“What does traveling mean to you?” This question can elicit various responses depending on who you ask. There are people in the world who don’t like to travel. There are people who travel so much that it isn’t special to them anymore. There are people who are required to travel constantly for work, so the idea of traveling seems tedious and repetitive.

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For some people, traveling starts the moment they plan the trip. Planning a trip doesn’t simply take an hour, properly planning a trip could take at least a day depending on how long your trip is going to be. People figure out where they’re going, who they’re going with, and what they’re doing. The process of planning the trip takes their hopes and makes them a reality, instead of it just being a dream or a wish, it becomes something that is actually going to occur. And once their plans are finalized, the day dreaming starts. Before they’ve even left for the trip they create an idea of what they believe will happen during their travels.

© Ulrika

For others, traveling starts when the actual journey begins. When they leave for the airport, on the highway to start a road trip or at the train station. There still is work to be done to get to the destination, but it’s close enough now that it can almost be tasted. The blood starts pumping and adrenaline rises, the dreams and wishes that had been filling the brain for weeks previously are all coming to fruition. For the duration of the journey, not only is there excitement about the final destination, but for the process of getting there too. Travelers will pass through many diverse areas they’ve never been to before.

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Then, there are the people who feel that traveling doesn’t start until arriving at the intended destination. The planning and the journey are entertaining and worthwhile, but the real fun doesn’t start until their feet touch down on the ground. There are so many diverse possibilities when you arrive in a new place. Everything is foreign, it’s almost as if we’re transported into a completely new world. When in a new place there’s also a slight feeling that we’ve morphed into a new person, or at least a new mindset. No one knows who anyone is, so we can showcase the best parts of our personalities.

© Kansas Photo

While traveling can mean multiple things to different people, practically everyone can agree that traveling allows for an escape, or for a chance at adventure. Whether that adventure is simply laying on the beach allowing daily stressors to wash away, or scaling a steep mountain range, traveling is new. Traveling allows people to have new experiences without having to completely uproot their entire lives. Traveling can refresh the mind and the soul.

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Cover photo © Rosanetur