Tag: books

“Journeys are the midwives of thought. Few places are more conducive to internal conversations than moving planes, ships or trains. There is an almost quaint correlation between what is before our eyes and the thoughts we are able to have in our heads: large thoughts at times requiring large views, and new thoughts, new places. Introspective reflections that might otherwise be liable to stall are helped along by the flow of the landscape.”

a quote that stayed with me from the art of travel, by alain de botton.

i’ve just started reading the nasty bits, but already i find myself nodding in agreement at moments:

My pal A. A. Gill once suggested that the older he gets, and the more he travels, the less he knows. And I know what he means now. Seeing the planet as I’m seeing it, you are constantly reminded of what you don’t know – how much more there is to see and learn, how damn big and mysterious this world is. It’s both frustrating and addicting, which only makes it harder when you visit, say, China for the first time, and realize how much of it there is – and how little time you have to see it. It’s added a frantic quality to my absurd life, and an element of both desperation and resignation.

here’s to a year of discovery and awe!