"The real voyage of discovery consists not in seeking new landscapes, but in having new eyes." - Marcel Proust
This quote is extremely poignant in its truth, yet I don't know if everyone thinks this way when they travel. I live in Dubai and if anyone is big on architecture or the Mission Impossible movies for that matter, then they don't have to be a fan of travel to have heard about the tallest building in the world, The Burj Khalifa. This building truly is magnificent and every single time I pass it, I need to take a minute to just stop and stare. However, when I am finished with my fixation on the building, I then take a minute to stop and look around me. How is everyone else acting? What are their thoughts? Are they as amazed as I am? To my surprise, most people will snap a photo and then shoot off. They don't take time to truly take it all in. They may take the picture as proof they have been there and then they're off. They are seeking new landscapes but not really looking. I am also guilty of doing this at times.
When I travel now, I want to remember this quote and keep in mind that when I do seek a new landscape, I seek it with an open mind. If this is done, I know I'll learn and I'll try new things (maybe that are scary or out of my comfort zone) and I will leave with a different outlook. And like the quote hints, I'll see things a little differently.
I recently just go back from a wonderful, cold, English Christmas vacation. I couldn't have imagined a more quintessential way to have spent my Christmas than in Clyst St. Lawrence. My boyfriend, Will, is from Clyst St. Lawrence and it is a small village in the South of England which consists of about 40 people. I was just taken by the beauty and simplicity of this place. I kept commenting on everything, "Look there are cows! Look at the hills! Look at all the land!! Oh, the houses are so cute! Aghhh, the roads are so narrow (they literally are only big enough for one car. If another car comes, one of the 2 cars needs to reverse until the other car can get by)." Will and his parents giggled at my expressions and comments because to me this was all new. To them, this is everyday life.
If I could describe this village, I would describe it looking like images from my fairytale books I had as a kid. It honestly was just dreamlike. On the first day, I had Will take me for a walk around his village. I got all bundled up in my puffy coat, scarf and hat, thinking that it would be some time before I returned to the warm house. The walk literally took less than 1 minute. I was like, "Why are we stopping?" Will replied with a grin, "That's it. I told you it was small." We both just started laughing.
On this trip I did experience new things and I defintely did step out of my comfort zone - on one night in particular.
On Christmas Eve, I was able to go to the village's 1000 year old church and sing Christmas carols, while drinking cider with the 40 other people from the village - one word for that experience - surreal. It was simply fantastic in more ways than one.
Following the Christmas carols, I was taken to a local pub in another village just down the road called Plymtree. Now, please just imagine walking into a jam-packed pub (already a little different from my Christmas Eve tradition) and not knowing a single person there. Yet, everyone else pretty much grew up together. One word for that initial experience - intimidating. Usually being pretty good at interacting with strangers, I was shaking in my boots that night. Of course, I did my best not to show it. The ice was quickly broken when a really nice girl came up to me and said, "You're brave. Let me buy you a shot." The night really couldn't have gone better, I met so many nice people and I can honestly say that I have never had a Christmas Eve like that in my life, so in my eyes, it was a success.
So there you are, just a couple of stories to share from my Christmas Eve in Clyst St. Lawrence. The rest of my vacation was spent eating a lot of food and going on walks when it wasn't raining outside (which wasn't very often). It was perfect.
What I learned from this trip is that sometimes the simpler/smaller places truly are the more beautiful. In a place like Clyst St. Lawrence, you can hear yourself think, you can sleep in because it's so quiet and peaceful. You can eat dinner with friends and family and spend 2 hours talking at the dinner table because there's not too much to distract you. You can relax and just enjoy!
To those of you about to go on vacation and seek new landscapes - have an open mind, do something scary or out of your comfort zone, interact with strangers, take a lot of pictures and you might be surprised what you end up discovering through new eyes. :)
The three things that were on my to-do list:
1. Eat proper British fish & chips. Verdict: ABSOLUTELY FANTASTIC!
2. Go to a British pub. Verdict: There are seriously way too many pubs in England. I didn't go to just one. In 8 days, I probably went to 5. But, they aren't overrated! ;)
3. Drink some cider. Verdict: So much better than beer. It tastes like sparkling apple juice. Yum!
The three things that weren't on my to-do list that I got to do:
1. Travel around Bath for a day. Verdict: beautiful - go visit!
2. Make my own fire. (No, I had never made a fire before my trip). Verdict: not as hard as I thought it would be, and kept me really warm.
3. Eat more than my tummy could handle. Tried my first pavlova. Verdict: Awesome!
Oh, also, found a new way to eat my fries = with lots and lots of vinegar and salt. Verdict: Delicious. (those of you at home in the States who I taught to eat fries with mayonnaise (Emily, Lindsay, Krissy, Charleney) - try vinegar, you'll love it :)
This quote is extremely poignant in its truth, yet I don't know if everyone thinks this way when they travel. I live in Dubai and if anyone is big on architecture or the Mission Impossible movies for that matter, then they don't have to be a fan of travel to have heard about the tallest building in the world, The Burj Khalifa. This building truly is magnificent and every single time I pass it, I need to take a minute to just stop and stare. However, when I am finished with my fixation on the building, I then take a minute to stop and look around me. How is everyone else acting? What are their thoughts? Are they as amazed as I am? To my surprise, most people will snap a photo and then shoot off. They don't take time to truly take it all in. They may take the picture as proof they have been there and then they're off. They are seeking new landscapes but not really looking. I am also guilty of doing this at times.
When I travel now, I want to remember this quote and keep in mind that when I do seek a new landscape, I seek it with an open mind. If this is done, I know I'll learn and I'll try new things (maybe that are scary or out of my comfort zone) and I will leave with a different outlook. And like the quote hints, I'll see things a little differently.
I recently just go back from a wonderful, cold, English Christmas vacation. I couldn't have imagined a more quintessential way to have spent my Christmas than in Clyst St. Lawrence. My boyfriend, Will, is from Clyst St. Lawrence and it is a small village in the South of England which consists of about 40 people. I was just taken by the beauty and simplicity of this place. I kept commenting on everything, "Look there are cows! Look at the hills! Look at all the land!! Oh, the houses are so cute! Aghhh, the roads are so narrow (they literally are only big enough for one car. If another car comes, one of the 2 cars needs to reverse until the other car can get by)." Will and his parents giggled at my expressions and comments because to me this was all new. To them, this is everyday life.
If I could describe this village, I would describe it looking like images from my fairytale books I had as a kid. It honestly was just dreamlike. On the first day, I had Will take me for a walk around his village. I got all bundled up in my puffy coat, scarf and hat, thinking that it would be some time before I returned to the warm house. The walk literally took less than 1 minute. I was like, "Why are we stopping?" Will replied with a grin, "That's it. I told you it was small." We both just started laughing.
On this trip I did experience new things and I defintely did step out of my comfort zone - on one night in particular.
On Christmas Eve, I was able to go to the village's 1000 year old church and sing Christmas carols, while drinking cider with the 40 other people from the village - one word for that experience - surreal. It was simply fantastic in more ways than one.
Following the Christmas carols, I was taken to a local pub in another village just down the road called Plymtree. Now, please just imagine walking into a jam-packed pub (already a little different from my Christmas Eve tradition) and not knowing a single person there. Yet, everyone else pretty much grew up together. One word for that initial experience - intimidating. Usually being pretty good at interacting with strangers, I was shaking in my boots that night. Of course, I did my best not to show it. The ice was quickly broken when a really nice girl came up to me and said, "You're brave. Let me buy you a shot." The night really couldn't have gone better, I met so many nice people and I can honestly say that I have never had a Christmas Eve like that in my life, so in my eyes, it was a success.
So there you are, just a couple of stories to share from my Christmas Eve in Clyst St. Lawrence. The rest of my vacation was spent eating a lot of food and going on walks when it wasn't raining outside (which wasn't very often). It was perfect.
What I learned from this trip is that sometimes the simpler/smaller places truly are the more beautiful. In a place like Clyst St. Lawrence, you can hear yourself think, you can sleep in because it's so quiet and peaceful. You can eat dinner with friends and family and spend 2 hours talking at the dinner table because there's not too much to distract you. You can relax and just enjoy!
To those of you about to go on vacation and seek new landscapes - have an open mind, do something scary or out of your comfort zone, interact with strangers, take a lot of pictures and you might be surprised what you end up discovering through new eyes. :)
The three things that were on my to-do list:
1. Eat proper British fish & chips. Verdict: ABSOLUTELY FANTASTIC!
2. Go to a British pub. Verdict: There are seriously way too many pubs in England. I didn't go to just one. In 8 days, I probably went to 5. But, they aren't overrated! ;)
3. Drink some cider. Verdict: So much better than beer. It tastes like sparkling apple juice. Yum!
The three things that weren't on my to-do list that I got to do:
1. Travel around Bath for a day. Verdict: beautiful - go visit!
2. Make my own fire. (No, I had never made a fire before my trip). Verdict: not as hard as I thought it would be, and kept me really warm.
3. Eat more than my tummy could handle. Tried my first pavlova. Verdict: Awesome!
Oh, also, found a new way to eat my fries = with lots and lots of vinegar and salt. Verdict: Delicious. (those of you at home in the States who I taught to eat fries with mayonnaise (Emily, Lindsay, Krissy, Charleney) - try vinegar, you'll love it :)
