As I’ve planned by travels this year, I’ve found myself thinking slightly differently about what my priorities are. Time isn’t so much a factor this year (since I no longer have a job!) but I want to make sure I get the most out of the money I have to spend. Half way through my first trip of my ‘gap year’ I’ve come to realise what is now driving my decisions while travelling.
- location over price – I’d rather spend a bit more and be in walking distance to explore.
- experiences over mementos – I’d rather take home 1000 photos of what I’ve seen/done than souvenirs I won’t know what to do with at home.
- balancing rest days over being ‘go go go’ all the time – some days I’ll get up at 4am to hike to see a sunrise or walk 25000 steps but I make sure to balance these with days spent in cafes soaking in local culture.
- connection over box ticking – while I have an idea of what I want to see and do while travelling, I’d rather spend longer taking my time walking through streets or up mountains to soak in the environment than rush to tick off as many ‘must see sights’ as possible.
- proper sleep over naps – 8 hours broken up throughout the day doesn’t work for me any longer, I need my solid 8 hours at night to appreciate the next day properly so if that means going to bed at 7pm to get up at 3am then so be it.
- flights over overnight buses – the money and time ‘saved’ with travelling overnight doesn’t make up for feeling crappy when you should be enjoying the next day.
- direct flights over cheaper layovers – you get there with much less hassle and airports never have enough comfy seats to mean you can actually get comfy at any point while travelling
- meet and greet over hopper bus parking at airports – if you look out for deals you can save money and time and hassle from being added to your journey
- comfort over fashionable footwear – let’s be honest, how often do I actually dress up to go out out at home or even away? I don’t need to take the strappy sandals with heels just in case. Walking shoes, flip flops plus one other pair of trainers/slip ins cater for all occasions.
- my desire to travel over other people’s beliefs about what I should or shouldn’t do – no explanation needed.
Now yes, these may mean I miss out sometimes. Like in Cusco when I could have gotten up at 3am to hike to Rainbow Mountain but I decided sleep and a lie in would be better to ensure I didn’t peak too soon on my trip (and by this time the altitude cough was well and truly taking hold) or in Sucre when I didn’t go off to see the dinosaur footprints and instead wandered the town and sat people watching in cafes. But I am finally getting to a point where I’m making these decisions for me – seeing the world and taking in everything I can is important but I’m just much more picky over ensuring I do what’s important to me.
Adventure Begins Today 