I sit in the dentist’s office, waiting for a cleaning of teeth, teeth that have chomped their way through Europe and back to the United States. On the wall of the waiting room, a large map of the world stares back at me. What great decorating on my dentist’s part, transport your future patients around the world, distract them from the inevitable waiting behind a shutter-like door.
Still figuring out my travel plans for the next few months, I start to examine where I have been on this map. I realize the portion of the world I have seen is very small, causing me to drum up plans of my next great adventure.
Part of the travel process involves recovery. For me, coming home was key toward that recovery. The mind must jog through what you have seen and experienced and take a break to rest. Now that I have been home for a month, I have recovered. I am ready to hit the road. My only problem remains. I don’t know what road and even my dentist’s office reminds me of that fact.
Where to go....
For my European summer, I knew I wanted to head to Italy. There was no question or hesitation. I was going to Italy and that was that. Once I arrived back home, I felt this weight on my shoulders. Where will I go next? I had questions of the like from all areas of my life. Suzy, you have to keep moving, I thought. My only problem, I didn’t know where.
I think most of us take for granted knowing where we want to travel to next. We spend so much time and energy pouring ourselves into a trip, when we come home, there is often that blankness. My mind went blank. Australia? New Zealand? South America? Ireland? All of these places entered my blank mind, swirling about in a torturous game of musical chairs. Still, I did not know where to go. I don’t think I am alone in my thinking. Being inspired to travel somewhere is one of the first steps to travel. You can’t get going if you don’t know where you are going and don’t know why you want to go.
A light bulb switched on and I found my road. My decision came down to one conversation I had with an Italian man. I started talking about Sicily and Sardinia, asking this Florentine if he had been. The farthest south this man had been was Naples. A country I had seen almost completely, nearly every region, a native had only barely covered. Before judging his lack of travel throughout his own country, I started to judge my own. The United States is massive, filled with diversity in people, landscape and culture more travelers need to explore but usually leave behind in the dust cascading off of their backpack.
I guess I feel I have reached that stage of travel, the stage were you are hungry to know about your backyard and take a break from the backyards of those oceans away. The lessons to be learned in one’s own country are great. So I will begin my next few months of travel throughout the United States. Love your city? Dying for a visitor to the middle of nowhere USA? Let me know. I just may pop up in your backyard, but not in a creepy way.
Gliding by chairlift over backyards in Luxembourg
I keep looking at that map, hoping I will make it where I imagine going, far away from this office, but for now it is time to face the inevitable. “Suzy, will you come on back?”
How do you decide where to go when you don’t know where to go? What do you like about traveling throughout your own country?
I know what you mean about not knowing where to travel next. I think we’ve all been there before.
I think choosing to travel around the U.S. is a great idea! I’d love to do a big ol’ road trip someday.
And, the offer still stands – if you find yourself in Ohio, let me know!
It’s funny because after my RTW trip one of my ideas is to road trip across the U.S. I want to visit places I went as a child and absolutely loved as well as those small town oddities that I might not see otherwise. Curious to find out what you decide on!
Really great idea to explore the USA. I know I’m guilty of barely giving it a thought, and at some point I know I’ll wind up doing the same thing you are. I highly recommend Madison (and northern Wisconsin) not only because I live there, but because it’s a beautiful state with a micro-culture.
I think we sometimes forget travel doesn’t have to be to a far off ‘exotic’ location. Having done some long-term travel abroad we decided that the first part of our current trip, the Trans-Americas Journey would be to explore our own backyard. We spent the first 2 years of our Journey exploring the US, before moving onto our neighbors.
You truly capture something here, most people travel to expand the world around them. It’s hard to take that in if you are never still. I don’t have a home and as much as I love my travel and work it is exhausting. We miss out on much of what others might see
I’m having a similar issue right now. I love where I am so much that part of me what’s to stay. That pull however to get moving again is starting to grow but there’s so many places I want to travel to that it feels like choosing one is almost overwhelming.
At some point I might have to do what I did before, write down all the names of possible places, cut them into pieces and draw one out of a hat. Before I look at the name, I stop to see if deep down I’m hoping it’s one place in particular. If not, I’ll go to the random one. 🙂
Hey Suzy,
Great idea on U.S. travels, hmmm where to start? As an aside, I just recently made a trip out along the Oregon coast line. I had never been but all the while I thought, “What a great place and what amazing views!”.
It’s true there are many fantastic places in the States.
Ed
How about coming up to eastern Canada? We do hospitality the right way!
Glad to hear you’ve figured out what’s next. I’m excited to see where your travels take you throughout America – as you’ve said, so many different places to see and experience. Any thoughts on how you’ll get around? Plane? Greyhound? Car?
I hope to some day do Route 66 on a vintage motor bike. Ahhhh some day!
The US has some really beautiful parts to it! If you’re in the Carolinas let me know!!! I sorta just go where the wind takes me. 🙂
Love your decision! A really beautiful area in the U.S.is Yosemite. We camped there in the fall. Breathtaking views. And, of course Chicago is great too! We’ve got lots of friends there who love hosting travelers. Let us know!
I spent years and years traveling the States before finally getting up the courage to go solo internationally. America is amazing. Sooooo many good things to see. Hope you don’t mind, but here are some suggestions: The Badlands of South Dakota — unlike any other place I’ve ever seen. Yellowstone National Park — I’ve done twice in summer, but winter would be beautiful also. Austin — one of the best cities I have ever been to. DC — pretty much almost all of US history in one place and amazing museums. Highway 1 down the Pacific Coast — just a classic drive, plus you get to hop over to Napa Valley for a bit of wine fun. Key West — center of “odd” if you hit a time when one of their festivals is going on. New Orleans — most non-American city in the States. Oxford, Mississippi — as a Southerner, will throw one small Southern town in that is a must see. Sooooo much more. Have a blast!
I think it’s a great idea 🙂 I live near Detroit so I’m sure it’s not gonna make your list of must see adventures. I do want to make a suggestion though, I’m not sure if you lived in cities most your life. I have and so when I traveled around the U.S I found some really cheap stays at farms.
At one point I stayed on a Amish Farm in Wisconsin and the people were so nice. There was a rooster crowing in the morning, chickens walking around. They made breakfast. It was so not what I was used too and I love it.
Happy Travels
So many places, so little time! Sometime i think i live to travel.
Back in the 80s we dreamt of visiting Yugoslavia – i had friends with family there and they told me how great it was. We put it off and visited friends in Germany and so on — and the year we were planning to go, war broke out during the succession of Croatia and the breakup of Yugoslavia. it was not until the war was over and the rebuild had made progress before we were able to go, more than ten years. And by that time, old Dubrovnik had been bombed to dust and had to be completely rebuilt.
The moral of the story: if you want to see it, go now. Before a war starts. Before some nutcase dictator gets into power and eliminates your chances to see it. Before the tourist trade gets its claws in and turns it into the next disneyland.
With the attitude of going before it’s spoiled, you get much bolder and decisive about your next trip. This year we went to Berlin, which felt tame but it was very very beautiful and one of the most wonderful cities in the world, especially what was the old ‘East Berlin’. But we got into Prague the year the wall went down – 21 years ago – and it was very exciting – so much starting to happen. i hear now it’s a little too many tourists and the prices are up. it was so wonderful to see it at the start of its new life of freedom.
Last year we went to Peru, the year before to Morocco. We’ve been thinking about Yellowstone – a US vacation! Holy mackerel! – but i am looking into a photo tour into Cuba right now — go before it opens up completely and then gets over-touristed.
Travel on, friends!
I just moved to New Orleans two months ago to attend Tulane University, and never before have I lived in a city that has so much to offer. I fell in love, and have been exploring and discovering new corners of the city since I got here. Resilence resonates from New Orleans, and it’s easy to forget all of the hardships that she’s faced recently. There’s so much culture, so many things to do, to eat, to drink, to see. You should definitely come.
Is that “man” my boyfriend?? It took me so long for that to click, and well if it’s not him then Italians should travel in Italy more!
Can’t wait for you to start the adventure!!! Say hi to Seattle for me and if you need tips just ask! 🙂
Haha! Yes it is Annie. You will have to tell Lorenzo he helped with my future travel plans. Although, agreed, Italians as a whole don’t travel nearly as much throughout their own country.