Travel is fatal to prejudice, bigotry, and narrow-mindedness…Broad, wholesome, charitable views of men and things cannot be acquired by vegetating in one little corner of the earth all one’s lifetime.

 

~ Mark Twain, Innocents Abroad

This morning I stood at the counter peeling a pear. The juicy roundness of it felt so sensuous as it swiveled, perfectly fitting into my palm. I was suddenly transported to an open market in a French village and a travel discovery that transformed me – new, delicious pear varieties. Suddenly I was overwhelmed with unexpected wanderlust and wished I were on the road again.

I spent several cool spring months driving from village to town throughout Europe in an old van. We’d stop where we wanted, often by a stream or field for the night and walk into town to the local market and bakery. Fresh coffee brewed on the van stove never tasted as good as when it was paired with a fragrant, flakey pan au chocolate and one of those new ripe juicy pears.

Travel discoveries surprise me so often. Here it is, decades later and I can still remember that simple pleasure – a new fruit to savor that I had never known existed. Today my life is richer for that recall and while my pear at home was absolutely satisfying, I find myself leaning toward the familiar longing to get back out on the road and discover more – new foods, new friends and new waters to sit by. Unexpected wanderlust can surprise a sedentary life. It’s time to start planning another trip!

 

Elaine Masters, Trip Wellness Specialist and award-winning author of Drivetime Yoga and Flytime Yoga.