Wow! I can hardly believe it all
started with a movie rental. Yes...the Asian horror movie Ringu would ultimately change my life
forever!
After that, I
started watching more and more of these films, I loved the slow
pacing, the psychological rather than gory aspects and they really
scared me to. Now you may be wondering what in the world scary movies have to
do with travel but bare with all this boring stuff for just a moment and I'll
tell you.
My interest in
Asia began to grow; I started researching about the countries and
cultures I saw in the movies, loved what I found and dreamed about
visiting those places some day. So when in the winter of 2008 I
decided I needed a vacation, I knew it had to be Asia but where?
There was a time
I'd had ambition; I wanted fast cars and big houses, I wanted all the
things people I can't understand anymore want. The old me wanted to play it
safe, somewhere developed and where I assumed they spoke enough English.
So I decided on a 2 week trip to Hong Kong complete with rain shower and
luxury spa. I never did end up taking that trip; instead a friend asked why
don't I visit him in China? Which I did do and Japan got a look
in to complete with an army of cockroaches and door less toilets
Now If I had
a penny for every time someone said "but it's just a holiday" in
response to my reasons for backpacking I'm sure I'd be rich by now and booking
a flight tomorrow. I experienced so much on that first trip, have so many
wonderful memories and I know it's cliché to say so but you really do
learn so much about yourself. When you finally take a step out of your usual
surroundings, get away from the hustle and bustle of everyday life
you can finally think about who you are and where you're
going. I learnt how to love who I am and appreciate what I had back
home, even small things like just being able to take a warm shower and being
able to machine wash my clothes. It wasn't all big lessons either, for
example, I had no idea how much of a picky eater I am until I backpacked or
that I’m a magnet for mosquitoes either.
Travel is
life without paying bills, without restrictions and escaping the mundane; this
is how life should be. You’re free to do whatever you want, go wherever you
want, be whoever you want. This
is what I see and hear time and time again from backpackers, so then how, if backpacking is life changing
for so many people, how could it be just a holiday? Sure, I did those things on
holidays to; got away from the bills, relaxed and so forth but I never really
took myself off the tourist trail, there's just no time to on a holiday. What
comes to mind when I think about travel is freedom, education, growth, therapy and for
the first time in my life I truly felt alive...not just a holiday.
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