A fellow traveler recently turned to me and asked “Sunny, what is it about traveling that you love?”

My answer:  “The feeling”  The answer sounds so simplistic, but to truly understand it, you have to have done some off-the-beaten path traveling yourself.  Therefore, most people will nod in agreement, but not have a clue what I really meant.

It’s the feeling of of excitement that makes you leap out of bed while abroad.  The feeling of finding great pleasure in the simplest acts that you take for granted back home.  It’s a feeling that awakens incredible optimism and an anything-is-possible attitude.  It makes you appreciate meeting new people, push your limits, and try new things.  

Above all it’s the unavoidable feeling of adventure as you’re able to go wherever the day takes you.  The knowledge that while you may have woken up in New York, you may be going to sleep in Boston or Paris or Vancouver.

I wish I could capture it and bottle it, because it’s priceless.  The only problem is it slowly fades after a week or so of being back in the ‘real world’, which leaves you always yearning for your next escape.

It’s the reason I love travel, and if you haven’t experienced it, you haven’t lived.