I am a very lucky person in that I was able to realize my dream of traveling the world after finishing my education. I had decided that that was what I wanted to do as I drove away from Chicago, leaving seminary in 1972.
In 1973 I started my airline career and after six months I took my first trip as an airline employee and literally went around the world. We had an around-the-world flight at the time and I jumped on board for a three-week journey heading east, averaging three days at each stop along the way.
I went with a friend from work that I didn’t know well, so it was quite an adventure. Our first stop was Portugal. Our first night there I discovered that he did not care for foreign food. I thought well, this will be interesting, traveling the world and trying to find American food everywhere we go. Like, what’s the point of going around the world and not sampling each country’s cuisine? Oh, well, on we went. We visited Italy, Greece, Israel, India, Thailand, Taiwan, Okinawa, Guam and back to the U.S. through Hawaii. All in three weeks. For a twenty-five year old, that was quite an introduction to the world. It’s one of those things you are glad you did when the opportunity presented itself.
I of course learned a lot regarding the different cultures and people that make up our world. Learned some history. Learned that traveling the world with someone you hardly know can be interesting. Learned a little about sexual addiction as my friend found a hookup (female) in almost every port. Yes, quite an education.
After that big trip I traveled a lot. I would take a few extra days off every month or so and go to Europe for short stays. I also traveled the U.S. a lot. It was a lifestyle I really enjoyed in the early years of my career.
When Terry came into my life we kept up the pace of my travel bug. Fortunately he loved traveling also. We did trips to England, Scotland, Iceland, as well as much domestic travel. It was nice to have a travel companion and we traveled well together.
I’m so glad I did all the traveling I did when I was younger as I would not want to travel like that now. Times have changed so much. Flying was not the hassle that it is now with crowded flights and cramped seating. In the old days it was much more comfortable and I was often able to travel in first class. Oh, well, I’m glad I took the opportunity when it was available and I had lots of energy to go, go, go!
At this point in life I do not have the same interest or energy I had back then. I’ve seen a lot, done a lot, and really have become a homebody in a sense. We still like to travel but enjoy car trips and train trips more. A five-hour plane trip is my limit these days. Hawaii makes a nice break from routines twice a year and the beauty there is as good as I’ve found anywhere. We also have our other favorite places to visit like Sedona, Branson, Charleston, Edisto Island (S.C.), Savanna and others. We also try to see a new place every year. But the pace has slowed. Lots of places I haven’t seen, but that’s fine with me. I’m glad I started early with this travel thing. Life does change. Life’s been good. I can’t imagine what life would have been like if I had never done the traveling I did do. I’ve lived my dream and I am living my dream, just the pace has changed.
Wally