Sunday, October 31, 2010

The need for travel

Since I was a child, I've been accustomed to travel, live in different places, even countries, meet new cultures, make new friends, have unique experiences, etc...

If we talk about countries, I've lived in Peru, Bolivia, Puerto Rico, Colombia and Venezuela. All these in Latin America. I've studied in 8 schools in total, graduating at a british one in my birth country (Markham College). My parents always cared to give me the benefit of speaking english as well as spanish, which has served me most so far, and I am infinitely grateful.
I've made friends in all these countries, and by consecuence have a long list of contacts, and now with the Facebook it is easier to keep in touch.

I've studied in 2 universities (because of travel), and I'm thinking on going to live to Australia in about 2 or 3 years, since I went for 50 days in 2007 to see how it was, and I loved it. It's another world, a country where everyone can do ANYTHING inside the limts of law and individual freedom.
Well, the purpose of this article is to highlight a need I would call "The traveller's sindrome" (if there isn't one already).
I'll explain it with my example: I can't stay in one place, doing the same routine for more than 4 months, and I have measured it almost exactly. Past the 4 months I start to feel bored, powerless, desperate, and all of its synonyms. And I think it is because even though we human beings have turned into sedentary, sometime boring, rutinary and monotonous, we still have our nomadic side, that which pushes us into looking for new things, adventures, discoveries. If not... Why would tourism even exist?

I have the belief that people need to travel at least 2 or 3 times a year, even if it is not far. Raise the adventurer spirit, that curiosity that we need so much in today's life to stand out, hability that can be developed via a travel. Another competence to develop is improvisation, because even though it is always better to plan a trip, so when we arrive we are not lost in the air (unless you are a veteran backpacker), usually not all we have planned happens, because as one English friend I met in Australia told me once (her name is Lucy): "Life is what is happening while you are planning your future, so don't plan TOO MUCH, or you'll never life".
I will continue on with this in another post, because this is enough as background information.

2 comments:

Zaimanhi said...

Another wonderful post! I agree with you and with your friend Lucy!! I hope to one day be in a position (finacially) to travel often and life keeps on going while we're planning for it!! It's best to just live it!! Have a great day!!

Unknown said...

Sorry for my late response, I am actually finishing presenting final drafts of my courses, and I am actually very busy in that.

Good thing is travelling to seek new adventures, to seek new feelings or just to connect with nature, it is a beautiful experiencie, but the most important thing is that you in your mind are set to get the most out of it, because some people, travel to these places with their PDA, their Laptop, and other stuff, and just get the same experience they get in their cities or towns, but with a different setting... No real experience in there, is it?