Travelling in style
The traveler sees what he sees, the tourist sees what he has come to see - Gilbert K. Chesterton.
Like many other people, my first encounter of traveling involved a group of strangers following a strict itinerary, shopping in sleazy and pricey shops, sleeping in luxurious but soulless hotels, eating blander version of food back home, and riding big, sterilized bus from one place to another. Thinking back on these kind of traveling, I can only recall the horror of being picked up as the impromptu entertainer during the long ride. The unlucky one would be forced to sing or tell jokes or whatever for a few cheap laughs from the others. Some think that is fun but I just wish to be left alone to enjoy a few moments of privacy, thank you. Rejection equals to being a party-pooper and, obviously, I never really enjoy such trips.
Fast forward a few decades, I am acquainted with a different kind of traveling. With boundless amount of information on the internet and travel guides, traveling becomes very easy. I can practically tailor it to my needs, budget, schedule, everything from the comfort of my own bench. I also do away with a guide who tells me where to go, what to see, and what to eat. Thanks to these advancement, my fellow expatriates travel like mad: they do Rome in one day. They travel Avignon-Paris on a weekend. Some even do Amsterdam within a few hours: arrive on the train station, make a circle around the canal, then board the train back home. I too eschew this kind of traveling.
A few hours in a city to snap at a few pictures in front of must-see attraction doesn’t justify the hassle of getting a visa, repacking my toiletries into smaller containers, taking out clothes from the hangers to fold (a double job as I have to do likewise for my husband), preparing money and papers, searching the internet for best deals, fighting over the itinerary, etc. My idea of traveling is spending a minimum of a long weekend in a city or a week in a region. If I can, I love to spend months just staying in one new place.
What is the purpose of traveling, I often wonder. To show off one’s wealth? To appear to be educated and worldly? To experience new things? To brag and collect evidence in form of photographs and videos? To get away? And what makes traveling successful?
To me, traveling involves learning. Of course I’ll be foolish to jump into a country without proper preparation but I always try whenever possible to keep my expectations in check so that I am not blinded by what I have to see but savour what I experience. Only by keeping an open mind can I learn something new.
My best memories of traveling are normally related to my staying in a country for a period of time. I don’t care to memorize how many rooms the Forbidden City has or who built the Temple of Heaven. I will not tell dear friends who are going to China that they must scale the Great Wall (and buy a few t-shirt to prove it) or otherwise they can’t claim they’ve been to China. But I like telling people that, in outskirt of Beijing, there are pockets of heaven containing Japanese and Korean restaurants and the food served are not the sashimi and Korean BBQ variety. I like telling people that Chinese-Indonesians, contrary to our own belief, are not considered Chinese by the Chinese people. I like telling people that I have lived Beijing.
To savour the culture, accommodation plays an important part. I shun big chain hotels if I can help it and opt for provincial bread and breakfast. The tinier the better. That way, I can interact with the owner who, normally, love the place enough to share it with visitors. I once stayed in a B&B whose room is decorated with mismatch linen from the local flea market. That, to me, is character. That is one-of-a-kind. That is worth remembering.
I am crazy about food so a particular travel is never significant unless good food is involved. The week in Provence is etched very firmly in my memory because of one single excellent lunch. It is further complicated by the fact that a good lunch does not only equate to good food: it has to be good food with the right company, an equally good drink, and a beautiful ambiance. Clearly, such meals are few and far between but the memory lives on.
Lastly, I always try to take public transport or, with the luxury of my husband’s driving license, drive around with a map on hand (and a few shouting matches on the road side). After a few days taking the same tram or bus to the hotel, recognizing the environ around where I sleep, I soon feel at home and secure. Unfortunately, that is also normally the time when I have to leave.
I realize I complicate things for myself and my idea of traveling can be a luxury to some. But to me, these complications and efforts are worthwhile even if that translates to fewer travel. To me, those who manage to travel like the above quote, travel in style.
