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Why do you travel? I have asked myself this question. I have also found that, as I get older, my answers change.

When I was young, I loved to travel because I had little chance to interact with my friends out of school. It was pure bliss to have shared exotic experiences with them. These memories are like jewels in my vast pile of memories, glimmering with joy and laughter.

Seeing the world was also a kind of urgency, as the days of working and - shudder - family life loomed near. I treasured that chance to see as much of the world as I could before I resigned myself to spending time watching roller coasters zoom past with a crying toddler, rather than enjoying weightlessness.

Travels are also a way to pat myself on the back for the year's hard work. Milestones are dotted by travel destinations. They are celebrations of sorts and the actual years in our lives are remembered by holiday destinations.

The reasons to travel do not differ very much as I get older. Rather, they get more complex and profound so as to justify for the time and cost of doing so.

Travelling allows me to take a break from work or from a situation at home base. Many things become crystal clear after a long trip. Vacations have the wonderful ability to segregate problems. They detach me from the problem even though a solution may not be in sight.

Hitting the road allows me new breathing space. Gasp with horror if you may, but many important choices are made in this manner. Those were spontaneous moments, even if somewhat impulsive. Dare devil ideas are always launched while on the move, special moments being an excuse for extravagant gestures.

Some travel to recharge and refresh, perhaps under the undulating shadows of palm leaves or in a clear warm onsen, with a view of the mountains. Besides, travelling is a good reward for the year's work.

Travelling lets me replenish my creative juices. After squeezing them out on projects and other whatnot, I often find my brain in severe need of creative juices. Unfortunately, you cannot find Creative Juices in the supermarket. Fortunately, this means you can travel overseas. The amber-red autumn leaves in Japan and crystalline sparkling snow in the Alps releases within me a flurry of songs and poems, relieving creative constipation.

Travel opens the world before me, unfurling and demystifying the unfamiliar and emboldening the heart. As I step forward into a new place and shed old notions, the world becomes a friendlier place than I ever imagined. Many times it shouts out the privileged situation that I am placed in as I savour the sights and sound. My status swing from guest to native as I partake in local ceremonies. Desires well up to emulate all the good things I witnessed. At the same time, it makes me feel very much alive at certain trying circumstances while abroad.

Travelling gels the family. Taking roller-coasters together can be counted as shared experiences. Those fond, if queasy, roller-coaster memories will be things we laugh about in the future.

The best part of travel is that the journey is never really finished. Travel experiences and stories are fodder for dinner talks. : The holiday doesn't stop at the home-bound plane. Several years on, our dinners will be filled with reminisces about holidays past.

Learn more about this author, Tricia Lye.
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