|
|
Best of 2011: Tales of a travellin' man
Best of 2011: Tales of a travellin' man
Planes (jet and prop), trains (speedy and meandering), and automobiles (convertible, utility and luxury) took me on my journeys in 2011, along with an odd assortment of motorboats, canoes and a monorail.
I’ve had more hyperbolic years in the past, but a mixture of financial limits and contemplative mood had me slowing down my travels this year. I took time to savour a slice of southern Europe and three islands in Hawaii, to drive the Pacific Coast (on three different occasions) and to visit every one of the beaches in "Surfin’ USA" - except for Narrabeen, which is inexplicably in the song despite its location in Australia.
It was a rather modest year in terms of the breadth of travel. I made it to five states - California, Hawaii, Nevada, Arizona and Massachusetts. My foreign journeys were concentrated on two relatively long trips to just a pair of countries - Canada and Italy. I once wrote that Florence was one of the most overrated destinations in the world. My trip this year softened that rather sweeping statement, though I still prefer Rome and Venice.
Like a lot of Americans, I focused a big part of my energy closer to home. I found that even a night away from home and work could refuel my spirits.
Here’s my list of best travel trips and experiences from 2011, with contact information below:
Most beautiful spot: Venice, Italy. If you stand at the lagoon at sunset, there’s a feeling of connection with hundreds of years of human history. The sparkling water, the glow of the sun on the ochre-painted palazzos, the hum of motorboats, and the dipping and swaying of the gondolas as the sun sets behind the Lido create an experience I wish on everyone.
Best new discovery: the east side of Molokai. I’ve been to every one of the major Hawaiian islands, some many times over. But I’ve only been to Molokai once before, when I stayed on the dry, ranch-like west side. This year I rented a car, stopped at a market and headed off to the green, wet east side. My rental was 5 metres from the water and had views over the Kaiwi Channel to Maui. It was the most relaxing three days of the year.
Best story idea: digital detox. I went to Italy and didn’t take along my computer. I loved the calming effect it had on my brain and the pace of the days. Judging from reader mail (mostly electronic), the story resonated with many of you as well. Just because we can be instantly and constantly connected to the rest of the world wherever we go doesn’t mean we have to be. The idea of a vacation is to "vacate" certain parts of our lives. It’s hard to "be here" when you are constantly being pulled back "there."
Best travel song: "Baby You Can Sleep While I Drive," by Melissa Etheridge. Anyone who has taken a very long car trip with someone at the beginning of a relationship or rough patch along the way can relate to the sweet, sad lyrics.
Best travel movie: "The Descendants." George Clooney keeps turning up in great travel movies - I still watch "Up in the Air" any time it comes on the movie channels at home. Like Clooney’s character, the movie shows its location - Hawaii - as astride two worlds, one modern and almost indistinguishable from the rest of the country, and another lush, ancient and unique to the nation. The movie was directed by Alexander Payne, whose "Sideways" ignited a tourism boom in the Santa Barbara, Calif., wine country.
Favourite U.S. city: San Francisco. Whenever I touch down in the city by the bay, I realize how tough it would be for any other city to break into this slot. It only made matters worse for the competition when the October weather was clear and warm, I could snack my way through the Ferry Terminal food market on a Saturday afternoon and check out City Lights, one of the shrinking number of truly great independent bookstores in the country.
Favourite foreign city: Rome. It was too hot and crowded (as always), but the Italian capital is a place where "timeless" is no cliche. I sat on first century BC marble stones that had tumbled down in the Forum and I explained the landscape of temples and churches to my son and daughter. We walked the same routes as Julius Caesar, St. Paul, Raphael and Mussolini. The city shows you can grow old gracefully.
Favourite U.S. town: Concord, Mass. I drove the route of the first major fighting of what would become the Revolutionary War and spent the night in the town where "the shot heard round the world" was fired. The man who wrote that, Ralph Waldo Emerson, is buried in the Author’s Ridge at the Sleepy Hollow Cemetery, near the grave of his friend, Henry David Thoreau.
Favourite foreign town: Powell River, British Columbia. No journalist could fail to love the town that was once home to the largest pulp and paper mill in the world. Now the site of a much smaller boutique paper products operation, the town has survived the rounds of layoffs and departures by remaking itself into an arts colony while preserving its architectural past. The heart of the town is the Patricia Theatre, which opened in 1928 - the year before the stock market crash. It’s still showing movies in its restored single-screen hall with flamingo murals.
Best alternative reality: Las Vegas. The city built on customers’ overrating their streaks of good luck is riding a long bad streak. But Sin City is trying hard to recover its "Hangover"-style swagger despite the half-finished, dead dinosaur hotels and shuttered Sahara at the north end of the Strip. Just take a stroll through the diamonds and designer dresses at CityCenter and you can see a whole city crossing its collective fingers. |
|
發表於 2012-1-12 06:50
| 