Been there, done that, got the T-shirt" - why do YOU travel?

Travel? Bah....the rest of the world is full of foreigners

I'll have some serious thoughts later!

Walter - good question!

Travel not only broadens the mind - it broadens the hips, too!

I travel because I miss my friends and they keep moving to Europe, or live there already. And to meet new friends there.

I travel to Europe because it's so different to Australia. Different cultures, history, cities, countryside, different light, food, languages, the excitement ( ) of being constantly disoriented (read lost) in the northern hemisphere.

I travel in Australia because it's special; so different to anywhere else, so much open space, different light, I speak the language (more or less), beaches, animals. The sun is in the correct position, and the cars are on the right side of the road, (which is the left! ). And I don't usually get lost.

I see no sense in travelling just to tick off the places you've been, to provide endless lists, to brag about it. For me the fun of travel is in the individual incidents, places, situations, and, of course, the stories. I like the small scale of travel - and couldn't tolerate the guided tours of countries and days.

Really, I travel because that's what I love to do, and I'm only limited by budget!

I could copy and paste your response, margo, just changing the places ... ... ...

Women with accents.

I don't travel as much as I used to, but I loved spending time in the UK back in the '80s. For Americans, especially, I think it's a good idea to leave the country for a while. Good to see the US from the outside and realize that the rest of the world doesn't necessarily dance to our beat.

Of course, some Americans travel to complain about how inferior the rest of the world is to their beloved country. Perhaps others do this, as well.

Now I mostly stay home. As Thoreau once said, "I've travelled widely--in Concord." He was very wise...

Travel has always (you know, in my long 27 or 28 years) been a solitary, inward-looking thing for me. I mean, I absorb environments I'm in, meet a couple of people here and there, but mostly I've always used it as an opportunity to sever myself from my everyday life and, by examining something "other," re-examine my own life. Not that I plan it that way, but that's how it works out. Used to spend a lot of time roaming around the back-country...

There is some worry that I will lose my sight, so before that happens, I want to see things that I've read about and interest me, to "discover" them for myself. I am an outdoorsy person so these tend to be mountains, seas, gardens and great monuments. The ones I've already seen have been so entrancing, now I want to see them again in different seasons.

It is fascinating to me why people choose to live in different spots, so wherever I go I'm also investigating what it is that makes the people who live there love it, or at least, not leave it. I suppose I also like to keep my own options open, but so far I've found that there's no place like home.

my wife and i love to travel. whether it's a mid-summer trip to one of the beaches along lake ontario, a trip north from kingston to the lboth akes that are plentiful in the hinterland, or spending a month(during the fall) in myrtle beach, south carolina - we like just walking on the beaches and watch the birds flying by or feeding in the saltmarshes - ; we always find some special enjoyment in our travels. we have also enjoyed travelling the oceans and have always been lucky to meet pleasant and interesting travel mates on our cruises. one of our next travel targets - we hope to make it next year - is switzerland. we have looked in particular at the services of the swiss railways and the swiss postbus system.has anyone had any experience in travelling in switzerland on a "modest" budget? we are no longer in the youthhostel category of travellers but do not want to pay hotelprices that would eliminate our retirement "nestegg" either(we spend three weeks in vienna, austria two years ago and found the prices for *** and **** hotels quite reasonable - around euro 70 per couple/night - ; have had trouble coming up with anything in that pricerange in switzerland ). any advice would be appreciated. friends suggested a coach holiday to switzerland from the u.k. - they travelled with SHEARING COACH LINES and were quite satisfied with the arrangements; haven't been able to find a website for the coach company. anyone have helpful hints? thanks! hbg

a couple of years ago i was in Spain on the costa del sol surrounded by Brits and Germans on holiday. i hopped on a local bus heading into the hills and farmlands a few hours inland and got off the bus in the center of a small village of perhaps 1,000 people. In the center of the town was a small outdoor cafe where i sat alone at a table in the shade with a coffee when along came a man returning to his house from the fields where he had spent the morning. He sat down beside me and had a glass of wine and asked where i was from. When i told him i was american (this was shortly after 9/11) he just shook his head and said something about the world had gone mad and then told me about his fields of vegetables that he grew and sold in the market down in Malaga. We sat their talking for about an hour and then he stood up and said to me, come then to my house and we shall eat. we walked the block or so to his home and he introduced me to his wife and told her i was staying for lunch, she smiled broadly showed me her very modern kitchen that she was very proud of. we ate and ate and then ate dessert with much wine and then went into the living room which was without roof but walled in like any other room with a fireplace in the corner and tile floors and plants everywhere and the told my about their children who were all off and married and living in the city,they showed me the pictures of their grandchildren and they laughed at my coyboy hat and boots and called me Clint Eastwood. we spend the afternoon drinking their homemade wine and talking of the children and the world they were about to inherit and they had fear in their voices as they talked about the changing world. about sundown i caught the bus back to the city where i sat on the beach wall and watched the tourists coming up the beach to their hotels and wonder why they had come so far and only talked with each other about where they could get their English dinner or their German dinner. It was a good day for me and was an example of why i travel.

I guess as an adult I've traveled to visit people. When I was still living with my parents we'd travel as a family - even then it was in part to visit people.

My Dad instilled the desire to travel for me......The poor guy spent many years trying to come up with 'ideas' to keep his two daughters occupied during his visitation weekends.

Since sister and I love to sing '100 bottles of beer on the wall' endlessly, we spent a lot of time on the road seeing out of the way places.

Yes. I have seen the largest ball of twine.

Don't have a t-shirt though.

There are so many places I would love to see, but so far my travel has been back home to Dublin, which I love to visit. I love the Irish sense of humor, and their wisdom, and their "throw caution to the winds" attitude.

Besides all that, the country is beautiful, it never ceases to stop me in my tracks, to smell the roses, to love where I am, to remember my roots, and to recall the smiling faces of my relatives who have gone before me.

I have travelled extensively in the USA, and believe California is the most beautiful place in the world, besides Ireland.

I have lived in Boston, which is gorgeous, and have been to all the NE states, like New Hampshire, Maine, Cape Cod, they are all beautiful, and for different reasons.

I want to go to Hawaii before I die, and visit Urs53 and BigDice in Balingen, Germany!

Misti -- I'd like to get to Ireland. I've heard so much about it and there's nothing I love more than rural scenery. Maybe this fall....

Hamburger -- Oh, I'd love to go to Switzerland! I've never been but looked into it a little and heard if you leave the beaten track and are willing to go for family-style accommodations you'll be more likely to find reasonable deals. Have you ever checked out the RickSteves website? He's on our local public TV station and has lots of great information that helped us with our last trip to Europe. It's very accessible and up-to-date. He also runs tours, but I only know one person who has gone with him... she thought they had too much walking.

RickSteves.com

Rae -- I LOVE road trips. You get to pack way more than you need, maybe you can even take the dog. And you're right... plenty of singing! Oh, the freedom of the open road. Maybe we're just hoboes at heart!

Piffka, that would be great! Take at least 3 to 4 weeks, because there's so much to see. You will want to go to the Aran Islands, {no cars allowed}, you take the row boat over there, get up to a great breakfast of soda bread, eggs, bacon, and sausages, pudding, etc.

Also, you will want to visit the Cliffs of Moher, Dublin, and Galway. There's so much to see in Dublin alone, between the theatre, the pubs, the shops, and churches!

Unbelieveable!

Ah, Misti! Great ideas. A rowboat to the Aran Islands??? Wow -- Yes! And of course, a nice big breakfast with lots of soda bread! I have to admit the photos I've seen of the Cliff of Moher... very scary... but yes, I'd love to see those too. I can't think of anything about Ireland that doesn't appeal to me on one level or another. I do look forward to seeing it all. Even from the air, it looks beautiful.

Misti

I'm a bit concerned about that rowboat to the Aran Islands. I got the ferry from Rosnaveel, near Galway, and that took about an hour (I think). Or did you mean row between the islands?

Piffka - go to Ireland. It's probably my favourite place in the whole world, outside Oz. It's different. - it's green (and there's a reason for that - take a rain jacket!). It's soft, it's interesting. And the people!

I've been twice and would go again tomorrow if I could

Margo, I guess you can go to the Aran Islands by Ferry or by rowboat! My aunt and cousin missed the ferry, so they rowed, and according to your statement above re the ferry, it must have taken them a long time.

My aunt said being in the Aran Islands was like being in heaven, she loved it, the peace that was there and the contentment.

Oh Misti, my dear, Mrs. cav and I toured Ireland by car for our honeymoon, and it has become a near-obsession for us....we can't wait to go back. We didn't make it out to the Aran Islands, but we did visit the Skelligs...apparently I have good sea legs. The water was a little choppy and one of the passengers will be forever etched in our minds as 'The Flying Dutchman' for his projectile vomiting over the side of the boat. Poor Dutchman...apparently his wife's cure for the tummy trouble was a cheese sandwich and a Mars bar....you can imagine the boat ride back. Next time we go, we will probably tour the Northwest, and perhaps the Aran islands as well. Anyone who is a fan of Ireland and has not been to Newfoundland should go. The similarities are uncanny...they even have the same puffins that nest in the Skelligs, literally.