Do not tell me how educated you are,  just tell me how much you have travelled.  ~  Mohamed

The apartment I live in is called ‘The Garret’ and I feel very much at home here.  However, some recent thoughts, emotions, and events have convinced me that I’ve been spending far too much time in the garret.  Ergo, I’ve decided to get out of the garret more, travel more, take more vacations, and relax in the sunshine a lot more.

Travel and change of pace impart new vigour to the mind.  ~  Seneca

I have very few responsibilities, a hell of a lot of time on my hands, and more than a little money in the bank ~ so there is no earthly reason why I shouldn’t be taking 4 or 5 vacations a year, or even a round half-dozen should the mood strike me.

And, it’s not as though I want to travel to far-away and strange-sounding places.  The camel route to Iraq holds no attraction for me.  Neither do the madchen and the gay muchachas.  And as for Paris, London, and Rome, I’ve spent so long in those cities that they’re like a second home.

There’s a hell of a lot of the world I just do not want to go to, not ever again.  And you can include in that list all of Africa, the Middle East, the Far East, Australia and New Zealand.  As for the America’s, I’d never cross the US border going South again.  I caught malaria in Mexico.

The places I really like are the nicer parts of the USA, some of the Caribbean, and most of the Mediterranean.  I also really like Tuscany and the South of France.  Scandinavia isn’t bad either, (at the right time of year).  None of which destinations are so very exotic, or so very dangerous.  If I’m honest I like going to places where most of the locals can speak some English, and they serve really good food.

In a couple of weeks’ time I’m going to Crete, and after that probably back to California.  Next year Malta, Cyprus, and Turkey are on my list.  Who knows after that?  But a Caribbean Cruise is looking attractive.

Life is either a daring adventure or nothing at all.  ~  Helen Keller

The one downside for me is that I will mostly be a solitary traveller.  But, who knows who I may meet along the way.  And, one never knows, I may even find an attractive travelling companion to take along with me.  On road trips, in a Mustang convertible, a guy needs an attractive and intelligent Girl Riding Shotgun anyway.  A road trip without The Girl Riding Shotgun just isn’t a proper road trip.

Some say that travel is good for the soul.  And, that a good traveller has no fixed plans and is not intent on arriving.  All I know is that I hate dull routine disrupting my life.

So, from now on, if you can’t find me, it’s because I’m on vacation.

Jack Collier

jackcollier7@talktalk.net

Santa Monica is pretty cool.