Why Do We Travel?
by Christine Bord
Looking for a late spring getaway, I planned a short road trip to the South West. First, I was going to the Grand Canyon and then I was going to drive a short stretch of Route 66 toward New Mexico. At the same time I was trip planning I was working on an article about summer movies for OLV. While researching my article, I came across a write up about one of the locations used in the upcoming movie Transformers, White Sands National Monument and at that moment my road trip route took a change, for the better.
Before I knew it, I was boarding a plane to find this otherworldly place in the middle of New Mexico. I walked onto the plane, armed with Airborne, bottled water, and nasal spray. I was prepared for any germy child or coughing old guy that might be seated next to me. I knew that the key was to stay hydrated, rested, and keep moving, this would prevent blood clots and the common cold. If I wiped my seat well with Clorox wipes and avoided the bathroom I should also be able to avoid any potential stomach viruses. I had an Ipod and an array of magazines, I was covered. I wanted desperately to look like a comfortable flyer but as I peered down at my arsenal of cold remedies and distractions I knew there was no way I could blend in.
I made it through the flight unscathed. I was ready to hit the road and see these mysterious sand dunes I had read about. What I did not plan for was the drive through New Mexico. As I started driving, I kept thinking about The Sunday New York Times feature “Why We Travel”, usually a photo sent in by a reader with a brief description of their travel experience. So as I was driving in this desolate, lonely part of the country I kept thinking about that, why do we travel?
One of the most wonderful things about traveling is the time it allots us with nothing to do but think. Whether it is waiting in the airport or sitting alone on a beach, inevitably at some point comes some time where you do not have to worry about packing a lunch, putting the dog out, or what is sitting on your desk. This time gives us a chance to think about what is important to us, what our lives should be, who we are. I will never forget the day I was in Hawaii on holiday, sitting on the beach, midday, no worries, no books, no other tourists, nothing, just me and the ocean. I suddenly realized that without my usual roles (worker, student, daughter, friend) I did not who I was and I started wondering if those roles exclusively shaped me or if I was something more. I had never had the time to really think about it before and wasn’t there long enough to find an answer.
This ride through New Mexico gave me just that, time to think. The ride is desolate and quiet, a little lonely. Nothing passed by me except for the occasional train. I never saw a McDonald’s and thankfully I had gassed up before leaving. Occasionally I would pass a marker, The Trinity Site, a military base, then a lone trailer. My mind wandered realizing how vastly different one juncture can be from another and it became clear how we can have such strong diverse points of view in this country living in such vastly diverse terrains. I had time to think that I would never find at home.
When I got to White Sands it was worth the drive but it turned out the drive was worth the drive. It is all worth it, the planes and drives, weather and packing, just to see these beautiful places and enjoy the process that gets us there. On film is fine but in person is spectacular. I am so grateful that a film I have not even seen yet has led me on such an absorbing adventure. I am also glad that I have the time to enjoy it.
