The Travel Channel is many things, but first and foremost it is a source of entertainment, not the know-it-all authority on travel. While it exposes the idea of travel and the world to many who would otherwise be content to sit in their La-Z-Boy recliner it will only give you the inspiration to get there, not the resources to explore. Alas, that will be reserved for the likes of Lonely Planet and Frommers or a host of some experiences shared on your favorite travel blog.

However there are a few shows that seem to embody what travel is all about, while other shows are more of a vacation exploration and more even still I have yet to figure out why they are on the Travel Channel. Cable, being what it is, I’m sure some of these shows are validated by the ratings they bring in and not for sticking to the main topic of travel. Let us look at the good, the bad and the ugly side of travel as shown on the Travel Channel.

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Write Where I Need To BeI always had difficulty forming hobbies, which could be the reason why I never excelled at anything. My hopes and dreams of becoming a famous musician, aside from my inability to sing, slipped by as many aspirations had before. The dust gathers atop my guitar as if an indicator of the hours of neglect, the hourglass of my life.

Maybe the idea of travel appeals so much because my paws wander as fast as my mind does. Thus the idea of traveling blog came into mind, although instead of wandering to locations it would hopefully travel through internet space and land at someone’s screen for more than a second. My initial live journal site was no more than the occassional musings that crossed my mind, while I taught in Brazil. Sure it was also a way to keeep my family informed that I was alive, but more than that it was an outlet.

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I know you are thinking one of two things, either, “Who doesn’t?” or the Austin Powers movie with your pinky next to your mouth. However, the point is there is a gray area that seems to be missing on the pathway to riches. The song by Travie McCoy and Bruno Mars sings of not only sharing but living ‘the good life’ which includes travel and celebrity fame that would allow him close interactions one of the most powerful individuals in the world, the US president. (Although in my book King Kong is way more powerful and would be killer on the basketball court)

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The long drive home is never as exciting as the initial drive to your destination, or at least I thought. Albeit a sleepy adventure from my various vodka induced Minneapolis musings, I was ready to take on the road and head out to visit Chicago. The road however had a different plan for me that lead me away from my initial destination only to return a day later on the back of a tow truck.

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DaylandS, 'Stars Stripes and Sky Ambient Filter' June 14, 2008 via Flickr, Creative Commons License

Since starting this blog I’ve made a mini network of traveling friends whose blogs I follow and stories I read. More often than not they discuss a situation where their lifestyle was challenged or witty comebacks when someone asks you the same exact question the last person you mentioned your plans to had said. This has never happened to me before, I’ve had family ask if I wouldn’t be lonely and miss them but never someone outright challenging my quest to explore the world, that is until I ventured into Iowa.

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