Layovers

So I thought I would explain the title of my blog, and sort of my philosophy on travel which comes along with it.
Obviously, the title is a play on "Love at First Sight". I basically wanted something kind of cutsey stereotypical Tumblr-y and in a way it's meant to be sarcastic, but I really do like the sentiment behind it.
I have always loved travel. I boarded my first plane before I was 1 year old, and since then I have been abroad by air at least once a year for 10 of my 18 years.
I grew up in Riyadh, KSA and that gave me the wonderful opportunity to become a frequent flier. Thus, many of my fondest childhood memories revolve around travel, airports, airplanes, etc...so here is a list of all the great things from my childhood of traveling and how they have carried on into the rest of my life so far.

• Making blanket forts in between two empty seats with my sister
• I now always have the urge...but I can't remember the last time I was on a 747+ with enough correctly positioned empty seats for that
• Going to the Riyadh airport and being enamored with the gorgeous hexagon tiles and incredible fountain (at least it was impressive when I was a child)
• I have high standards for airport aesthetics
• Coming home to a house that has that special haven't-been-here-in-a-while smell
• I close every door in my house before I go on a trip to trap in that scent
• Waking up when it's still dark out and driving to the airport with the ambiance of the night sky but the promise of an entire day ahead of you
• Before sunrise is my favorite time of day

That's just to name a few! But honestly, my travel as a child and throughout my life so far has given me a certain perspective on the world. I never say vacation, for one, I prefer 'trip'. If you read my post entitled The TRIP, you will realize that. And this one is so special to me it gets to be in all caps! I also don't like to be a tourist, but I love touring...so I go with tourista. I think it's important to try and become immersed in local culture as much as possible, and I know it's a cliche but it's a cliche for a reason, right? In summary- travel for me is not about lying on a beach or seeing as many cathedrals as possible in 10 days. Travel for me is the journey, because it's all a journey from the moment you leave for the airport, through the potential language-barrier charades, through trying to figure out the metro map, to the last goodbye...it's all travel and it's all precious and valuable.

"Twenty years from now you will be more disappointed by the things that you didn't do than by the ones you did do. So throw off the bowlines. Sail away from the safe harbor. Catch the trade winds in your sails. Explore. Dream. Discover." -Mark Twain