I cannot agree more with Joe Harkins below. Travel need not be expensive and a “been there, done that” mentality misses the point that the “there” is constantly in flux. Visit any destination for a few minutes or hours and you have “seen” it, but have you experienced it? My point in travel is not to tick a box, “yeah, I saw that”, but to experience life there (wherever there is). This is akin to re-reading a book you love or enjoyed. A waste of time? To many yes. Is pleasure or knowledge a waste of time. Part of the joy of everyday experience is what we bring to the party and how we change over time. Not only is the “there” constantly in flux, but the “we” who visit “there” are never the same either.
Here’s the quora blurb that got me started:
Joe Harkins, Web Site Developer and Host
Votes by Ashish Joshi, Bob Monroe, Kendall Thorn, Oliver Emberton, and 1144 more.
A few days ago, I encountered someone I’ve known for years. I knew he had recently been to India. I asked what he had seen and done on the trip.
“Well, I was there three weeks and spent $13,000. Mumbai, New Delhi, Hyderabad and, of course, part of a day in Agra to see the Taj Mahal.”
I was shocked. Yes, the cost was a big shock but “seeing the Taj Mahal” as a dropin/dropout was the most shocking of all. He had come to a gourmet feast and eaten a hot dog.
Yes, you can “see” the Taj Mahal in a few hours.
You can “see” New York in 3 days.
You can “do” London in a day, too.
His experience reminded me of something I’d heard before . . . there are tourists and there are travelers. My friend was one of the former.
A few years ago, I spent 3 weeks in Mumbai, New Delhi, Agra and Varansi.
Total cost (aside from the airfare for getting there and back), $900. ($300 a week)
Before going, I researched my itinerary, using the Internet and my local library. The most expensive hotel cost me $35 a night and that was because I contracted pneumonia and felt the need for more comfort while I was being loaded with antibiotics for 5 days.
Most hotels cost me $15 per night or less, and that always included breakfast.
I went from city to city by overnight train, this saving time and money. Everywhere else, within every city, as often as possible, I took public transportation or walked. Lots and lots of walking.
Did I miss anything significant that my friend paid $13K for? I doubt it. In fact I think it was the other way around. I spent 3 days at the Taj, seeing it at sunrise, during the day and again at sunset.
I saw the burning ghats of Varanasi on the Ganges River from a row boat as the sun came up behind my back. In New Delhi I wandered the local market places and rode the amazing new subway / L system, taking one and half days to cover the system.
During that ride I met gypsy families and spent hours under the performers’ tents in the backlot of a traveling Russian circus. On the overnight train to Varanasi I met the owner of a large cigarette company.
Most important of all, I met, and spent most of my time with, people other than hotel staff and tour guides. I did not spend 1-cent or 1-minute in a shop built just to sell tourist junk.
Point? Wherever you travel, go low. Avoid everything that is convenient and expensive.
