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The way I see it, I saw more of the world then I ever thought I would when I was in the military and I dont miss places that I have not seen so traveling is not really on my radar at all. I personally think it is a lot of effort and money and therefore rarely go, but when we do, it makes it that much more memorable. I do think we live in a society that is obsessed with traveling but there are worse things to be obsessed with. My wife and son would travel all the time if they could so I am definitely the hurdle in the family when it comes to traveling but its just something that doesnt interest me.
Travel is good but it has a lot of challenges today.
"Cost"!!!
Then there's people and their contemptuous attitudes that create a ruckus on Airplanes.
Air Carriers on Long Flight, don't have much regard for the passengers, they cram them into seats that are not beneficial to their health on long flights.
They decreased the quality in service with cheap blankets, and these strip down flights that serve nothing.
The excess charges that continue to increase.
Then, there's the matter of advertising, that often paints a image that is not as real as what people encounter when they get to their destination.
But, I guess it depends on the individual as to what they expect when they plan their travel and the reasons they are choosing to travel.
Here young people are forced to save for retirement as employers have to pay 11% of their income into a retirement account, which normally cannot be touched until the age of sixty. I think most western countries have some type of similar arrangement. Then another 2% is paid as the Medicare levy, which covers basic health requirements, usually adequate for young people.
But in our case, we always set aside a proportion of our income for travelling and then made the trips fit the budget.
Our own kids are Gen Y, with our grandkids being between 8 and 12. They are careful with how much they spend and one family has only been overseas to Fiji and Japan, the other only to Japan but they are heading to Canada and England next year. The go away locally though, everyone we know does.
The USA has Social Security, but I would not want that to be my only source of money for 20+ years of retirement. That would be meager living indeed, especially for those who never made good money, and so their Social Security check will be on the rather small size.
Why is it that food brings back so many of my travel memories?
Someone will ask me something about a place and I won't remember tons of detail about the visit. Then it pops into my head I had the deliciouls Halibut with creme sauce at the restaurant with the sea side views, or I had the filet Mignon of pork at the sidewalk restaurant beside the cobblestone square with the beautiful fountain, surrounded by stately, ornate, historic buildings.
Then it comes back to me. Oh yeah, that is the time our French waitress sat us down when we said "Bon jour", and then when we began to order in English, she became terrified and hid for the rest of our time. The owner, who was Italian and spoke English, had to come out and serve us instead, and was so enchanted with my partner that he wound up giving us free drinks the entire meal.
Once I remember what I ate and where I was when I ate it, all my memories come roaring back.
Is that weird, or what?
Is that just me, or is anybody else's memory jogged by food and meals they had while traveling?
Not just you, Igor. I remember the meals and other great things fondly. I am sure some places had "bad" parts or experiences - but I do not remember any of them. Lost luggage or lost reservation or something? Musta happened sometime - but I don't remember. I remember the good times, let the rest go.
But, I guess it depends on the individual as to what they expect Indeed. That is true for all things, everywhere. But your post says you "see" (expect) it all "bad" - and so it is, for you. I travel a ton - and I never - ever - see the nonsense folks here complain about. Sure, it happens - but it's not common or likely. That's why it's on the news. It's an event - not a regular feature. The fact that it happens is NOT odd - the fact that people think bad things should NEVER EVER EVER happen is INDEED odd.
I'm just kinda over folks incessantly bashing all airlines for stuff that just is really, really illogical. Example: Seats are small-ish, sure but the airline isn't the only place folks don't fit. However - I don't see anyone whining at a Taylor Swift concert, which lasts longer than most flights and cost 10x as much for zero practical purpose - but undoubtedly most folks did not "fit" in their seat and had to rub elbows with a stranger. Why would planes be different?
Travel if it suits you, stay home if it doesn't, don't judge each other.
I'd honestly feel better about the environmental impact of travel if we could eliminate stadium entertainment - or at least all of the extreme waste produced at these events. I'm willing to bet Americans produce far more waste (including production-based emissions) than travel does.
I do admit I hold back on tourism these days because it contributes to environmental destruction. I've taken many a street tour on Google maps and felt pretty satisfied - compared to nothing, that is. I have friends who have taken trips to every continent and protected places like the Galapagos and it seems self-indulgent and arrogant.
Should NO ONE ever travel for pleasure? Of course not. But can we perhaps tone it down a bit and maybe prioritize our top destinations and opt to forego certain trips we take just because we have the money? I feel we should.
But don't get me started on cruises. I just can't.
Yeah. I suppose.
On the other hand I have traveled to 49 states. Seen most of America, and worked in a lot of it. Been overseas, too, but just talking about America, now.
It's not where I have been that's important. It's who I met or who I was with that is important to me. Sure, I saw The Grand Canyon. But I fell in love with a girl from tiny Stanfield, AZ, and that counts for more, to me. Wasn't much to see in Stanfield, I can tell you that.
I turned 21 in 1966 in San Francisco, but most important to me is the fact I am still friends with my room mate from those days. The events of that night, though, could have happened almost anywhere in America. So it really didn't have anything to do with San Francisco.
The people you meet while traveling often bring back good memories.
I've had interesting discussions even in restaurants, convenience stores and underground trains with people I struck up conversations with.
Still, there are certain places - like Alaska or New Zealand - that are so superlative in my mind that I don't want to suddenly wake up one day when I'm 90 years old and regret that I never got to see them when I was younger and in much better health.
The people you meet while traveling often bring back good memories.
I've had interesting discussions even in restaurants, convenience stores and underground trains with people I struck up conversations with.
Still, there are certain places - like Alaska or New Zealand - that are so superlative in my mind that I don't want to suddenly wake up one day when I'm 90 years old and regret that I never got to see them when I was younger and in much better health.
Not a bad thought, that.
But here's an interesting slant to it: Why not work hard on diet, exercise and finances so that when you're 90 you can still go?! To me, there is something pitiful about an 80 year-old who has destroyed himself and can no longer enjoy his life. So I have worked to prevent it. I'm 78 and not much interested in travel. My sister, who is 81, feels differently about travel and will leave for Turkey in a few weeks.
I think that where I land on this kinda depends on what the point of a person making an argument for or against leisure travel, actually is. I feel that this is one where people might dress up their actual argument as support for another argument when the "reasoning" is closer to the point they really want to try and make.
Is it environmental? Are we concerned with all of the emissions from fueling the various methods of transport used to move humans about on the face of the planet and in its skies? Well, if a society is not willing (ahem, AMERICA) to use the best practices methodologies to be as efficient as possible in doing this, then I'm not sure it's OK to just ask the individual citizens to make all the sacrifices. I'd love to say that if we did away with the availability of inefficient modes of transport, then more people would support the implementation of better ones, like high speed trains and such...but sitting here as one individual, I don't feel I've got a say. I don't think anybody asked me. I feel like if I didn't have a car, those in power would not care what I complained about for not being able to get here or there, they'd just as soon let me die and say it's my fault if I couldn't get myself out to get food or medicine...and the idea that us peasants are entitled to leisure? HA.
Are we trying to say that people need to provision financially for their future needs before they spend resources on instant gratification? I mean, yeah. But it isn't inconceivable that one might find a way to do both. And personally, I believe that there are abundant enough resources to go around such that everyone could reasonably live a pretty enjoyable life AND not end up indebted and destitute by the end. I believe that scarcity is artificial.
Or is the argument simply that people are enjoying themselves too much and ought to embrace the virtues of austerity? Obviously I'm not going to support someone whose position is more or less, "I hate that people have fun, these peasants need to shut the heck up and get back in the mines and stop acting like they've got any right to any joy whatsoever in life! Who do they think they are, gentry??" I'm not keen to be complicit in promotion of a society-as-livestock model of existence here...
EDIT: (The bit in the last paragraph just above, that is in quotes, sounded off in my head in the voice of Matt Barry as Laszlo Cravensworth from "What We Do In The Shadows" and I just...thought I would share that information. I also read all of the content warnings before every show I watch, in his voice, as well.)
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