Tips and Commentary
Traveling with Money
I remember traveling in Europe pre-euro. (It’s only been around 10 years, I’m not that old. Ok, maybe I am but still it’s not that long ago.) In that day and age every border meant a new currency with a new name and exchange rate and bills and coins. Post Euro in Europe is easier, but still there are tons of travel destinations with their own money. It gets overwhelming in a few different ways.
Traveling with Books
Post in support of the start of the Passports With Purpose. This year’s goal is raising money to build libraries.
I enjoy the physical object of a book, both the feel of it as well as the smell of paper. They however are bulky and can be heavy, so the desire to travel requires some compromises. Becoming an expat in a non-English speaking country has added to those woes a bit as well. I not willing to give up on either reading or traveling so compromises ensue.
Don’t Stop Staring
Often when caught staring as a kid, the retort was “Take a picture, it will last longer.” It occurs to me as I travel that this is somehow exactly what happens. Travelers and tourists alike search for the best picture and forget to actually LOOK at what they are taking a picture of. Are pictures somehow more important than looking at a place?
Country of Origin Labels
In the traveler and expat circles we tend to have friends and contacts all over the place. In these situations people often get labeled with their country of origin. “The Spanish girls or the guy from Canada or a bunch of Australians.” Does our “country of origin” define us in some way or is it just a convenient label?
Having Baggage while Traveling
Travel is something that frees us, well at least that is one goal. We hope to be free of responsibility or things that hold us back. Even so we carry a lot of things with us on a trip. Some of them are in our backpacks, others in our head. This emotional baggage can be as weighty as the physical stuff. What happens when you bring more baggage than just your smartly packed carry-on?
Happy To Leave
Going to a place, seeing sights and then moving on to the next place is often how travel is portrayed. There is an excitement to see the new and go to a new place and a bit of sorrow to leave. Leaving new friends or leaving without seeing a sight or experiencing something brings up some bittersweet. On the other hand, have you ever been somewhere where you were really happy to leave?
What do you eat on travel days?
I make no great secret that when I get hungry I am not as nice a person to be around. Travel days just have this all set up. Early waking up means maybe missing breakfast. Always on the run means eating fast food or whatever looks good at the bakery. Sometimes.. horror.. you even miss meals all together.
Authentic vs Traditional
Sally at Unbravegirl wrote a post this past Sunday about her search for the “authentic” travel experience in Thailand. It is a good article and the comments are just as interesting. This post grows out of a comment I left there; and might make more sense if you read her article first. I come to pretty much the same conclusion as her and most of the commenters, but I was interested to see what would come out of my mind when put to that subject.
