I firmly believe, if done correctly, traveling to a different country or just across the US is as valuable a learning experience as my sixteen years of schooling. Granted, it is a different set of lessons, but they are no less important. I love to travel and it is one of my goals in life to see as much of the world as I can. Traveling is part of the sport of scuba diving. As much as I love diving Monterey and Carmel, the travel junkie in me is always longing to enter bodies of water I have not encountered yet. A group from Scuba Squad was in Roatan this week and I could not be more jealous looking at their photos and videos.
I just started reading a book Sky gave me for my birthday titled “Off Track Planet’s Travel Guide for the Young, Sexy,and Broke.” This is not the only travel book I have read but, as you may have noticed from the title, this one is quite different. The book is informative and interesting, but it is also laugh-out-loud funny at times and not for the easily offended. One of the most valuable lessons in this book can be found in the introduction. The authors outline the six most common excuses people have for not traveling and why their excuses are lame.
The first excuse I feel is particularly relevant is “I can’t afford it” (Planet, 2013). The authors refute this excuse by saying if that is the case, redefine what it means to travel. If you are a broke newly-graduated student such as myself, the most expensive thing you buy should be your plane ticket because “you can learn everything about tango in Buenos Aires, catch some good karma at the Chao Phraya temples in Bangkok, and get crispy brown at clothing-optional Greek beaches- all for free.” Another excuse I know I have heard is “no one will understand the words that are coming out of my mouth” (Planet, 2013). To this the authors say, “you can resort back to your baby body language in foreign territory and get by fine” (Planet, 2013). They also say if you speak English you can be pretty sure, in most places you go, someone will probably be able to understand you somewhat. The last excuse I want to mention is “I don’t have the time” (Planet, 2013). This is an excuse I have used in the past and I like the authors’ counter. They say “add up your morning commute, time on Facebook, and those days you’re just too bored with life to get out of bed. What does that equal?” (Planet, 2013). Wouldn’t you rather be in Roatan than sitting in your car on your way to work or in bed on Facebook? It is not that I do not have time to travel, it is that I have not prioritized my time in order to make it happen. These are just three of the excuses this book debunks. After reading the intro I feel I have no valid reasons to not make my goal of traveling the world continue.
I just started reading a book Sky gave me for my birthday titled “Off Track Planet’s Travel Guide for the Young, Sexy,and Broke.” This is not the only travel book I have read but, as you may have noticed from the title, this one is quite different. The book is informative and interesting, but it is also laugh-out-loud funny at times and not for the easily offended. One of the most valuable lessons in this book can be found in the introduction. The authors outline the six most common excuses people have for not traveling and why their excuses are lame.
The first excuse I feel is particularly relevant is “I can’t afford it” (Planet, 2013). The authors refute this excuse by saying if that is the case, redefine what it means to travel. If you are a broke newly-graduated student such as myself, the most expensive thing you buy should be your plane ticket because “you can learn everything about tango in Buenos Aires, catch some good karma at the Chao Phraya temples in Bangkok, and get crispy brown at clothing-optional Greek beaches- all for free.” Another excuse I know I have heard is “no one will understand the words that are coming out of my mouth” (Planet, 2013). To this the authors say, “you can resort back to your baby body language in foreign territory and get by fine” (Planet, 2013). They also say if you speak English you can be pretty sure, in most places you go, someone will probably be able to understand you somewhat. The last excuse I want to mention is “I don’t have the time” (Planet, 2013). This is an excuse I have used in the past and I like the authors’ counter. They say “add up your morning commute, time on Facebook, and those days you’re just too bored with life to get out of bed. What does that equal?” (Planet, 2013). Wouldn’t you rather be in Roatan than sitting in your car on your way to work or in bed on Facebook? It is not that I do not have time to travel, it is that I have not prioritized my time in order to make it happen. These are just three of the excuses this book debunks. After reading the intro I feel I have no valid reasons to not make my goal of traveling the world continue.
Planet, E.
of O. T. (2013). Off Track Planet’s Travel Guide for the Young, Sexy, and
Broke. Philadelphia, PA: Running Press.
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