on my feet all day, well then up at 6:00 it is. The feet can rest later.<BR><BR>I guess I come back to what I said at first. It is just an irresistible, but partly understandable, urge to go.

Reading these replies, I am struck by the similar themes, such as dan's-I think I have the answer!<BR>Some of us have Travel Genes! and some do not:)

Kate<BR><BR>I definitely have travel genes (and travel jeans!) and that's probably the starting point.<BR><BR>My parents, particularly my father, are mad mad travellers, now they are retired I can't even keep up with them! So when others in my class were visiting Majorca or some other beach resort in Spain, (not that I am putting those down), we were off to Alaska, Peru, India, Europe... I got the bug early. <BR><BR>I travel because I can't NOT travel... I get too agitated at the thought of not having anything to look forward to. Like Cindy there is that element of being transported out of one's everyday life. My everyday life isn't bad, infact it's pretty good, I am generally happy at work, though waiting to find out this week whether I will be made redundant, I have a great husband (who is my ideal travel companion, thinking about that other Fodorite theme which often gets asked) and I enjoy my social life immensely. But there is still something to be said for the excitement of the new location, exploring, being on holiday and not having to work, enjoying the whole experience.<BR><BR>And I savour the anticipation of a holiday booked and eagerly awaited almost as much as the holiday itself.<BR><BR>Paris 9th Feb<BR>Pas de Calais 23rd Feb (I know they are so close, but oddly they are two seperate holidays with a week at work in between)<BR>Venice 27th March<BR>Anglesea (Wales) 28th June<BR><BR>!!!!<BR><BR>Happy Travelling!

kavey-there is mail coming regarding paris with a 13 yr old~

more on this please, it a great thread

Today-I would say that I go because I am sick of winter, sick of trying to find someone to rebuild my bathroom and longing for a hot chocolate at Angelinas,a coq a vin in a little bistro, then a walk on the Seine with my love...