Are you as restless as me? I have a serious itch to just get away.
I was fearless when I was younger and had many great adventures. I wanted to go everywhere. I even studied abroad for a year. Things were much easier then considering I wasn’t footing the bill.
Now I’m an adult with a family, job, bills, and responsibilities. I also have crippling anxiety. The last time I was on a plane was when my husband and I got married in Vegas over thirteen years ago. Like many Americans, I don’t even own a passport. A vacation to us is a weekend road trip to maybe a state or two away.
I’m stuck in place in a routine, and most of the time, that’s okay.
But this past week I’ve been sitting in my living room painting canvases and binge-watching House Hunters International. Have you ever seen that show? It follows people who are moving abroad and looking for a home. It is so fascinating. It’s just this short little glimpse into life in other places and I can’t get enough of it. I’m not gonna lie – I wish it was me buying a house in a foreign country. I want that kind of excitement in my life. I will sit there all day painting and watching people buying homes abroad. My husband thinks it’s a nice break from the true crime shows I like to watch.
My mental health issues make travel challenging. My anxiety is overwhelming and the stress can trigger a number of other symptoms. But still, I really want to go somewhere – everywhere. I’ve done so much in life despite my mental illness. I shouldn’t let it stop me now.
Money is a huge concern so I’m not going anywhere anytime soon. But it’s still okay to dream, right?
Is traveling important to you? Where do you want to go? Does traveling make you anxious?
I’m an extreme homebody, while my twin is the adventurous one. She had the daring growing up I did not. In fact I was recently invited to travel to Hawaii (it would have the very first time for me) but I declined.my siblings’ offer. They (my twin and our older sister) had a great time, but then again, so did I – at home.
😉
There’s a saying: “Books give you a place to go when you have to stay where you are”. It sounds like you’re finding ways to scratch the travel itch–by watching international house-buying programs. Check into documentaries, too; you can find them about all kinds of interesting places.
Since there aren’t many responses, I’ll add my own.
I have travelled, so I know whereof I speak. It’s not for me.
Basically, I hate (hate, hate, hate) queuing and masses of people… that’s basically all airports and terminals. And I hate travelling — sitting in a plane or a bus or whatever for hours, just to get somewhere. Surrounded by people. Nothing useful to do, committed to staying the course until the end of the journey.
The bookings, the timings, the hassle, the expense… not for me.
I’ve let my passport lapse, I can’t think of any reason I would ever use it again.
I dislike travelling, but I like having travelled. Cost has become an issue since children. I like the country I live in and I have no desire, particularly, to travel further any more, with the possible exception of other civilised countries – but thanks to Brexit that’s got more expensive and harder too.
My wife loves to travel, and I’m happy for her to do so with her friends, and even (when they get older) the children. Bits of travelling make me anxious – on the morning of a flight my wife reliably informs me I’m dreadful to be around until we’ve cleared security, at which point I can relax and start to enjoy the experience. Until then my entire focus is getting to that point.
As a Dutchman who has relatives in New Zealand, I’ve almost literally flown to the other end of the Earth several times now. So from personal experience I can say; It’s a pretty big place, our planet. New Zealand is a beautiful country, and I love seeing the family.
But spending 2 times 12-ish hours in airplanes is tiring. And the resulting 12 hour time shift is also no joke.
Taking the motorcycle out for a trip (maybe visiting Belgium or Germany) is something I really do like, especially using the smaller roads instead of the highways. In that case one could say “getting there is half the fun” or “the journey is the destination”. The fact that my RE Classic 350 tops out at 110 kph (68 mph) helps me take it easy. And at 32 km/L (75 mpg) it’s also relatively frugal. At the end of the day though, I like sleeping in my own bed.
The nicest way to travel for me is to read a book. You can be transported over vast distances and even travel in time while sitting on the couch.
I had some meetings in a suburb of Seattle last week and I took Amtrak both ways. I’m a newbie FreethoughtBlogger, and I’ve written some posts about the trip beginning here. As I write this, I’m sitting in Chicago Union Station’s Metropolitan Lounge waiting for the train that will take me on my last leg home.
I enjoy riding trains and attending the meetings of the C++ standards committee, so that’s often a reason for me to travel. I have no anxiety about flying, but I refuse to put up with it for more than five or six hours.
Nope , serious homebody ! Would love to see the Grand Canyon and Japan and Italy and Greece and …. homebody 🤷🏽♀️