Positive Reasons to Travel Around the World now with your child

Posted on by exploramum

©Exploramum and Explorason – new friends

POSITIVE Reasons to Travel Around the World

NOW with your child

We all need positive words and Positive Reasons to Travel.  But, if I had a $ for every negative comment made regarding my proposed trip, I would be filthy rich. I am shocked that one of the toughest obstacles in my life has been other people’s thoughts about my decision to go on a trip.

So when Adrian from Australian Caravans suggested I write why I would quit my job and go on a single parent travel, I came up with this – thanks Adrain! What you offered me was one great luxury expert advice that I believe will help me during my family travel.

Here are the Positive Reasons to Travel! (in no set order)

1. My child’s education will be enriched

The world becomes his classroom. He will learn new languages, culture, currencies, customs, geography, and much more. His education will be enriched far beyond anyone’s expectations. Here he sees a Joey feeding from its mother’s pouch.

©Exploramum and Explorason – kangaroo

2. We will become creative, fit and active

Living without a room full of toys, my child will get creative and come up with fun ways of passing time. He will also become fit and active as we hike mountains, go swimming and walk the streets.

Our own health will improve beyond measure, as long as we do not get lazy or eat everything on a cruise liner’s food menu.
I really want to show my son the world while I am still active and young enough to be able to, not sitting and waving him off, whilst he does it alone.  Give me the bike, the hiking shoes, toboggan, or the kayak!

©Exploramum and Explorason – in the snow

3. My child learns the value of money

Nothing can teach a young one about what things are worth until they see what they cost in other countries.  My boy will also learn to appreciate the little things in life when he sees all the happy faces of people who have nothing yet are still joyous.

©Exploramum and Explorason – sharing with others

4. We love to give

One of the reasons we want to go on our trip is because we want to bless others. We are Christians, and we love to give. There is always so much joy in giving. If everyone shared the riches of this earth, what a different place it would be!

We have been given so much in the western world, yet others are born with so little. It is lovely to help others and make their lives a little bit better.

These children were given a suitcase of toys to share with their friends by my son.

©Exploramum and Explorason – meeting new people

5. We will bond together

‘No-one is born with a crystal ball’ is one of my favorite sayings. I know not the days I am to have on this earth, nor the quality of my life. The same goes for my son. Last year, 6 friends were diagnosed with cancer. My own Mum died of cancer too, so I know what it is like to lose her.

A friend this year had her only child killed in an accident. Time to think and to enjoy the precious days we have together. Taking time out of this stressful lifestyle I was living, so we will allow us to spend quality time together which I couldn’t do trying to make ends meet financially with a crippling mortgage. As an elderly Mum, this is one of the most important ones for me too.

©Exploramum and Explorason -trying coconut milk

6. We work together

Kids love to help. I love the fact that my son’s year one teacher’s class motto was ‘Teach them so they can do it themselves’ – Thanks, Miss Amy Brinkman! I have this planted firmly in my memory, and I can’t wait for my child to bang in his first tent peg, or climb his first mountain. This will be a trip of many firsts, equipping my boy with great skills. Gone will be the whining, as we roll up our sleeves and do it together, as a team.

©Exploramum and Explorason – yikes a sale

 7. Growing up with less fear

Another great reason to take children on a trip is that they will try new things without a scrap of fear. My son is so proud that he patted a snake! Here he just jumps up and sings the Fiji National Anthem with the band. Again, with no fear.

©Exploramum and Explorason – singing with the band

8. New foods to enjoy

When there are wild and exotic foods placed in front of you and there is no other choice and you are hungry – well you eat them. I am proud that when we were on an island and the lady peeled a mango, my son sat with the kids and loved it.

I am fortunate that Explorason loves sushi, eats chives straight out of the garden, and will eat most veggies without a fuss. It may well be myself, who has to be the brave one in this department. But am proud that he won’t be a fussy eater at the end of this time.

©Exploramum and Explorason – trying new foods

9. I need a break and a new start

I have had a very difficult last few years, after a rough relationship, and then raising a child on my own with pretty much no support. I am worn out and I need to just put myself back together again. I need some stress-free time to recharge the batteries and find the real me again. I need to refill with love, so I can love again. What better way than to love my child, and love others, and to have a new start.

©Exploramum and Explorason – a new start

 10. Kids open doors

Often you are told ‘no’, but when you have a child who needs to urgently go to the toilet (even if it is really you), people say ‘yes’. They will push kids to the front of the crowd.

They will offer your child food to try. Allow them to the front of the line. In this photo, this was a closed off display, but because my son asked nicely, the policeman allowed him to pose with him for a shot – it was an old Australia Outback jail cell. We had our bus breakdown on one trip, and my son was not even two.

Within 5 minutes, I was sitting upstairs in the home of some lovely Indians with my boy. They gave him food, a juice box, played with him and let me use the bathroom.

Everyone else on the coach crossed their legs and rubbed their bellies for nearly 3 hours. Yes – kids open doors!

©Exploramum and Explorason – visiting an old prison

 11. We will explore!

I have always traveled from when I was young. I was blessed to grow up with a large family of girls. My parents though not well off took us away every school holiday.

We had an old Comma van with no seatbelts. Driving in it,  we were able to see and learn so much about Australia.

We were given the gift of exploring. I still have a memory of those holidays. The one that is clearly in my mind more than ever, is Dad with his new camera; he made us stand in a line and march around an old prison out in the desert from Broken Hill, each girl having her hands placed on the shoulder of the person in front of her.  We drew a crowd. That nutty family! It was over 100 degrees Farenheight, and we were acting like goons. Thanks, Dad for the memories!

12. Making new life-long friends

I have so many precious friends around the world thanks to my travels.
Not only do you meet people in the place you are in, but you meet others who are fellow travelers from all sorts of places.
Let’s face it, you can be in a 5-star resort, and people can be so snobby, you can feel quite alone.
Where-as, you can go to a local village, and sit with them, and make a real friend.
We went to a Sunday School in Fiji, and they asked my 5-year-old to teach a song.

We are now friends with people from that experience, as we offered to send them photo’s from the day.

©Exploramum and Explorason – Fiji Sunday School

13. No more housework and yardwork

I’m selling the vacuum cleaner at my Garage Sale. It’s old and I can get a new one when we get back. No more housework for a while I foolishly think to myself.

* No more yard work. I wasted so much of my life maintaining this garden; pulling those weeds, and pruning the rose bushes. Time to smell the roses without having to own them.

* No more household repairs & maintenance: Every house has them, and they can burn a hole in your pocket. The more you own, the more you have to fix. It weighs you down, robs you of time, and money. Start to de-clutter.  It is liberating! I think maintaining a house nearly killed me. It was never-ending, and I couldn’t keep up with it.

©Exploramum and Explorason – getting ready to go

14. No more House Sale Open Inspections

My poor son is over “expect ions” as he calls them (inspections).
Living in a glass house is no life for a child.

* No mortgage: Can’t wait for this one!

* No utility bills: Yes, we will have bills while we travel, but I have spent so much on my big house and it will be good to be free from most of these costs.

15. You get to tell your boss where to put their job

Last year, I found myself working for a boss who had their own set of rules. The boss’ eyes were on the scoreboard, and not on the game. She wanted me to lie, and I couldn’t do that, so I had to quit.

I remember standing on the street, talking to my friend Jakki on my cell mobile phone, in quite a dilemma.  My boss wanted me to lie on a taped meeting. And this boss wanted me to lie often. The first time, I was thrown into the deep end without a clue and was like scrambling up a rock cliff face bare-handed and trying not to fall.

If I am going to train my son to be honest, why would I want to lie to this person?
Then one day said boss wanted me to ‘use my creativity’ on legal forms, and I refused.

Oh! the joy I had when I told this boss “NO!” I then loudly told this person what I thought of their ethics, threw in the job, and left.

16. Learn to follow your dreams

My son’s number one dream is to stand on top of the Eiffel Tower. Mine is to drive on the Amalfi Coast of Italy, in a sports car, with some accordion music playing. Maybe it will be ‘When the moon hits the sky like a big pizza pie, that’s Amore’.  Who knows.
But dreams are the things that keep us alive, and it is time to start living.

* Throw away the agenda, and hectic timetable: I tell people that life has been like living Groundhog Day. So it is time to leave all that behind and to take each day as it comes. I won’t be wearing a watch. I will only buy tickets to my next destination on an ‘as needed’ basis.

I can relax, and let go of the must do’s. The best times happen, without planning. It is time to count the stars in the sky as well as my blessings!

*History comes alive:  One of the wonderful things about traveling to ancient cities is that the bible can come to life. To walk the streets where the disciples walked. In Asia to see things thousands of years old.
Really – it doesn’t matter if it is 100 or 1000 years old, our kids need to experience and learn from ancient ruins. What a thrill to share that learning experience together.

©Exploramum and Explorason – history comes alive

17. We get time to read books

We both love to read. How nice would it be to sit under a tree together, engrossed in a fabulous story?

* I want to find love and happiness: I am surprised I am adding this, but really, it is time to open my life and to be loved again. They say you find love when you are not looking, but I think love can be found when you are happy, so I seek to be happy. It might just be loving my son, but that’s OK.

* If we don’t like it, we leave: Part of the great thing about being mobile, is that when you have had enough, you just pack up and move on – hopefully to greener pastures. I have learned that owning a home makes you stuck. You can’t get up and go. We have made an agreement that if one of us is unhappy, and really doesn’t like a place, we will talk about it, and be prepared to compromise and leave.

* We can enrich others lives, as we are enriched: I am pleased that we can teach others, especially in poor places. It is lovely to be asked and needed, and to be able to help – just to be nice!

So I hope this has inspired you to think about some travel.

If you have some great reasons I have missed, please let me know, and I might be able to add them.

What are your positive reasons to travel?

Questions and Comments

  • At what age do you find it suitable to travel around the world with your child?
  • Are you afraid the exposure to different cultures might have a negative effect on them?
  • Please leave your comments below.

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