Jan
26
The Holy Grail of Travel
“The traveler sees what he sees. The tourist sees what he comes to see.” ~ Doug Lansky
Not everyone is fated to seek it, chase after it or pine for it with reckless abandon. It may seem patently ridiculous to some. And it is far from “practical”, i.e. what Grandma would approve of. But for some of us, it is more than a brief respite or simply an excuse to inebriate ourselves for a week or two; it is a lifestyle, a philosophy, a spiritual calling of sorts even… Through my last five months of travel throughout SE Asia, I have not only re-affirmed this part of my being, but enhanced it, strengthened it and expanded it. This post is dedicated to all you real travelers out there and those amongst you whom insist on asking me how my “vacation” is going…
Just like a butterfly does not realize its potential overnight, first starting life as an egg and only later evolving to maturity, all travelers are initially fated to start their lives as tourists, typically as kids tagging along on a family vacation. If they’re lucky, they grow out of it sometime in their young adulthood, via their first independent trip to Europe or somewhere else far away from home; though truth be told, most people don’t even reach this stage… So how, pray tell, does one tell the difference between tourists and travelers?
Tourists will have booked a hotel to stay before they land in a strange land; travelers will have a few guest houses they MIGHT want to stay in mind, but will wing it, knowing that it never pays to book anything sight unseen. A tourist will complain about how poor the English skills of the locals are; a traveler will smooth his path, knowing how to (at minimum!) say hello, thank you and goodbye in the local language, and will be accordingly treated with much more respect. A tourist will eat at McDonald’s every chance they get; a traveler will eat at the nearest street food stand where there’s a crowd of locals. A tourist will think Pad Thai and banana pancakes exotic, while a traveler will yawn at the thought and hunt for the perfect black crab Som Tam instead. Finally, tourists will have their RT tickets booked and a strict agenda of the main tourist sites they absolutely MUST see or die, while travelers will get lost in a strange city ON PURPOSE just to discover the hidden gems that no guidebook has ever captured…
Remember, anyone can become a traveler. When people back home ask me “how do you do it?”, assuming that I’m loaded I just can’t help but laugh. Travel isn’t something you will ever EARN enough for – mostly because you will always find ways to spend any additional income you do make working for The Man! Traveling is something you either WANT badly enough to make sacrifices for, or you don’t get to experience at all. Simple as that – no whining allowed! Life is all about choices…
On this blessed five month journey, this Gypsy has been privileged enough to bathe in a hidden waterfall in the jungle on tropical Koh Chang island; exercise to Khmer pop on a humid summer evening along with the locals on the Sisowath Quay; discover the white and red sand dunes of southern Vietnam by motorcycle with two rad Euros in tow; eat the best Indian on the cheap in Hong Kong; climb the hills and explore hidden beaches in an untouristed part of the Philippines; eat the best local Malay food while sleeping in a moldy room I wouldn’t wish on my worst enemy; attend the preparations for a festival at a Hindu temple on Bali with a rag tag group of other travelers and finish up strong, drinking local whiskey and smoking Burmese cigars with two Russian girls on the streets of Bangkok. Just like life, travel is what you make of it. May you find what you seek. I know I have.
Tags
Global trends, Society, Travel
But I definitely learn local languages and eat the local food, that’s one of the best parts of traveling for me. Enjoy your journey and hopefully you’ll write more about your trips soon.
niti kančka veselja, da po vsakem potovanju pride na vrsto čas za prijatelje, ki vneto spremljajo tvojo pot?!?!
