For many years, maybe even decades, I’ve wanted to go around the world. A link to AirTreks (https://airtreks.com), a company which specializes in booking air travel around the world, has been in my browser bookmarks for a very long time. Desires aside, it’s the age-old conundrum: If you have the time, you don’t have the money – remembering college and grad school. When I was working, I had money, and no time. Seriously, why would you go round the world in two – three weeks, using up all your vacation time and yet be unable to spend time enough to get to know a place. That need to experience a place goes to the heart of what travel is for me: seeing new places, people and engaging different cultures in slow time. The ten day – seven country tour has no appeal to me. Yes, you could see a lot with jet lagged eyes, but what about having a drink at a bar and striking up a conversation with local folk (Beaune, France) Or while having a coffee in cafe, meeting tourists from another country entirely and comparing notes on places to go (Helsinki, Finland). Or having a beer with an Australian colleague and watching the sunset over the Beagle Gulf from the Darwin Ski Club (Darwin, Australia). That’s my style of travel: taking the time to see a bit of a place as the locals see it.

So now I have time and money in retirement to see some places I’ve never visited and to revisit some places I’ve loved. Some of this trip will be by plane but a lot of it will be by train. And that matches my temperament perfectly. This trip is, and is not an “once in a lifetime” journey: I doubt that I will travel around the world in one trip again, but my goal is to scout out places to which I would return and revisit places I’ve enjoyed. Like seeing a movie again or re-reading a book, I find that I see something different each time I visit a place. An older, differently-experienced me views the movie, book or place in a new light. That person is less concerned about where to catch a bus or buy food – there’s a memory to help manage those concerns. Instead, there is time to pause and see – to really look at a scene. There’s always more depth and details to explore on later visits.

I’ve planned a trip for 110 days – a month longer than Phileas Fogg and quite a bit longer than Nelly Bly (https://www.panmacmillan.com/blogs/classics/around-the-world-in-80-days-jules-verne-real-life-inspiration) but then I’m not trying to win a bet! I’m wondering how I’ll change and grow on this journey. I took the image above in a souk in Tetouan, Morocco some years ago. For me, it symbolizes determination, inventiveness and an urge to explore. That’s what this trip is for me – maintaining a sense of openess and flexiblity in whatever comes while exploring at my own pace. It’s a big world out there and I want to spend a bit of time seeing it.