Go Out and Explore
“Anything one man can imagine, other men can make real.”
Phileas Fogg was a wealthy Englishmen living a modest life. He led a solitary existence, if not for the Reform Club. It was only open for those who have a privileged background. Fogg wasn't the kind of fellow who loved traveling, but he was the unlikely character to go places in "Around the World in Eight Days". Published in January 30, 1873, it became Jules Verne's most-popular novel.
During the time of its release, the Age of Exploration was about to come to an end. But a new discovery was made. Traveling could widened one's perspective. It also changed one's life. There would be encounters with people, who would touch one's life. Authors attest to that. (Karen Blixen wrote about her accounts of her married life in Kenya in "Out of Africa", under the pen name Isak Dinesen.) Several decades later, traveling is a good excuse to get away from a routine existence. Tired of going to the office? Plan your holiday ahead. Feel like you reach a crossroad? Let a different place prompt you to think things over. You want more time with your loved ones? Make sure you don't forget the camera.
This was far from the scenario during Verne's time. Europe was in a state of conflict, partly due to the discovery of faraway lands. Heartache also played a part.
The itinerary didn't turn out to be simple
News of the opening of a new railway section in India prompted Fogg to declare that it was possible to circumnavigate the world in eighty days. Many members of the Reform Club doubted it, so a wager was made.
Fogg may have made a bold claim, as a ship was the only mode of traveling. But the Suez Canal was already done. Ships don't have to sail around Africa before reaching India. There were (British) settlements in Singapore and Hong Kong. Traveling from San Francisco to New York by train would save lots of time. It seemed slow, if it would be compared to planes, but traveling wasn't about reaching a destination.
Michael Anderson's "Around the World in 80 Days" may be one of the least-popular winners of the Academy Award for Best Picture. It was a big-budget spectacle, with cameo appearance by some of Hollywood's biggest stars. It was fun to watch, which Verne would approve. After all, this was what traveling should be all about. Fogg and Jean Passepartout, his valet, encountered tension and danger along the way, which would make a good story.
All of these would make the present mode of traveling rather comfortable, except growing impatience while waiting for the plane to depart. This would be followed by frequent worries on saving or splurging on your money. Then the people whom you would meet along the way. You would wonder if all of these was worth it until you visit landmarks that writers wrote about. You would describe your experience in your blog, along with photographs. Verne would smile with satisfaction.
