…Or why I travel.
I’ve been thinking a lot lately about why I’m drawn to travel. Why we as human beings tend to pack up our belongings and go through all the inconveniences of hauling ourselves from one place to another to get rested, renewed, and inspired. Here is the first of the top 3 reasons I keep my passport up-to-date:
1. The novelty of now.
At home I wake up to the birds talking it up on the back porch, my cat, Saja, insisting on breakfast, or, on Wednesdays, the garbage truck making its rounds (and the panic of running the garbage to the curb).
There’s a routine. It varies, of course, but I can count on the same sights and sounds, the same smells (or lack thereof) as I go about my day.
But waking up to the crackle and smell of fireworks? The avocado guy selling door to door with a loud and repeated “AGUACATEEEEEEE!?” The floating Islamic call to prayer?
The change of scenery, this novel experience of the unexpected around each corner…this is what wakes up the brain, what surprises and delights the senses. This is what roots me and forces me to live in the moment.
And this is one of the reasons travel is so challenging and fulfilling. Sounds kinda zen, right?
Want to get “in the moment?” Take a meditation class.
Or…wander through a highland market at noon: sun baking, garbage reeking, children giggling, colors swirling, coins jingling, clock striking, unknown languages rising and falling, music blaring, smoke drifting, chickens squawking, beef sizzling, tongues bartering, crowd jostling…and just *try* to not Be. Here. Now.
The change in routine reminds us that each moment is novel, even when we’re back in our routine again.
When did YOU feel THE NOW while on the road? Is there a certain place that brings you back to the moment? Tell us in the comments below.
Read part 2
Read part 3
And if teaching abroad sounds like a good way to travel to you,
