Anyone who knows my husband and me knows that we love to travel. We’ll go anywhere and learn something new, meet someone interesting, or have an experience we couldn’t have anywhere else. Isn’t that what travel does for all of us?
I first got the travel bug when I was a junior in college and spent a summer studying in England. Once exams were over, my best friend and I took off with our Eurorail pass, one small suitcase, a map of Europe (cities we wanted to see were highlighted in yellow), and a well-worn copy of Europe on Five Dollars a Day. For one blissful month, we visited some of the world’s greatest museums and sites, staying in youth hostels, convents, and the occasional night train.
All of these early experiences, and many later ones, make me happy to introduce you, the Louisiana Boomers reader, to this year’s travel edition. Our cover photo and accompanying story features Annie Collins, a travel architect from Alexandria. My husband and I have taken two spectacular trips with Annie, one to the Galapagos Islands and another to Vietnam and Cambodia. Imagine walking in the footsteps of Charles Darwin and seeing animal life and plants that don’t exist anywhere else in the world. Or, imagine spending time learning about the Vietnam War or visiting Buddhist temples that date back centuries. Life changing, unforgettable experiences.
Now that the pandemic is behind us, it’s time to get out and see this beautiful state and country. Or travel abroad, if the spirit moves you. Go with a group, your family, or if you are so inclined, go by yourself as one of our featured travelers, Eileen Powers of New Orleans does. Nothing holds her back!
Traveling doesn’t have to be complicated. In this issue, you can learn of six short trips to take and sites to see. Just go.
Novelist and travel writer Paul Theroux once said about travel: “You go away for a long time and return a different person–you never come all the way back.” So, think about a place you have never been, whether close by or far away. Let your dreams be big and bold. Then book that ticket, pack your bags, and visit that dream place. If you are lucky, you won’t come home the same as you were before, and that’s the whole point.