Travel
To travel or not to travel? This is a common question many people ask. It is a pertinent
inquiry, as salaried workers often do not want to shell out loads of cash to see the world.
Commonly, individuals prefer to save their money for buying a car, purchasing a house or
apartment, or get some other material possession. However, there are people who would
rather see more of what the world has to offer instead of saving a lot of money. I guess I can
be said to be one these individuals.
I have been to India, the US (born there), Canada, Italy, Ukraine, Turkey, and the United
Arab Emirates. You can say I am well traveled, though I know of several other people in my
circle of friends who have been to more countries than me. Anyways, I want to reflect on
what this experience has brought me.
Firstly, I can say that it has given me a fresh and priceless perspective on how the world
operates and looks like. Sure, we can watch National Geographic and other TV channels to
gain knowledge about the world, but until you experience these places in reality, it is difficult
to truly know what these areas are like. To be able to take in the smells, sights, sounds, tastes,
touch, and more of a place is something special. Through the senses, we gain a vision of what
life is like in different areas of the world. The more experiences you gather into your psyche,
the more you form a holistic view of the globe, and your place in it. India is one of those
countries, for example, that is practically useless to just talk about. The myriad smells, sights,
and other sensory perceptions you can come upon while there is outstanding and miraculous
in my opinion. And, seeing the poverty there first hand, while witnessing the joy of the
downtrodden, will never leave me. Sharing in Indian music by playing instruments in an
academy there will never become a weak memory. After visiting a few countries for
prolonged periods of time, you begin to feel like a world citizen, rather than affected by
nationalism and zealous pride in your motherland.
This brings me to my next point: travel helps one to carve away dangerous sentiments about
other people from our consciousness. Most times, we are racist, sexist, and such because we
are ignorant and fearful. We have commonly never met the people we hate—or at least gotten
to know them personally. Through the prism of the media and our upbringing, we see people
through a certain lens. When we travel, we get to meet various types of people from
unfamiliar nations. This sets us on a course to become more open-minded and less fearful of
others. We start to see the world as a community, rather than separate communities that must
be at war with each other. For instance, going to Turkey, I found that Muslims there were
joyful and friendly. They were completely opposite to the Muslims I saw on American
television. The media we absorb often ends up as our ideas and opinions. When we travel, we
undue these erroneous constructions.
Travel is also great for networking and making friends. I have connected with so many people
in my travels, that it is difficult to recount everyone of importance that I have met. As a
musician, I have come in contact with countless famous and influential musicians, and even
have been invited through my connection with them to give concerts in India. In Italy, at
meditation seminars and through travels, I have grown friendships that have lasted for more
than a decade. In Canada, I now have plenty of family friends across the border, so that I am
inclined to visit our neighboring country more and more often. In Ukraine, my wife’s family
resides there, and through them, I have been opened up to a whole new type of family
tradition and an ancient culture. Without these connections, I would not have discovered
much about the life of the people in these countries.
Traveling is an essential act, in my opinion. It aids us in seeing the world with a more
holistic perspective, to purge any negative nationalism we harbor, and allows us to make
significant connections with various people that can form lasting friendships and even
business deals.