If vacations are about discovering new things then repeat vacations are about going more than skin deep. When you continue to get lost although you've been down this exact path numerous times before, contentment sets in and I feel more like an explorer than a tourist.
You never really visit the same place twice. Each time it holds a different story, a different season. Each time you return you build upon what you experienced the time before.
There is no competition for me that revolves around how many countries I've visited. After all, you can't call yourself a traveler if you don't have an impressive number on your 'country count' right?
Wrong. So very wrong.
I will never visit every country and there are many that I have no desire to see. There are however several more I look forward to exploring and they remain on my bucket list.
For now though, I'm looking forward to returning to one of my favorite countries, Italy, and dragging my suitcase over the cobblestone paths and up flight after flight of stone stairs.