TRAVELING WITHOUT GUIDEBOOKS.

TRAVELING WITHOUT GUIDEBOOKS. I carry a heavy load of guidebooks when I travel, but Laurence Sterne’s A SENTIMENTAL JOURNEY turned out to be one of the best. Yorick, Sterne’s narrator, says, “What a large volume of adventures may be grasped within this little span of life by him who interests his heart in everything…..” Notice the dashes in the following excerpt: “—–If this won’t turn out something—-another will—-no matter—-‘tis an assay upon human nature—-I get my labor for my pains—tis enough—….” Yorick describes how he visited Versailles: “Before I was halfway down the street, I changed my mind…..so I changed my mind a second time—-In truth it was the third…..—-but I am governed by circumstances—-I cannot govern them…..” I have always done well as a tourist when I have drifted, making one of three choices when I come to an intersection.