The irony of travel isn’t lost on me. Most travel is sold or pitched as relaxing, exciting, and adventuresome and new. I’ve never bought into this cult, I’m not really into theme parks or cruises or anything overly manufactured or manicured being the key to me getting a travel fix. (although those hedge sculptures at Disney parks are INSANE)
What people want and eventually do versus what they THINK they want TO do is a point that isn’t lost on me as a marketer. That said - there are triggers to making any decision - and its in that spirit that I clearly realize that I’m not being honest to myself and making the most of this experience.
Six weeks into my travels in Italy and my desire to be in my car on the open road traveling the US is piqued yet again. My time living out of my car, sleeping on couches, going cross country this Fall showed me more about myself and my country than traveling here. If anything there are too many Americans around me to really feel like I’m “somewhere else” most of the time.
The police here call it the “Disney Effect” - tourists walking around Florence with other tourists staring at the statues and bridges and buildings, as if this isn’t a bustling metropolis but rather a theme park built for their leisure. I could see a week or two of that would be magical, but after six weeks the gloss and shine wear off and you start seeing the “actors” taking smoke breaks, and the mimes ordering cappuccino and kebabs and you realize, “oh life goes on here without the tour busses and people like me.”
Travel outside of Florence has been nothing short of fantastic. Even in the Southern part of Italy where I had some less than flattering exchanges with some locals, it was amazing. I’ve got to shift my goals and refine them onto experiences that are unique to Italy and Europe in general. From there I have tighten my focus and start set plans to travel, in order to bring these goals to life. It may seem like a simple feat, but this place can put your feet in quicksand fast. Why leave paradise? Why leave this nice little American-ized cocoon you’ve got in Florence?
I’m excited to push myself the next six weeks and see what results may come.
