I have always had the travel bug. Many people do, but I think that very few of us actually act on it. I think, mostly, it all comes down to money like so much in life does. You can raise money for a trip, but it becomes pretty complicated pretty quickly.
I have always had the travel bug.
Many people do, but I think that very few of us actually act on it. I think, mostly, it all comes down to money like so much in life does. You can raise money for a trip, but it becomes pretty complicated pretty quickly.
When I was in high school, I took a can of Italian espresso roast coffee and used it as a collection can (after I had enjoyed all of the delicious coffee, of course). Then, I gradually began adding my loose change and occasionally even a couple dollar bills every now and again. I put my money into my banco (Italian for bank) in the hopes that I could one day get myself to Italy. Then, naturally, responsibility and practicality reared their ugly heads and now I use the money from my banco to do laundry and feed the parking meter. Que sera sera, I guess!
Although I would still love to travel someday, the small amount of travel that I have done has been somewhat bumpy. The prospect of going somewhere new, or even somewhere old, is very exciting to me. I typically pack up everything I will want or need days before my excursion. I make checklists so that I don’t forget anything (although I almost always do), and I scurry around my house with my cats sitting and watching like I am their own personal entertainer. Once I am all packed and the day of the journey actually arrives, I am as excited as a kid on Christmas morning. However, as soon as I get to the airport, reality sinks in. Travelling can be a total pain. You’re either getting to the airport two hours before your plane leaves, which in my experience leaves you wandering around looking for something to do, or you have to wake up in the wee hours of the morning only to sit in a car for hours upon hours. So, you begin your “exciting” adventure sleep deprived, and probably hungry and thirsty because you don’t want to take the time to get anything because you just want to arrive already. To add insult to injury, your plane is at capacity; it sits on the tarmac for what seems like an eternity, and now is the time that you realize that the seats in your car are far too uncomfortable to sit in for any extended length of time.
As you sit and die a little inside in your own personal hell, thinking that you have just about reached your breaking point, you arrive at your destination. You feel a sense of accomplishment and once you stand and stretch and break up all the lactic acid that has built up in your muscles, suddenly you aren’t sleep deprived, hungry, and thirsty — because you made it.
For me, and for many others, the reason we travel in spite of all the annoyances, is because the good far outweighs the bad, like so much in life does.
Zander Myers is a senior studying English. What are your favorite traveling experiences? Email her at am154312@ohio.edu
