Why Travel?
As someone who has lived in the large town/small city of Lincoln, Nebraska my whole life (and who still lives here), my entire world seems to revolve around this place and everything within its borders. But when I reflect on my life so far, so much of who I am has been formed around all the different places I’ve been, and my experiences there.
I think it was when I went to summer camp in Minnesota for the first time, at the age of nine, when I got sucked into the phenomenon now known as “wanderlust”. All the girls in my cabin were from different cities, like Chicago, St. Louis, or Kansas City; and when I would introduce myself and say I was from Nebraska, I was met with looks of confusion and bewilderment, commonly accompanied with a “Wait, where is that?” or an awkward “Oh...wow”. It was at that moment when I realized these girls were just like me, only their worlds revolved around each of their respective cities. They didn’t know anything different, just like how I had no idea what it’d be like to grow up anywhere else than Lincoln.
As I spent the rest of the night with my cabin talking about our cities and schools, I thought about all of the kids that were my age. Each of us growing in our own towns, in our own bubbles; unaware, and not really caring. I never wondered what it was like on the other side of the world, or even on the other side of town. I was so young, and there was so much of the world I’d never seen or even heard about. The thought alone fascinated me: and from that, the travel itch was born. When I had grasped how big the world really was, it dawned on me that I couldn’t discount or look down on any single place on Earth, because there was so much I just hadn’t seen and so many people I haven’t met. It became a subconscious mission in my mind to see as many places, meet as many people, and make as much of a difference in this world as I could.
I left the country for the first time on a family vacation to Italy in seventh grade. The language that I could hear, and the culture that I see but couldn’t understand fueled my curiosity. I had to see more, learn more, and experience more. Fast forward six years, and I’ve now been to 22 different countries, yet I’m still discovering how valuable traveling and its benefits are. The more I travel, the more I am able to see the world from a different perspective. Before, it was easy to think about the differences between me and another person, almost an automatic reflex. Now, I catch myself immediately thinking about how similar I am with everyone I come into contact with - whether it be an old Thai man selling vegetables at a street market in Bangkok, or someone I’ve just met from one of my classes at UNL. My love of traveling managed to cultivate a love of people and a love of learning in me, both of which I never knew I had. Now, every new person I meet energizes me, and every new place I visit becomes my absolute favorite.
Traveling removes the lens behind where you’re from, and puts you in an almost indescribable mindset with new people, cultures, and a unique way of life. When arriving in a place with a completely different set of surroundings, you have to be mindful, be respectful, and be attentive to what is going on around you - and this challenges you. While it sounds super cliche, you truly are able to find out who you are. You connect with the action of being lost. You question yourself and reflect on who you are as a person in the best way possible. In a way, it’s an adventure that has never-ending benefits.
These are some of the things I’ve learned that have made me discover my passion for the world and all its inhabitants. It’s amazing, because I bring who I am, as well as where I’m from to every single place I visit. I’m able to represent Elise from Nebraska no matter where I go. When I return home, it’s just as special, because I will always have those experiences and memories. The people and places stick with me in this giant process of growth and self-discovery.
And for me, that’s the coolest part. They say that a person’s impact on Earth is supposedly only as big as they believe it to be. Through traveling, what I’ve grown to understand is that as corny as it sounds, the world really is your oyster. Your impact on this Earth has no bounds--no matter where you are.
