What does traveling mean? Is it an experience beyond the six senses? How much of our traveling experience is driven by our emotional reactions to the places we visit?

In Lin Yutang’s eyes, traveling means putting behind all previous judgment and taking a leap into something new and wondrous. After all, sometimes your only transportation is a leap of faith. This phrase symbolizes the journey of my life: a voyage of self-discovery that inspired me to write my novel, Travels With My Lovers.

Years ago, my then-husband left me—for another man. Picking up the pieces, I decided to fulfill my lifelong dream of traveling to Europe. My experiences were so vivid that I captured them in journal form. Eventually, these journals became a novel about a woman’s journey to inner wisdom.

The wonders of Europe moved me deeply, heightening my senses in ways I had never imagined. The ancient towns, splendid castles and fine art that surrounded me brought new psychic energy to a soul depleted by the overwhelming responsibilities of single motherhood. I felt renewed:

…I had heard so much about St. Paul de Vence: its charming, quaint Provençal stone houses, historical plazas and incomparable view of the Mediterranean from its dizzying hilltop heights...I gazed at the stone walls rising dramatically against the Mediterranean sky and relished the thought of the hours of discovery that lay before me...

Wandering through the narrow streets, I could feel the palpable presence of the painters who had been so much a part of the village's life. I tried to look at each scene as if through the eyes of Matisse or Mirò or Picasso, their eyes filled with the wondrous wash of color and magical light that embodied the character of the South of France...

Reaching the heights, I suddenly understood why everyone was up there. In front of me was the most dramatic sweeping view to the sea imaginable. The richness of the landscape and the striking depth of the color of the Mediterranean—truly the azure signified by its French name—set my senses reeling. I imagined myself a painter, spending my hours trying to capture this miraculous sight on my canvas...

I made my way to the Fondation Maeght, the renowned repository of exceptional twentieth century French art, an architectural dream built into a hillside shaded by umbrella pines of a deep earthen green. The wealth of painting and sculpture...breathed new life into my soul, healing and nourishing my needy being…

How wonderful to imagine oneself a painter or sculptor, inspired by the heavenly surroundings and unique light of the South of France. Or to take a flight of fantasy to the Renaissance in the enchantment of a Florentine evening:

…It was a festival night, and all of Florence was assembled in this famous square to witness a pageant of extraordinary proportions. Costumed knights on horses decked out in full Renaissance regalia paraded in front of the crowds huddled together on risers erected especially for the occasion.

Every bit of this hubbub seemed appropriate since the Piazza had long been thought of as the political heart of the city: a symbol of the prestige and greatness of the Florentine state.

The entire atmosphere created an indelible, unforgettable impression in me, and I became carried away with a fantasy of living the life of a citizen during the former glory of this enchanting city. I imagined myself as a Renaissance noblewoman of the Medici Court...betrothed to a handsome Florentine knight…

Such voyages of discovery not only fulfilled my desire to experience the wonders of Europe; they nourished my soul. But traveling doesn't necessarily mean taking off for distant places. Your journey of self-discovery can be a day’s exploration in a nearby town or a hike on a newly discovered trail. As long as you are leaving familiar territory to explore a new environment, even for a few hours, you are opening up to new insights into your own being. Marcel Proust would have wholeheartedly agreed, having stated, “The real voyage of discovery consists not in seeing new landscapes, but in having new eyes.”

Yes, new eyes. The eyes, after all, are the windows to the soul. And within your soul lies the potential for insight that will empower you to embark on your life journey with a light heart and a joyful spirit.