I was never very interested in travelling for sightseeing.
Partly because I assumed that’s what travel was all about – seeing monuments, ticking off tourist spots, and posing near “must-see” sights.
And since I hadn’t travelled much, I didn’t feel like I was missing anything.
After all, you can read about countries.
Watch documentaries.
Zoom in on Maps.
What more could travel offer?
And yet – whenever I visited a new town, a remote village, or even someone else’s home in a different setting, something shifted inside me.
I used to think it was just the novelty of being on a trip that I enjoyed -and that the serious pursuit of travel wasn’t worth the time, money, or effort.
Especially because I wasn’t -and still am not- into sightseeing.
(Or being seen near sights!)
And if all one wants is do is to eat, drink and relax with family or friends, then one resort is as good as another. The location hardly matters.
But over the years, through journeys prompted by work, family, friends – and now, occasionally, by my own curiosity – I’ve come to realise something:
Travel does recharge my batteries.
But more importantly, it expands my mind.
Not despite skipping the sightseeing – but because I do.
And it’s often the small things:
A brief conversation with a stranger.
Observing how people move, speak and smile.
Noticing how a community, a sreet or a city wakes, breathes, walks, eats, drinks, works and unwinds
Watching how people watch over their children in a park
Watching how dogs greet and meet
“Travel isn’t always about distance. Sometimes it’s about perspective.” – Anonymous
When you’re not rushing from one attraction to the next, you start noticing the texture of life:
• How do people greet each other ?
• What does a quiet evening sound like ?
• What do people complain about? What do they celebrate?
• What do their markets smell like?
• What expressions do people wear – on the streets, in cafés, in museums, on crowded trains?
When people ask me about all that I saw or what Ivdid after I return from longish travels, I often find it difficult to answer 😊.
So here’s what I ask you.
Is travel just about “seeing the world”? Or is it about learning to see differently?
Can we travel not to escape life, but to witness how life is lived elsewhere?
Is it okay to skip the brochure-worthy sights – and still return with insight?
Is it a good idea not to seek out the familiar when one travels – ‘ our’ food and ‘ our’ people ?
I think so. Do you ?
“One’s destination is never a place, but a new way of seeing things.” -Henry Miller
Let me know what you think – and what kind of travel has changed you.
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An ordinary life 
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