What Travel Means To Me?

When I was 9 years old I didn’t even know where Malaysia was, within months I was living there and calling it my new home; this is when travel became such a significant and live changing experience for me. Travel has always been an important aspect of my life; I spent nearly 8 years of my life living abroad, I believe that travel is part of my identity and the amount of travelling I have done in my life has changed my outlook on the world. In my opinion, travelling opens your eyes to the world and different ways of living, it has taught me to be aware of the diverse surroundings and cultures of all new countries. I think that given the opportunity, everyone should travel outside of their home country, there is so much more out there and a whole world that is waiting to be explored. 

I was lucky enough to live on the other side of the world for nearly half of my life; living in South East Asia allowed me to see cultures that were unlike my own, being surrounded by so many different people and ways of living opened my eyes to the world. Being able to live alongside people that I would never have met otherwise was a crucial part of me growing up, I was able to grow up surrounded by a vast amount of different people all from their own corners of the world. The amount of travelling I did at a young age allowed me to not only see places that I didn’t know existed, it gave me a strong sense of curiosity for what else was out there that I wasn’t aware of; I was bitten by the travel bug and had an urge to see the world.  

Travel means a feeling of excitement like no other, you are anticipating your next adventure and I think this is the best feeling in the world; I crave the moment when you’re sitting in the airport waiting to board your flight, or equally when you’re about to land in a completely new destination. Travel means learning about a new place and being lucky enough to experience and observe a different way of living, in my opinion, this is the best learning you can ever do; visiting places with new cultures open your eyes to the world in a changed way. Not only this, travel means creating new memories that can be so far away from what you’re used to and where you’re from. I don’t think travelling can ever be a bad decision, you may encounter bad experiences but the whole trip will teach you a lesson and allow you to grow as a person.

I believe that travelling at a young age is extremely beneficial, it opens your eyes to what else is out there, allowing you to see new places that will allow you to grow into a more open minded and accepting person. Travel was incorporated into my life in a way beyond my control, however, I think it’s the best thing that happened to me because it has made me question my current situation in life always and allowed me to understand there are hundreds of places that I have left to explore.

I think that travel is the most exciting thing you can do, yet, it still makes you feel a nervous feeling because you aren’t aware of what the country is like; travelling pushes you outside of your comfort zone which I think is key for character building.