It’s another quiet sea day, which leaves lots of time for just ruminating – and chatting.

Folks we know from our previous Viking cruises are already aware that we’re “homeless”, but when new acquaintances find out their reactions vary from curious to incredulous.

After “Are you rich?” (Episode 545), the second most common question we’ve been asked about our choice almost 8 years ago to give up owning a home and travel full time is “Why?”

Why did we decide to sell it all? Don’t we miss having a home? (by which people usually mean a structure; we have a “home” – each other) Why do we keep travelling? Haven’t we seen everything we want to see yet? Why isn’t a country as huge and beautiful as Canada enough?

The first two are easily answered. (1) Because we realized our “stuff” was meaningless when compared to experiences and memories, and (2) Nope – not for a second. Not the maintenance, not the gardening, not the snow shovelling, not the constant outflow of cash required to keep things up-to-date and in good repair, and not the worry about who’d look after it if we were away.

As for the rest, this poem, of which I was reminded recently by a fellow passenger, explains some of what we get by travelling outside our own borders: wonderful landscapes still to discover inside ourselves.

Giovanni Giancaspro (aka Gio Evan), who wrote the poem, is an Italian writer, poet and singer-songwriter born in 1988. His poem “Viaggiate” (Travel) focuses on the benefits of traveling and reflects on how travel changes a person’s thoughts, attitudes, and opinions. 

Travel inspires us and keeps us optimistic that anything – even peace – is possible if people make human connections to each other.

A Poem About Travelling 

Try to travel, otherwise
you may become racist,
and you may end up believing
that your skin is the only one
to be right,
that your language
is the most romantic
and that you were the first
to be the first.

Travel,
because if you don't travel then
your thoughts won’t be strengthened,
won’t get filled with ideas.
Your dreams will be born with fragile legs and then you end up believing in tv-shows, and in those who invent enemies
that fit perfectly with your nightmares
to make you live in terror.

Travel,
because travel teaches
to say good morning to everyone
regardless of which sun we come from.

Travel,
because travel teaches
to say goodnight to everyone
regardless of the darkness
that we carry inside

Travel,
because traveling teaches to resist,
not to depend,
to accept others, not just for who they are
but also for what they can never be.
To know what we are capable of,
to feel part of a family
beyond borders,
beyond traditions and culture.
Traveling teaches us to be beyond.

Travel,
otherwise you end up believing
that you are made only for a panorama
and instead inside you
there are wonderful landscapes
still to visit.

- Gio Evan
Translated from Italian.

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The other part of “why” might just be food. When we slow travel on our own, I love exploring local markets and spices, and cooking with unfamiliar ingredients. When we cruise, especially with Viking, Ted and I both enjoy the interesting variety of foods, and the beautiful platings.

Today at lunch, the culinary team was putting together cioppino (fisherman’s stew) on the Aquavit Terrace. The fresh sea bass, scallops, mussels, button clams, prawns and accompanying fresh breads and chilled Riesling wine were irresistible to me (to Ted, who has only one allergy, shellfish, not so much).

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Tonight’s dinner, and the quality and variety of entertainment we get to experience are other examples of “why”.

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Perhaps the bigger question for is as we planned our retirement was “Why not?”