Paul Theroux Quotes & Sayings

“I am happy being what I am.”

“Hawaii is not a state of mind, but a state of grace.”

“Death is an endless night so awful to contemplate that it can make us love life and value it with such passion that it may be the ultimate cause of all joy and all art.”

“You define a good flight by negatives: you didn't get hijacked, you didn't crash, you didn't throw up, you weren't late, you weren't nauseated by the food. So you are grateful.”

“Tourists don't know where they've been, travelers don't know where they're going.”

“Travel is glamorous only in retrospect.”

“Friendship is also about liking a person for their failings, their weakness. It's also about mutual help, not about exploitation.”

“Maine is a joy in the summer. But the soul of Maine is more apparent in the winter.”

“I don't look down on tourism. I live in Hawaii where we have 7 million visitors a year. If they weren't there, there would be no economy. So I understand why a tourist economy is necessary.”

“I cannot make my days longer so I strive to make them better.”