A biography for Ella Maillarthasn’t been written yet.
“I wanted to learn a few foreign languages, and therefore I had to go abroad.”
“I can see now that a concept or even a feeling makes no sense unless out of our substance we spin around it a web of references, of relationships, of values.”
“Certain travellers give the impression that they keep moving because only then do they feel fully alive.”
“That idea of escapism... these words could sum up my life.”
“Travel can also be the spirit of adventure somewhat tamed, for those who desire to do something they are a bit afraid of.”
“Others are keen to see if natives other than us live better than we do, without heat in pipes, ice in boxes, sunshine in bulbs, music on disks, or images gliding over a pale screen.”
“We must develop a deeper interest and greater understanding of the people we meet here or abroad. Like us, they are passengers on board that mysterious ship called life.”
“Every time I took a long leave from home, I felt as if I were going to conquer the world. Or rather, take possession of what is my birthright, my inheritance.”
“There is only one valid species of voyage, which is walk towards the men.”
“The sooner we learn to be jointly responsible, the easier the sailing will be.”
“The state of minds vary according to the angle under which one examines them.”
“You can feel as brave as Columbus starting for the unknown the first time you enter a Chinese lane full of boys laughing at you, or when you risk climbing down in a Tibetan pub for a meal of rotten meat.”
“When the heart speaks, its language is the same under all latitudes.”
“One travels so as to learn once more how to marvel at life in the way a child does. And blessed be the poet, the artist who knows how to keep alive his sense of wonder.”
“One of the main points about travelling is to develop in us a feeling of solidarity, of that oneness without which no better world is possible.”
“You do not travel if you are afraid of the unknown, you travel for the unknown, that reveals you with yourself.”
“The benefits of the accomplished journey cannot be weighed in terms of perfect moments, but in terms of how this journey affects and changes our character.”
“I did not want to be depressed by the gap existing between my weakness and my ambition.”
“The usual channels of university studies or secretarial work did not appeal to me. I cherished difficult dreams through confidence in myself.”
“We want to feel that this earth is all ours, like our parents' house when we were children.”