I Am A Travel Addict

Hi, my name is Valerie, and I am a travel addict. It has been 108 days since my last trip, not counting day trips.

Here is the evidence of my addiction:

1. My Road Trip Playlist has a little over 7 hours of music on it, and there are at least another dozen songs I want on it that I don't yet have.

2. In my after-hours spare time at work, I use Google Maps to memorize the names, capitals, and locations of countries...

3. ... And map out extensive trips in every part of the globe.

4. I own far more luggage than I could ever possibly need. (I should probably start renting it out.)

5. I have a small suitcase full of travel size toiletries.

6. I get antsy to go somewhere if it's been too long since the last trip... or the weather is perfect for travel... or I notice my luggage when I go into my storage room... or I hear a particularly awesome road trip tune on the radio ("Up Around The Bend" by Creedence Clearwater Revival, for example.)

7. I follow multiple travel bloggers on Facebook and Twitter. My favorite can be found at adventurouskate.com. I've been following her blog for several years.

8. I get annoyed by people who don't want variety in their travels. Disneyland and the Caribbean are great, but there is so much more out there!

9. I've attempted to learn languages I will probably never need in the U.S.: Hungarian and Bulgarian.

10. I enjoy packing for travel far more than could possibly be normal.

11. I have five separate Pinterest boards dedicated to travel, totaling 200 ish pins.
Travel
Travel Quotes
Travel Gear
Travel Bucket List
Ghost Towns

What I've Learned From Loreena McKennitt's Music

It's safe to say I'm a pretty big fan of Loreena McKennitt, both her music and herself. It's a pity that I didn't discover how true this was until after I saw her in concert several years ago. There is no one quite like her, and no music quite like hers. She is a true bohemian. She weaves stories of her exotic travels into her music. There's no musical genre to describe how she combines Celtic beats and hypnotic Middle Eastern rhythms with folklore and history. Her albums can be found under headings of New Age world, but they aren't really adequate descriptions. She uses many instruments in her songs that most Americans have probably never heard of, instruments that hail from the Middle East, Africa, and other places.

Before this turns into a fangirl rant, I'll get to my point: I've learned a lot, thanks to her.

"Night Ride Across the Caucasus" led me to research the Caucasus Mountains. I'll bet you don't know what they are and probably haven't even heard of them.

Her live album "Nights From the Alhambra" had me wondering what the heck the Alhambra was.  That's how I came to the dream of a visit to Spain, a country I had never given much thought to.

"Caravanserai" taught me about the way stations along the old Silk Road, now in various states of ruin, and crumbling in the hot desert sun.

"Mummers Dance", the one song of hers that has ever had any radio success in the United States, led to research about members. A mummer is probably not what you're thinking it is.

"Skellig" came to life when my favorite travel blogger visited the very location that must have inspired the song, a rocky island off the coast of Ireland, which houses a very old, weather-beaten monastery.

"Kecharitomene" had me googling the word. I still have no idea what it is, or what it means, but I love the song, and I hope someday I will figure it out. (If you know, I'd love to hear about it.)

"Beneath a Phrygian Sky" gives me visions of standing on the deck of a sailboat, in the Mediterranean, off the coast of Greece, staring up at the night sky.

I love it all. I'm a little bit of a bohemian, I love culture and music, and travel, and doing things that other people think are weird or crazy. (I have yet to meet someone else who thinks Sarajevo would be an interesting travel destination.) Loreena 
McKennitt and her music are a part of that. 

List-Obsession: What I Am

~mom
~wife
~LDS
~geek
~underdog
~doormat (sometimes)
~relatively open minded and non judgemental
~seeking a more Zen life
~novelist
~a former poet
~an actress on a long hiatus
~a fan of the Chicago Cubs
~travel obsessed
~collector of bags and luggage
~highly opinionated about the things I know a lot about
~pro life within reason
~accident prone
~very forgetful
~a big time procrastinator
~a little crazy
~A fan of genuine people
~musician
~mildly talented at a lot of things
~a wannabe nomad
~a little morbid
~a Dr Pepper addict
~somewhat antisocial
~very anti conflict
~imperfect
~overweight
~completely uninterested in politics
~a little OCD (but isn't everyone?)
~secretly harboring bohemian tendencies ~a dog lover
~intrigued by the idea of an unconventional pet like a goat, pig, hedgehog, llama, or armadillo
~a bank employee, but not a banker
~in love with Scotland in all things Scottish
~not especially tolerant of high maintenance people
~firmly convinced that people who don't want to travel are crazier than I am

List-Obsession: Songs About Me

Music is extremely important to me. I take it very seriously, especially lyrics. This is a list of songs that I feel define me in some way... how I feel, who I am, what I care about, my past.

More Than Fine -- Switchfoot

No Such Thing -- John Mayer

Raise Your Glass -- Pink

White and Nerdy -- Weird Al Yankovic

I Go To Extremes -- Billy Joel

Unwell -- Matchbox Twenty

The World I Know -- Collective Soul

Nobody Home -- Pink Floyd

Lithium -- Evanescence

Life After You -- Daughtry

If Everyone Cared -- Nickelback

Leave Out All The Rest -- Linkin Park

Life Is A Highway -- Rascal Flatts

Calling All Angels -- Train

Little Wonders -- Rob Thomas

Raindrops Keep Fallin On My Head -- BJ Thomas

Another Day In Paradise -- Phil Vassar

**While I'm at it, I'll throw in a few memes that define me.

56 Songs On My Road Trip Playlist

In no particular order, they are...

1. Rockin' Down The Highway - Doobie Brothers
2. I Can't Drive 55 - Sammy Haggar
3. Violet - Savage Garden
4. Lost Highway - Bon Jovi
5. Life Is A Highway - Rascal Flatts
6. Take It Easy - The Eagles
7. Real Gone - Sheryl Crow
8. Every Day Is A Winding Road - Sheryl Crow
9. Steve McQueen - Sheryl Crow
10. Keep The Faith - Bon Jovi
11. Desert Rose - Sting
12. Route 66 - John Mayer
13. Albuquerque - Weird Al Yankovic ( Yes, I listen to the whole thing.)
14. Holiday Inn - Elton John
15. My Father's Gun - Elton John
16. Dancing With Myself - Billy Idol
17. Listen To The Music - Doobie Brothers
18. Smooth - Carlos Santana feat. Rob Thomas
19. Raise Your Glass - Pink
20. Amoreena - Elton John
21. Country Comfort - Elton John
22. Love For Sale - Bon Jovi
23. Hotel California - The Eagles
24. So What - Pink
25. Running On Empty - Jackson Browne
26. Layla - Eric Clapton
27. Harmony - Elton John
28. Empty Sky - Elton John
29. Where The Streets Have No Name - U2
30. In God's Country - U2
31. Trip Through Your Wire U2
32. Té Dejo Madríd - Shakira
33. 500 Miles - The Proclaimers
34. Chicago - Kate Voegele
35. We Built This City - Starship
36. Ventura Highway - America
37. I Got A Name - Jim Croche
38. America - Simon and Garfunkel
39. Jump - Van Halen
40. Old Time Rock n Roll - Bob Seeger
41. The Biggest Ball of Twine in Minnesota - Weird Al Yankovic
42. Respect - Aretha Franklin
43. Up Around The Bend - Creedence Clearwater Revival
44. Free Bird - Lynyrd Skynyrd
45. America - Neil Diamond
46. Paradise City - Guns N Roses
47. Marco Polo - Loreena McKennitt
48. Wanted Dead Or Alive - Bon Jovi
49. Gypsies, Tramps and Thieves - Cher
50. Here I Go Again - Whitesnake
51. The City Of New Orleans - Steve Goodman or Arlo Guthrie
52. Go Cubs Go - Steve Goodman (it's a family thing - we're Cubs fans)
53. Get Over It - The Eagles
54. Life In The Fast Lane - The Eagles
55. Blaze Of Glory - Bon Jovi
56. Alice's Restaurant  -  Arlo Guthrie