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The Pull of Travel During a Pandemic




Has anyone else noticed that the lure of travel has gotten much stronger?  That pull of the open road and the freedom of stepping out of my normal life to escape for a little while has only gotten stronger over the past ten months.  Vacation and traveling, in general, allows me to get off the roller coaster of normal daily life and take a break.  A break from responsibilities and demands.  A break from routine that allows me to see the world just a little bit differently.   The holidays are busy times in general and while my family and I might sneak away in past years for a weekend to see holiday lights or experience a festive gathering, this year is very different.  


Mentally I knew going into the holiday season that we wouldn't be traveling between Thanksgiving and Christmas.  I threw myself into imagining the outside lights that we would now put up to enjoy.  The indoor decorations and the cookies that I would make this year.  And then travel restrictions began to pop up and guess what I began thinking about.  Travel and all the places that I want to go and explore will not leave my thoughts.  Memories of past trips like our last trip to Monterey Bay, California right before the pandemic, draw me toward that longing to escape.  All the places on my bucket list, which is a substantial list, are calling for me to try something new.  

So what to do with this pull of travel?  For me, planning is sometimes just as much fun as the trip itself and so I am planning.  Trips that I loved and want to repeat with the knowledge that I didn't get to see it all the first time.  Vacation destinations that I have only heard about and remain to be explored.  The mental journey of imagining locations I read about can provide a short break from reality.  Looking at a photo and placing myself in the image enjoying my surroundings can give me a much needed mental break.  Endless nature photos on Twitter also continues to provide me a look at all the places that I wish could be visited right now.  Someone's average backyard halfway around the world provides inspiration and a short mental vacation that I need many days.  


The pandemic will not last forever as nothing ever does.  At some point, we will be freely traveling the country and beyond.  My list of places I wish to explore grows by the day as I turn my sights on mental journeys and plans for the future.  As soon as I see the green light and hear that the road is open for me, I will be ready.
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