The Meaning of Travel: Reading Alain De Botton's "The Art of Traveling"

The epidemic has been going on for two years. When asked what they want to do after the epidemic is over, many people will answer: travel. Although there are still many people who are not afraid of risks during the epidemic, or go there when the epidemic is relieved Depending on the destination, most people are still forced to either give up their travel plans or just drive around the neighborhood. While thinking about the days when you can travel around without hindrance, have you ever wondered why we travel? What are you looking forward to getting from your trip?

I just finished reading The Art of Traveling by the talented British writer Alain De Botton. The author did not list what he saw and heard in various travels, but chose a few fragments from his own travels, combined with what he associates with this fragment We have written down our own unique insights about travel and even life. Many times, we travel for the sake of travel, listing the most famous or most recommended scenic spots in a tourist destination, and taking pictures while watching the flowers. , but lost the curiosity and the mentality of exploring the beauty of details that are most needed. As the author writes in the book: "We always have too many concepts, too many presuppositions, too much following, too much knowledge, too much Rumors, but abandoned the most cherished ears, eyes, intuition and specific details, and as a result, went everywhere, but went so empty, then followed the trend, and the people said what they said."

We have all heard the summary of those so-called "most unreal tourist destinations", and we have all had similar experiences more or less, that is, field trips often have a gap with our expectations for it, and even make us Disappointing. This is because most of the information we get about travel destinations comes from some travel guides, presentations, blogs, and even literature, but we forget that these depictions of travel are selected and simplified, i.e. It only shows us the best part of traveling in the local area, just like a photographer who takes a whole day in a certain location will delete all the photos that do not match the light, shadow and details, but the one shown at the end does not represent the The whole face of this place. On the other hand, our feelings about travel are actually influenced by a large part of our personal mood and mood at the time. Imagine if you travel to a long-awaited place, but You have had a serious dispute with your partner, or you have been thinking about the work report you will face after the trip (as the author listed his own personal experience), then, even if the weather is good, the scenery is very beautiful Beautiful, the hotel is very comfortable, and the local food is delicious, but your feelings about the trip may not be good. (So it is very important to choose the right companion and adjust the mood before departure)

Everyone's expectations and concerns about travel are different, but in any case, with the curiosity of exploration and the mentality of discovering beauty will make the process of travel much more interesting. The tour team always feels that the kind of travel that is in a hurry to complete the task is actually a burden. It is better to watch books and documentaries about the local description at home. In fact, as for what is the most worthwhile or interesting thing in a travel destination, everyone You can have different opinions. Maybe those well-known "punch spots" are not attractive to you, but some small details found on a certain road or alley are very interesting to you. The author believes that , the greatest advantage of traveling alone is that our observations of the world do not need to be influenced by our peers, because peers' questioning often stifles our curiosity, and we adjust our curiosity to meet other people's expectations and make ourselves look like" "Normal". When we are alone, we are free to explore things we are interested in, such as a special store, the roof of a building, an inscription on a wall, or even a special person on the street From this point of view, even if we do not travel far, we can still find undiscovered scenery in the most familiar environment, as at the end of the book, the author is content to stay in his room by wearing pink dutch pajamas. Sevier-de-Meister's <Bedroom Tour> to remind us, "Let's focus on what we've seen before we go far."

Finally, I attach a few photos of my most recent trip. I went to Banff National Park in Canada in October 2019. Some of the photos were really beautiful. It was also because the weather and light and shadow were very good at that time. How about this.