The Road Trip

A Road trip to find ourselves…



Vivek Wagle a Lonely Planet Author recently wrote about John Steinbeck and his bookTravels with Charley.



In September of 1960, 50 years ago to this day, an ailing John Steinbeck decided to see his beloved country for one last time. Along with his dog, Charley, Steinbeck circumnavigated

the USA in order to discover ‘the real America’ – a land from which he had felt increasingly disassociated.



Most readers see the work as a (sometimes loving) critique of the country. Steinbeck rails against Americans’ love of mass consumption and over processing. He bemoans the loss of local character as television genericises US culture. He finds racism, prejudice and laziness everywhere. And he saves his most scathing words for US officialdom, noting, ‘I admire all nations and hate all governments.’



His writings are appealing because of the character of the man and how this personality is evident from his writings. Why this book caught my eye is the fact that at the core of his writing, in the hustle and bustle of everyday life, making ends meet and being thrust from side to side with the popular media of the day, even 50 years ago John Steinbeck got it. He got that we need to keep in touch with the everyday acts of those around us. Not to be a "busy body", but to be aware of the social and temporal needs of those around us, caring in a genuine way for the values that make our communities great and being concerned about making them better for all.



At the heart of every community is a personality, and because of that personality we should be concerned for wanting to know more about the generations that make that area what it is. Traveling and vacationing takes on a whole new meaning when seen through the eyes that are looking to form an understanding of the cultures around us. We don’t have to agree with everyone’s opinions of those cultures but putting those pieces of the puzzle together certainly makes us a more grounded and a more interesting group of people.



For my family and me that’s an important facet of our life long educational process and with Getaway Gateways focus on frequent travel at a price that families of all sizes and ages can afford I welcome the encouragement they give for everyone to take the time to sit with those they love and ask yourselves, "if John Steinback could squeeze so much life and enjoyment out of a simple road trip, surely we should take the time to get much more out of our travels than currently we think possible".



Let’s hit the road……