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destination by car is so flexible that it offers so many advantages. One can change their mind and go a different place, stop at the rest stops, eat and sleep when one feels like it, but most of all stop and enjoy the beauty of a place one is passing by. As a family we usually traveled by car which involved a day's travel. Sometimes we stayed over night and visited a place on the way as well as give the kids a chance to run around, swim, and just be still. Hilton Head, South Carolina was our destination once or twice a year and we as a family enjoyed the drive from Ohio. The rest stops on the way were great and the kids saw all kinds of new things. When my friends and I traveled by car in Europe we would let the Europeans drive as we helped with the maps. Since we were young we were not thinking at all what could happen, especially in the city. Good Think!

There are so many unconventional ways to travel too. Some take group trips in our country by bicycle or go on daily trips with the family or friends. What an adventure! That's all one needs is a change of clothing. Friends of ours traveled in Europe in bike tours and they loved it. Motorcycles are unique way to get to a place as you move in open face. Short trips on horseback are so very peaceful. What about walking? Some groups do that for short trips. More people are considering it with the price of gas now as well as the benefit of staying in shape.

No matter how we get there or where we go we need to be open, calm, flexible, and polite to the people we meet since after all we are guests whether we are in our country or another country. Then we must soak it all in whether we are in an island, town, city, valley, dessert, forest, ocean, or in space in the future. We need to interact with the people around us who will give new insights in what life is about.

Life is one big vacation and in a way we are guests here on earth. Most people who travel return where and with whom they are with with a greater sense of appreciation for te place they live in. No matter where we go it is always good to be home with the people we know and love. The more we travel the more we realize how people are the same. The landscape might be different and while their dress and customs are too, their needs are the same as ours. Perhaps this is the greatest lesson we can learn from traveling!

In addition to being a tourist there other ways to travel and get into the landscape and society more deeply. Studying a semester or year abroad is a wonderful opportunity for young people. Most universities have such programs and it may not cost much more than going to school at the university one is attending. Some just choose to study abroad and with the cost of universities these days it may even be cheaper. Doing internships or just working abroad is also an option. There are several student cultural exchange programs. If families have relatives or friends abroad they may visit them and in turn invite them back. For the more adventurous there is the Peace Corps or volunteer programs with churches or government. For the retired one could go abroad for part of the year or retire abroad.

Some people prefer SPACE since we not only have the whole earth to explore but the whole universe. Few have had this opportunity but as time goes on it will be financially attainable for those who have the quest to explore. Many people have that desire to go to space and some of us hope that it will be feasible before our vacation on earth has ended.

Learn more about this author, Anelisa.
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