Foreign Affair Lyrics - Manhattan Transfer

When traveling abroad in the continental style 

It's my belief one must attempt to be discreet 

And subsequently bear in mind your transient position 

Allows you a perspective that's unique 

And though you'll find your itinerary's a blessing and a curse 

Your wanderlust won't let you settle down 

And you wonder how you ever fathomed that you'd be content 

To stay within the city limits of a small Midwestern town 

Most vagabonds I've known don't ever want to find the culprit 

That remains the object of their long relentless quest 

The obsession's in the chasing and not the apprehending 

The pursuit you see and never the arrest 

Without fear or contradiction bon voyage is always hollered 

In conjunction with a handkerchief from shore 

By a girl that drives a rambler and furthermore is overly 

Concerned that she won't see him anymore 

Planes and trains and boats and buses 

Characteristically evoke a common attitude of blue 

Unless you have a suitcase and a ticket and a passport 

And the cargo that they're carrying is you 

A foreign affair juxtaposed with a stateside 

And domestically approved romantic fancy 

Is mysteriously attractive due to circumstances knowing 

It will only be parlayed into a memory