So, I can guarantee that not a single person who knew me before I was 20 or probably even 22 would have guessed I'd be the kind of girl traveling the world, let alone living abroad and taking solo trips with ease. But this blog isn't about that. This blog is about the vast difference between vacation and travel.
I'm here to tell you that if you think you are a traveller, most likely you are actually a vacationer. And I'm here to tell you why you should quit vacationing and start traveling. I might not even stop there...I might try to convince you to take a solo trip.
So first up is the difference between vacationing and traveling. When you vacation, you book ahead. I don't mean just the hotel, I mean the tours and more than likely, the 5 star restaurants. You probably also pack your belongings into a nice size suitcase with plenty of nice outfits, toiletries, and if you are a girl enough accessories and make-up for any occasion. You drink fancy drinks in fancy places. Likely, you are with a significant other, or a small group of friends or family. You get a good night sleep.
When you travel, you do not book ahead. Plane tickets, yes, and maybe the first night or two. Then you just sort of leave it up to fate. People recommend the best tours and cheap food around, and you learn to go with the flow. You eat when you are hungry and have a damn beer or coffee when and where you want one. And lets be realistic, I have had a beer as early as 6 am, and on any given bus, curvy road, toilet seat, or outside any random number of 7elevens at all hours of the day. You don't wash your hair, because you don't want to run out of shampoo, and who cares if you have mascara on? It's just gonna get washed off in the sweat, tears, ocean water, or rain. If you are lucky you've met a travel buddy who shares a similar beer/bus schedule with you. Or if you are really lucky you are in that "I need a day to do what I want to do" mode, and owning it. You wake up several times a night when a girl comes in to cry that she's been robbed while having sex with some guy on a beach, or when people get in at 3am from the overnight bus. You listen intently as the hostel manager explains that the best he can do is to recommend that you go back and finish the sex because the Thai cops aren't going to do anything about it, and its 1am, or as the girl next to you tries to unpack as quietly as possible only to realize she has THE loudest zipper in the world.
Vacation is about comfort and relaxation. You can find relaxation in travel, but that is not its purpose or promise.
Travel is about finding discomfort, and diving head first into it.
It's about the rocky roads when a random stranger is driving on what can be assumed to be the wrong side of the street. It's about the person who offers you a beer. It's about throwing up with strangers listening to you, because you have the 3rd world stomach bug. It's about dancing because you can. It's about 10 pm coffees and 6am beers. Its about local liquor. It's about being the girl who packs at 5am to catch a bus. It's about skinny dipping. It's about the best food also being the cheapest. It's about counting your money and hoping you have enough. It's about washing underwear in the sink. It's about walking for hours to get no where. Its about telling your deepest secrets to people who have known you less than 5 hours. It's about changing your mind, and never regretting it. It's about the moments you realize who you really are.
And it changes you into this person you thought you didn't have enough strength to be. You become a better version of yourself with each passing hour.
Travel is about, in the words of Sufjan Stevens, "Trusting Things Beyond Mistake." When I travel, I believe in fate, and purpose, and life meaning.
So don't vacation. Mostly because it supports the wrong (already rich) people, but also because it is far less fun and worthwhile. Get out of that comfort zone. Do a little research and book a ticket. Give the world some credit and see what you see and who you meet.
I'm here to tell you that if you think you are a traveller, most likely you are actually a vacationer. And I'm here to tell you why you should quit vacationing and start traveling. I might not even stop there...I might try to convince you to take a solo trip.
So first up is the difference between vacationing and traveling. When you vacation, you book ahead. I don't mean just the hotel, I mean the tours and more than likely, the 5 star restaurants. You probably also pack your belongings into a nice size suitcase with plenty of nice outfits, toiletries, and if you are a girl enough accessories and make-up for any occasion. You drink fancy drinks in fancy places. Likely, you are with a significant other, or a small group of friends or family. You get a good night sleep.
When you travel, you do not book ahead. Plane tickets, yes, and maybe the first night or two. Then you just sort of leave it up to fate. People recommend the best tours and cheap food around, and you learn to go with the flow. You eat when you are hungry and have a damn beer or coffee when and where you want one. And lets be realistic, I have had a beer as early as 6 am, and on any given bus, curvy road, toilet seat, or outside any random number of 7elevens at all hours of the day. You don't wash your hair, because you don't want to run out of shampoo, and who cares if you have mascara on? It's just gonna get washed off in the sweat, tears, ocean water, or rain. If you are lucky you've met a travel buddy who shares a similar beer/bus schedule with you. Or if you are really lucky you are in that "I need a day to do what I want to do" mode, and owning it. You wake up several times a night when a girl comes in to cry that she's been robbed while having sex with some guy on a beach, or when people get in at 3am from the overnight bus. You listen intently as the hostel manager explains that the best he can do is to recommend that you go back and finish the sex because the Thai cops aren't going to do anything about it, and its 1am, or as the girl next to you tries to unpack as quietly as possible only to realize she has THE loudest zipper in the world.
Vacation is about comfort and relaxation. You can find relaxation in travel, but that is not its purpose or promise.
Travel is about finding discomfort, and diving head first into it.
It's about the rocky roads when a random stranger is driving on what can be assumed to be the wrong side of the street. It's about the person who offers you a beer. It's about throwing up with strangers listening to you, because you have the 3rd world stomach bug. It's about dancing because you can. It's about 10 pm coffees and 6am beers. Its about local liquor. It's about being the girl who packs at 5am to catch a bus. It's about skinny dipping. It's about the best food also being the cheapest. It's about counting your money and hoping you have enough. It's about washing underwear in the sink. It's about walking for hours to get no where. Its about telling your deepest secrets to people who have known you less than 5 hours. It's about changing your mind, and never regretting it. It's about the moments you realize who you really are.
And it changes you into this person you thought you didn't have enough strength to be. You become a better version of yourself with each passing hour.
Travel is about, in the words of Sufjan Stevens, "Trusting Things Beyond Mistake." When I travel, I believe in fate, and purpose, and life meaning.
So don't vacation. Mostly because it supports the wrong (already rich) people, but also because it is far less fun and worthwhile. Get out of that comfort zone. Do a little research and book a ticket. Give the world some credit and see what you see and who you meet.
Lovin you girl. Travel on. And occasionally I will join you or go by myself. Never as boldly as you but hopefully enough to change. You challenge me! Thanks.
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