The Travel Bug

Needless to say, I've got it. And I believe I can speak for both my brothers in saying they've got it too. I'm just completing reunion tour of sorts to Europe with the family, the first time we've been back on European soil since we left England in July 2009. And boy did I miss it. After four days in London we ventured to spots where we haven't ever traveled - Germany, the Czech Republic, and Austria. All were incredible. I'm typing this from Munich, where we fly home from tomorrow.

My point in making this post is my amazement at how BIG and SMALL the world has become. All of us as brothers have traveled the globe unlike any of the prior generations within our family. And when I've traveled we always seem to run into folks from Iowa, Missouri, or from wherever we hail from. That's amazing to me considering I've been literally half way around the world. But I guess the special sites attract those from all over the world.

So how did we, as brothers, come by the Travel bug? Did we all contract it in the same way, or in our own different ways? Did prior generations not value travel the same, just not have the same means as we do, or both? While I recognize there are reasons why they didn't travel as much as we have, is there a reason they didn't find the time or money to travel outside the US or North America? And what was it that led each of us to do so more robustly? There are some obvious answers, but there may also be some surprises in the answers to these questions.

I love traveling and hope I have the means a.k.a. time and money, to continue to do so. And I always want to travel to some place new, with only a few places I've ever been being ones that I would return to as a preference to a new unknown location.

There are some incredible things to be learned from traveling, and that's why we've traveled with our kids when we can. My kids have a global outlook on the world, one that I'm sure will serve them well as they grow up. They have a very broad view of the world and all its people and cultures, and I love that about them.

I'm eager to hear my two brothers chime in on this topic with their views, as their travels have been different than mine, but equally interesting. There have been a few occasions where our collective travels have been fed by each other, traveling to see one another on different continents and in different countries. Bosnia, for example, what an incredible trip.

I'm headed home tomorrow and travel also gives me a renewed appreciation for home. I'm not just talking about KC, I'm talking about the good ole' USA. What a great place! The privileges, the people, the cultures, the mountains, the valleys, the plains ... from sea to shining sea!