Oh I am sick of brick and stone, the heart of me is sick,
For windy green, unquiet sea, the realm of Moby Dick;
And I'll be going, going, from the roaring of the wheels,
For a wind's in the heart of me, a fire's in my heels.
(from "A Wanderer's Song" by JOHN MASEFIELD)
Travelling opens the mind and captures the senses. You have the chance to see new things and see old things with new eyes. It is also about crossing borders – not only geographically, but also cultural and social borders. It enriches your life to meet people from other countries, to make friends with people from different cultural, social or religious backgrounds. When used in that way, travelling has the power to promote intercultural exchange, tolerance and, eventually, peace.
It is, however, a fact that people who can travel freely are privileged. People like me, people living in wealthy nations, people with time and money who don’t have to care much about basic human needs such as food, water or the curing of diseases... and we also don’t have problems in terms of visa and residence permits. People like us travel for pleasure, not for necessity. People like us have the privilege to experience travelling as something individualistically meaningful – as something broadening our personal horizon.
Sociologically, travelling has a lot to do with the idea of “authenticity”. One always wants to experience something true, something referring to “real life”, which means, above all, avoiding everything that’s staged. Every traveller has this desire to get “off the beaten path” at some point. No “environmental bubble”, please! The word “tourist” has a negative connotation... tourists move in groups and being among other tourists spoils the “authentic” experience. No one wants to be a tourist; instead, we want to be called a traveller, wanderer, pilgrim, explorer... - an explorer looking for sublime moments, drama, adventure and excitement. On the other hand, harmony, recreation and picturesque views are just as important. What else? Watching a landscape or cityscape from a central viewpoint. Travelling on a train, bus or car and enjoying the distance and openness, the panorama...
Of course, travelling also means sightseeing. A trip to Paris wouldn’t be a trip to Paris without having seen the Eiffel tower. Such typical sights own a special aura; they symbolize the place itself. Sightseeing becomes some kind of collective rite. Again, we are among other travellers. Maybe we don’t want to have them in our photographs, but the fact that there are other tourists actually transforms the sight into a sight.
Sightseeing is as important for travelling as writing postcards, taking photos and bringing souvenirs back home... even posting impressions and memories on this homepage! And travelling wouldn’t be as unique as it is (or can be), if there wasn’t a home to come back to or a background to relate to. Until the next journey starts... :-) |
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