Travel [trav-uhl] Fever [fee-ver]

1. noun – an abnormal condition of the mind and body, characterised by undue rise in temperature, compulsion to journey from one place to another by car, train, plane, or ship; take a trip; journey: to travel for pleasure.
2. verb – intense nervous excitement causing one to travel compulsively for pleasure.

I’d be willing to bet good money that anyone who loves travel can remember the exact moment they caught the disease that would see them spending the rest of their life struggling to pay the mortgage/bills/rent while blowing all their spare cash on that next trip.

I was a young’en when I caught Travel Fever. The year was 1997 and I was almost 15 years old. The place was Pakistan. Yes. Pakistan.

Until recently, I hadn’t thought about when the year I caught the fever, but when my Pop passed away I found myself searching through piles of of birthday cards, Christmas cards and postcards my grandparents had hoarded during their lives.

While sorting through the hundreds (seriously, there were hundreds) of cards they’d been given, up popped a little beauty I’d sent my grandparents back in ’97.

Exhibit A – how patient was infected with the deadly Travel Fever (TF). TF is known to cause patient to behave irrationally, often taking off from their safe and warm home with only a small backpack, and no where near enough money to survive on. Continue reading →