In a recent interview I was asked, “What’s your travel philosophy?” After a bit of thought, I replied:
“I believe in slow travel, trying to find a different angle to the familiar, going off the beaten track and simply wandering about. You find out so much about a place by sitting at a little back-street cafe chatting to locals, going round the side of a well-known building and looking up or setting off in the opposite direction to the one the tour book recommends. I love finding out about the history, food and culture of the places I visit – always intriguing and often quirky.”
But how had I developed this philosophy, if that is what it is? I started looking back over my fascination with travel to see what the threads were that pulled it all together. I have been obsessed with reading and one book in particular inspired me when I was very young. That book was the Larousse Encyclopedia of Mythology with an introduction by Robert Graves. Originally published in 1959 it’s described as:
A comprehensive guide to world mythology which explores in detail the sources of human civilisation. Fascinating facts and legends from across the globe, covering the ancient civilisations of Egypt, Greece, Italy, China, Japan and India to name but a few.
We had a copy of the book at home and I used to spend hours armchair travelling to exotic countries, daydreaming via the black and white photos of landscapes, buildings, statues, pottery, jewellery, paintings, coins and places around the world I had never heard of. I have always been intrigued by mythology and it was only as an adult that I’ve come to realise just how much it can teach us about people, beliefs, traditions and culture.
We moved around a lot when I was younger, leaving my home town of Southport, a genteel seaside resort in those days (great beach, not much sea) to move to greyer and less appealing Reading with its easy access to London. After a couple of years we went further south to another quiet seaside town, Bexhill, now famous for the Art Deco De La Ware Pavilion, around which my brothers and I used to play chase but which I also found strangely scary. Three years later we were uprooted by our itinerant sales rep father and dumped in the heart of urban Northampton, shoe making capital of the UK at that time. And there Dad left us, having moved us from a place we loved to one we really didn’t feel at home in, to join his mistress in newly divorced bliss in Nottingham.
However, as a dutiful father he took us out once a month to the stately homes of England and here I probably further developed my love of history as I absorbed centuries of British culture via the Grand Tour plunderings of countless generations of feckless young men wandering around the globe in the 18th and 19th century.
From there I went off to college in Dudley, got a mediocre degree from Birmingham University and started a teaching career I never wanted. I taught English to some lovely kids but was bored and only half alive. Waking up one morning next to my boyfriend, a lovely guy who I was supposed to marry, I suddenly thought, “There must be more to life than this.” A year later I was living in Greece, making friendships that would last a lifetime and having some very quirky adventures!
(Read how another travel book influenced that decision to move to Greece here.
When I started blogging in 2009 I simply wanted to share stories of my travels; my first blog was called Quirky Travel Tales, and is still going. A lot has happened since and I am fortunate to be able to wander around the UK and abroad, having wonderful experiences and writing about them, pinching myself every so often as I remind myself how lucky I am. (And no, it doesn’t pay the bills – not yet anyway!)
SO now I share the object of my quirky travels from the PAST in my very own version of the Larousse Encyclopedia – with a nod to the wonderful BBC series A History of the World in 100 Objects‘. It’s a rich mix of memories, anecdotes, thoughts and views inspired by some of the objects, photos, books, poems, places and people from around our awesome planet.
You can listen to an AudioBoo Podcast of this article here and read about TQT Object #1 The Compass
This is a very personal post and a bit of a ‘splurge’ but I did find it very therapeutic. Not sure what it will lead to but looking forward to the journey, as ‘they’ say 😉 Hope my readers will too!
Lovely post, Zoe. More, more.
Oh thank you so much Annie – your encouragement means a lot. I’m looking forward to seeing what results from this … whatever it is!
Great post. Of course Picasso’s art is totally inspired by mythology, so you’re in great company! There is so much we don’t know about these early stories/myths.
Beautifully written post. When reading this it suddenly popped into my mind: “Sindbad! 1001 nights!” My parents used to read me these stories when I was a small boy, and I even remember dreaming about them so vividly, travelling through magical landscapes. Many years later, in my 20s already, a friend introduced me to Joseph Campbell’s writings and lectures, and I was totally fascinated by them. That’s probably one reason why I never was attracted to those standard package tours or “hotel beach vacations”, always travelling independently, and like you, often heading in the opposite direction.
Thanks for sharing this Zoe (how do you even get those two points on top of the e?). It made me rediscover something about myself, and now I wanna read those 1001 nights again 🙂
Can’t wait for the next article Zoe! How this resonated with me – I too was devoted to a book of mythology as a child. Not the Larousse encyclopaedia but some other fascinating old collection with lots of photos of gods and goddesses, statues, Grecian vases and frescos . . . I hung on to it for years then it went to Oxfam during one house move. Now I’m kicking myself for letting it go! I’m sure it ignited my love of stories and storytelling, so love the idea of telling your traveller’s tales through objects that have a special meaning for you personally. 🙂
Very true John. I remember going to a small Picasso Museum in the south of France – Antibes maybe? Fascinating… Mythology was what really created my love of Greece all those years ago 🙂
Oh wasn’t ‘1001 Arbian Nights’ a magical series of tales, Ramin. I’m delighted that the article has inspired you – I honestly think that is one of the reasons I write … to perchance inspire others in the way that writing has always inspired me.
Re the ‘ë’ you can find it in Symbols Insert in Word docs. I have put an Auto-Correct on my pc. My name is Greek for Life – maybe another reason why I love Greece and life itself!
Enjoy your literary wanderings …
Lovely article Zoe. As for me…The Golden Treasury of Poetry and volume 5 of the Newnes Pictorial Knowledge set of encyclopedias which at the back had a section ‘Fable, Myth and Legend – Tales for Nursery Folk’. These have inspired me in many ways. Looking forward to your 100 objects!
I love this post, and I do believe that part of the “value” in a blog (as against say a magazine) is that it is personal. How personal you get depends on what you are comfortable with.
I do understand where you’re coming from with the inspiration, though! For me it was Pears Cyclopedia maps and National Geographic magazines in school! Wish I’d had the courage to follow my heart and escape as you did, though!
What a personal and inspiring story my friend! Despite life’s challenges, you persevered and carved out your destiny. I really enjoyed reading this introspective and I must say, beautifully written story, my friend!
Thank you for telling your personal story Zoe. Its lovely to learn more about your early life and inspirations. I too have an old book that my mother won as as school prize “Once Upon A Time Childrens Stories from the Classics”, – wonderful stories of Greek myths with beautiful colour plates. A resolution for next year – to get it rebound.
Liz – your choices sound fascinating. I remember the Golden Treasury – classic poetry book. Not sure I will be tackling 100 objects but we’ll see!
Linda – isn’t it fascinating how we can revisit the past just by hearing the title of a book – bit like a snippet of song. And now you have escaped to the sun in Tenerife – lovely to get warmth all year round 🙂
Thanks so much for your thoughtful words Jeff. I’ve certainly done a fair bit of carving and will continue to persevere on this quirky journey of life. And your writing is an inspiration to me always.
What a fascinating post! I believe the books my father chose for me as a child (ordering all the way from England when he couldn’t really afford to do so) really created the traveler I am today. One massive tome – Life in the Ancient World – had large colour illustrations of mysterious Egyptian gods and bull-leaping Cretan women. I got this when I was about 3 and pored over the pictures for a few years until I was old enough to read, that book lasted me forever. I still have it! An illustrated Child’s Garden of Verses by RLS instilled a love of England, and Arthur Lang’s blue, red etc. Fairy Books instilled a love of castles and mysterious places. Perhaps the greatest influence of all: globetrotting TINTIN!!! and Herge’s wonderful art.
Some wonderful books and memories there Lesley. I used to love those Arthur Lang fairy books. And thanks for the reminder of quirky Herge’s Adventures of Tintin – think he inspired a trip to Nepal in my subconscious …
Kay and Beth – thanks for sharing your memories here – just the title of books can take us on a journey back in time … Wonder what our children will look back on? Even though kids today spend a lot of time on the X-Box, Play Station etc, many are still getting lots of exposure to books too. Harry Potter is the Narnia equivalent de nos jour!
Hi. Fascinating. It seems your life itself has been a quirky journey. I can see how the desire to travel and go off the beaten track became nurtured. Yes, I grew up with the Tintin books which, I think, coloured my preception of other, exotic countries. I also read Asterix (still do), which probably explains a lot about me! I definately think you are a contender for Desert Island Discs.
Asterix & Tintin definitely fit the Quirky Travel criteria Barry 😉 And if Kirsty Young calls I will be ready!
We all need a bit of a splurge from time to time Zoe. I do it all the time. I really enjoyed reading this post, it adds a ‘bit of you’ to your very professional blog – even if it doesn’t pay the bills! Alvina
As you say Alvina, we need to splurge and my writing is definitely not about the bills, though am always delighted when I get paid for doing it! I enjoy reading about your adventures in the Lake District and beyond.