Do you like to travel?

Last week, I discussed my personal interest in travel. This week, I will discuss why travel might be of interest to you. If like me, you live in a well-developed country, where it is relatively easy to find work and be paid a decent amount, you are probably no stranger to travel. Maybe you have not traveled yourself, but you know someone who has, or you plan to in the future.

Human beings travel for many different reasons. For:

• Work
• A holiday as a couple
• A holiday as a family with kids
• Visit family
• Over the holiday period (Christmas, New Year, Easter)
• Ski/See snow
• Volunteer work
• With friends
• To see famous landmarks

I have listed quite a few reasons to travel, but there are many more.

Although we may not realise it, travel is part of our traditions and customs. It is custom to go on a honeymoon after your wedding. It is custom to go on party trips during University - Americans head to Mexico for Spring Break, English students head to Ibiza, Australian students head to Europe. As the world develops technologically, travel is woven into our lifestyle.

Unbeknown to some, and all to familiar to others, planning a holiday can be very complicated and nerve-racking. It can be a nuisance to sift through all the madness, to find the best deals on accommodation, flights, or even insurance. If you haven't been to a city before, it can be hard to determine the best area to stay in with regards to safety, transport or general atmosphere. Also with most people having to get back to work, university, school, and having a budget, holidays don't normally last for long periods of time. It can be hard to fit everything there is to do into the limited time you have in a destination. 

My blog will take all the stress out of planning a holiday. Instead, I will do the hard work for you. I will be sifting through the junk and putting together guides for all types of cities across the globe. But I won’t just look at cities, I will create guides for different audiences. For example, a guide to Singapore for the family of four, a guide to Paris for the perfect honeymoon or a guide to Barcelona for the partygoer. Travel is not just for one type of person, it can me moulded to suit anybody. My blog will explore travel adventures for absolutely everybody, and that is why I think it will be of interest to you.

A love affair with travel

Today I plan to write about my personal interest in travel. As the world continues to develop technologically, and travel becomes easier, more people are packing their bags and heading off on an adventure. Everyone has a different reason to travel - perhaps for business, leisure, or to see family - but today, I will be discussing mine. 

Whenever I think about my next trip, or see a spectacular image of a place I would like to visit one day, it pleases me. I think this is because travel, to me, is infinite. The globe is so big, and I am so small, and there will always be another place for me to explore - another mountain to climb, another lake to swim in, and more food to be tasted.

I constantly look forward to experiencing new cultures, which include things I would never be able to encounter back home. To me, being able to delve into and understand why people practice a different culture can be really eye-opening. Being forced out of your comfort zone and learning to accept different ways of doing things really expands your flexibility and idea perception in everyday life. 

When I was in Cambodia last year, I was shocked at the amount of rubbish on the streets. I couldn't understand why they didn't throw it in a bin, instead of on the ground. I learnt that their culture is based around living on a day-to-day basis. They are focused on making sure they have enough food for that day, and not about planning for the future. Because of this, they don't think twice when throwing their rubbish on to the street. My mentor had put bins around the village, and I asked him, "why don't they use the bins?" He told me to imagine if Cambodians came to my home town and forced me to live how they do, for no good reason. This, he said, is how they see Westerners coming into their village, even if we do have their best interests at heart. What this trip taught me is that, even when you think you do, it can be very hard to understand a different culture, simply because you spend so much time immersed in yours. However, when you do come to understand another culture, it can be very mentally-freeing. 

Rubbish on the street - a normal sight in Cambodia.
Taken of Siem Reap Central Market*

Travel has been proven to make you happier. It forces you to grow up in so many ways. When traveling you must be independent, financially weary, learn to problem solve and abandon your everyday routine. It forces you out of your comfort zone and opens your eyes to the the incredible size of our world. Only travel can help you grow in this way, so deeply and so quickly, and that is why I love it dearly. 


*Disclaimer: the photograph above is not mine. It was taken by shankar s. I am able to use it in my blog post because it is under a Creative Commons Attribution 2.0 Generic License. Click on the photograph to be taken to the original photo.