Why Traveling Isn't Dangerous and Why Its OK to be Afraid
Why Traveling Isn't Dangerous and Why Its OK to be Afraid
Setting off on an adventure around the world can be absolutely terrifying, but it doesn't have to be.
Traveling isn't dangerous on its own, there just so happen to be dangerous situations everywhere you go, whether down the street or across the globe.
The worst thing we can imagine is someone being too afraid to travel, so we're here to tell you why its all going to be ok.
I'll never forget the first time I traveled solo, it was one of the scariest times of my life, but easily also the most rewarding. I found myself sitting in the international terminal at LAX, waiting to board a plane to Taiwan, in route to Phuket to help volunteer after the deadly tsunami in 2004.
While I didn't quite know what I was afraid of, it was the first time I truly felt alone, even while surrounded by thousand of people. I soon found myself with no cell phone, no internet, no friends, no family. As I arrived into the Phuket airport I realized I was also stripped of my language, currency, diet and culture - which left me feeling truly naked.
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But at the same time that I was overcome with a certain fear, I was also consumed with a gitty feeling about the world around me that has yet to leave me. It was like I was seeing color for the first time, tasting flavors for the first time and thinking about things that had never crossed my mind. My senses were firing at record pace, my mind trying to handle everything I saw, smelled, tasted and felt. Solo travel changed my life - no doubt about it.
In the 10 years since that trip I have yet to stop exploring, but it doesn't mean I haven't been afraid either. Fear is simply the lack of knowledge about the unknown, and it is the easiest thing in the world to let that feeling scare you - but it shouldn't, it should excite you.
Traveling isn't dangerous. People can be dangerous, places can be dangerous, situations can be dangerous, but traveling isn't dangerous - its liberating. Sure plans crash, buses tumble off cliffs and people drown all the time, but wouldn't you rather go out in a blaze of glory on the road than lighting a firework off on your head and going out that way?
No one has ever gone to the gym, worked their ass off and as they sat down on the couch after, thought to themselves "Man, I wish I hadn't have done that." And in the same sense, no one has ever come back from a long, exhausting and tiring trip and thought the same thing. (Unless they went to burning man, man.)
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With all the news we see around the world of terrorist attacks in the Middle East, buildings collapsing in Bangladesh, women getting raped in India, drug smuggling in Indonesia and the like, it is very simple to say "Fuck it, I'm out, no traveling for me, it is simply too dangerous out there." unless you live in Never Never Land (or Finland) people are getting shot, stabbed, kidnapped and murdered in whatever country you live in too. (Take what I'm saying with a grain of salt, I'm an American.)
The point being, that you could die alone on your couch after 50 years of watching American Idol and eating Subway or you could die falling off a cliff in Jamaica with your new Dutch girlfriend you made the best memories of your life with, which sounds better? Just think of it this way, if you were following yourself on Instagram, which pictures would you prefer to see?
I'm getting off topic.
Travel isn't dangerous, a life un-lived is dangerous and the fact that you may be too afraid of the big, bag world to get off your butt and explore it is an absolute unfounded myth. Turn off your TV, close the newspapers, stay off twitter (unless its ours) and book that one way ticket to anywhere.
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Will it be scary? Hell yes it will be. Will it change you life? You better believe it.
Imagine all the endless memories you've made living in the tiny little box that you call your every day life. Think of all the laughs, all the experiences and all the friends you've made inside that box. And now think about how many more friends, memories, laughs and experiences are left out there for you to make - just waiting for you to take the next step.
Every time I visit a new country, move to a new city or take a trip I make friends and memories I can never imagine thinking of my life without - and I can only hope you'll do the same.
Who knows, maybe we'll run into each other on the road. The first beer is on me.
