My theme for the 2017 AtoZ Challenge is "Daily Thoughts".
Each day I will post a thought that comes to mind. The first word of the thought will correspond with the letter of the day.
taken on board Air New Zealand taking off from Wellington.
Journeys are as exciting as destinations
We are always excited to be going on holidays and look so forward to all the places we are going to visit. Destinations are so exciting.
So I sat back and thought about all the holidays I took and it hit me then that actually while I remembered the destinations, I also remembered the journeys there quite vividly. And the journeys were just as exciting as the destinations themselves. Here are some snippets from some of my travels.
When I was 11 years old we took a cruise to Hong Kong from Singapore. I remember the cruise liner so well. I also made a friend on board. Her name was Sigrid. I wonder where she might be. I also watched the movie Breakfast at Tiffany's on board.
On a visit to the US, we were flying from Los Angeles to St Louis. It was a really beautiful clear day and we had such a fabulous view of the Rocky Mountains and the Grand Canyon. That's a sight I will never forget.
The White Cliffs of Dover are another amazing sight from the ferry from Dover to Calais, the little towns in Switzerland, Lake Como enroute to Milan and some of the personal interesting experiences we had on our Europe trip - like waving goodbye to Rome, pushing the van to start it up in Heidelberg.
Travels in India when I was young - stopping by the roadside to have a soft drink and watching the poor man trying to open up the bottles with a bottle opener and failing miserably, the first sight of the Himalayas - a breathtaking moment I will never forget, a trek on the Sonmarg glacier where my aunt's horse decided he wasn't going to behave and so many other incidents.
Train journeys in India travelling with extended family have their own story to tell - The Rajdhani Express from Mumbai to Delhi, Karnavati Express from Mumbai to Bharuch, The Deccan Queen from Mumbai to Pune and many others are etched in memory.
Even short journeys can be interesting. On a clear day in Wellington, it looks spectacular from the air. The picture above was taken on my flight to Auckland.
Sharing a poem I wrote as an Ode To Places
In this life there are places I've seen
Wondrous, beautiful and so serene
The hills and mountains spiritual and grand
Valleys and plains all across the land
Woods and forests quiet and mysterious
But explore with care for they can be nefarious
Rivers and streams and babbling brooks
Crags and cliffs and caves and nooks
Meadows of flowers, shores and the sea
Any place where my spirit is free
These are the places in this world that I love
Breathtaking, amazing, and those I'm in awe of
~x~
Share some of your journey stories in the comments below.
If you do leave a comment, make it easy for me and leave a link to your blog / post.
Teaser for the letter K: Kite flying ...
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lovely post .loved reading about your journeys. I chose journeys too..just a bunch of my favourite , thought provoking quotes... do check it out:)
ReplyDeletehttps://archanablogs.wordpress.com/2017/04/11/j-is-for-journey/
It's always more about the journey and the experiences isn't it? The enjoyment, the thrill, the anticipation all build up the experience so very well. Your poem is perfect because it nails the essence of enjoying the journey.
ReplyDeleteAs much as I like an aisle seat, on certain flights I will take a window - anything over mountains so I can see them, flying in to Nice during the day, getting in to Cape Town. I've no real amazing "getting there" stories, but I've always enjoyed getting there. Great post.
ReplyDeleteLoved reading about your journeys. Especially I could relate to the bit about train journeys - the sights, the landscapes, beautiful!
ReplyDeletePrecious memories and you remember all your of them so well. I have memories of many lovely journeys too.. first With my mom dad, then my job took me all day over the world and now with hubby and little one.
ReplyDeleteYes journeys are the more fun part and thats the theme of my #atoz this year! :-)
ReplyDeleteTheme: Peregrination Chronicles (travel)
J is for Japanese dancers in the hot sands of Pushkar #atozchallenge
Today morning a friend who's a Priest doing mission works in Assam told that "if you're ever coming to North East come via Train rather than a flight. Because the whole journey makes the destination complete."
ReplyDeleteMore often than not, we are more focused about our destination than the journey itself. But the key is to focus on enjoying the journey, like they say taking the time to smell the roses... For me the journeys are time to observe people and life around and that has been the fodder for so many of my blog posts and also soak in the beauty around and of course introspect too.
ReplyDeleteI totally agree. The journey is just as is important as the destination, maybe more so. Most people miss out on a lot of things simply because they aren't 'aware'. The live in the future all the time, instead of savouring each moment. (I am guilty of doing this as well). Thanks for sharing your wonderful memories.
ReplyDeleteTotally agree with you Suzy. The best part of the journey is talking about it afterwards. Somehow journeys are never always the way we imagine they would be and in hindsight everything that seemed disastrous appears funny!
ReplyDeleteYou're right about enjoying the journey as much as the destination. I don't enjoy airports or long flights, but I really loved river cruising and floating past beautiful villages and ancient castles on my way to our next port of call.
ReplyDeleteLeanne | cresting the hill
Yes! The experience of going on a journey itself is the fun part for me. More than the destination, we enjoy the events on the way.
ReplyDeleteJ: Apps to jot down those ideas
So very true. I have a friend who says, "If it's not a good time, it's a good story." And the journey does not have to be long in distance, but with great attention.
ReplyDeleteAffirmations for a Good Life
Train journeys during my childhood were the most memorable. I used to love traveling solely for the train travel bit! My sister and I used to take games with us... cards, ludo, pocket video games etc. And of course, "name place animal thing" was our favorite. Plus the picnic hamper my mom would fix! Was fun!
ReplyDeleteHappy AtoZing!
Chicky @ www.mysteriouskaddu.com
Ohhh i love train journey..brought back memories where we used to pack dabbas then books to while away our time...Off late we travel only in flights..
ReplyDeleteLaunching SIM Organics This April
*Menaka Bharathi *
*SimpleIndianMom*
Ok
Journeys are more important than the destinations. There is so much to learn along the way. The journey enhances the destination.
ReplyDeleteAbsolutely true! We just took a short road trip and I welcomed the unexpected. It made the journey so much more memorable.
ReplyDelete