It was June 1977. I was 9 years old, and my mother had recently divorced. After the divorce, Mum organised a trip to Canada for the two of us to visit a lifelong school friend who had married and settled in Toronto. The trip would include stops in Hawaii and Los Angeles to break up the long journey from Australia.
There are too many fond memories to share in just one blog, but it's fair to say that my love for travel was born in 1977. The excitement of new experiences every day, the sights of unique landscapes, and the sunburn of the Hawaiian sun in June are just so memorable.
Culturally at age 9, you understandably don't appreciate things like cuisine and local customs and traditions, for me it was theme parks, fun and adventures. So naive was I at this age. I once gathered up all the coins and spare change that lovely people left behind on the restaurant tables. I said to Mum. "Look at all this". That was my first understanding of local customs and what the term 'tips' meant. I reluctantly gave it back after only getting a few steps out of the restaurant. It was no big heist for this daylight bandit.
The travel experience on that trip was enough to understand that the world was far bigger than our hometown of Newcastle, NSW, and it was filled with magical places no matter what your interest. For me at the time, it was Hawaii's Sealife Park, Disneyland in Anaheim and Universal Studio to name just a few. The highlight, meeting Mickey Mouse in Disneyland. So many beautiful memories were made with my Mum at the time. I hope I've created similar memories with my children during our travels.
I would fall in love with Canada during that short stay visiting friends. I would later return at age 21 with a 12-month working holiday visa based in Toronto. There are so many life lessons I learned from a working holiday, and I just can't recommend this experience enough to young people. I quickly realised that despite an expensive trip to Canada from Australia, a trip from Toronto to other parts of the world was relatively cheap, so during that working holiday in Canada, I would travel to the UK, the Caribbean and New York City all while based in Toronto. I would work, save, travel and repeat.
Over the years, I have travelled a couple of times on business trips to Asia as a tourism professional. In more recent years, I have travelled with my wife and children as a family, hoping to pass on the travel bug. I wouldn't say I have travelled extensively, but I have experienced many parts of the world. Am I a travel expert? No. Do I love to travel? Yes. I still have an interest in the adventure of theme and water parks, but now I also appreciate more cultural experiences and, of course, local cuisine and wine.
To this day, I still remember that very first trip in 1977. The excitement of first stepping from the boarding bridge onto the aircraft, the smile of the welcoming QANTAS stewardesses, and a small whiff of aviation fuel that comes from between the boarding bridge and the fuselage. One would imagine too much of that fuel smell would not be healthy, but for me, that smell and stepping onto the aircraft still get me excited for the journey and adventure that lies ahead.
I thank my dear late mother, Wendy, for taking me on that first wonderful trip. It's impacted every part of my life since.
PS: Yes, that is me with blonde hair with Mickey Mouse.
About the Author
The author of this blog, unless otherwise noted, has no affiliation with any property or business linked in this article. Unless otherwise noted, there is no free accommodation or payment from any businesses. The information contained in this blog is strictly the views of the author and not professional advice. The author of this BookDirect blog is a travel and tourism professional with over 30 years of experience in international hotel management, global travel, short-term rental management and a tourism awards judge specialising in accommodation and attractions.
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