1. The Mermaid

Sara Wheeler asks, can imagination ever replace real life travel?

Award-winning travel writer Sara Wheeler has spent a lifetime journeying pole to pole, visiting far-flung places and immersing herself in different cultures — sharing her adventures, and the occasional funny encounter, along the way.

But as she gets older and travel is no longer the novelty it once was, she asks herself a question-could it be time to unpack the bag and stay put?

There are a lot of things to consider. In a time when the personal choice to hop on a plane is seen as contributing to the impact on our environment, when many parts of the world have been picked over and explored, including by Sara and as the trials of lugging luggage and navigating congested airports loom large, could the glories of home actually outweigh the desire to see new places for all of us?

Taking inspiration from other writers, explorers through history, Sara wants to understand what exactly DOES she- and we- get out of travel?

In this first episode in a series of new writing, Sara wants to find out whether having unique encounters with people from other cultures gives her any more insight into life than what she can gain through life experience and ageing or whether true perspective can only be gleaned by actually being there.

Written and narrated by Sara Wheeler
Producer, Lisa Lipman
Editor, Kirsten Lass
Sound engineer and mix, Jon Calver
A Loftus Media production for BBC Radio 4