A traveller or a tourist

Travel is supposed to give us break from daily targets, routine and tedious lifestyle. We long to break free and spend some solace time and see the world around. It is to give us the freedom to see and feel life in more free flow but at times the travel plan and the whole process around it takes a toll on us. It brings more planning stress rather than the joy and serenity. Sensitive planning is required to ensure safe and better travels. Smart plans should include the details of the place of visit and necessary details of same.
Till the planning part it is ok to focus on the details and know about place. Once we are on the location we should focus on the experience rather than the details. We usually spend our energy on “what all to do” and “ what all to see” rather than “how to enjoy”.
The below quote by G.K.Chesterston sums up the whole situation
“The traveller sees want he sees, the tourist sees what he has come to see.”
It is good to get the details on places to visit but when we are there we should do what we feel like doing rather than what others suggested us to do.
My little experience with travels suggest that a good journey should add following to our life
• It should help us to widen our frame of vision about life. With the experience of new place and culture we should see how life has different ways and meanings to different people. It should make us thankful and humble for what it offers us.
• Travelling the world around opens us to the abundance and variety nature has to offer. As Gustave Flaubert point
“ Travel makes one modest. You see what a tiny place you occupy in world.”
• It adds to our learning of cultures and ways of life which we could have never known in our life.
• We get a chance to have a good look at ourselves and say a hello. On a travel with no or few people we can focus on ourselves and take a look on our inner needs. This connection helps us to learn and work on our growth. It rejuvenates us and fill us with new energy.
• When we travel with people, we connect deeper. A journey taken together binds people strongest. We get to enjoy the beauty of collectivity.
The above list is neither complete nor exhaustive. Each one of us has our own take away from a travel. The goodness that a open and free minded travel adds to our lives is universal to all.
Let us invest as much as possible in the travel in our lives. Stagnancy adds to stress and is not good for life. Travel to place of your choice, as per your pocket size. There are no set boundaries of where and how. Just choose to be free and open while on a journey.
Happy travelling …