A photo from a meditation retreat Gisel and I did in Bali
I see this written a lot on inspirational videos in Instagram
With some interchangeable quote about how travel is the antidote to racism, bigotry, etc.
As someone who started traveling in 2011 I figured I’d add my opinion.
I Can Understand The Argument
On the surface, it feels like international travel would open your mind to entirely different perspectives in life
It exposes you to different ways of thinking, all of that
After all, the psychologist Gordon Allport came up with the very famous Contact Theory
That states, under the right circumstances, contact between different groups could reduce racism/hatred.
It seems to me like travelling offers that
However
In the age of the internet and Youtube do you really need to travel the world to experience other cultures?
Maybe Short-term Trips Are The Answer?
While I believe humans remain in confirmation bias for most of their travels
Looking for examples in other countries to fortify their existing ideas and biases (myself included)
Short-term travel does offer a possibility for change
It’s a bite-sized way to experience a culture
With the normal travel time of 5 – 10 days, you usually remain in the honeymoon phase
You see an entirely new culture through the lens of excitement and awe
Like meeting a hot chick at the bar in your 20’s and spending the weekend with her
It was fast, exciting, and even the negatives were new and different
You have a joie de vivre that’s lost in the monotony of day-to-day life
That excitement can open your mind to new ideas, different concepts
Ideas that you may not normally entertain find a way to sneak in
Your brain can’t handle the cognitive dissonance of criticizing anything in this new, magical land
So you’re forced to reconsider the things you may not normally like
And try to fit new ideas into the shiny, new box you’ve created for this exotic land
Of course, not every trip is like this
But for the trips that are, it seems like a solid way to learn
Picture of me in a speedo to break up the text a bit
How About Longer Trips?
These trips do allow you to see things a bit more nuanced
You can potentially get longer-lasting change
Simply from the amount of time you spend inundated in the ideas
But from my experience, you can also start picking up prejudices if you’re not careful
I remember judging dark skinned asian women after living in VN
Or feeling more on edge around Northern Africans when in Paris
Resenting Chinese after long periods in SE Asia
One needs to be mindful not to pick up the local biases
Have I Learned Anything From My Travels?
I most certainly have
Before being abandoned by my buddy in a cross-country US hitchhiking trip, I hated being and traveling alone
The thought of traveling alone was horrifying
During that time alone, I started building more introspection, and the courage to then travel alone
This has obviously transformed my life
The courtesy of the Thai people rubs off on you when you stay there long enough.
I admire the fight that most French people have in them every day for democracy and justice, it’s impressive.
How much of this have I retained?
I couldn’t really say.
Here’s an anecdote
I remember my first night in Rome 6 weeks ago after being in Thailand for a while
I went to throw a paper towel into a trash can in the bathroom
Then I noticed that the trash can was overflowing with paper towels.
I made sure to gently place the paper towel on top of the trash can
Ensuring it didn’t fall on the ground
This thoughtfulness 100% came from my time in Thailand
Today, I don’t think I’d take the time to do that
I’d probably just throw the paper towel on top of the pile, not super concerned where it fell.
Change Requires Daily Vigilance
I’d love to say I feel just as in touch with my emotions as I was after my silent retreat.
But I’d be lying
Sure, I did meditate for (for 10 minutes) this morning
But I binge ate Tuesday night
Yes, I had a bit more mindfulness of the process as I was doing it
I didn’t feel as out of control as I used to
But I still fucking sat there stuffing my face with junk food for an hour or so
(also polished off some very delicious, expensive chocolate truffles from Belgium – sorry Gisel)
Lately, I’ve felt trapped inside the house at night
I’m afraid that if I leave the house, I’m going to end up overeating, drinking, and/or blowing money
So – just like I talked about 4 years earlier, I’ve started creating a prison out of my daily routine.
So I would say while I’ve learned a lot, I don’t think I’m implementing a lot
Maybe that’s natural
Maybe it’s too hard to try to remember every single thing you’ve learned and implement it daily
Maybe
Any change, though, requires weekly, if not daily, reminding
Discipline
For this reason, I do like journaling
To believe that traveling, psychedelic drugs, Buddhism, etc., is going to fix you for good is naive
You may learn the lessons, but it will require daily discipline to ensure you don’t forget them.
Picture of me in Dominican Republic, traveling plenty – but also pretty shitty in my dealings with women
So, am I a better person because I’ve travelled?
I’m not so certain what “being a better person” even is
“What seems a good thing today or yesterday, like DDT, turns out tomorrow to have been a disaster. What seemed in the moral and spiritual sphere like great virtues in times past are easily seen today as hideous evils. Let’s take, for example, the Inquisition.”
Alan Watts – Mind Over Mind
Whether or not I’m a better person because I traveled?
Well, I have friends who’ve hardly traveled at all
Friends who have children
Who raise those children daily to be the best people possible
Friends who work hard to support their families, both men and women
Who fight every day to ensure the security and cohesion of their family
That to me seems like a much more tangible good than the good that I’ve learned from traveling
Remain true to the earth, my brethren, with the power of your virtue! Let your bestowing love and your knowledge be devoted to be the meaning of the earth! Thus do I pray and conjure you.
Friedrich Nietzsche – Thus Spoke Zarathustra
Let it not fly away from the earthly and beat against eternal walls with its wings! Ah, there hath always been so much flown-away virtue!
Lead, like me, the flown-away virtue back to the earth—yea, back to body and life: that it may give to the earth its meaning, a human meaning!
What good are my introspective learnings from travel if I’m not using them to give meaning to life?
Or at least to be a little less shity to others?
It seems to me that my non-traveling friends give far more back to the world than the on-and-off again learnings I have from my trips abroad
In conclusion
Any opportunity of being better means regular discipline
You’re not going to come back from traveling a brand new person, forever changed
It’s daily habits that may make you a bit better
Ultimately, I’m not so sure traveling makes you any better than people who don’t travel
With modern technology, it feels like you can learn all you want
I know plenty of people who travel/live abroad who can’t manage relationships with loved ones
Maybe instead of worrying about whether you’re better for traveling
Start by being nicer to your parents and the people around you