What do I want from travelling?

Edited by: Ananya Khandelwal (UG’21)

What do I want from traveling?

A question that I have been wondering about lately.

Should I have zero expectations and live it as it comes?

Or should I have expectations?

I think

I am more sure about what I don’t want from traveling

Then what I do want

how about…

Eliminating what I don’t want

In order to understand what I do want?

I certainly don’t want to travel just for the sake of it

Going to a place and

coming back knowing just its name and some “touristy” place

When I travel, I want to know the story

The story behind the place and its people

What is the local music like? What festivals do they celebrate?

How do people go about their daily life?

What are their folklores?

How do they dress up on special occasions?

What are some quirky things about the place?

Do they wobble their heads as I do back in my hometown?

What are the local cuisines? What about politics?

To cut this short when I travel:

 I want curiosity

I want to notice minute things

I want to be Present

I want my travel to be filled with experiences

What sort of experiences, you ask?

Honestly any! I am desperate.

Every experience has something to teach.

I don’t want to view travelling

as something “mandatory”

I don’t want to travel to prove my commitment

I travel not because I have to

But because “I want to”

I don’t want to have huge expectations from traveling

I don’t expect something drastically life changing 

I want it to be a process

A process of understanding self

And the world around me

So….

Time for the conclusion then

what do I want from traveling?

I want my travel to strike these small checkboxes I have

And leave plenty of room for unexpected surprises!

• ASHOKA UNIVERSITY
• poetry
• travel
• travelling