The world is waiting for you

Spain was my first independent trip to the unknown, everyone was interested in why I am going, what I will get from the trip and how am I so brave to go by myself. A lot of things were happening in Europe at that time, so I was constantly listening about the terrorists, the bombs, and about how I will not be coming back, and that I should not go anywhere. You’re only going because of that, right? So you will be closed in a hostel all day and night. Because traveling can kill you. Aha! Try the routine. This will kill you.

Exactly that trip to Spain pushed me forward. It changed my view of the world, changed me as a person, and I am very grateful to Spain for that.
Once you start traveling, you never stop. My list of trips that want to go to gets longer every day. And if I'm honest, I'm not interested in the Maldives, and I'm not convinced by New York, Los Angeles etc. Well, there's nothing wrong with going to New York or the Maldives. But I want to go to smaller countries, smaller towns, places that are not exactly tourist places. I do not like crowds, too many people, overpriced things just because you are in Paris. Well, I have been in Paris, overpaid a taxi, ended up at the police station and missed the bus to the airport. Well, I also saw Eiffel Tower, which, unfortunately, did not impress me.

I was impressed by Dvigrad. I was fascinated by a village in Tunisia, where I could talk to the locals, play with children. Little things that I will remember for the rest of my life. The things you feel about the city, you feel the locals and their way of life, the moments when you feel like you're at home.

When I travel, I grow. I go and I come back again. Everything is the same at home, only I am not the same. Every trip changes me. And that's what counts.

And no, you don't need to have a lot of money. You do not need to work your whole life to go on one trip. All you need is good organization. I plan every trip in minute detail. I read, I ask around. This is my way of travelling. I'm a perfectionist and I am interested in everything. I also treat myself. I slept in the hostels and at the hotels, I ate breakfast for €1 and for €10, whatever suited me at that time. But I will definitely prefer to choose a lunch made in front of me on a street stand than a lunch at a restaurant. That's just who I am. In the meantime, I will chat with the "chef" for a while, we will laugh a little, I will find out something new and I will eat my lunch.

The fact is that today's day will never be repeated. The fact is that we are all working all day long to have as much money as possible to buy the best car, to build the biggest house, to buy a lot of clothes. Material things have overtook us, which is sad.

This day will never happen again. What did you do today? You woke up at 6, went to work, came home at 2 p.m., tired, of course. You took a little nap, it's already 6 p.m. You have to do some things at home. You did them. It is 9 p.m., you have to go to work tomorrow, you have to go to sleep. And you went to sleep. And it's the same every day. People are programmed. Money is the most important nowadays. Is the trip that you go to once a year enough? I know it's not.

Today will never happen again. Take advantage of it! Take advantage of every moment. Take free weekends, you will manage to live without that money. Go! Anywhere. You do not need to go far. You do not need a dress from your favourite store. Take a trip somewhere instead of buying the dress. You will wear this dress for 2 months and you will be bored of it, you will wear it too many times, people have seen you in it for too many times so it will eventually end up somewhere in the corner. What you experience when you go out of the everyday environment does not end up in the corner. That will remain in your memory forever.

Take the time, move a little, money is not everything, do something for yourself. When you're traveling, you're working on yourself. When traveling, you are the one who is changing. When traveling, the horizons open to you. In this world, you're the one that counts. No money, no car, no house. There will never be enough money, the cars will get faster, the houses will always be bigger and more beautiful. You will be chasing money all your life, and one day you will wake up, old and grey, and then what? What will you tell your grandchildren about your life when you were young? Where have all the years gone? How did you spend your time?

The world is waiting for you! Just go!

Malanović Šejna