To join the Travelers’ Century Club, membership is available only to those who have visited 100 or more countries and territories on the TCC list. Yes, the TCC is an exclusive club for the well-traveled. People often ask us, “How many countries are there? 190?” “No,” we reply, “193 is the number of UN member states. On the TCC list, there are currently 330.” Who knew there were so many countries and territories? Yes, this message is about The List which binds us together and serves as the backbone of our club.
Rules governing The List were carefully promulgated nearly 50 years ago and they have withstood the test of time. They are published on the TCC website (Countries and Territories/Territory Status) and their criteria include:
- Government Administration
- Enclaves/Continental Separations
- Federations
- Islands/Island Groups
- Disputed Status
- Unpopulated/Unadministered Areas
- Grandfather Clause
These rules are mostly objective. However, there are limited gray areas. Every other year, the Board deliberates proposed changes. This is a serious discussion and one that requires preparation and thoughtful debate. Christopher Hudson has skillfully led these discussions during my years of board membership and I’ve been impressed with the thoroughness that goes into each deliberation. While reasonable people may differ as to the outcome, I feel strongly that The List continues as a living document that promotes the ideals of our club.
As much as The List gives us something to look forward to, it is never the intent of the TCC to put travelers in harm’s way; it is not a license to travel to dangerous parts of the world. We are travelers and we each have an appetite for risk-taking, but what one may consider an acceptable destination may cause another to pale. Conditions change. Safe today may not be safe tomorrow and in reverse, inaccessible today may change over time. One must know the current situation and its risks before embarking on a journey.
The List is also useful in trip planning, particularly for those out-of-the-way destinations few have heard of outside of the TCC. Transnistria comes to mind. While in Moldova, I arranged a day trip to visit this special place. The guide met me at the appointed location and off we went. I started to explain: “I’m visiting Transnistria because it’s a destination on my travel club’s list.” “Oh,” the guide interrupts, “I know all about your travel club. Most of my business comes from your travel club.” So, there we are. The List motivated me to visit Transnistria, provided work for my guide and, yes, the visit was worthwhile. The people of Transnistria were former Russian military and when the USSR ceased to exist, they didn’t want to become part of Ukraine or Moldova; they preferred to maintain their separateness. Even today their situation is unresolved but I’m glad to know something about this place and, besides, their plastic coins are a notable addition to my scrapbook!
It has been my experience that going to obscure, hard-to-get-to destinations on The List is rewarding because they are culturally rich and usually devoid of tourists. One of you wrote on the TCC WhatsApp thread that “Lampedusa is one of those pleasant findings that the TCC list gives us and I wouldn’t have gone there were if not for the TCC list.” I feel the same way about Srpska, Kaliningrad, Lesotho, Socotra, Tristan da Cunha and others; plus, I have more special places to visit in the years ahead. How about you?
Don Parrish, one of our illustrious members who’s completed The List, describes it as a “perfect travel list. It is comprehensive, challenging to complete but is of a reasonable length.” Do you agree? Are you willing to spend the time, money and hardship required to go everywhere and complete The List? I’ll conclude with a quote attributed to the writer and activist, Susan Sontag: “I haven’t been everywhere, but it’s on my list.”
I’ve been thinking about topics for a future President’s Message and I’m seeking your input. My closet is filled with scrapbooks and I consider them among my most cherished possessions—but no one in my life has any interest in them and I hate to think about them in the trash. What are you planning to do with your travel photos, notes, diaries, albums, scrapbooks, journals and travel memorabilia? Thank you for sending your comments and plans to: margobart@travelerscenturyclub.org.
