Travel

The Piazza San Marco - painting by Canaletto, circa 1725-27, one of his Grand Tour vedutas (view paintings) from the Collection of the Metropolitan Museum of Art

Architects are well-known for their wanderlust. Travel means seeing new places, immersing oneself in unfamiliar settings and cultures, finding inspiration, being awed by the limitlessness of human potential and creativity, and much more. Many of my peers are inveterate explorers, always looking toward the next opportunity to vacation in another world city or exotic destination. Certainly, a broad perspective and a diverse bank of experiences are valuable assets for any designer.

“The Grand Tour”—a cultural circuit of Europe undertaken by privileged young men popular during the 17th and 18th centuries—would later serve as the model for the itineraries of many students of architecture, including myself. The latter half of 1979 and the first part of 1980 was my “gap year,” during which I worked in the Office of Facilities and Campus Development at the British Columbia Institute of Technology (following my two years of study there in the Architectural and Building Technology program and prior to transferring to the University of Oregon), but also embarked on an eye-opening backpacking journey throughout the UK, France, Switzerland, and Italy. Those 3-1/2 months of travel remain among the richest of my entire life. Every single day rewarded me with amazing and unforgettable experiences I will forever look upon fondly.

I have no doubt I am a better architect today because I chose to travel when I did as an impressionable student. Before my old-world tour, I hardly knew about or cared for architecture predating the advent of Modernism, so I was shocked and awe-struck by the splendor of so many older buildings I had been entirely unfamiliar with. The scale, character, and complex fabric of the historic cityscapes were likewise revelations. Having exposed myself to so much that was new to me, I immediately grasped there was an enormous body of work to study beyond the limits of what I had known or thought I had known. I recognized how insular my worldview had been. Most of all, I was humbled to realize how much more I had to learn about our big, beautiful, and fragile globe. These are lessons every young person should be fortunate enough to learn. 

My sketch (1979) of the Pazzi Chapel in Florence

I’ve traveled far too little during the forty-one years since my life-changing adventures in Europe.(1) My wife and I did enjoy a two-week vacation in England in 2001 and we visited Mexico a few times, most recently in 2002. But that’s pretty much been it as far as our non-domestic travels together are concerned (I consider our vacations in Canada to be “domestic” even though technically a visit to Canada is traveling abroad). We’ve not been to any destination outside of North America beyond Europe, aside from a few sojourns to the Hawaiian islands (once each on Kauai, Maui, and Oahu). In recent years, the majority of my vacation time has been spent visiting my aging parents in Vancouver or attending professional conferences around the country.

Knowing myself, it may be difficult for me to enjoy traveling extensively again until after I retire, which is still a few years away. I don’t think I would be able to truly relax and appreciate the places I might visit before then. I do have my bucket list of destinations to address, so it will happen one day.

Of course, contemplating overseas travel today is wishful thinking until the deadly threat posed by COVID-19 is reduced significantly. Airlines have slashed their flight schedules, and many borders are closed in any event. My risk-averse side is most definitely calling the shots. Traveling is stressful enough as it is even without a pandemic to worry about. We’re not going anywhere anytime soon.

In the meantime, one can dream. Since this past March when all our lives were first impacted by the coronavirus shutdowns, I’ve agreeably passed some of my free time discovering various YouTube channels (something I never imagined I would do much of beforehand). One of the more interesting channels is produced by Kara and Nate Buchanan, a young married couple from Nashville, TN. They’ve built their travel vlog channel to the point it now boasts a remarkable 1.9 million subscribers, which has afforded them the opportunity to lucratively tour the world full-time. Watching their videos, vicariously experiencing and enjoying where life has taken them, has been a treat. Since 2016 they’ve visited 100 countries, entertainingly documenting the ups and downs (mostly ups) of their peripatetic lifestyle. Like the rest of us though, Kara and Nate’s plans have been upended by the virus, forcing them to abandon their goal of driving the entire length of the Pacific Coast Highway. This is due to the recently decreed Washington/Oregon/California COVID travel advisory necessitating quarantining for 14 days upon arrival from another state.

Being an architect has blessed me with the lifelong gift of curiosity and a thirst for learning new things. I am a homebody, but I also know how rewarding exploring everything our beautiful planet has to offer can be.

(1) So, my tally of countries visited includes England, Scotland, France, Switzerland, Italy, and Mexico. In the United States, I’ve been to Alaska, Arizona, California, Colorado, Florida, Georgia, Hawaii, Idaho, Massachusetts, Missouri, Nevada, New Mexico, New York, Texas, Utah, Washington, and the District of Columbia. Surprisingly, the only Canadian provinces I’ve spent any real time in are British Columbia and Alberta.