Travelling without moving....

There are some people who seem to have visited everywhere .... been
there, seen that, got the t-shirt . They collect air-miles like others
collect stamps ; they want to experience everything and everywhere
for themselves - and then there are others who have never set foot
outside their home town, and are quite content with that . I'm
somewhere in between the two - a mixture of both . I haven't travelled
much : the furthest I've got is to Paris and Bruges ( which isn't that
far really ! ) and it wasn't until I was well into my twenties that I
even managed to do that. There are reasons for that - lack of money,
family commitments, the fact that I used to suffer extremely with
travel-sickness when I was younger are a few - but I'm not unhappy
about it. That isn't to say I don't want to travel ..... if money and
time were no obstacle, there are many places I would like to go myself
..... China, India, right around Europe, North Africa. But I'm not too
concerned, for I have a way of experiencing a little of these places,
and many others without even leaving my home....

I can travel to far off places, experiencing amazingly diverse cultures, breathtaking scenery, enchanting sights and sounds whenever I want to ..... by just immersing myself in a book, or watching a DVD, or by listening to a CD. It is quite easy..... :-)

I enjoy reading a lot, and always have done ( even though I don't read as much now as I did ... ) - it is something I have inherited from my mum. A good book can take me away from where I am now, and transport me to another place ..... and that place doesn't just have to be another country. I can go back or forwards in time .... to places real or imagined ... even into outer-space - anywhere my mind ( and the book) wants to take me. From every book I read, be it fiction or non-fiction, I have new experiences, learn new things ...... I've become an eternal student in the University of the Universe.

The same is true for the music I listen to, and DVD's I watch. Through listening to (and watching ) artists such as Jean Michel Jarre and Peter Gabriel ( to name just two ) , I have been able to travel to new lands of my own making ..... to see other places I could only dream about visiting . Through their musical influences, I have opened my ears ( and eyes ) to experience other cultures ( and their artists ). For example, Peter Gabrielintroduced me to the music of Youssou N'dour ; through Jean Michel, I first discovered Khaled ... and through him Rachid Taha, Faduel and many others. I have acquired a taste for music other than just theDance-driven tunes of the UK charts, and through this music I can travel the world at will .

My taste in DVD's is not entirely mainstream either ( at least, not for the UK ) ... what are loosely described as "World Cinema" movies - ( i.e : movies not from the Hollywood film factory , not always English language ( but with subtitles), and with a story-line to them - rather than just being a series of explosions tied together with love scenes ....). Watching these takes me away to another place too.....

So you see , I don't need to actually fly around the world to see the sights ( although that doesn't mean I don't want to ! ) .... I can visit them already, and there is no limit to where else I can go, or see, other than my ability to read, listen and dream.......