It has been nearly a week since returning from China and Taiwan. I'm still adjusting to the time zone shift, something I won't have to deal with very often when my formal journey begins. Unfortunately (Fortunately?) I have nobody about to kick my butt if I don't wake up in time. Ahh..the art and discipline of self motivation. I'm currently processing the photographs from this recent trip. I'll post a general write up in the next couple of weeks.
My intention isn't to just tell you verbatim where I've (We've - I went with my dad and sister on this trip) been and throw up some pictures. There are plenty of books you can find at the library or bookstore for that. I hope to talk about some of my observations both big and small, and relate them to a larger context if appropriate. I also want to tell you about the ups and downs. No trip is 100% fun. No destination is 100% beautiful. Some aren't even 50%. Many books and travel advertisements tend to overweight the positive aspects of places, or they try too hard to find the "silver lining." Not here. Of course, beauty and attitudes about beauty are in the eyes of the beholder - but I can at least tell you why I feel a certain way. Of note though is that for one of my first times travelling this extensively - I was surprised that I found myself not being as judgemental as I might otherwise normally be about what I experienced. Not judgemental free, but significantly less than prior trips of this length. It is as if while I was there I was doing more absorbing, rather than judging. Leaving the judgements at "home" until one has time to reflect can make even an arduous trip (Not this one) plesant.
I also hope to tell you how my eyesight has changed / evolved based on the things I see and experience. I'm not sure exactly how I will do this but I feel it is important to explain. We all evolve as we grow older. Many people count things like marriage, death of a close family member or friend, death of a parent(s), school graduation, a new job, a new baby, major illness or accident, a new hobby, a new faith, etc... as markers of change. These will indeed change you! But, the "right" kind of travel (Dependent on how, where you go, and if you think about it) can bring about an equal amount if not even more changes in one's eyesight. Life for most is a recycling of the previous day. Broken up by some of these one time events. There is nothing wrong with that. We all need our routines, even in travelling.
The way I like to travel surprises me by forcing me to re-evaluate things I never questioned before. This is what I want to share. In a continually globalizing and rapidly changing world (Historically speaking) the importance of this is ever more important.
My intention isn't to just tell you verbatim where I've (We've - I went with my dad and sister on this trip) been and throw up some pictures. There are plenty of books you can find at the library or bookstore for that. I hope to talk about some of my observations both big and small, and relate them to a larger context if appropriate. I also want to tell you about the ups and downs. No trip is 100% fun. No destination is 100% beautiful. Some aren't even 50%. Many books and travel advertisements tend to overweight the positive aspects of places, or they try too hard to find the "silver lining." Not here. Of course, beauty and attitudes about beauty are in the eyes of the beholder - but I can at least tell you why I feel a certain way. Of note though is that for one of my first times travelling this extensively - I was surprised that I found myself not being as judgemental as I might otherwise normally be about what I experienced. Not judgemental free, but significantly less than prior trips of this length. It is as if while I was there I was doing more absorbing, rather than judging. Leaving the judgements at "home" until one has time to reflect can make even an arduous trip (Not this one) plesant.
I also hope to tell you how my eyesight has changed / evolved based on the things I see and experience. I'm not sure exactly how I will do this but I feel it is important to explain. We all evolve as we grow older. Many people count things like marriage, death of a close family member or friend, death of a parent(s), school graduation, a new job, a new baby, major illness or accident, a new hobby, a new faith, etc... as markers of change. These will indeed change you! But, the "right" kind of travel (Dependent on how, where you go, and if you think about it) can bring about an equal amount if not even more changes in one's eyesight. Life for most is a recycling of the previous day. Broken up by some of these one time events. There is nothing wrong with that. We all need our routines, even in travelling.
The way I like to travel surprises me by forcing me to re-evaluate things I never questioned before. This is what I want to share. In a continually globalizing and rapidly changing world (Historically speaking) the importance of this is ever more important.
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