There's no doubt that wanderlust is a very real and dangerous thing. To be able to travel the world constantly has been a dream of mine, and many others, since we were tiny children. However, traveling takes money, which entails working, which doesn't always provide the time necessary for travel, but traveling takes money; it's a vicious cycle.
But that's not where the "cons" list ends either. Traveling also entails all sorts of angry-making situations; between flight delays, crowded highways, endlessly-crying children, and an inability to find anything suitable to eat, getting to your destination is far from a piece of cake. This especially depends on how you travel.
Many often choose the where-the-wind-takes-you aesthetic of a road trip, or the free-sailing experience of boating or a cruise. My go-to way to travel is via airplane.
From my first airplane ride when I was only six days old, my family and I have almost always flown anywhere and everywhere. The great thing about always flying is that we developed a system; my mom always takes the aisle seat, my dad the middle, and I the window. Between stretching and using the restroom, my mom is out of her seat more often than she's using it, thus she gets the aisle. My dad also has to use the restroom on occasion, but is seated much more often than Mom, so he likes the middle. Then there's little old me with the bladder of an elephant; even on 7+ hour flights, I never get out of my seat. All in all, I love the flying itself.
The airport, however, is another story. My parents become completely different people when they enter an airport; my ever-calm mom becomes a panicked mess and my ever-careful dad becomes confused and somewhat disoriented. I, the 20-something child of very entertaining yet also frustrating parents, am the only cool, calm, and collected one of the bunch. I suspect this is only in accordance with the fact that I've been flying since I was less than a week old.
Honestly, when it comes down to it, I much prefer to fly alone than with another person. While I enjoy another's company, I often find that flying with anyone else is twice as stressful and a lot less enjoyable. Flying on my own means I can pick the window seat without having to take into consideration what another person wants. It means not having to keep track of anyone but myself. It means freedom, tranquility, and ease because all I have to do is worry about me.
Flying can be very stress-inducing, and especially so for those who aren't calm in even the smallest of crises. However, I also love it. It's exciting to travel 40,000 feet in the air at 500 miles per hour. It's wonderful to get right to where you want to be without any slow driving or unexpected glitches in the map. Sure, things like flight delays happen, but they're not a big deal when you consider you're still getting there faster than driving.
Traveling, no matter how you go about it, is the ultimate experience in intercultural and worldview understanding, and I wouldn't give it up for anything.
