Travelling: a panacea?

There are as many reasons for travelling as are humans on earth. Some are looking for themselves; some are looking for others. Some are looking for life lessons, others want to be challenged. No matter the reason: the important point is that you know what you are searching for. Once you have answered this fundamental question, even approximately, you are ready to jump into the venture, and benefit from the blessings of travelling. 

 

In case you are curious to discover what awaits you, I picked out four of the most important benefits generated by travelling to me. 

 

It is obvious that if you don’t change the way you get things done, the result will always be the same. And this is true even if you decide to move somewhere else. That is why you have to be aware of something really important: your problems are not related to the place you live. So don’t expect things to change if you leave, especially if you continue acting in the same manner than before. However, leaving will help you think about yourself and might, indirectly, help you solve the issues you are facing in your daily life. 

 

One reason for that is because while travelling, people are more willing to embrace change, because they expect novelties in their life. Thus, they are more likely to try new activities, to approach people and are more responsive to their environment. And this is to be welcomed, as long as people are able to re-transcribe this behaviour when they come back. For example, during my experience as an Erasmus student in Slovenia, a friend of mine discovered Krav Maga, an Israeli self-defence system elaborated by the Israeli Defence Forces, and enrolled in the Krav Maga Club in Maribor. This is a perfect example of a person who, through her travel and openness, related to it and discovered something she could actually have done before, in her native country. But she did it at this time, due to a change in her behaviour during her trip. To me, this is definitely a great part of “the magic of travel”. 

In your daily life, you are rarely surprised. You always face the same kind of situations and issues, and use the same means to overcome them. In the end, it is difficult to know yourself entirely in this context. Do you know how you would react if you faced a venomous snake in a wild forest? Or how you would manage surviving in the nature for only three days? Not likely. You are full of resources without even knowing it, simply because of the fact that a great part of yourself isn’t solicited while staying in your comfort zone. 

 

But while travelling, you will encounter some unexpected situations – however well planned was your journey a situation may come that will make you transgress your limits. I guarantee you.

“The greatness of a man is not in how much wealth he acquires, but in his integrity and his ability to affect others around him positively.” (Bob Marley) 

 

We may not realise to which extent we are living in a reassuring environment. The more fortunate have a family, long-time friends, acquaintances, colleagues ... Our lives are organized, structured and more or less stable. Few things may really change. Remember the time you were a child, everything had to be done, to be built up. You had no friends, no landmarks to rely on. But at the age of only three you managed creating your own relations and making friends because you were open and outgoing. Even if it is a long time ago, this part of you still exists. And travelling will put you in the same situation. What a wonderful opportunity to experience again! What a challenge, for most people. But once you overcome your self-restrictions and your shyness, you will understand the meaning of the expression “learn from others”. Meeting people from different backgrounds is a moment of mutual exchange, where each one gives something from themselves, let it be an object, a thought, or an anecdote. This will be a chance for you to enrich yourself through others, as well as getting over shyness and reservation. And once you do it, it is acquired for your entire life! 

A language isn’t just about words, grammar and vocabulary, as you might learn it at school. It is a somewhat wider concept. In fact, words are aimed at describing facts, objects, people or emotions. And you have probably already noticed that some words or expressions cannot be translated from one language to another, or at least, not in the same way. And that is the point. A foreign language is also another way of thinking, which might include some concepts that only exist in this particular country (due to its History, for example). And the words, which are associated to them, do not exist in your native language because of the latter reason. In short, learning another language also means broadening your mind and letting yourself discover some things through other perspectives you couldn’t have even imagined. And to do so, there is no better way than immersing yourself entirely in the country, its culture and its people. 

 

In conclusion, I would say that travelling is valuable in helping you putting yourself in question as well as learning more about yourself, by being confronted with new situations, which constitutes a great source of wealth. But it isn’t a panacea: the benefits you obtain from your journey mainly depend on you: the way you behave, to which extend you are able to put yourself in question and to what degree you are responsive to environmental signals. Finally, it is all up to you. 

My only advice is: do it, but do it well!