I have been involved recently in the clearing out of my late in laws house. The house evokes memories of visiting throughout the girls childhood. Jan never lived there so it does not have that emotional archaeological layer to it . Anyway I took the book we bought my father in law prior to his first visit to Rochester and also the Adirondacks. He took the book with him used it and came back with these assorted maps which I have kept in memory of him. My in laws loved their trip especially the cabin by the lake in the Adirondacks. It was a holiday of a lifetime for them.
Looking at these apps and guide book reminds me how travel has totally changed, that which we took for granted has gone, probably for ever. When sixty came I was ready to travel more locally and further afield. That has not happened. Horizons have shrunk. I now doubt if I will ever go across the pond, seeing those things I have long since seen in books or on film. The Wilderness and the history too. I feel I need to begin to accept this parochial future but find it hard so to do.
A great title to a thoughtful and thought-provoking post. I've not been outside Europe much*, but I have been lucky enough to go to the US a few times. The nearest to the Adirondacks I got was over the border in Vermont opposite Fort Ticonderoga. It put me in mind of some of the scenes in the Last of the Mohicans.
ReplyDelete* 3 of the countries outside Europe seem to find their way into Eurovision and UEFA competitions, thus undermining my claims to extra-continental travel 😆
I think travel will return at some point, though who knows when. Recent news seems to have dented new-found confidence. In the meantime I guess we must culture a different outlook in ourselves.
We shall see re travel, I just don’t know. I sort of regret opportunities not taken albeit for very valid reasons. I would like to see the Wilderness Mythical and/or real , the scale of it. I suppose I always thought I would have choices and options.
DeleteEven before Covid, for increasing age and family health reasons, it is also unlikely that I / we will be travelling outside Britain as a family now (and have not done so for about fifteen years). Parochial maybe, shrunken horizons, yes but thankfully Britain is a small but very varied and rich place in terms of coastline, countryside, history and local culture ...
ReplyDeleteSo true about Britain. I have spent time on Iona, been to the Lake District and the Dales and of course Cornwall, not to mention London etc. There is so much to delight in here and great opportunities. We are fortunate indeed with these isles.
DeleteHorizons have definitely shrunk over the last year and I guess will stay that way for some time. We haven't been abroad for several years but that has been because of our foods rather than anything else. The plus side is that serve discovered lots of fascinating and beautiful places we might never have visited that are on our doorstep
ReplyDelete...dogs, not foods!! 😀
DeleteAnother excellent reminder, there is much to see here. I am perhaps regretting limited potentialities rather than realities. I do miss the immersive experience of being abroad, the language ,the daily differences ( last trip abroad was to Copenhagen and it was fascinating to see the vehicle use by the post office to deliver mail) as well as the potential scale of say Canada’s Pacific coast. The micro and the macro.
DeleteTradgardmastare,
ReplyDeleteI think that for a variety of reasons, the opportunity for us to travel abroad are going to be limited for some time to come ... but I would suggest that it may well become possible for you to go to places you have dreamed of going to before it is too late.
My father hardly ventured outside of the UK after he returned home in 1948. A few trips to Spain on holiday and a trip to the USA to see my brother whilst he lived there was pretty well all he and my mother wanted to do. My wife and I took a somewhat different course, and decided that we would go wherever we could if we could afford it and whilst we were healthy enough to do so. We recognised that there would come a time when this might not be possible, and we wanted to be able to say 'we went to XXX' and not 'we wish we had gone to XXX'. You still have time; so don't think that you haven't.
Thanks to my colostomy, foreign travel is going to be more difficult for me in the future, mainly due to getting insurance cover, especially for countries outside of Europe. I still plan to go if and when I can, and Sue and I have cruises booked that will take us to the Canary Islands and the Baltic next year.
One thing that we have decided is that we need to see more of the UK, and plan to visit Scotland (NOT by MSC cruise ship!) sometime soon. She wants to go to Edinburgh, which is where one of her ancestors served as part of the castle garrison and the City Watch back before the '45. We have both been to Scotland before, but not together. We also plan to spend more time visiting parts of England that we seem to have missed out on in the past.
There nothing wrong with being parochial when it comes to travel, but when time and opportunity arise, please try to fulfil those dreams that you have.
All the best,
Bob
PS. Canada is a great place to go (it combines the best bits of the UK with the best bits of the US) and if you ever go to Halifax NS, I think know a man who would love to show you around!
Thanks Bob for your thoughtful comments. If you come to Edinburgh it would be lovely to meet for coffee.
DeleteJust noticed my passport is out of date and having traveled in the past not sure I can be bothered to renew it in the present times .
ReplyDeleteMight be worth it, just in case...
Delete