When I discovered that the travel site Trippando along with Travel – Moments in Time was hosting a contest on the topic of ‘beaches’, I couldn’t resist. Not simply because I love to write about travel and have walked many a beach in my life, but because the grand prize is a stay at Elba Island’s fabulous Acacie resort. Another beach I hope to explore!
Walk of Life
I grew up on the vast sandy stretches of the Hamptons, the South Fork of Long Island, New York. These beaches became my home. Often I would stare at the sea and dream of the infinity that lay beyond. Perhaps within this infinity lay my future, and I tried to catch a glimpse. And always, I would walk.
The years passed and my walk continued. Year after year upon the same calming shores. With the sands at my feet and the whispers of the ocean my solace, I knew this was my place. And yet.
It was not until I left those shores for others much less familiar and comforting that life began to reveal itself. Perhaps the whispers had provoked my fate, knowing better than I that my walk was longer than the sands of only one beach. And so I continued, barefoot and curious, upon the shores of Brazil’s remote Fernando de Naronha, Bali’s kaleidoscopic sands, Thailand’s multifarious banks, Australia’s rugged paradise, Mexico’s tropical landscape, into Italy’s dramatic coastline.
Fernando de Naronha, Brazil
Monterosso al Mare, Italy
My walk led me from one beach to another. Each more intriguing and revealing than the last. The whispers continued, and I embraced their varied tones.
Tulum, Mexico
I returned to my beach. The one I once called home. And again. But this time I was not alone. A set of footsteps, slightly larger than my own, found their way alongside mine. My walk of life continued, in the same place it had started. The whispers now, were our own.
Westhampton Beach
Since then my walk has led me to the enchanting shores of Corsica and the Greek Isles. As life evolves the walk continues, to beaches yet to be discovered.
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Beautifully done. A good story always makes me think.
It’s interesting that the water you’ve looked out on in each place is essentially the same, and that where you’re looking from is all that changes. Without the geographic and political labels placed on the seas and oceans of the world, and with the exceptions of the many solitary lakes, the masses of land we live on stick out above the surface of what is really only one body of water. Most of us only see that water from one place, one beach, if at all. But you’ve seen it from several different perspectives, suggesting in a powerful and poignant way that it’s each of the unique beaches you’ve walked along that give that “infinity that lies beyond” that you speak of more richness and warmth each time you look upon it. And I think you’ll find that that infinity can now be explored on a different level with that second set of footprints next to yours in the sand.
You deserve to win this. Nicely done!
Thank you Phil! Happy to elicit even more thought to an already thoughtful mind. Seeing life from various perspectives (beaches in this case) makes it all that much richer and more insightful.
I’ve always had this idea of life as a long walk on the beach… from birth to death, with all the stages inbetween. I tried to express this in terms of the beaches I have walked and the feelings accompanying the phases of my life along the way.
Lovely piece! I hope that you win and get to continue your beach odyssey at Elba Island.
Thanks Karin!
Beautiful writing and great beach photos! I grew up on the beaches of Vancouver, but am currently living in a landlocked city. I often miss the smell of the ocean and seaside walks. There’s just something special about beaches.
Thanks Alix! There is no feeling as freeing as staring into the vastness of the sea. I hope you will make it back to Vancouver soon!
You, my friend, have not only been to some beautiful beaches, but you have a beautiful way with words!
And you my friend, have greatly flattered me! Happy to share my visions and words with you.
Breath-taking photos, Kasia! Good luck winning that prize (and take me with you if you do!!!). xo Cat
Thanks Cat! I’m sure my Italian won’t mind you taking his place
I have never personally been drawn to beaches unless they are cold ones on remote islands. I am fascinated by the different colors of the oceans and seas all over the world, many of them so breathtaking. Good luck on your entry!
That is great writing Kasia. I am very much looking forward to seeing the beaches of Turkey this summer, I’m heading there for a friend’s wedding and staying a few days with a friend from England. In one location there is a “sunken city” around a beach. One of my favourite beaches is in Ibiza, Cala D’Hort, but the photos of Brazil here make me quite keen to go for a trip….
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Many beaches await to be explored for us both… I’m certain you will love Turkey (where exactly are you going?) and you MUST one day venture to Fernando de Naronha, magical. I have yet to walk the sands of Ibiza…