:: Why I Travel
Sunday, November 2, 2008 at 9:52PM 
a guy in fez, morroccoRandom thoughts to follow.
If anyone has somehow missed this video below, now is the time to watch it. At first it seems random, and then all at once, it suddenly taps into your inner core as a human being. The little thing inside which whispers that we're all connected and there is so much to learn, so much to see.
Some folks travel because they want to shop. Some travel to get away from it all. Others travel because they want to experience the exotic. Some would like to learn about others in the world and their lives. And yet some travel because they're running for vice president and wanted to have a passport in-hand, yet have no real curiosity about the world around them. The latter type of (Sarah Palin) person thinks it's somehow pretentious to leave one's corner of the world -- elitist to think there may be something out there beyond our own 'greatness.' Ironic.
But one of my favorite quotes is this:
"The whole object of travel is not to set foot on foreign land; it is at last to set foot on one's own country as a foreign land." ~G. K. Chesterton
I travel because it makes me to accept there are things out there I don't know. And I know that once I know them, it just might make me a better person. And it often does. Every time I go somewhere new, or recapture somewhere I've visited before, I learn not only about other cultures and people, I gain a part of myself that would have remained inactive forever otherwise.
Travel pushes my boundaries, raises my awareness, increases my empathy, and without fail -- teaches me.
And that's why I love to travel.
Watch this:
Reader Comments (4)
I think I've probably watched that video 15 times now, and every time I see it I can't help but click play. It somehow does an amazing job expressing all of the beauty and thrill that goes with travel.
Wonderful post - I could not agree more on the significant difference between travelers. Once you've truly traveled - not just visited somewhere briefly in a sheltered way, you're changed forever. It's something that people who haven't been there or done it yet, just can't understand.
My girlfriend watched this video and cried.
I didn't...but I wish I had.
Right on.
I can't imagine not wanting to travel and experience the people and culture that is so abundant in the world. I just wish I had more money to make that happen!
Thanks Alex, I agree.
CS Perry, I know, I was on the verge of crying, such a cool video.
Ha, I hear that Debbie.