Have Desire, Will Travel!
By Hank Schrader, USMA ’71, Europe Destination & Europe River Cruise Expert
Today’s blog title is inspired by an old TV show called “Have Gun, Will Travel”. It was a 30 minute black and white Western about a single gun for hire. The phrase really means, he is ready to go!
So, today, I’d like to tell you about why you should seek out travel experiences with our help—you should “Have Desire, Will Travel” and be ready to go when this pandemic mess is solved.
How “Have Gun, Will Travel” Inspired Me to Write About Travel Experiences
The hero of the show was Richard Boone (Paladin), a West Point graduate, who wore all black when on assignment, and was a Calvary officer in the Civil War. You can see the parallels for me now—West Point grad, Black Knights (Army Sports nickname) but as a young kid, I wasn’t thinking about that—he was just a cool guy in an action TV show.
His calling card was a black knight chess piece with these simple words “Wire Paladin, San Francisco”. Again, a parallel—email us for travel help @ hschrader@dreamdestinations.com .
Even the name Paladin has meaning in history—a Paladin was a trusted knight during Charlemagne’s rule. These noble knights (12) fought with Charlemagne against the Islamic invasion of Gaul (present day France). The most famous was Roland. While most of this is mythology, being a trusted advisor is an important feature of any relationship. Do you see the parallel here?—we are trusted advisors who services will remove the hassles of your travel planning and trips.
My Travel Experiences are a tale of Have Desire, Will Travel
I have been traveling all my life. My late father was a career Army Officer (thanks for serving our country for 33 years Dad!), so I started at a very young age to travel and learned to love it. My Dad also loved to travel and US National Parks were very special to him, so our family had camped in and visited most of the 59 major parks by my early teen years.
My Mom and Dad on a hiking trip—one of our favorite activities
I can also say I have spent at least one night in all 50 States in my lifetime and lived in 14 different states. Along with living on Okinawa and in Panama for several years, I have spent about 6 months total in Germany, so I have also experienced several different cultures for extended periods of my life.
The breakdown of different countries is something like this-- all of North America, all of Central America, all but one of South America, 35 of 50 in Europe, 13 Caribbean Islands, 2 Middle East, 1 Africa and 6 Asia—maybe 81 or so countries in total.
But this is not about where I have been, it is about what I have experienced. Unlike some travelers who want to see every country and brag about how many they have seen and even set criteria to make sure it “qualifies” as a new country or territory, I just want to experience how other folks live, work, play and the culture they have created for their lives, especially in Europe.
But this only is helpful to you if we can use my and Anne’s past travel experiences to help you have better trips. Let’s explore that further together.
Creating New Experiences in Travel
So, how do you create new experiences in travel—here is a partial guide for you!
I think the first step and the most important step is deciding: Why you want to go on the trip?
Have you read about it and want to see it firsthand?
Is this a romantic trip to share with your significant other?
Do you want to learn about how different cultures live their lives?
The next step is: What do you expect to see and experience?
Do you like small villages?
Maybe castles?
Do you want to concentrate on one country?
Do you have any activities planned or desired?
The next step is: What time is available, when do you want to go and who are your traveling companions?
How much vacation time do you have?
What time of year?
Who all is going—the family, your spouse or is it solo?
The next step is: How will you get there?
The classic planes, trains or cruise transportation questions—what arrangements and level of comfort do you need?
The next step is: What type of accommodations do you desire?
The question is also often the level of services vs. the budget—what fits best?
Now let’s put it all together and start making adjustments—reality vs. desires.
An Example from our Travels
We want to go to Europe for 2 weeks or more. We want to go on river cruise and visit Brugge again, as it is Anne’s favorite city in Europe.
We want to go to as many of the Christmas markets as possible.
A typical Christmas Markets booths
Anne and Hank at the Thurn and Taxis Christmas Market in Regensburg, Germany with the owner of the HutKoeing (Hat King) with our new hats
Anne would also love to do a baking or cooking class if possible. We want to go with our travel chums (another couple who likes to travel with us).
Denise (one half of our travel chums) and Anne bake gingerbread cookies together
We will need to select a cruise, get flights and also use trains. We have a favorite hotel in Brugge but will need to find some other hotels for our planned stops.
View from our favorite hotel room in Brugge
We will use AmaWaterways, as it is our favorite European river cruise company and offers the best value for our money. Maybe use AmaWaterways for flights—it depends upon price and convenience
We will need some Euros, travel documents and figure out what clothes to take. We need to arrange for Libby, our dog, to go to the Doggy Hotel and make sure she gets the special play day package, to swim and run with the other dogs.
Libby Ready to go to the Doggy Hotel
I think this example helps you understand how detailed the planning for a good trip becomes to maximize the experiences.
How We Can Help
Does seem like a lot of details, doesn’t it? But the answer is to let us plan it for you—we can be your Paladin! We have the expertise to get it all right for you and find places and space you just didn’t know about. We are ready to go to dive into the details, so there is zero hassle to you!
My Final Thoughts
We are your Paladin—Have Desire, Will Travel! So now is the time to take action when travel restrictions are lifted! We will be ready to help!
When you are spending your hard-earned money for a vacation, you want an advisor who can match you with the right trip. You want someone who will understand your expectations and fuel your anticipation (or excitement) to get you the best possible trip experience. And, you want someone who can help you with the decision making process. We think we have all these qualities.
Whatever your Dream Destinations are, we are here to help you get the best possible vacation based on what is important to you! We will provide you high quality, expertly planned travel. Please give me a call 713-397-0188 (Hank) or email me at hschrader@dreamdestinations.com. We want to help you: Savor life…make memories…Visit Dream Destinations! Your journey begins here!
HANK is a certified Western European Destination Specialist (DS) who has been traveling to Europe for 49 years. He is also an Accredited Cruise Counselor (ACC), conferred by the Cruise Line International Association (CLIA). This recognized expert in cruise and leisure travel is a retired Army Officer, and taught World Geography for 8 years. He is a `71 graduate of West Point and has earned 2 master’s degrees. His other Certifications:
AmaWaterways River Cruise Specialist
Viking River Cruise Specialist
Scenic River Cruise Specialist
Emerald Waterways Specialist
Avalon Waterways Specialist
Brit Agent
