Travel Through The Ages

Summer Vacation is such a special time for the fresh young child before you. It’s not just about going away but also that bond with one another that enriches the entire experience. Staying in a unfamiliar place…sleeping in an unfamiliar bed…it’s not only exhilarating but also an adventure.  It’s time for the family to unite without the distraction of technology, phones or emails.  Discovering not only the environment but each other in a new and unchartered locale.

With travel, as with most things in life, different points in time afford different experiences.  In your 20’s, travel seems to be about exploring all those things you weren’t able to as a kid. It’s a shift of focus to language, architecture, deep cultural history, and art that exists in some far away land.  Who can focus on relaxation when there is so much to see, do, and eat in these wondrous places?! There is a certain combination of awe, respect and admiration that can only be experienced during these early encounters with the rest of the world.  It feels like a rite of passage that’s open to any of those willing to venture out beyond their comfort zone.  At this age, one is usually able to take off without the responsibilities of home mortgages, utility bills and car leases.  You have the freedom to spend as much money as you could possibly save and take as much time as needed to help form the well-traveled, experienced individual you will soon become. Once the dust of eagerness and exhaustion clears, you can truly take part in the vivid cultures that surround you.

As you mature, travel can take on yet another meaning.  When you are able to share these experiences with someone you love, each place you visit can take on a romantic and enduring quality that stays with you both time and again. In sharing art, food, history and architecture, it becomes a unique experience together.  Something only the two of you will have felt at that singular moment in time.

But there isn’t anything quite as exciting as experiencing travel through the eyes of a child.  The adventure of vacation takes on an even larger meaning.  There is so much to learn and discover when you are young.  Traveling, whether by car or plane, is something that stays with you throughout your life.  The memories created by walking through a Redwood forest, running from the ocean waves, or crossing the Rocky Mountains for the first time are truly enduring. Children’s eyes are persistently open and willing to learn. Sometimes the awe of walking along the Great Wall of China can be as interesting as the hotel room boudoir or the special coloring book at the gift shop!  It’s more about stepping back, accepting & appreciating the age of the audience and truly understanding what might be impactful to them at that point in their young lives.

At 5 months of age, our daughter had her first passport (we ventured to Canada every Christmas).  The awe and bewilderment of her witnessing something as simple as a snowfall was truly something to behold. Experiencing other parts of Canada with her as she grew was another sight to behold, as I was able to watch her experience some of the same things that I had at her age. From trips to San Francisco, the Hawaiian islands or her first time in New York City, we will continue to open those windows into the world for our daughter as often as we can.  Our next big adventure will hopefully be a long, jetlag-fueled flight overseas…when she’s ready.  And a whole new world will undoubtedly open up.

Can’t wait!