Where Should I Travel?

Have you ever considered that part of what makes a great vacation is looking forward to coming home again? I'm all for getting away, experiencing new things, and shaking up the daily grind - but sometimes it's hard to see the point of leaving if you're just going to have to come back to the same problems you left behind.

I realized this when I was doing nothing in the middle of nowhere on a long weekend in December and I couldn't help but consider that my life could feel much easier like this vacation if my boyfriend didn't have dogs. It was somewhat disappointing after that to return to the kennel we call home and proceed with life and jobs and chores as usual. Obviously, stress and obligations can never be totally eliminated, but I believe that people should intentionally design their lives to feel enjoyable and a bit like a permanent vacation, rather than feeling so overworked and harried that there's a constant need to take a vacation. That way travel can offer inspiration and adventure, not just escapism. What do you think?

This has been on my mind lately because reminiscing about Belgium finally got me to overcome my reluctance to travel and got me interested in dreaming up a new adventure - but can't decide where. To an eco-tent in the Caribbean, or would I get bored with all the relaxing? To Paris, to give the city a second chance over my cold, gray, and impersonal memory of it, with side trips to sip wine in Bordeaux and feast on markets in Provence? To Spain, to relive my love affair with palm-treed Seville, stay up late in Madrid, and eat more ham this time? To Italy, to savor three-cheese gnocchi, drink limoncello, hike the cinque terra, and venture to an island like Capri or Sardinia?

I've been looking for deals (after all, that is how we ended up in Belgium - because it was cheaper than traveling to Italy), but I'm leaning toward Europe over the Caribean, and the flights to Europe are all expensive. And if it's going to be pricey, between the airfare and the prohibitive dog care costs*, and if I'm going to rack up the carbon miles guilt, than this had better be a d*mn good vacation.

So tell me, where should I go? Where are you dreaming of traveling lately? Do you know of any cheap but fun destinations? Where have you been and what insider recommendations can you share?


* For example, boarding the dogs here in New York while away costs more than human lodging cost in Argentina last year. There is something wrong with that.

via flickr