Writing Assignment?!
It’s been a long time since I’ve been given a writing assignment, but here we are and I’m the last one to complete it (good chance that trend will continue) so, here goes….
Traveling tends to magnify all human emotions. — Peter Hoeg
I’m excited for all the things that made the last RTW trip so awesome. This trip will be different in many ways, especially with kids, but I think these same things that I enjoyed so much last time will hold true.
Freedom
There are many different senses of freedom I get on the road. At home I have difficulty disengaging from work and other stresses of life, but on the road I have a clear mind without those other things occupying space and I am able to notice the things around me and enjoy the little things in life.
Freedom to pick up and move on to the next destination or stay longer at a place we are enjoying. I like the spontaneity of having everything you need on your back and being able to adjust plans as we go, which gives me the feeling of really living in the moment.
Immersion
I learn by doing and it’s hard for me to learn if I can’t relate. Rather than reading about people, places, and things, being able to experience them first hand is very cool. Being in Cambodia and talking to people who had lost family to the Khmer Rouge and hearing accounts of their experiences first hand was profound, made it easy to relate and really hit home the impact these things had on people’s lives, as opposed to just reading about these events in books.
On the road you are always doing and are immersed in life in general, using life’s little skills, whether it be learning about your new surroundings, planning your next adventure, navigating around new cities and countries, negotiating with merchants and taxi drivers, cooking, budgeting, calculating currency conversion, etc. I felt like I was really living, not just watching life go by.
When you travel on a budget, stay in budget accommodations and take local transportation you also get immersed in the local culture. It forces you to learn the local language, speak to locals, and understand their way of life. In less developed countries you get to appreciate the little things, like how food actually gets from the field to the table, the stuff that is mostly hidden here. I also enjoy reading the local newspapers (when there is an English version) and discover that politics and issues they have are surprisingly similar to ours.
Simplicity
For the most part I don’t like stuff or clutter and I like to live simply. I like the fact that I have everything I need with me and that’s it. I also enjoyed the simplicity of life once I got away from the daily grind with none of the stresses back home to clutter my thoughts.
Relationships
You make fast friends on the road. One of the downsides of being on the road is the void that is left when you leave family and friends. This is partially made up by the relationships you make while traveling. It may only last for a few days or even a few hours, but it’s easy to form bonds with people when you are in a foreign country and sharing the same experiences.
In the more out of the way countries you tend to run into interesting people doing interesting work. In Uganda we met someone working on the International Criminal Tribunal in Rwanda for the genocide that happened there. We met a National Geographic photographer on a bus in Uganda who happened to live just a few blocks from us in Denver. In Vietnam, we met an American Vietnamese who was evacuated as a small child at the end of the war, returning to see her family for the first time.
Another interesting tidbit is that on two occasions last time we saw people in one country and then saw them again a month or two later in a different country (backpackers tend to travel similar circuits). Small world sometimes.
Healthy Living
I enjoyed living healthy. Here at home living healthy is a surprising difficult thing to do. You have to make a conscious effort to get exercise, eat right, limit stress, etc. It’s the unhealthy stuff that is easy to do. This is more magnified with kids..not only am I concerned about myself exercising and eating healthy, but it’s always a constant worry about making sure the kids are living healthy, exercising, eating right, and not watching too much TV.
On the road I felt these things came easy. We walk everywhere and the food we eat is mostly healthy. Last time I lost 26 pounds in 6 months, although some would say I didn’t look too healthy when I returned at 159 lbs. There is much less stress, and education should be easy and fun for the kids (hopefully).
After writing this all out, now I’m beginning to wonder if 7 months is long enough….
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