The Joys of Travel: And Stories that Illuminate Them by Thomas Swick.

2/5 rating. 176 pages.

Book #14 of 2023. Read May 6, 2023.

This was a combination of writings about travel and a few of Thomas’s stories from other books of his.

I’ve got to be honest that the two best things about this book were the cover (which got me to buy the book) and the fact that it was short. I didn’t hate the book, but felt like I didn’t really get anything out of it. I definitely could have used the few hours spent reading it more productively on nearly anything else.

These were a few quotes that I liked, and probably the only portion of the book that you need to read:

“Rather, it’s to elevate travel, whose greatest gifts elude the camera.”

“Long ago I realized that if I was feeling low, as if life no longer held any interest, it was because I had no trips planned.”

“Anticipation of travel is always more idyllic than travel itself.”

“Often, the less glamorous the destination, the more rewarding the journey.”

“In a world built on speed, walking somewhere is an act of rebellion.”

“Ships and planes both carry you away from the world, then surround you with water and sky, so the isolation is total. Trains remove you from the fray while taking you right through it.”

“One of the reasons I don’t like tours is that they replace one routine with another.”

“Often it’s the things we glimpse on our way to the sights that we remember most vividly, because, unlike the must-sees, they catch us off guard.”

“It took me years to overcome my shyness, the biggest hindrance to meeting people. An illuminating moment came in the bar of my London hotel in 1976 when the Polish barmaid asked me where I was from. I had been sneaking glances at her from afar, but had only dared to ask her for beers. One year later, when Hania came to visit me in Trenton, New Jersey, I shuddered to think—as I do today—of all that my timidity nearly cost me.”

“What you learn from your travels is unquantifiable, and can sometimes seem wasted, because back home it rarely comes up in conversation. It changes who you are, how you see your own country, and how you see the world (sometimes in ways you’re not not even aware of).”

“One of the things I learned was how surprised people were (especially Europeans) when told of the small percentage of Americans who possess passports. They found it shocking – and more than a little troubling – that a people who wield so much influence in the world have so little experience in it.”

“A first-hand familiarity with the world is the one travel joy that has an importance, in a democracy, that goes beyond the personal.”

“THOSE WHO CANNOT GO ABROAD WITHOUT BEHAVING BADLY SHOULD STAY HOME.” – sign at the Atlanta hotel in Bangkok 

“Bavarians still say that ‘beer is not alcohol, it is liquid bread.’ We headed off for our daily bread.”

“In 1992 I went on a road trip around Iowa, discovering kindness in every town.”

“From our hours spent in airports we know that most Americans, when presented with large chunks of free time and removed from demanding home entertainment systems, will find almost any excuse – a smartphone, a laptop, another bag of chips – not to pick up a book.”

“‘Everyone’s carrying about fifteen extra pounds right now,’ Carlos Cumpián, a local Chicano writer, explained to me as we sipped iced tea at a sidewalk café. ‘During the winter they’re able to hide it under coats. Chicagoans look their best in October – after the summer, and before they’ve had their Halloween candy.’”

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