Wherever you are, Happy Thanksgiving! Hopefully you’re in a warm and cozy place celebrating just being there.
Many far away, vast destinations compel you to consider the “here”, a “Where am I?” feeling. Never-ending vistas, the climate, and emptiness of human-beings feel hard to comprehend.
In the last year we wandered to some remote and or not so well-known “port of calls”. We understood that “Not all those who wander are lost”.* Traveling to Off-The-Beaten-Track locations heightened awareness about our lives and unique footprint.
What is the allure of Off-The-Beaten-Track destinations?
Anonymity in Valencia
We initially did not know a soul. We were anonymous and, therefore, fully ourselves. Whether walking around Manhattan or living in a foreign country, anonymity feels refreshing.
Anonymity means you pay more attention to an internal compass.
Lost or Found
On an impromptu bike trip and many kilometers to the lesser known Spanish Costa Blanca coast, south of Valencia, we realized the GPS tracker was malfunctioning. Although constantly lost, the quiet scenery reassured us. We were in the right place. We’d find our way.
Vastness and Beauty – Reassurance
The ultimate Off-The-Beaten-Track expedition was in Antarctica almost a year ago. last Thanksgiving. Dramatic and stunning white beauty, far, far away from civilization surrounded us.
We experienced :
~The quiet of so few sounds,
~Epic ice-shelves and glaciers on the shoreline,
~Sightings of remarkable albatros who live at sea for months and months,
~Communal living of determined penguins and
~Tranquil light of the upcoming Summer Solstice.
~Awe…Antarctica fed us.
Nature is the best teacher. Aloneness fuels discovery.
You don’t have to travel all the way south to garner off-the-beaten-track experiences in life. Mainly you need to cultivate quiet for noticing moments of gratitude.
Of course we recommend Polar travel and seeking out places that make you happy. We also know that traveling with others increases the joy and insights that accompany any journey.
Amy
Wild Geese by Mary Oliver
You do not have to be good.
You do not have to walk on your knees
For a hundred miles through the desert, repenting.
You only have to let the soft animal of your body
love what it loves.
Tell me about despair, yours, and I will tell you mine.
Meanwhile the world goes on.
Meanwhile the sun and the clear pebbles of the rain
are moving across the landscapes,
over the prairies and the deep trees,
the mountains and the rivers.
Meanwhile the wild geese, high in the clean blue air,
are heading home again.
Whoever you are, no matter how lonely,
the world offers itself to your imagination,
calls to you like the wild geese, harsh and exciting —
over and over announcing your place
in the family of things.
