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| Palau |
After a month of lockdown, some folks are getting the itch to hit the road. A look at this will throw a wet towel on your re-emerging travel urges.
https://www.worldnomads.com/travel-safety/worldwide/worldwide-travel-alerts
This article is comprehensive and it tells us there is no place to go. Ok, maybe Palau, a scuba divers paradise in Micronesia. If you haven't been to mainland China or Hong Kong, they'll probably let you in. But, don't take my word for it. Plus, good luck getting there.
What has travel meant to you? For me it has been the freedom to immerse myself in a new world. To roam and experience freely, without fear. That is not possible now and with sadness I wonder if I will ever feel the same freedom.
Will I ever feel comfortable again-
getting lost in a tea field in Hangzhou?
walking around Istanbul during Ramadan, sampling the sights and sounds?
bargaining in the bazaar's of Cairo?
Being in Asia's "wet markets"? Kunming's wild mushroom market?
sampling dates handed to me by vendors in Istanbul's Grand Bazaar?
Exploring crowded churches in Kazan?
Grazing in Vienna's Naschmarkt?
Sampling Japanese pickles in Kyoto's Nishiki Market
Sampling teas in Beijing?
Riding crowded subways in Shanghai? Or packed ferries in Bangkok?
Or any one of a hundred other things that seemed natural at the time?
When will it even be possible to go to these places? How will they be changed?
The covid19 pandemic, when the actual danger from the virus subsides, will bring many changes, changes that none of can begin to imagine. It is wonderful to have traveled in the pre-covid world where the only thing needed to travel was desire, imagination and a few clicks of the computer.
