Ramblings from Malaysia: What Does Travelling Mean to You?

That's right... What does travelling mean to you?

To me, it's a dream, where I can conjure up an image in my mind, and transform it into a reality. A reality that sometimes is so surreal I need to pinch myself. An experience through all the five senses. By seeing the sights, hearing the sounds, smelling and breathing the air, tasting the delicacy, touching the history, interacting with the people, and soaking in the culture. Something that you can't do either by reading a book or watching it on TV.

Travelling also means a learning process – where I learn, unlearn, and relearn. It is a form of unschooling. When we travel, we learn that not everything that we've read or heard is true. Whether it’s about places or people, we learn more by just being there. And by learning, we get to appreciate what the world has to offer, its heritage, be it culture, nature or even buildings of any age.

It is also a personal journey to self-discovery – even when I’m not travelling alone.

A time for reflection.

A possible breakaway from the cast that has shaped us from when we were still growing up.

A moment that could forever change us.

The way we see the world. And the way the world sees us.

Travelling means sharing beautiful moments, whether it’s with the locals, your family, your friends, or fellow travellers.

It too means opening up new possibilities and opportunities. Possibilities of getting lost on purpose, and finding a treasure outside the usual radius. 

Opportunities for new things. Things you've always wanted to do.

And things you've never thought you would do.

Shoe-shining for that extra cash in Istanbul ;-)

Tree of Life, the 400-year old tree in the desert of Bahrain

Travelling also allows you to be blown away by human’s ingenuity and yet remain humbled by the power of the Almighty.

And more often that not, travelling means that moment when you wake up not knowing where you are and where you’re going but you know there’s nowhere else you’d rather be.

And that moment when, whether sitting alone at a café watching people passing by or admiring a masjid’s dome, you realise that despite being hundreds of miles away from home in an unfamiliar country, you’re at ‘home’.

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Footnote: This is a contest entry for Tourism Selangor's #TSBreakAway competition.
Photos no. 1 and 3 were taken by Anis.

For other www.RambleAndWander.com's blog entries on #TSBreakAway, click here. For other www.RambleAndWander.com's 'Ramblings' entries, click here. To follow Tourism Selangor, check out their Facebook page or Twitter account.