Time flies! In the word of some anonymous bard, “time flies like an arrow – fruit flies like a banana”.
It only seems like yesterday that I started doing this series, inviting travel-minded folk to answer the following question:
“Let’s imagine I’ve never travelled, and I’ve never wanted to. What am I missing out on?”
And time has marched inexorably onwards, as time always does (theoretical physicists, don’t write in), and suddenly we’re into the penultimate part in the series. Just like Lost is, then. But while I can’t guarantee that a Smoke Monster is going to [MASSIVE SPOILERS DELETED BY INTERNET POLICE], I can promise a thoughtful perspective on an age-old question, courtesy of Abigail King of Inside the Travel Lab.
And as Abi explains, travel is good and bad, locked in eternal combat.
(Just like in Lost).
(Post-Lost-finale edit: or not so eternal).
*****
Er, right. What a fiendishly difficult question. Sigh… OK, tea, coffee, engage.
Let’s start with another question: “Let’s imagine I’ve never learned to read or write and I’ve never wanted to. What am I missing out on?”
Well, I’d never have known the pleasure of reading a really great book, the excitement of opening my first payslip or the thrill of seeing my name on something I was proud of. I’d have missed the human connection of love letters, birthday cards, and get-well-soon cards.
I’d have felt overwhelmed by road signs, electricity bills and contracts. I’d be unable to write protest letters, tricked by terms and conditions and denied my vote.
Then again, I’d have been spared the significance of hate graffiti, the BNP manifesto and the pain of a friend’s name on an obituary.
Now, let’s imagine I’ve never travelled. What am I missing out on?
I’d never have known the pleasure of eating sushi in Tokyo or of floating in thermal waters in Greece, the excitement of racing beneath thundering waterfalls or the thrill of climbing a wall of ice. I’d have missed the connection of sharing food with strangers, the camaraderie inside a tomato fight, and the knowledge that across the world, we have more in common than we have differences.
If I’d never travelled, I’d never have felt bored in skull-thudding overnight buses. I’d never have slept on a park bench and I’d never have grasped the cosmic truth that time really does slow to a halt in the visa and immigration hall in Delhi.
I’d never have realised how many problems vanish with a few dollar bills, I’d never have seen torture described as a cultural tradition. I’d never have met abandoned orphans that nobody wants.
Travel can be amazing, tedious and painful, but like literacy, travel adds depth. It adds another layer to life and life, as usual, includes the good, the bad and the ugly.
Without travel, I wouldn’t be writing this post. Without literacy, you wouldn’t be reading it.
You see? The good, the bad and the ugly – you can assign the labels yourself.
Abigail King is a freelance writer with a passion for travel. She blogs at Inside the Travel Lab and writes travel features for Cheap Weekend Breaks and MNUI Travel Insurance.
