Travista

Greatest Teachers On Random Trips!

Have you ever thought about the amount of opportunities that are offered to you the moment you step inside the airport to leave your home country? Have you ever looked at traveling as the prospect that it is?

 

Have you ever seen an interaction so different about what you’re used to, that you have a change of perception? Ever sat staring at how differently people behave in other parts of the world, even in the simplest settings? Like a restaurant for instance or a shopping mall?

 

I believe many of us take the fact that we have the means to travel for granted.

 

The world is a gigantic place with about 7.7 billion humans roaming around, that is A LOT of people having problems, making plans and discussing issues you probably have never even heard of. The world isn’t just big and jam-packed but it is also diverse in lifestyles, languages, beliefs, traditions and cultures. It is too complex that you just cannot experience it all in one life time.

 

This is why we need to change our perspective about travel. We need to remind ourselves that there are thousands of people that we could learn from during our trips, hundreds of opportunities to recognize something new and dozens of unacquainted conversations we miss out on. And I know this idea is uncomfortable and unconventional, but you do not have to be a backpacker to go through such endeavors.

 

You could plan a mainstream Christmas trip to Europe and still be able to experience it all differently. You could still have a conversation, meet someone or know something that changes a thing or two about you. Dedicate a time of your day or even one day of the trip to focus on experience rather than shopping, sight-seeing or roaming around as a tourist.

 

Walk up to a local and ask them what do they usually do for Christmas or what is the most culturally rich part of the city you could visit. Speak to someone about your background and how it’s like back home. Engage in dialogue and get in touch with other humans, because the best teachers are people who tell you stories you would never been able to listen to otherwise.

 

And if the thought of all this makes you uncomfortable, travel with a group and

discuss this aim before you go on that trip. Make a bucket list of small experiences you would like to go back home with. Raise awareness to yourself and those around you about how much of a waste it is to pay money and travel to another continent where you know absolutely nothing about its people and just experience buildings and food, which are also important and worth doing but human interaction is unlike anything else.

 

Think about it this way, it is unfortunate that one piece of land is divided by boarders, airports, governments and politics. It is sad because in reality it’s a space that we have decided to turn into territories. But it was blessed with diversity, community, people, humanity and differences and if you were lucky enough to have resources to freely move from one part to the other, you shouldn’t waste it. Be a human, connect with the world and meet your teachers every were you go!