Travel Far and Light

Traveling is addictive, I must say. Once you've tried it, you’ll get hooked forever. Definitely one of the positive sides of being single and working as a freelancer, I’m grateful to have the priviledge to travel a bit more often than friends of my age. Well, I guess there’s always something to be thankful for in every stage of life. I believe this is my time to enjoy ‘me-time’ before stepping in to ‘us-time’.

Nothing is coincidental, and I trust that every single journey is a ‘spiritual’ one. Traveling with friends can be tricky, especially when we don’t see at the same direction –  you know what I mean. Traveling can reveal our true colours, be it nice or nagging. Getting lost in the middle of nowhere, money issues (who’s borrowing how much to who), sickness, food issues (“I can’t eat this, blah3...”), endurance (one needs a lot of stoppings, the other can’t stand losing time)...oh, those are just some of the challenges one needs to face.

That’s exactly why I call it ‘spiritual’; we get to know ourselves a lot better. Traveling is art combined with strategy and trivias. One should be open minded and have a heart as wide as the ocean...the different culture, weather, people may upset you; your travel partner may give you a hard time, your expectation may not be met. Enjoy it anyway, laugh about it, accept it, and keep going.

Personally, as much as I’m fond of traveling by myself, I’ve learned that experiences are best when they’re shared. I don’t mind going here and there for a day (or maybe two), but having someone to talk to and take some pics together is not so bad either. Sharing without prejudice, laughing at our mistakes, breaking down the wall of thoughts like “You don’t understand me, no one does” or “I could’ve, we should’ve...” when shite hits the fan – well, that’s the whole idea of an adventurous journey.

Perhaps, just perhaps, it’s what having a partner for the rest of your life feels like. And I’m taking mini steps to learn how to understand the concept of ‘Namaste’, which as Gandhi puts it, means “I honor the place within you where the entire Universe resides. I honor the place in you of light, love, truth, peace and wisdom. I honor the place in you where, when you are in that place, and I am in that place, there is only ONE of US.”

Traveling goes a lot further than food-tasting, amusement-park-hopping, and panoramic-pics-taking...it’s a journey within ourselves.