#trust30 Day 5: Travel

Day 5 of #Trust30 from Self Reliance

Travel by Chris Guillebeau

If we live truly, we shall see truly. - Ralph Waldo Emerson

Not everyone wants to travel the world, but most people can identify at least one place in the world they’d like to visit before they die. Where is that place for you, and what will you do to make sure you get there?

(Author: Chris Guillebeau)

One place to visit before I die? I want to visit all of them.  I love the journey as much as any given destination.

Currently I would have to say Norway.  I’ve never been to that part of the world and there is just something about the dramatic majesty of the pictures that is alluring.  That and they have fjords!  Fjord is probably the coolest word ever to describe something so beautiful.

I’ve flown across this state and half way around the world.  I’ve been around this country by car and bus for tens of thousands of miles.  I’ve slept in the car in rest stops, camped out in flimsy tents, stayed in cheap motels, beach side resorts, and high end conference centers.

I can remember most of these various journeys and destinations with a little contemplation.  But what are the things that come to mind when I first think about great trips/destinations?

I remember being 18 and with my best friend and the car breaking down two blocks into the French Quarter after a few thousand miles around the country.

I remember reaching the continental divide at Logan Pass in Glacier National Park after riding my bicycle uphill for 3 hours.

I remember sitting on the top of a Mayan pyramid buried in the jungle of Belize and cursing the overzealous mosquitoes dining on me.

I remember the first time I rode my bike 20+ miles in the exotic suburb  of Akron, OH where I grew up.

I remember many more things than this, but they all have one thing in common.  The moments that meant something were the results of doing something.  I was not a passive observer.  These were activities, not passivities.

Going forth on a journey is an action.  Traveling is an action.  Not something you pick out of a brochure and “experience”.

Life should not be something you need a vacation from.

Life is the journey.  Be an explorer.

People have discovered every corner of this planet but I haven’t.  I’ve seen beautiful pictures and read fascinating accounts about all the places that one could go.  Seen other people’s pictures and read other people’s stories.

Life is an adventure

Living is a verb.

It’s time for us to live.  I want my family and I to be a part of this world, not just watch it on TV.