I
was watching a television program recently. Several episodes,
sort of a real-life documentary type of thing. It happened to
be set in a very quiet village, far from the influences of busy
city life.
On
it, two people were having a conversation, and it came out that
one of them had only been to a specific major city once in his
life. They city was roughly 90-miles away by car, and happened
to be a significant international destination. Again, he had been
there once. In fact, he claimed to have on that trip he never
left the vehicle he used to get there.
After
a bit more conversation, it turned out that this person rarely
ever ventured more than ten to fifteen miles away from his home.
Everything from his work to anything he did for fun was based
on a circle about twenty-five to thirty miles in diameter. Want
a comparison? Ok…
…the
city of Los Angeles can be measured at more than forty-miles from
north to south, and just shy of thirty miles east to west. Our
friend in the show, rarely—RARELY—left an extremely rural
area that is significantly smaller than the city of Los Angeles.
…head
over to some mapping site online and focus on where you live.
Find your home and then picture a circle that extends 15 miles
to the north, 15 miles to the south, 15 miles to the east and
15 miles to the west of that spot. Chances are good you might
find a single big city inside the circle, and possible you’ll
find none. Our friend in the show might end up in a village that
claims more than 10,000 residents on one or two days per year.
More livestock than people. No large populations within his circle.
Is
he an outlier?
Maybe.
But then again…
Growing
up, to my knowledge I never visited Block Island. I’ve been there
once that I can recall, and it happened in my thirties. That might
not seem like a tremendous surprise to you. In fact, if you’ve
never lived in or near Rhode Island, you may have no clue where
Block Island is. So, let’s add a different bit of perspective…
I
knew someone that lives in New York City, and as of the last time
I saw this person, the claim was that she had never been on Liberty
Island to visit the Statue of Liberty. Lives in New York. New
York City. Never been to the Statue of Liberty.
The
more I get to talk to people about where they live and the points
of interest around that location, the more I find that well known
points of interest don’t seem to hold the same level of interest
from local residents.
Thinking
about all of this got me thinking about travel.
I
love to travel. Love going to places I’ve enjoyed previously.
Love adventures to new destinations. Love visiting friends and
love meeting new people.
I’ve
been fortunate to set foot and spend time in some incredible places.
And, there are many more I’d like to add to my memories. Time
will tell how many I get to include in my lifetime.
How
about you? What places are on your dream list? And, when I ask
that, I do so knowing you may not care to travel at all. Your
dream list might simply be heading out the pub down the street
for a beer or two to accompany your fish and chips. And if so,
that’s fantastic. Cheers to you.
Two
of my grandparents, to my memory, never planned a vacation they
didn’t cut short. If they were planning to be away for seven days,
in my mind I remember them coming home after five or six. They
were comfortable in their own house. That’s what they liked, and
there’s nothing wrong with that.
Just
remember that often the world throws some curveballs our way.
Plans to make it to all of the places on your wish list travel
destinations often wind up with a few never crossed out. Take
a few minutes to enjoy today, even if only for a drink with some
friends down the road.