Last week I came across a column by Keith Jenkins

of Velvet Escape titled:

 

‘What travel means‘

Technically, travel means to go from one place to another, or to make a journey (particularly of some length).

Yet as language evolves, the word ‘trip’ seems to better convey this simple act of going from A to B. Whilst ‘travel’, on the other hand, has no such singular meaning.

‘Travel’ has developed into an highly evocative word capable of conjuring up a plethora of converse images. Such as the feeling of freedom when hitting the road, to the stress of complex itineraries; from lazing on palm fringed beaches to being bumped in cramped buses.

But no matter what type of travel one embarks the thrill of the journey is always an adventure.

1. When I was six ‘travel’ meant traversing London to visit Granny.
2. When I was sixteen it was seeking thrills and spills pounding the ski slopes of the Austrian Alps.
3. By twenty-six it meant broadening my narrow western view of the world to explore places I’d never heard of, and experience people, cultures and customs in far away foreign regions.
4. By thirty-six it was travelling half way around the world with my young family to set up home in a new land.

TRAVEL ~ What comes to your mind?

Excitement… trepidation… freedom?

Relaxation… holiday… escapism?

Curiosity… exploration… discovery?

To me?

TRAVEL ~ is synonymous with change

And change involves adventure 🙂

When travelling there’s a:

• change of scene
•    change of lifestyle
•       change of circumstance
•          change of possibilities and potential
•             change of routine
•                change of how you perceive the world and a
•                   change in how the world perceives you

Going travelling gives you the opportunity to break away from the mould that those around you have shaped.

A chance to cut free from what is expected of you in your current social standing – When I first went travelling far from home I happily took a dish-washing job to support my wanderlust – In my home environment that would have been frowned upon as an unwise career move 😉

Simply being ‘out there’ exposes oneself to endless possibilities and all manner of chance encounters that are stifled when adhering to an engrained routine.
Travel opens you to opportunity.

The exciting thing about going travelling is that no one you meet knows about your previous life; you’re not automatically assumed to be a certain type of person due to the work you do or the trappings you surround yourself with – Its a level playing field upon which to discover which position you are most suited to play, where preconceived conceptions have no place.

There’re so many reasons to travel ~ but the crux of it is that there’s always an element of the unknown, of experiencing a fresh slice of life.  And that to me is its attraction.

I love travel’s unexpected delights and the Serendipity of it 🙂

Meeting people from other spheres of life that introduce ideas and occupations you never knew existed. (I never knew cartography existed till I first went travelling!) Having outcomes influenced by fresh paths that you cross.

‘Travel’ conjures up different images and emotions to each and everyone of us based upon age, experience and, our current circumstance, which overrides perceived desires.
If you’re feeling exhausted and worn down by your daily grind ‘travel’ may only get you as far as flopping on a beach to rest and recuperate.
But if you’re bursting full of energy and curiosity upon finishing Uni, the world of travel is your oyster 😉

But, no matter whether ‘travel’ be that relaxing break by the sea, re-charging batteries on a holiday or an expedition into far flung corners of the globe, when one thinks of travel there is always a sense of optimism…

When I think of travel… my heart lifts

“Travel and change of place impart new vigor to the mind.” Seneca

 

What does travel mean to you?