Why are People who are Travelling Happier?
Some people say that travelling is not everything in life. But we think that travelling is an important part of life. Travelling not only extends our concept of the world and makes us smarter and practical in our life but also lets us know our neighbours those with whom we are fortunate to share a place on the map.
Meeting our friends in Europe educates us and teaches us that we are more than European nationalities. We fall in love, we live, we buy, we get angry and we all want a happy life no matter where we are on our continent.
Rather than watching a documentary about travelling, real-life travel enables us to be the protagonist of our own documentary. It is like in our "laboratory" where we make the travel and conduct all our experiments: will we shake a hand in greeting or have to give two kisses?
We are open to a new lifestyle that makes us understand, especially for our own good, that we are not the only ones who populate this blue planet full of seas and storms. We move into greener countryside when we leave Spain and travel to the northernmost part of the continent, and when we reach the Nordic countries it changes again and we see much snow.
Travelling makes us more tolerant because we learn that not everyone lives likes us and also it gives us the opportunity to relax and unwind away from the stress of the daily reality of our homes and places of origin. Also, we undertake to understand others: to put ourselves in their place, to understand that even if we have an underground (metro) system other countries are just as happy with a tram system, to give just one example.
But, there is an even more important reason why people who travel are happier; it is that they have an interest in travelling. People travelling are inclined to have a dream, and the sort of personality with an interest in life and their surrounding environment.
In addition, travel is an activity that requires a lot of practicality; that is, travel is not always rosy − sometimes you have to put in a lot of effort, arranging documents and tickets and encountering bureaucracy, or getting lost in cities or airports.
However, as we say, travel is a sign that you take an interest in life and in being alive, and to discover the different monuments and your neighbours, things that in turn bring other vital benefits for the person who is travelling.
Whether we realise it or not, we learn a lot by travelling − at least, the most basic words with which to communicate with people! And they themselves realise we appreciate their culture and its value.
Although, that is not always the case because some people prefer to not see tourists or foreigners in their country; it also happens in our own country. Thus, our journey becomes a school of life through which each traveller must pass, containing good experiences but also negative ones.
So, in addition to everything we have mentioned above, the person making a journey, whatever kind it is, does not give much importance to who comes from which country, who is a foreigner in their own country and who is not. Much less will they give importance to Mr Money!
True, we still need money to travel, but real travellers certainly do not see money as something to get stressed about and have a wish to accumulate more; rather, on the contrary, money is a cheque or ticket, a night’s hotel stay or a travel guide: thus the money brings much awareness, relaxation and knowledge!
We try to be original, because we like to travel. We also like to know your opinion, and so we welcome your comments explaining what you think about this magic that never ends, not even when we have returned home, the magic that is travelling.
Editing by: Catherine Parker