I find myself wanting to book my own trips without expectation. I want to relax and explore without an itinerary, explore and discover to get back that adventurer spirit that made me a travel journalist in the first place. I did that in May and it was perfect! I ended up creating content out of it but it was because I was joyful! I was so taken with Mexico City and how it surpassed my expectations, and I wanted to share that joy! It reminded me why I do what I do. But also, allowed me to vacation MY way.
I've been traveling full time last 4 years and I do different things everywhere I go. Sometimes we spend a month not slowing down, going from landmark to landmark. Other times, we literally visit nothing and just look for cool things to eat.
Interesting enough, I've done 40+ countries and I've never stayed at a resort (most places I travel don't have them or they are too far from places I want to see), so now I'll have to do that too :)
Hi Carmen, this is a really thoughtful and layered post. I really appreciate how you call out the performative aspect of travel, as well the invisible hierarchy. Super valuable and original observations.
Please don't take it as a criticism, but I also wanted to take the opportunity to mention that for some, it would be useful to question the social pressure to be seen traveling all the time, in general. Many of us travel too much, and personally, I started to see, for instance, the aspirational digital nomadism, as quite a harmful trend. Yes, it's instagrammable and helps to project success, but it also uproots people, fuels consumerism, and can have a negative impact on local communities, for instance pricing the locals out of the housing market.
So I wanted to add my two cents here, firstly, by recommending an incredible, eye-opening documentary: "The Last Tourist".
There is so much to do, and discover, in our local communities.
Sorry for the essay, and I'm definitely not trying to moralize, I enjoyed more than my fair share of nomading, and both transformative, and "just for fun trips". These are just some complexities that I've been sitting with lately.
Stillness is transformation too. Obedience is transformation. And sometimes, the trip isn’t to change us, it’s to remind us who we already are in Him.
Thank you for the freedom in these words. 🦋🌍💛
I find myself wanting to book my own trips without expectation. I want to relax and explore without an itinerary, explore and discover to get back that adventurer spirit that made me a travel journalist in the first place. I did that in May and it was perfect! I ended up creating content out of it but it was because I was joyful! I was so taken with Mexico City and how it surpassed my expectations, and I wanted to share that joy! It reminded me why I do what I do. But also, allowed me to vacation MY way.
I've been traveling full time last 4 years and I do different things everywhere I go. Sometimes we spend a month not slowing down, going from landmark to landmark. Other times, we literally visit nothing and just look for cool things to eat.
Interesting enough, I've done 40+ countries and I've never stayed at a resort (most places I travel don't have them or they are too far from places I want to see), so now I'll have to do that too :)
Hi Carmen, this is a really thoughtful and layered post. I really appreciate how you call out the performative aspect of travel, as well the invisible hierarchy. Super valuable and original observations.
Please don't take it as a criticism, but I also wanted to take the opportunity to mention that for some, it would be useful to question the social pressure to be seen traveling all the time, in general. Many of us travel too much, and personally, I started to see, for instance, the aspirational digital nomadism, as quite a harmful trend. Yes, it's instagrammable and helps to project success, but it also uproots people, fuels consumerism, and can have a negative impact on local communities, for instance pricing the locals out of the housing market.
So I wanted to add my two cents here, firstly, by recommending an incredible, eye-opening documentary: "The Last Tourist".
And secondly, by opening up the conversation about "radical staying", beautifully described here: https://instituteofnaturallaw.substack.com/p/the-radical-act-of-staying-defying
There is so much to do, and discover, in our local communities.
Sorry for the essay, and I'm definitely not trying to moralize, I enjoyed more than my fair share of nomading, and both transformative, and "just for fun trips". These are just some complexities that I've been sitting with lately.